People throw sacrificial offerings to the camp fire to pray for peace and a fruitful year in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia autonomous region, Jan 28. [Photo/VCG]

Hohhot, in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, held a traditional fire sacrifice ritual on Little New Year, which falls on Jan 28 this year to seek blessings from the god of fire or Kitchen God.

Crowds of visitors from Inner Mongolia participated in the ritual to pray for peace and a fruitful harvest.

The festival, one of the oldest sacrificial rites in Inner Mongolia, is often celebrated on Little New Year, usually a week before Lunar New Year. Ethnic Mongolians believe that fire is a symbol of purity and protects families and tribes.

Sacrificial offerings on display at the ritual in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia autonomous region, Jan 28 [Photo/VCG]