Vu Lan festival highlights themes of filial piety and elderly well-being

As the Vu Lan festival arrives in the seventh lunar month, reflections on filial piety and the psychological well-being of elderly parents have emerged.

In literature, poet Quản Minh Cường expressed the deep sacrifices of motherhood through his poem ‘Vu Lan ơn mẹ’, which highlights the selfless nature of parents and the regret children may feel regarding their past lack of awareness.

From a psychological perspective, experts such as Adriana Henríquez Lomba note that elderly loneliness is often not a natural consequence of aging but a result of profound psychological shifts. As parents lose their sense of identity and purpose after retirement or when children leave home, they may face significant emotional voids. The reports suggest that well-intentioned but misguided attempts by children to ‘fix’ their parents' sadness can inadvertently lead to further isolation.