Ong Dia (Mr. Land), also known as Tho Cong, is one of the two gods along with Than Tai (Mr. Lucky) that people always worship in their homes because they want to bring their families a lot of prosperity and good luck.

From ancient times until now, people often say to each other "The land has a spirit, the river has a river spirit" a simple proverb affirming that each place has its own governing spirit.

Ong Dia is considered the god who governs the land where people live, protecting the peaceful life of the family. People believe that Ong Dia has the power to control the destiny of the homeowner, affecting wealth, luck, health, etc.

The land holds the memories of the past. All our past ancestors and all the living beings of the past have lived on the land. Mr. Land has been a witness to each and every one of them. This is why he he Buddha touched the Earth so the Mr. Land could give witness to all of the Buddhas past lives. Mr. Land holds in memory all of our collective and individual past karma. Whenever we feel lost or disconnected from our ancestors, or past, other living beings, our our karma we can touch the earth and connect with Mr. Land. No matter where we are or what we are going through Mr. Land is always available and there for us. Like the Earth openly receiving the rain, no matter the storm or shower.

Making offerings to Ong Dia shows respect and gratitude to the spirits who have protected and cared for the family. The image of Ong Dia is often associated with a big belly, a gentle smile, symbolizing abundance and prosperity. Making offerings to Ong Dia will help the family have more wealth, luck, and a prosperous and prosperous life.

In every family, there is a Tho Cong spirit who looks after the house and land. The worship of Tho Cong in every family has originated from ancient times because people believe that only with land can they do agriculture, create food and have a peaceful life. 

But above all, to keep the land, there must be a spirit to help guard the land and so from then on, farmers began to make offerings to Tho Cong. 

In today's society, depending on the influence of culture, Ong Dia can appear in many different shapes and descriptions, but the most common is still the image of a god with a big belly, a gentle face, a happy smile, and sometimes Mr. Lucky also appears as an old man with white hair and beard, wearing a long dress and a crow's beak hat. In Buddhism, Ong Dia is also highly respected and many Buddhists also diligently make offerings to Mr. Land.

Although they often appear together on family altars or in images, Mr. Lucky and Mr. Land have different abilities but are also related to each other because there is a saying "Tho nang sinh bach ngoc, Dia kha xuat hoang kim" meaning "The land often produces good jade, Gold is also born from the land" meaning that Mr. Lucky and Mr. Land are closely related to life and influence the family's fortune. 

The difference between Mr. Land and Mr. Lucky is also very easy to recognize. Mr. Lucky is the spirit who helps look after and bring a lot of money, economic luck to the family. He often appears as an old man with a white beard, holding a gold bar and a gentle smile. 

Mr. Land often appears as an old man with a big belly, holding a palm-leaf fan, he will help people guard the land, fields and houses. The  imagery of Mr. Land is gentle, kind, always protecting and safeguarding the peaceful and safe life of people. 

Preparing the altar of Ông Thổ Địa Công.

For thousands of years, in Vietnamese culture, the altar of Ông Địa has always held an important position in the spiritual life of every family. This place is considered a sacred place, showing respect and praying for peace, prosperity, and a peaceful life from the spirit of the land.

It is important to realize the basis on which offerings are made: by making illusory offerings through illusory practice you gather illusory accumulations. You cause illusory geywa (that which leads to good karma). From that the illusory result which is the perfection of wisdom arises. There are many kinds of illusory visualized offerings. They are used to pacify obstacles. There are obstacles that keep the Dharma from awakening in this lifetime. Obstacles can be a hurricane itself, or all of the thoughts, feelings, and perceptions that arise as stress and panic during a hurricane, or even binge watching the Weather Channel. Obstacles can be from our daily life too such as poverty, distraction, compulsion to go play with our devices, to watch strange YouTube, or never ending podcasts. All sorts of obstacles do arise. 

It’s important to make the offering as gracefully as you are capable. You coordinate body, speech, and mind. You pay attention in the moment. This practice accumulates geywa. It creates geywa. You create geywa and it changes the world. It begins with taking refuge and arising Bodhichitta, as should any practice that you do. Wishing that as a result of the geywa created all beings attain perfect awakening.

What are the offerings to Ông Địa?

Offerings for Ông Địa can use vegetarian or non-vegetarian offerings, depending on the beliefs and conditions of each family. You should choose fruits that bring fortune and luck such as bananas (fortune), apples (peace), oranges (honeysuckle), grapefruit (fortune), watermelon (prosperity)... The number of offerings can vary depending on the conditions of each family. The most important thing is the sincerity and the desire to be blessed by Ông Thổ Địa.

Preparing vegetarian offerings shows purity, simplicity, suitable for families who follow Buddhism or are vegetarian. Vegetarian offerings often include: Fresh flowers, fruits, candy, water, tea, incense, candles, votive paper money.

Some notes when making vegetarian offerings: Offerings need to be carefully prepared, clean. You should choose fresh, delicious fruits with beautiful colors. Candy, fruit tea should be vegetarian. You should offer odd numbers of offerings such as 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, etc.

Preparing savory offerings shows abundance and fullness, in line with the traditional concept of many Vietnamese families. Savory offerings often include: Boiled chicken/roasted pork, sticky rice with gac fruit/banh chung, stir-fried dishes, soup, fruit, soft drinks, wine, incense, candles, votive paper money.

Some notes when making savory offerings: Offerings need to be prepared cleanly and hygienically. You should choose dishes with beautiful colors, which symbolize luck. The number of offerings should be even numbers such as 2, 4, 6, 8, etc.

Prayer to Ong Dia

Pray and make offerings to Ong Dia on the 15th and 1st of the lunar month.

You can use the traditional prayer below or you can also add specific prayers for yourself and your family to the worshiping prayer. For example: “Pray for a smooth and favorable work”, “Pray for good health, to eliminate illness”, “Pray for the family to always be happy and peaceful.”

Nam mô A Di Đà Phật! 

Nam mô A Di Đà Phật! 

Nam mô A Di Đà Phật!

With deep respect, we humbly bow before Ong Dia, Mister Earth, the benevolent Spirit of the Land.

We respectfully ask for your blessings upon our land, to help us develop understanding in order to live peacefully with people, animals, plants, and minerals. 

May you help us develop compassion in order to protect the lives of people, animals, plants, and minerals. May you protect us from the destruction of the land and natural disasters.

We present these offerings of incense, fruits, and rice as a token of our gratitude and sincerity.

We thank you for your protection and blessings, Ông Dia, Mister Earth.

Nam mô A Di Đà Phật! 

Nam mô A Di Đà Phật! 

Nam mô A Di Đà Phật!

When to make offerings to Ông Địa?

Making offerings to Ông Địa is a beautiful traditional cultural feature of Vietnamese people, showing respect and wishing Ông Địa to bless, protect the family and bring luck to the family. Choosing the right time to worship will help the homeowner show their sincerity and receive many blessings from Thổ Địa.

Here are the appropriate times to make offerings to Mr. Land:

What days?

Full moon and first day of every month: These are considered good times to worship Tho Dia to pray for peace and fortune for the family.

Holidays: Lunar New Year, Doan Ngo Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival are also occasions when Ong Dia is made offerings to.

Moving day: When moving to a new house, the homeowner should make offerings to Ong Dia to ask for permission to settle down and make a living.

Groundbreaking day: When building a house, the homeowner should also make offerings to Ong Dia Cong to ask for permission to break ground.

What times during the day?

Morning: According to folk beliefs, the morning is the time when yang energy is prosperous, so this is the appropriate time to make offerings to Ong Dia.

The morning is considered the most beautiful time of the day, so this is the time many people choose to make offerings.

Noon is also a good time to make offerings.

When making offerings Ong Dia, the homeowner needs to prepare thoughtful offerings to show respect.

To summarize, Ông Địa or Thổ Địa is the spirit who governs the land, a spirit who is close and familiar to every Vietnamese family. The image of Thổ Địa is gentle, kind, always protecting and safeguarding the peaceful and safe life of people. Respect and gratitude towards Thổ Địa is a beautiful traditional culture that needs to be preserved and promoted.