The Worship of Ong Bon at Phuoc AN Temple, Thu Dau Mot Ward, Ho Chi Minh City: Ritual Procedures and Symbolic Significance

Abstract

This article examines the ritual process of the worship of Ong Bon at Phuoc An Temple, Thu Dau Mot Ward, Ho Chi Minh City, with a focus on interpreting the symbolic meanings of ritual practices. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork, participant observation, and in-depth interviews, the study documents and analyzes activities performed during the festival, such as sedan chair shaking, touch statue, passing beneath the sedan chair and ritual chants. Grounded in Victor Turner’s theories of ritual and symbolism and Clifford Geertz’s interpretive anthropology, the findings demonstrate that each ritual embodies distinct layers of meaning, ranging from divine - human communion and the seeking of blessings to the reaffirmation of collective belief. Accordingly, the worship of Ong Bon is not merely a form of religious practice but also a distinctive mode of cultural expression, reflecting the adaptive transformation of Chinese religious traditions in the Southern Vietnamese context.