The Significance of Bananas in Worship
Among the various fruits used for offerings, bananas are the most common and can be found on ancestral altars.
Especially during Tet, the Mid-Autumn Festival, and Thanh Minh, bananas are an indispensable part of the five-fruit tray for many families, especially in the North. During Tet, every household tries to find a beautiful bunch of bananas with a curved shape that is large enough to encompass the other offerings on the altar. Bananas represent abundance and reunion thanks to their form of multiple fruits clustered together in one bunch. They also signify good fortune, as the curved shape of the bananas resembles a protective hand, sheltering the other fruits in the tray and symbolizing the protection of the ancestors over the family. On the ancestral altar during Tet, bananas stand out the most and act as the central offering, with their green color symbolizing wood, while the other fruits represent the other elements of the five elements theory.
Due to their attractive nature, offering bananas is believed to help attract wealth and bring good fortune and prosperity to the family. The role of bananas in the fruit tray is so significant that sometimes, when people cannot find a large and curved bunch as desired, they use nails or strings to combine several smaller bunches to make it larger and wider, so it can encompass the other offerings.
Does Combining Multiple Bunches of Bananas into One Larger Bunch Attract More Wealth?
Many families want a larger and more beautiful five-fruit tray to express their care and thoughtfulness. However, it is not always possible to find a single large bunch of bananas that is wide enough. Sometimes, there may be a shortage of bananas, or they may be too expensive, especially if you go to the market late.
In such cases, combining 2-3-4-5 smaller bunches to create a larger one that can hold more fruits may be considered.
From an aesthetic perspective, combining multiple bunches of bananas to create a larger one can result in a more beautiful arrangement that meets the desired size.
However, there are a few considerations to keep in mind when combining bunches of bananas:
