dâng sao
Definition
- Verb (Historical / Religious):
- To perform the star-offering ceremony: A traditional Vietnamese ritual involving offerings and prayers to celestial bodies (stars, constellations) to avert misfortune, illness, or danger, often performed for a person whose fate is astrologically troubled.
Usage Examples
- Verb:
- Gia đình đã mời thầy cúng về để dâng sao giải hạn cho đứa trẻ. (The family invited a ritual master to perform the star-offering ceremony to ward off bad luck for the child.)
- Theo tục lệ xưa, người ta thường dâng sao khi trong nhà có người ốm đau. (According to old customs, people often performed the star-offering ceremony when someone in the house was ill.)
Advanced Usage
- The practice is based on folk beliefs in astrology and fate, where an individual's "star" or astrological sign may be in an unfavorable position, requiring a ritual to appease it.
- The ceremony often involves specific offerings (flowers, fruits, paper votives), prayers, and is conducted by a ritual specialist ().
Variants and Related Words
- Cúng sao (v): A more common, colloquial synonym meaning "to worship the stars," often used interchangeably with .
- Bà ngoại tin rằng cúng sao sẽ giúp cải vận. (Grandmother believes that worshipping the stars will help change one's fortune.)
- Giải hạn (v): To dissolve/ward off misfortune, a term frequently associated with the purpose of the ritual.
Synonyms
- To worship the stars: To perform rites in honor of celestial bodies.
- To make astral offerings: To present offerings to stars/constellations.
Related Cultural Concepts
- Hạn sao (n): "Star misfortune" or "astrological bad luck," the perceived negative influence that the ritual aims to counteract.
- Lễ dâng sao (n): The star-offering ceremony itself.