Editing Veneration of the dead (section)

===Vietnam===
{{See also|Nhà thờ họ}}
[[File:Personal in-home altar for deceased family members in Viet Nam.jpg|thumb|A Vietnamese altar for ancestors]]
[[File:Vietnamese Ancestors Altar.jpg|thumb|Ancestors altar of a Vietnamese Buddhist family]]
Ancestor veneration is one of the most unifying aspects of [[Culture of Vietnam|Vietnamese culture]], as practically all Vietnamese have an ancestor altar in their home or business.

In Vietnam, traditionally people did not celebrate birthdays (before Western influence), but the [[death anniversary]] of one's loved one was always an important occasion. Besides an essential gathering of family members for a banquet in memory of the deceased, incense sticks are burned along with [[Hell bank note|hell notes]], and great platters of food are made as offerings on the ancestor altar, which usually has pictures or plaques with the names of the deceased. In the case of missing persons, believed to be dead by their family, a [[Wind tomb]] is made.

These offerings and practices are done frequently during important traditional or religious celebrations, the starting of a new business, or even when a family member needs guidance or counsel and is a hallmark of the emphasis Vietnamese culture places on filial duty.

A significant distinguishing feature of Vietnamese ancestor veneration is that women have traditionally been allowed to participate and co-officiate ancestral rites, unlike in Chinese Confucian doctrine, which allows only male descendants to perform such rites.<ref>{{cite book|last=Rambo|first=A. Terry|title=Searching for Vietnam: selected writings on Vietnamese culture and society|publisher=Trans Pacific Press|year=2005|page=75|isbn=978-1-920901-05-9}}</ref>