Why is the full moon of January called Tet Nguyen Tieu?

After a year of hard work, people reward themselves with a short time to rest and enjoy spring. The Lantern Festival marks the end of the month of "playing around" and the start of a new year of work.

The Lantern Festival is also called Nguyen Tich, Nguyen Da, or Thuong Nguyen Festival. The Lantern Festival means the fullest moonlit night of the first month of the year, the full moon of the first lunar month. The bright moonlit night marks the beginning of a new year with the pure aroma of warm weather, full of spring vitality.

According to Buddhist scriptures, the first and fifteenth days of the lunar month are Buddha's days. The fifteenth day of the first lunar month is a day of universal salvation, the day when Buddha descends to temples to witness the sincerity of believers. Therefore, temples on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month are decorated with lights, flowers, flags, and banners, and are filled with people going to worship Buddha to pray for all things to be good and peaceful.

That's why people have a saying:

"Worshiping Buddha all year round is not equal to the full moon day of January"

or: "Being vegetarian all year round is not as good as being vegetarian on the 15th day of the first lunar month.".

The full moon of January 2025 (ie the 15th day of the first lunar month) will fall on Wednesday, February 12, 2025. According to folk beliefs, noon (from 11am to 1pm) is considered the ideal time to perform the full moon worship ceremony.

It is believed that this is the time when heaven and earth are in harmony, and the gods can easily witness people's sincerity. However, if the ceremony cannot be performed at this exact time, the homeowner can still perform it from the morning of the 14th until before 7pm on the 15th of January.

Vietnamese people attach great importance to worshiping on the 15th day of the first lunar month, preparing proper offerings to offer to gods and ancestors, because this is the first full moon day of the new year.

Prayers for the full moon of January according to the book "Traditional Vietnamese Prayers" - Culture and Information Publishing House:

I bow to the nine directions of Heaven, the ten directions of Buddhas, the Buddhas of the ten directions.

I respectfully bow to the Emperor of Heaven, the Mother of Earth, and all the deities.

I respectfully bow to you, the local god of the land and dragon veins.

I respectfully bow to you, the Five Directions, Five Earths, and the Gods of Fortune and Virtue.

I respectfully bow to you, the landlord and god of wealth.

We, the believers, are:... residing at:...

Today is the full moon day of the first lunar month of the year of At Ty. We, the believers, sincerely prepare offerings of flowers, gold, silver, tea, and fruit, burn incense and offer them before the altar. We respectfully invite the current ruler of the year, the local tutelary god, the tutelary god of the East kitchen ...

I humbly ask you to hear my invitation, have mercy on the believers, come down before the altar, witness our sincerity, accept the offerings, bless us, the believers, our families, and our work. May everyone be at peace, our fortune and wealth increase, our hearts and minds expand, all requests will be answered, and all wishes will be granted.

We respectfully bow before the altar and ask for your protection and blessing.

(Some information is for reference only)