 Vietnam Post issues a stamp collection featuring tiger to mark the Year of the Tiger 2022 (photo: baodansinh.vn) |
B: We've received a lot of greetings from our listeners around the world lately. Ivan Lebedev wrote "Dear staff of Voice of Vietnam. Please accept my sincere well wishes for TET holiday - the beginning of the New Year of Tiger according to the eastern calendar - with the beginning of spring and all that is new that opens in future. The year of the tiger is coming, and in this amazing year I wish all Vietnamese genuine well-being and prosperity, not only material, but also spiritual, as well as whole sea of love and natural abundance. Let there be only lucky in the paws of the tiger, and only happy news on the tip of the tail. I wish you a lot of success in your work.”
A: Thank you, Mr. Lebedev, for your greetings. We're all excited about the New Year and we wish you all the best of luck and happiness in 2022 and beyond.
B: Bopha of Cambodia wrote: “I was a student studying in Hanoi. Whenever the traditional lunar New Year or Tet arrived, I joined other Vietnamese friends to wrap Chung (square sticky rice) cakes. I hope to join similar activities in Vietnam.”
B: The Vietnamese traditional New Year (Tet) festival actually begins on the 23rd of the last month of the lunar year, which falls on January 25 this year, with the “Ong Cong - Ong Tao” (Land Genie and Kitchen Gods) ritual.
 A feast to send off the Land Genie and the Kitchen Gods of the household on their yearly visit to Heaven (photo: baoquocte.vn) |
A: On this day, every family is busy staging a ceremony to send off the Land Genie and the Kitchen Gods of the household on their yearly visit to Heaven.
B: The Kitchen Gods, the guardian spirit of the kitchen, are believed to be two male gods and one female, who bless the household and keep up the kitchen fire, making every member of the family happy and well-off. As the legend goes, the Land Genie and the Kitchen Gods will ride carps to Heaven on the day to deliver an annual report on the household’s activities to the Jade Emperor.
A: As the gods make their journey on the backs of fish, traditions dictate the release of live carps into lakes or rivers, which is considered a kind-hearted deed to pray for good luck. On the day, people also burn paper clothing, including hats, robes and boots, intended for use by the genies on their trip beyond.
B: After the Kitchen Gods go to Heaven, families begin tidying and decorating their houses to usher in the New Year as they believe that a clean house represents a fresh start. On New Year's Eve, the genies will return to earth and resume their caretaking duties in the kitchen of the house.
A: In his very first correspondence to VOV this week, Viknesh Kumar of India, sent us beautiful greetings for the new Lunar Year. He said he got to know about VOV through a radio friend and wished to learn Vietnamese and visit Vietnam and that VOV programs are nice and interesting.
B: Thank you, Mr. Kumar, for tuning in to our broadcast. For the time being as travel restrictions remain to a certain extent, let’s explore Vietnam through our programs broadcast on the shortwave and our website at vovworld.vn. Next week, when we celebrates the traditional lunar New Year Festival, VOV will broadcast many beautiful stories about Tet traditions and customs in Vietnam as well as its update developments. We hope to receive your feedback on those programs as well.
 Vietnam Post issues a stamp collection featuring tiger to mark the Year of the Tiger 2022 (photo: baodansinh.vn) |
A: Now we’d like to welcome back Bidhan Chandra Sanyal of India who last wrote to us 6 years ago.
B: Listening to our program on January 18 on the website vovworld.vn, Mr. Sanyal wrote: “It is a nice program with good news. I love Vietnam.”
A: Sanyal said he failed to send his letters to VOV because of the wrong address. Sanyal, please send your correspondence to English Service, 45 Ba Trieu street, Hanoi, or englishsection@vov.vn. We hope to continue to receive your feedback.
B: We’d like to welcome back to VOV Soutik Hati of India who wrote to us again after nearly five years, since 2017. He wrote: “Dear VOV, I've not written to you for long time. Now I begin to listen your broadcast again through your website. My shortwave receiver does not work properly. So, I have to depend on your website and podcast. Best wishes for New Year 2022 to all broadcasters of the English Service. Your informative service has been entertaining me since 2005.”
A: Thanks a lot, Mr. Hati, for coming back to our show. We hope to receive regular feedback from you.
B: Next, we’d like to welcome to VOV Mr. John Fairish of North England, who tuned in our broadcast for the very first time on January 15. In his correspondence to VOV, he wrote: “Dear Voice of Vietnam, I received your transmission in English at 1600 UTC on 9730 kHz on January 15. The transmission had a very good signal with a SINPO reading of 55544.”
A: Thank you, Mr. Fairish for tuning into VOV. We’ll confirm your reception report with an e-QSL card. Actually, VOV has not sent hard copies of QSL cards for two years as we are moving toward digitalization and because of COVID-19. We hope that you enjoy listening to our broadcasts and send us regular feedback on the program.
B: We have received several letters from Mr. Mrityunjoy Bera of India over the past month. He wrote: “I’m a listener of your English Service. Due to the COVID-19 situation for a long period I was absent to listening your programs. But now I want to start listening. Recently I have heard some of your programs and enjoyed very much, specially your news. News and Vietnamese cultural programs are my favorites. Your websites are good looking, attractive and also informative. Sports news and other magazine programs are also interesting.”
A: We appreciate you listening to VOV, Mr. Bera. We hope that you have a nice time with our show.
B: This week, VOVWorld received more than 360 letters and emails from listeners in 36 countries around the world together with beautiful greetings for Tet, Vietnam’s Lunar New Year festival.
A: Dear listeners, your questions about Vietnamese Tet customs and traditions will be answered in our features broadcast next week. So tune in to VOV or check our website. We hope those stories will enable you to vicariously join with the Vietnamese people in celebrating our biggest festival of the year.
B: As 2022 is the Year of the Tiger, we’d like to share some fun facts about the tiger and its place in Vietnamese mythology. This is in response to questions from many listeners, including Yamanaka of Japan.
 A Hàng Trống painting entitled "The Five Tigers." The White Tiger (Bạch Hổ) is seen in the top left-hand corner (Photo: vietnamtimes.org.vn) |
A: Mythological animals that appear in ancient tales are a vital part of Vietnamese religious beliefs and worldview. They have become a central part of Vietnamese culture and a frequent theme of artists and craftsmen.
B: Ancient people believed that sacred animals were the embodiment of natural phenomena, mysterious forces, and supernatural powers that could influence human life and the universe.
A: In Vietnam, the tiger is associated with Mother Goddess worship. In the temples of this religion, altars can be found featuring five tigers with five different colors – yellow, blue, red, black, and white –symbolizing the five basic elements and the five guardians of the five directions. The tiger is also considered the lord of the forest, and for that reason, it has been deified and has become a symbol of power and strength.
B: As the tiger is one of the strongest animals, people born during the Year of the Tiger are thought to possess many admirable qualities, particularly leadership. They are said to have an abundance of confidence that leads them to take great risks to achieve success.
A: It is believed that those born in a Year of the Tiger are well suited for positions that require self-discipline, such as pilot, musician, or manager. Famous people born in the Year of the Tiger include our beloved President Ho Chi Minh, Ludwig van Beethoven, Karl Marx, Marilyn Monroe, Tom Cruise, and American President Dwight D. Eisenhower.
B: However, tigers may have some negative traits as well. Believing themselves to be the best, tigers have a difficult time working with others. They would rather work independently. In discussions, tigers rarely use diplomacy, as they favor straightforwardness over politeness. Tigers are not known to be romantic, much to the chagrin of their partners.
A: Since we’re already counting down to the New Lunar Year and this is the last show of the Year of the Buffalo, we want to wish you all the best for the Year of the Tiger. We promise to be back soon with more interesting stories and our Letter Box correspondence.
B: Thank you all for tuning in to VOV and visiting our website at vovworld.vn and our Facebook fanpage at VOV5 English Service. We hope to continue to receive your support for VOV and your feedback on our programs. Thank you and Happy New Year in the Year of the Tiger!