In the past, when an epidemic broke out in a village, people tried to appease the spirits of disease (quan ôn) by building an open-air altar in their honor and holding a ritual ceremony called Tien Thao ceremony.
In addition to offerings from the village authorities (votive paper, flowers, and fruit), people also brought individual offerings of alcohol, money, sticky rice, votive paper objects and sweetened rice porridge. After the ceremony, the votive objects were burnt and participants took the other offerings back home. If another epidemic broke out, the ceremony would be repeated.
