Showing posts with label Chinese New Year. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Chinese New Year. Show all posts
Monday, January 23, 2012
New Year
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Gods And Goddesses: Zhao Gongming
Zhao Gongming , also known as Cai Shen, Zhang Gong Ming and Tsai Sheng Yeh is the deity that brings good fortune and protection from disasters. He is typically depicted riding a black tiger, with a thick beard and dark face. Zhao Gongming holds a gold ingot within his hands.
A benevolent and compassionate god, he will answer all prayers to him. Zhao Gongming’s name is often invoked during the celebrations of the Chinese New Year on the first day.
Originally a hermit who used magic to support the collapsing Shang Dynasty, his enemy, Jiang Ziya, killed him. Jiang Ziya later felt guilt for killing Zhao Gongming, apologizing for his actions in a temple and canonizing Zhao Gongming as a god of wealth.
Zhao Gongming is also said to have originally been a god of the underworld, yet was appointed by the Jade Emperor as a marshal of an altar. The new responsibilities were for trading and wealth within the mortal world.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Lantern Festival
The Lantern Festival is celebrated on the very last day of the Chinese New Year festivals (the 15th day of the 1st month) which is celebrated on the first full moon of the new year, and it is interestingly also Tian Guan’s birthday.
Tian Guan is also often mistaken as Fu Xing who is often associated with Lu Xing and Shou Xing. Fu Xing is the god of good fortune like Tian Guan, but Tian Guan also likes all types of entertainment so people do all kinds of activities during the Lantern Festival to say to Tian Guan that they want good fortune during the year.
During the Lantern Festival many lanterns are lighted, red is the colour traditionally used and they do come in great number in areas where many celebrate this festival. People also eat tangyuan, a dumpling made of sweet rice in the shape of a ball and filled with sweet fillings. Eating this sticky food symbolizes family unity and happiness.
Walking on stilts during this time as well as doing a dragon dance or a lion dance is also popular during this time. Performers will often do difficult movements while on stilts.
Tian Guan is also often mistaken as Fu Xing who is often associated with Lu Xing and Shou Xing. Fu Xing is the god of good fortune like Tian Guan, but Tian Guan also likes all types of entertainment so people do all kinds of activities during the Lantern Festival to say to Tian Guan that they want good fortune during the year.
During the Lantern Festival many lanterns are lighted, red is the colour traditionally used and they do come in great number in areas where many celebrate this festival. People also eat tangyuan, a dumpling made of sweet rice in the shape of a ball and filled with sweet fillings. Eating this sticky food symbolizes family unity and happiness.
Walking on stilts during this time as well as doing a dragon dance or a lion dance is also popular during this time. Performers will often do difficult movements while on stilts.
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Chinese New Year
Chinese New Year, also known as the Lunar New Year and the Spring Festival is the most important traditional Chinese holiday and it ends with the Lantern Festival on the 15th day. The next Chinese New Year is to be on February 3rd and it is only a time to get together with family to celebrate but to also remember family who have died.
The days before the New Year families buy presents, decorations, food, new clothes and have their entire houses clean. The intent of the cleaning is to clean away the bad luck and on the New Year Day it is bad luck to clean the house as it is seen as cleaning the good luck away.
On Chinese New Year there is celebration using firecrackers, lanterns, torches and bonfires to chase away the evil spirits believed to be scared off by the light and noise, with dragon and lion dances taking place throughout the first few days of the Chinese New Year.
Red envelops are a common gift around this time of year. The red of the envelop symbolizes good luck and money, with money usually an amount of a lucky number such as one containing multiple eights (as in Chinese it sound similar to “prosperity”.
Certain foods are eaten more often during the Chinese New Year, such as Year Cake and Prosperity Cake, dumplings, a salad of raw fish (known as you sheng), mandarins as they are a symbol of wealth and good fortune, red Jujubes (or ‘Chinese Dates’) which symbolize prosperity, steamed fish as they symbolize long life and good fortune, uncut noodles during to their symbolism of longevity and baked foods with seeds to symbolize fertility. Quite a few things but that is what is eaten during Chinese New Year.
The beginning of Chinese New Year is said to have started with a fight against a beast known as the Nien.
The story goes that the Nien would come to a village on the first day of the New Year where it would eat livestock, crops and villagers (especially children), and because of this villagers would place food in front of their doors at the beginning of each year. Then one time people saw the Nien being scared away by a child wearing red and people knew it was the red that scared the beast away, so people began hanging red lanterns at the start of every New Year. People also used firecrackers to scare away the Nien. The Nien never did go back to the village, and was eventually captured by a Taoist monk by the name of Hongjun Laozu.
With fifteen days or the Chinese New Year there are much to celebrate.
The first day is of the welcoming of deities of both Heaven and earth with meat and the killing of animal often being abstained from this day. Lion and dragon dances are common this day along with fireworks. The first day is also known as the birthday of Budai, the Laughing Buddha.
The second day praying to one’s ancestors and all of the gods are occur this day. It is also the birthday of all dogs this day, so dogs are treated with extra kindness with being given an extra nice meal.
The third day is known as ‘chi kou’ which means ‘red mouth’. Nothing much happens this day as it thought to not be a good day to socialise. Nothing much happens on the fourth day, either.
The fifth day it is known as the birthday of the Chinese god of wealth, Tsai Shen Yeh, and it common to shoot off firecrackers to get the attention of the god of war, Guan Yu, for his favour and good fortune.
On the sixth day is another day of not much happenings but on the seventh day of the Chinese New Year it is known as the common mans birthday and raw fish salad is tossed.
The eighth day is when the eve of the birth of the Jade Emperor is celebrated, with the ninth day the birthday of the Jade Emperor is celebrated. Prayers to the Jade Emperor are said and offerings are given, usually of incense, tea, fruit and vegetarian food. The tenth day is also another day when the Jade Emperor is celebrated.
Sadly, nothing can be said by me for the eleventh and twelfth days… But on the thirteenth day people will tend to only eat vegetarian food and this day is dedicated to Guan Yu, the god of war. It is this day where most organization and business in China will pray to Guan Yu.
Fourteenth day nothing much again but on the fifteenth day the Lantern Festival is celebrated and candles are lit outside houses to help guide spirits home.
The days before the New Year families buy presents, decorations, food, new clothes and have their entire houses clean. The intent of the cleaning is to clean away the bad luck and on the New Year Day it is bad luck to clean the house as it is seen as cleaning the good luck away.
On Chinese New Year there is celebration using firecrackers, lanterns, torches and bonfires to chase away the evil spirits believed to be scared off by the light and noise, with dragon and lion dances taking place throughout the first few days of the Chinese New Year.
Red envelops are a common gift around this time of year. The red of the envelop symbolizes good luck and money, with money usually an amount of a lucky number such as one containing multiple eights (as in Chinese it sound similar to “prosperity”.
Certain foods are eaten more often during the Chinese New Year, such as Year Cake and Prosperity Cake, dumplings, a salad of raw fish (known as you sheng), mandarins as they are a symbol of wealth and good fortune, red Jujubes (or ‘Chinese Dates’) which symbolize prosperity, steamed fish as they symbolize long life and good fortune, uncut noodles during to their symbolism of longevity and baked foods with seeds to symbolize fertility. Quite a few things but that is what is eaten during Chinese New Year.
The beginning of Chinese New Year is said to have started with a fight against a beast known as the Nien.
The story goes that the Nien would come to a village on the first day of the New Year where it would eat livestock, crops and villagers (especially children), and because of this villagers would place food in front of their doors at the beginning of each year. Then one time people saw the Nien being scared away by a child wearing red and people knew it was the red that scared the beast away, so people began hanging red lanterns at the start of every New Year. People also used firecrackers to scare away the Nien. The Nien never did go back to the village, and was eventually captured by a Taoist monk by the name of Hongjun Laozu.
With fifteen days or the Chinese New Year there are much to celebrate.
The first day is of the welcoming of deities of both Heaven and earth with meat and the killing of animal often being abstained from this day. Lion and dragon dances are common this day along with fireworks. The first day is also known as the birthday of Budai, the Laughing Buddha.
The second day praying to one’s ancestors and all of the gods are occur this day. It is also the birthday of all dogs this day, so dogs are treated with extra kindness with being given an extra nice meal.
The third day is known as ‘chi kou’ which means ‘red mouth’. Nothing much happens this day as it thought to not be a good day to socialise. Nothing much happens on the fourth day, either.
The fifth day it is known as the birthday of the Chinese god of wealth, Tsai Shen Yeh, and it common to shoot off firecrackers to get the attention of the god of war, Guan Yu, for his favour and good fortune.
On the sixth day is another day of not much happenings but on the seventh day of the Chinese New Year it is known as the common mans birthday and raw fish salad is tossed.
The eighth day is when the eve of the birth of the Jade Emperor is celebrated, with the ninth day the birthday of the Jade Emperor is celebrated. Prayers to the Jade Emperor are said and offerings are given, usually of incense, tea, fruit and vegetarian food. The tenth day is also another day when the Jade Emperor is celebrated.
Sadly, nothing can be said by me for the eleventh and twelfth days… But on the thirteenth day people will tend to only eat vegetarian food and this day is dedicated to Guan Yu, the god of war. It is this day where most organization and business in China will pray to Guan Yu.
Fourteenth day nothing much again but on the fifteenth day the Lantern Festival is celebrated and candles are lit outside houses to help guide spirits home.
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Laughing Buddha
The Laughing Buddha, also known ad Budai, Hotei and Fat Buddha, is often mistakenly thought as Siddhartha Gautama, the founder of Buddhism. The Laughing Buddha is thought to have originated from a monk named Qieci, from Fenghua (now the province of Zhejiang), an eccentric man who was much loved.
Stories of Qieci is spread across China and eventually become known under a name which means “hempen sack”, Budai. He carries a sack full of goodies such as sweets for children and often pictured with children. The Laughing Buddha represents happiness, generosity and wealth while also a protector of children, the poor and the weak. Often you can see the statue of the Laughing Buddha these days near the entrance of Chinese Buddhist temples and it is folk practice to rub his belly for good luck.
Interestingly, in Chinese Taoism the Laughing Buddha he seen as a god of abundance and in Japan he is called Hotei and is one of the Seven Lucky Gods of Shinto. The Laughing Buddha is also referred as the patron of restaurateurs, fortune tellers and bartenders.
Laughing Buddha statues often depict a jolly man carrying quite an array of items and in Feng Shui Laughing Buddha statues are often used and what the Laughing Buddha carries may be something you want to gain more of, so keep an eye out. A pot of gold and gold ingots are of wealth while a sack abundance, maybe even a gourd which is a symbol of good health and longevity.
If you practice Feng Shui it is said there are several places that make a good position to place a Laughing Buddha statue, from what I heard the best places include facing the main door, in the living room, on a deck and either an office table or reception desk.
His birthday is said to be on the first day of Chinese New Year
Stories of Qieci is spread across China and eventually become known under a name which means “hempen sack”, Budai. He carries a sack full of goodies such as sweets for children and often pictured with children. The Laughing Buddha represents happiness, generosity and wealth while also a protector of children, the poor and the weak. Often you can see the statue of the Laughing Buddha these days near the entrance of Chinese Buddhist temples and it is folk practice to rub his belly for good luck.
Interestingly, in Chinese Taoism the Laughing Buddha he seen as a god of abundance and in Japan he is called Hotei and is one of the Seven Lucky Gods of Shinto. The Laughing Buddha is also referred as the patron of restaurateurs, fortune tellers and bartenders.
A couple tales tell how the Laughing Buddha became fat. One is that he was once so handsome a man wanted him as a wife, so he made himself fat. Another tale says angels and men thought extremely highly of his looks and the Laughing Buddha saw this as inappropriate so he made himself fat.
If you practice Feng Shui it is said there are several places that make a good position to place a Laughing Buddha statue, from what I heard the best places include facing the main door, in the living room, on a deck and either an office table or reception desk.
His birthday is said to be on the first day of Chinese New Year
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