Image: Carp village ready for Kitchen God worshiping ritual
Villagers in Thuy Tram Village in Tuy Loc Commune, Cam Kho District, Phu Tho Province are rolling up their sleeves to harvest carp fish for sale in time for the Kitchen God worshiping ritual which takes place on the 23rd of the 12th lunar month, which falls on February 1.
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| The Kitchen God is believed to return to heaven seven days ahead of the lunar new year on the back of a carp to report on activities of every household over the past year to the Jade Emperor. |
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| Then, he will bring back good fortune to family on the Lunar New Year’s Eve and stay in the kitchen to look after the house for the entire year. |
 To perform the ritual, people will release carps into water as a way of seeing off the Kitchen God on his journey to heaven. |
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| The red color of the carp is found everywhere in Thuy Tram village, especially bonds and lakes where people catch the fish, and markets where the fish is sold. |
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| For villagers, apart from business, growing the fish has become a tradition which has been passed down from generation to generation. |
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| The village is a famous red-carp growing area in the north. Carps grown at the village are distributed in many parts of northern Vietnam such as Haiphong, Bac Ninh, Lao Cai, Yen Bai, Tuyen Quang and Hanoi. |
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