Year-End Land & Household Deities Thanksgiving Prayer: 3D Altar & A4 Scroll

IPersonalize Your Scroll, Select Ritual Date and Read Prayer

Quick-switch Ceremony (55 Rites across 8 Categories):

All 55 Rites ›

1. Select Solar Date (Auto-converts to Lunar Date, Sexagenary Cycle & Auspicious Hours)

Pick the actual solar date on which your household performs the rite

Ceremony Date (Solar Calendar)

Quick presets for Year-End and Lunar New Year 2027

Select an Auspicious Hour to insert into the prayer (optional)

2. Officiant and Household Details (Live Scroll Personalization)

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Liturgical pronoun

Full name of chief officiant (Petitioner)

Solar birth year Enter solar birth year to auto-calculate Sexagenary stem-branch and lunar age

Paternal ancestral surname

Maternal ancestral surname (optional)

Shop, company or office name

Household or ceremony address

Co-attending household members (optional)

3. Choose Prayer Variant, Enter Altar Mode or Print A4 Scroll

The complete traditional scroll for households residing in landed homes, townhouses or garden villas: offers heartfelt thanksgiving to the Yang-Residence Guardian Deities, Five-Direction Dragon Veins and Former Proprietors for protecting the home throughout all four seasons.

HALL OF MYRIAD PATHS · TRADITIONAL RITUAL SCROLL

Year-End Land and Household Deities Thanksgiving Prayer: Honoring the Earth Deity, Kitchen God and Five-Direction Dragon Veins

1. Classical Year-End Land & Residence Thanksgiving Scroll (Family Homes)

Namo Amitabha Buddha! (Three recitations, accompanied by three reverent bows)

Humbly bowing before the Nine Directions of Heaven, the Ten Directions of all Buddhas, and all Buddhas throughout the Ten Directions. Humbly bowing before Sovereign Heaven, Empress Earth and all Venerable Deities.

Humbly bowing before the Reigning Year Commissioner and Grand Duke Jupiter Spirit governing the ………… Year, and the Local Tutelary Guardian Deities presiding over this district.

Humbly bowing before the Local Earth Deity of Righteous Blessing, the Kitchen Deity of the Eastern Hearth, the Household Land Guardians, the Deities of the Five Directions, Five Lands, Dragon Veins and Wealth, and all Venerable Spirits watching over this neighborhood.

Humbly bowing before the Nine Generations of Forebears of …………, together with the Former and Subsequent Proprietors who once established and dwelt upon this parcel of land.

Today is ……………………, in the Twelfth Lunar Month bringing to a close the twelve months of the ………… Year and preparing for the new spring of ………….

………… ………………………………, residing at the dwelling located at: ………….

Honoring the ancient proverb that every parcel of earth is guarded by its Earth Deity and every river by its Water Spirit, ………… recognize that the steadfast safety of our roof, the warmth of our hearth, and the health and harmony of our household throughout the past year have all been sustained by the benevolent protection of Heaven and Earth, the Local Earth Deity, the Kitchen God and the Five-Direction Dragon Veins.

On this auspicious day of the Twelfth Lunar Month, having swept and purified our home, ………… reverently present fragrant incense, bright lamps, fresh yellow blossoms, five-colored fruits, betel and areca, five cups of tea and rice wine, savory (or pure vegetarian) offerings, and clean white rice and sea salt before the altar to perform the Year-End Land and Residence Thanksgiving Rite.

Should any daily household activity, garden digging, wall repair or inadvertent oversight during the ………… Year have disturbed the subterranean Dragon Veins or fallen short of ritual courtesy, may the Venerable Deities pardon us with boundless generosity and restore the earth currents of this home to serene harmony.

May the Venerable Deities, the Earth and Dragon-Vein Spirits, and the Ancestors of ………… continue to bless our residence at ………… throughout the coming ………… Year with vibrant Feng Shui, protection from all calamity, family peace, abundant livelihood and auspicious fulfillment.

With modest tributes and sincere gratitude, ………… bow before the altar in thanksgiving!

Namo Amitabha Buddha! (Three recitations, accompanied by three reverent bows)

IICeremonial Offerings and Preparation Checklist

Offerings for the Year-End Land and Household Deities Thanksgiving Ceremony (Le Ta Dat Cuoi Nam) emphasize purity and sincere gratitude toward the guardians of earth and hearth. A classical hallmark of Land Thanksgiving rites is the number five (representing the Five Directions and Five Lands: East, West, South, North and the Earth Center), pairing fresh yellow blossoms and five-colored fruits with either a traditional savory tray or a serene vegetarian spread.

IIIInteractive 3D Altar, Layout Diagram and Ritual Protocol

Drag to rotate 360° · Click numbered pins 1 to 7 or cards below to inspect each offering

Rendering crimson-and-gold 3D ritual altar…

Spatial arrangement: The Year-End Land and Household Deities Thanksgiving Rite is performed at the main indoor Deity and Ancestral Altar (and, for shops or ground-floor homes, may also be accompanied by an offering tray at the floor-level God of Wealth and Earth Deity Shrine). Follow the classical East-Vase West-Fruit rule from the deity seat looking out: place the fresh flower vase on the right from the officiant's view, the five-fruit platter on the left, the central Deity incense bowl at center, and the five libation cups and main thanksgiving tray on the front table.

1

Central Sanctuary, Deity & Ancestral Tablets & Printed A4 Thanksgiving ScrollAnchored at the rear center of the upper altar; rest the printed A4 Land Thanksgiving Scroll neatly on a stand before the incense vessel.

2

Pair of Altar Lamps or Bronze Candlesticks (Left & Right)Lit at both rear corners of the altar to kindle warm Fire Qi that nourishes the Earth Element of the dwelling.

3

Central Deity Incense Bowl (Light 5 or 3 Fragrant Incense Sticks)The central, slightly elevated incense bowl serves as the spiritual seat of the Tutelary, Earth and Kitchen Deities.

4

Fresh Yellow Chrysanthemum Vase (East Vase, Officiant Right)Positioned on the right side from the officiant's view, offering vibrant Earth-harmony blossoms in gratitude.

5

Five-Color Fruit Platter (West Fruit, Officiant Left)Positioned on the left side from the officiant's view in balance with the East Vase.

6

Row of 5 Tea Cups, 5 Rice-Wine or Water Cups & Betel-Areca DishAligned neatly in front of the incense bowl to honor the Five-Direction Earth and Dragon-Vein Deities.

7

Land Thanksgiving Tray: Boiled Rooster & Red Sticky Rice (or Roast Pork, Vegetarian Sweets) + Rice & SaltPlaced on the lower front offering table alongside the dishes of white rice and sea salt that retain household blessing.

Real-world reference photographs of traditional altars and offering trays

Open-license documentary photographs via Wikimedia Commons (click any photo for source file)

Traditional Vietnamese household altar with bronze trio. Balanced Vietnamese domestic altar displaying a bronze incense urn and candlesticks at the rear, a blue-and-white ceramic incense bowl centered on a wooden stand, red gladiolus vases and fresh fruit. — **Traditional Vietnamese household altar with bronze trio.** Balanced Vietnamese domestic altar displaying a bronze incense urn and candlesticks at the rear, a blue-and-white ceramic incense bowl centered on a wooden stand, red gladiolus vases and fresh fruit.
Photograph: Phuong Huy · License: Public domain · Source: Wikimedia Commons

Traditional Tet offering table in Hue, Central Vietnam. Household Lunar New Year offering table in Hue arranged with whole boiled chicken, steamed sticky rice, sweet soup bowls, savory dishes, betel leaf, fresh flowers and ceremonial deity caps. — **Traditional Tet offering table in Hue, Central Vietnam.** Household Lunar New Year offering table in Hue arranged with whole boiled chicken, steamed sticky rice, sweet soup bowls, savory dishes, betel leaf, fresh flowers and ceremonial deity caps.
Photograph: Titti Nguyen · License: CC BY 2.0 · Source: Wikimedia Commons

Step-by-step ceremonial sequence before the altar

To perform the Year-End Land and Household Deities Thanksgiving Ceremony with calm dignity and replenish your home's protective Qi before Tet, follow seven steps:

Step 1
Select an auspicious daytime date between the 15th and 28th of the 12th Lunar Month
Choose the Twelfth-Month Full Moon (January 22, 2027), an Auspicious Day in the second half of the month, or combine the rite with the morning of the 23rd Lunar Day (January 30, 2027).
Step 2
Tidy the main entrance, living room, kitchen hearth and garden corners
Before setting out offerings, clear clutter from doorways and corners, open windows to admit fresh sunlight into the Bright Hall, and wipe the altar surface and kitchen stove clean.
Step 3
Arrange offerings in East-Vase West-Fruit order and print the personalized A4 Scroll
Enter the petitioner's name, birth year, household members and property address (or business name) in the studio above, print the A4 scroll, and set it on the altar with the offerings.
Step 4
Kindle both altar lamps, pour 5 tea and 5 wine cups, and light 5 incense sticks
At the chosen daytime Auspicious Hour, dress neatly, light both altar lamps, pour five cups of warm tea and five cups of clear rice wine, and place 5 (or 3) lit incense sticks into the central Deity bowl.
Step 5
Recite the Year-End Land & Household Deities Thanksgiving Prayer aloud
Bow three times with joined palms and read the appropriate scroll variant clearly (Variant 1 for family homes, Variant 2 for shops and offices, Variant 3 for apartments).
Step 6
Wait until two-thirds of the incense burns down, bow in thanks and burn the scroll
Once two-thirds of the incense has burned, bow three times in gratitude, burn the A4 petition scroll and modest Five-Direction votive paper inside a covered metal burner, and sprinkle a drop of clear wine over the cooled ash.
Step 7
Retain the blessed rice and salt indoors and refresh the three Wealth Shrine jars
Unlike site-clearing rites where salt and rice are scattered outside, the rice and salt from a Year-End Land Thanksgiving carry accumulated earth blessing: pour them into your kitchen rice bin and salt jar, or refill the three jars on your God of Wealth shrine.

IVPhilosophy of the Year-End Land Thanksgiving Rite and How It Complements the 23rd Kitchen Gods Ceremony

In Vietnamese household liturgy and classical Yang Residence Feng Shui, every parcel of land and inhabited dwelling is watched over by a council of guardian spirits collectively venerated as the Household Venerable Deities. Across twelve months of changing seasons, a family walks the floors, cooks at the hearth, trims trees, drives nails or repairs rooms while countless currents of energy pass through the main gate. Each Twelfth Lunar Month, households and enterprises therefore perform the Year-End Land and Household Deities Thanksgiving Ceremony (Le Ta Dat Cuoi Nam) to express heartfelt gratitude to the unseen guardians of the site.

The spiritual core of the Year-End Land Thanksgiving Rite rests upon two complementary principles: Gratitude for Shelter and Harmonizing the Dragon Veins. First, the household thanks the Local Tutelary Deity, the Local Earth Deity of Righteous Blessing, the Kitchen Deity of the Eastern Hearth, and the Five-Direction Dragon-Vein and Wealth Spirits for keeping the foundations firm, the hearth warm, and daily life or commerce safe. Second, the officiant asks gracious pardon and energetic restoration of the Dragon Veins for any drilling, remodeling, gardening or domestic oversight during the past year that may have disturbed the tranquility of the land.

According to the tradition

Many families ask how the Year-End Land Thanksgiving Rite relates to the Farewell to the Kitchen Gods on the 23rd of the Twelfth Lunar Month. In classical Vietnamese belief, the triad of Household Deities shares the central altar, yet each holds a distinct role: on the 23rd lunar day, the primary focus is seeing off the Kitchen Gods on live carp to report the year's conduct to Heaven. By contrast, the Year-End Land Thanksgiving Rite focuses directly on the physical land parcel, the subterranean Five-Direction Dragon Veins, the Local Earth Deity, and the Former and Subsequent Proprietors who remain anchored to the property. A family may hold the Land Thanksgiving as a dedicated ceremony on any auspicious day between the 15th and 28th of the Twelfth Month, or perform it alongside the morning offering on the 23rd lunar day.

According to the historical record

For the close of the Binh Ngo Year leading into Tet Dinh Mui 2027, the most favorable solar dates to hold the Year-End Land Thanksgiving Ceremony include: Friday, January 22, 2027 (15th of the 12th Lunar Month, Tan Suu Day), Tuesday, January 26, 2027 (19th lunar day, At Ty Day), Saturday, January 30, 2027 (23rd lunar day, Ky Dau Day), Tuesday, February 02, 2027 (26th lunar day, Nham Ty Day), and Thursday, February 04, 2027 (28th lunar day, Giap Dan Day). Optimal daytime Auspicious Hours are Mao (05:00 to 07:00), Chen (07:00 to 09:00), Si (09:00 to 11:00) and Wu (11:00 to 13:00).

VKey Deities and Feng Shui Terms in the Year-End Land Thanksgiving Scroll

Knowing the specific jurisdiction of each deity invoked in the scroll brings clarity and composure to the year-end ceremony.

Explanation of 8 core deity titles and Feng Shui concepts in the Year-End Land and Household Deities Thanksgiving Prayer.
Deity Title or Term	Role in Yang-Residence Tradition	Significance During Year-End Thanksgiving
Sovereign Heaven & Empress Earth	The overarching cosmic canopy above and the sustaining earth below.	Opens the petition by acknowledging the harmony of the four seasons.
Reigning Year Commissioner (Thai Tue)	The celestial magistrate appointed to oversee earthly affairs during a specific Sexagenary year.	Thanks the outgoing Year Lord for twelve months of peaceful stewardship.
Local Tutelary Guardian (Thanh Hoang)	The supreme civic guardian spirit protecting the entire ward, village or district.	Honored as the spiritual magistrate of the wider community.
Local Earth Deity of Righteous Blessing	The immediate guardian of the specific land parcel, property boundaries and domestic fortune.	Central recipient of the Land Thanksgiving Rite for shielding the home from misfortune.
Kitchen Deity of the Eastern Hearth	Guardian of the family stove, culinary nourishment and moral harmony inside the home.	Thanked for keeping the domestic fire warm and the family well-nourished.
Five-Direction Dragon Veins & Wealth Deities	Spirits governing East, West, South, North, Center and subterranean currents of prosperity.	Petitioned to heal any minor site disturbances from the past year and replenish wealth Qi.
Former & Subsequent Proprietors	Departed historical owners and builders who once cared for the land parcel.	Honoring them ensures peaceful continuity and goodwill for current residents.
Three Jars: Rice, Salt & Pure Water	Symbolic granary vessels placed between the God of Wealth and Earth Deity statues.	Refreshed during the year-end Land Thanksgiving to anchor abundance for the coming year.

VIAdapting the Rite for Houses, Shops and Apartments & Five Essential Etiquette Rules

Depending on whether you are officiating in a landed family home, a commercial shopfront or a high-rise apartment, select the matching scroll variant and spatial setup below.

Landed Houses, Townhouses & Garden Villas: Indoor Altar & Perimeter Care

Use Variant 1 at the main indoor Deity Altar. Before the ceremony, prune overgrown branches shading the front Bright Hall, sweep dry leaves from the four corners of the yard, and ensure gate lamps shine brightly.

Shops, Offices, Studios & Workshops: Honoring the Earth & Wealth Shrine

Use Variant 2 before the ground-floor God of Wealth and Earth Deity shrine during the final working week before the Tet holiday. Wipe the shrine with warm pomelo-leaf or five-herb water, refill the three Rice-Salt-Water jars, and pray for premise security during the holiday closure.

High-Rise Apartments & Rented Homes: Serene, Low-Smoke Devotion

Use Variant 3 at your apartment altar. Even on upper floors, your home draws stability from the building's earth foundation; lighting 1 or 3 low-smoke agarwood sticks with fresh flowers, five fruits and sweet sticky rice is completely sufficient.

Homes Newly Built, Renovated or Entered This Year: Completing the First Cycle

If your household built, remodeled or moved into a new residence during the past year, this first Twelfth-Month Land Thanksgiving is especially meaningful for thanking the Dragon Veins for a safe transition.

A common misunderstanding

Five essential etiquette rules to observe during the Year-End Land Thanksgiving Ceremony:

First, never throw the rice and salt from a Land Thanksgiving Rite out into the street. Unlike outdoor wandering-spirit offerings or demolition site-release rites, the white rice and sea salt presented in a Year-End Land Thanksgiving are imbued with domestic blessing; keep them inside the home by pouring them into your kitchen rice container or the three shrine jars.

Second, always set the Land Thanksgiving offering table indoors, never on the public sidewalk. The Earth Deity, Kitchen God and Dragon Veins of a residence are venerated at the indoor altar or the indoor floor shrine, not outside the curb.

Third, keep the kitchen stove clean and warm on the day of the ceremony. Because the Kitchen Deity of the Hearth is co-honored alongside the Earth Deity, wipe the stove clean and boil fresh water for the altar tea right on your home hearth.

Fourth, never place artificial plastic flowers, imitation fruit or cold leftover food on the thanksgiving altar. Freshly cut chrysanthemums, crisp seasonal fruit and steaming sticky rice express genuine reverence.

Fifth, avoid burning oversized paper effigies or excessive votive money. Classical household liturgy calls only for the printed A4 Thanksgiving Scroll and a modest token of Five-Direction votive paper burned safely in a covered metal vessel.

?Quick Questions

Which day in the Twelfth Lunar Month is best for the Year-End Land Thanksgiving Ceremony?

The Year-End Land and Household Deities Thanksgiving Rite is flexible and does not require a single rigid date; it may be performed on any auspicious day between the Full Moon of the Twelfth Lunar Month (15th lunar day) and the 28th lunar day. Many families hold the ceremony on the Twelfth-Month Full Moon (Friday, January 22, 2027) or combine it with the 23rd lunar day (Saturday, January 30, 2027), while shops and companies often choose an auspicious day between the 20th and 26th lunar days right before closing for the Tet holiday.

How does the Year-End Land Thanksgiving Rite differ from the Year-End Reunion Feast (Le Tat Nien)?

The two ceremonies take place at different moments in the Twelfth Month and honor distinct spiritual recipients: the Year-End Land Thanksgiving Rite is performed earlier (between the 15th and 28th lunar days) specifically to thank the Local Earth Deity, Kitchen God, Five-Direction Dragon Veins and Former Proprietors for sheltering the property. The Year-End Reunion Feast (Le Tat Nien) is held on the afternoon of the final lunar day (the 29th of the 12th Month, February 05, 2027) to welcome the Nine Generations of Family Ancestors home for the Lunar New Year reunion meal.

Do families living in high-rise apartments or rented houses need to perform the Year-End Land Thanksgiving Prayer?

Yes, a simple and heartfelt observance is warmly recommended. In Yang-Residence Feng Shui, every apartment unit relies upon the earth foundation beneath the building and is protected by the Household Deities governing that living space. Simply select Variant 3 (Concise Serene Edition for Modern Apartments & Rented Homes), offer fresh flowers, five fruits and warm tea, and thank the Deities for twelve months of safe shelter.

If we drilled walls, remodeled a room or dug the garden during the past year, what should we note during this ceremony?

Whenever a household has performed minor repairs, wall drilling or garden excavation during the year, the Year-End Land Thanksgiving Ceremony serves as a gentle Dragon-Vein Harmonization Rite. Reciting Variant 1 expresses sincere apology for any inadvertent vibration and asks the Five-Direction Dragon Veins to restore balanced, tranquil earth Qi across the parcel before the New Year begins.

How should we refresh the three Rice, Salt and Water jars on the God of Wealth and Earth Deity shrine at year's end?

During your year-end shrine cleansing and Land Thanksgiving (between the 20th and 28th of the Twelfth Lunar Month), pour the clean rice and salt from the old jars into your family kitchen containers (never discard them into the trash), wash and dry the three ceramic jars thoroughly, refill them to the brim with fresh white rice, coarse sea salt and pure water, and place them back between the God of Wealth and Earth Deity statues before lighting your thanksgiving incense.

Year-End Land and Household Deities Thanksgiving Prayer: Honoring the Earth Deity, Kitchen God and Five-Direction Dragon Veins

IPersonalize Your Scroll, Select Ritual Date and Read Prayer

1. Select Solar Date (Auto-converts to Lunar Date, Sexagenary Cycle & Auspicious Hours)

2. Officiant and Household Details (Live Scroll Personalization)

3. Choose Prayer Variant, Enter Altar Mode or Print A4 Scroll

Year-End Land and Household Deities Thanksgiving Prayer: Honoring the Earth Deity, Kitchen God and Five-Direction Dragon Veins

IICeremonial Offerings and Preparation Checklist

Group 1: Incense, Lamps, Fresh Blossoms, Five Fruits & Betel for the Five-Direction Earth Deities

Group 2: Five-Cup Libations & Savory or Vegetarian Thanksgiving Tray

Group 3: Blessing Rice-Salt Jars & Printed A4 Thanksgiving Scroll

IIIInteractive 3D Altar, Layout Diagram and Ritual Protocol

Real-world reference photographs of traditional altars and offering trays

Step-by-step ceremonial sequence before the altar

IVPhilosophy of the Year-End Land Thanksgiving Rite and How It Complements the 23rd Kitchen Gods Ceremony

VKey Deities and Feng Shui Terms in the Year-End Land Thanksgiving Scroll

VIAdapting the Rite for Houses, Shops and Apartments & Five Essential Etiquette Rules

?Quick Questions

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