State President, overseas Vietnamese join traditional carp release ritual

This meaningful activity, held in celebration of the Lunar New Year 2025, is a beautiful Vietnamese tradition of bidding farewell to the Kitchen Gods as they ascend to Heaven to report the nation’s affairs to the Jade Emperor over the past year and prepare to usher in the New Year.

The carp release ceremony carries a message of hope for national prosperity and peace while also serving as an opportunity for overseas Vietnamese to strengthen their connection to their roots, cultural heritage, and national spirit.

In the festive atmosphere of spring’s arrival, President Luong Cuong engaged in conversations with the overseas Vietnamese, extended New Year greetings and offered encouragement. He urged them to overcome challenges and contribute collectively to their host countries and their homeland.

Also on January 19 morning, 100 distinguished overseas Vietnamese from around the world paid tribute to President Ho Chi Minh at his Mausoleum, laid wreaths at the Monument to Heroes and Martyrs, and gathered at the Kinh Thien Palace in the Imperial Citadel of Thang Long in Hanoi.

Together with President Luong Cuong and the First Lady, they offered incense to express their profound respect and prayers for national prosperity, peace, and a joyful, harmonious New Year.

The incense offering ceremony honours the ancestors who safeguarded and preserved the Vietnamese nation and serves as a symbolic gesture of reporting to the forebears about the return of overseas Vietnamese to their motherland.

This event is part of the Xuân Quê Hương 2025 (Homeland Spring 2025) programme for Vietnamese expatriates that is taking place in Hanoi and several other localities across country.