Happy New Year!  Chúc Mừng Năm Mới!

On Saturday evening, February 13, friends and family gathered at the Dong Hung Temple and Buddhist Education Center to celebrate Tết, the Vietnamese New Year.  The Temple was beautifully decorated with red lanterns and the shrine was adorned with offerings of flowers and fruits.  Opposite the shrine were two lovely, Hoa Mai branches where one hundred or more lucky, red envelopes hung. See pictures

During the earlier part of the evening, as guests arrived, we shared tea and conversation…and much laughter.  We sat around the table discussing how our year has been and also learned about Tet in Vietnam and how it is celebrated in the United States.  As usual, the Temple was a very comfortable and friendly place – a wonderful way to bring in the New Year!

Another great way to bring in the New Year is eating delicious Vietnamese foods.  And, of course, there was much to choose from.  To support the Temple, we were able to purchase our food for eat-in or take-out! Most everyone did both! By late evening, the Temple was filled with happy, people anxiously awaiting to bring in the New Year together.

Venerables Chúc Do and Chúc Thanh delivered a special Buddhist New Year ceremony through to Giao Thừa (the midnight-hour). After the ceremony, the monks handed out oranges and red envelopes with well-wishes and lucky money. We each bowed and thanked them, wishing them a Happy New Year. During this time, many people lit incense and paid their respects to their ancestors and the deceased. We pulled envelopes off the Hoa Mai branches hoping to get the one with the lottery ticket!

At around 1:30am, the Temple served Vietnamese Pudding to everyone in the Temple. Sharing this delicious dessert together in the New Year was symbolic of our connection to each other and to the Temple. Many people stayed at the Temple early into the morning, enjoying each other’s company, eating food, and drinking warm, sweet soy milk.

We thank the Dong Hung Temple and Buddhist Education Center for hosting such a wonderful event. We wish everyone an Auspicious New Year!

Kathy – Thánh Từ