After the god worshipping ceremony, the buffalo figurines were respectfully placed on a throne and accompanied by the mandarins and residents of wards in the imperial citadel to the King’s palace. Wherever the procession arrived, local residents would burn firecrackers to welcome the spring buffaloes. Now and then, the mandarins lashed the buffaloes with mulberry whips in order to drive away bad lucks and honour farming work. Traditionally, people in the imperial citadel, on this occasion, flocked to see the procession. This was a real big festive event in Thăng Long. To the Đông Hoa Gate of the Royal Citadel, the procession stopped; only the Capital Governor and his entourage continued to carry the buffaloes into the royal courtyard.
In the early morning of the beginning day of spring, the royal courtyard was decorated with ceremonial weapons, flags and banners, and the royal orchestra. When drums and gongs sounded, courtiers and officials, in their court dress, would enter the royal courtyard through the Đoan Môn Gate for the ceremony. They stood in the hierarchy on both sides of the courtyard and the king sat in the dragon throne in the central door of Kính Thiên Palace. After courtiers and mandarins paid respect to the king in accordance with the royal audience etiquette, the Capital Governor came to the middle pathway and knelt in front of the spring buffalo altar in order to perform the spring honouring ritual. He said: “In early spring, the weather is good, we hold the ceremony to congratulate Your Majesty!” and then retreated to his position. Other courtiers and officials kowtowed to the King who would then return to his residence.
1.215 small spring buffaloes and Câu mang gods were arranged in wooden gold-gilded vermillion trays of five each, and covered with lemon-yellow silk. After the spring buffalo offering ceremony in the royal courtyard, the officials of the Ministry of Public Work, under the King’s order, would distribute these earthen buffaloes and Câu mang gods to all mandarins attending the ceremony. The remaining would be distributed to ministries and royal temples in Thăng Long. The distribution of spring buffaloes was the ceremony only performed under the Lê Dynasty in which the king granted his officials with spring buffaloes with the hope of “seeing off winter coldness”. Those who received a spring buffalo were happy because getting a gift from the king right at the beginning of the year was a very good luck.
In Vietnamese people’s mind, the Lunar New Year festival is the most important and sacred occasion. However, in the current context of international integration and exchange, a very part of young people are making light of the nation’s cultural traditions and values. Therefore, the Thăng Long-Hà Nội Heritage Conservation Centre has organized the Vietnamese Tết festival annually, introducing and displaying some customs in order to servepeople’s amusement demands as well as contribute to the preservation and promotion of the nation’s cultural values.