Definition

1. Verb:
   • To make offerings (to a deity) for one's wishes to be fulfilled: The act of performing rituals, presenting offerings, and praying to a god, spirit, or higher power with the hope that they will grant a specific wish or request.
   • To pray for rain (by worshipping a deity): A specific, traditional form of the above, where the primary wish is for rainfall, often performed during a drought. This involves ceremonies to appeal to divine forces for rain.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Dân làng tổ chức cầu đảo để mong trời mưa sau nhiều tháng hạn hán. (The villagers organized a rain-praying ceremony hoping for rain after many months of drought.)
  • Người xưa thường cầu đảo thần linh phù hộ cho mùa màng bội thu. (In the past, people often made offerings to deities, praying for a bountiful harvest.)
  • Trong cơn bệnh hiểm nghèo, gia đình anh ấy đã đi cầu đảo khắp các đền chùa. (During his critical illness, his family went to many temples to pray and make offerings for his recovery.)

Advanced Usage

• The term "cầu đảo" often implies a formal, communal, or ritualistic act rather than a simple, personal prayer. It is deeply rooted in traditional spiritual and agricultural practices.
• It can be used metaphorically in modern contexts to describe desperately seeking help from any powerful source, though this is less common.
  • Công ty đang trên bờ vực phá sản, giám đốc đi cầu đảo khắp nơi tìm kiếm nhà đầu tư. (The company is on the verge of bankruptcy; the director is desperately seeking investors everywhere.)

Variants and Related Words

• Cầu (verb): To pray for, to wish for, to request. A more general term for making a wish or request.
• Cầu khẩn (verb): To beg, to implore earnestly. Often used for pleading with people or deities.
• Cúng bái (verb): To worship, to make ritual offerings. This is the act of presenting offerings, which is a key component of "cầu đảo."
• Tế lễ (verb): To perform a sacrificial ceremony. A formal ritual, which can be part of "cầu đảo."

Synonyms

• Cầu xin: To beg, to plead (can be used with deities or people).
• Khấn vái: To pray, to murmur prayers (often while bowing).
• Cầu mưa: To pray for rain (a direct synonym for the specific meaning).

Related Phrases / Idioms

• "Cầu trời khấn Phật": An idiom meaning "to pray to heaven and Buddha," expressing a state of desperately hoping or wishing for something, similar to the sentiment behind "cầu đảo."
  • Cầu trời khấn Phật cho anh ấy vượt qua ca phẫu thuật. (Pray to heaven and Buddha for him to get through the surgery.)

verb

1. To make offerings (to deity) for one's wishes to be fulfilled
2. To pray for rain (by worshipping deity)