As part of the ongoing flower festival at the Vietnam Centre for Artand Cultural Exhibitions at 2 Hoa Lu Street, the first ever festivalhonouring Ong Cong (the Land Genie) and Ong Tao (the Kitchen God) willbe held on February 3.

Early in the morning, from the famous pottery village of Bat Trang ,a procession with a 1.2m tall ceramic idol of the Land Genie, a3.5m-long carp and 12 trays of fruits and traditional cakes will windits way with 9 palanquins to Hanoi and stop at the exhibitioncentre.

At the end of the procession, the 12 trays willbe offered at the statue of King Ly Thai To by the Sword Lake , theNgoc Son Temple and Thang Long Imperial Citadel.

In Vietnamese tradition, Ong Cong and Ong Tao are the most familiar andpopular genies. On the 23rd day of last month of the lunar year,offerings are made to the two genies. The belief is that both genies goto Heaven and brief Ngoc Hoang (the Jade Emperor) on the life of theowner of the house where they stay, and pray for luck, prosperity andhappiness for all members of the household. On New Year's Eve, bothgenies will return to earth and resume their caretaking duties in thekitchen of the house.

On this day, subsequently calledOng Cong and Ong Tao festival day, Vietnamese people usually prepare abasin of water in which they put one big live carp or three small ones.After the ceremony, the carp are released into a pond or a river.This custom has two meanings. First, the carp can swim well and it willpass the Heaven's gate to become a dragon. Thus, Ong Cong and Ong Taocan ride a carp (a dragon) to heaven. Second, the custom relates to therelease of animals including birds into the air, fish into the water andother creatures into the forest as a merit-acquiring deed as well asone that brings good luck./.