Chinese (Lunar) New Year - Spring Festival

Chinese New Year is first day of the first month of the Chinese/Lunar calendar, which typicalls falls in late January or early February of the Western/Solar calendar. It is the most important of the traditional Chinese holidays.

The celebration starts from the Chinese New Year's Eve (年, Nian)，ends with the Lantern Festival, on the fifteenth day of the month. Celebrations generally include extensive family reunions, elaborate meals, worships, dances, and fireworks. The 15th day of the new year is called the Lantern Festival, which is celebrated at night with lantern displays and children carrying lanterns in a parade. Keep in mind that China is big and diverse that different places have different characters in celebration.

The origin of the Lunar New Year Festival can be traced back thousands of years, involving a series of colorful legends and traditions. One of the most famous legends is Nian, an extremely cruel and ferocious beast that the ancients Chinese believed would devour people on New Year's Eve. The Chinese soon learned that Nian was sensitive to loud noises, and they scared it away with red-paper couplets and fireworks. The next morning, people are happy with the feelings of triumph and renewal because Nian has been successfully drove away.

The celebration actually serves as an important occassion of review and renewal.

The 20th of the Twelfth Moon was set aside for the annual housecleaning, or the "sweeping of the grounds". Every corner of the house must be swept and cleaned in preparation for the new year.

It is believed that on the twenty-fourth day of the twelfth lunar month , various gods ascend to heaven to pay their respects and report on household affairs to the Jade Emperor, the supreme Taoist deity. According to tradition, households busily honor these gods by burning ritualistic paper money to provide for their traveling expenses. Another ritual is to smear malt sugar on the lips of the Kitchen God, one of the traveling deities, to ensure that he either submits a favorable report to the Jade Emperor or keeps silent.

Spring Couplets - Spring couplets are traditionally written with black ink on red paper. They are hung in storefronts in the month before the New Year’s Day, and often stay up for two months. They express best wishes and fortune for the coming year. There is a great variety in the writing of these poetic couplets to fit the situation.

Red packets (Red Envelops) are given to children to bless their good fortune. These red packets traditionally consist of even amounts which are considered lucky. Amounts like $2 (two piece of $1), or $20 were acceptable. However, this is not strictly adhered to. The gift was originally a token amount but these days it is not uncommon to receive large sums in affluent families. Red packets are also given to unmarried visitors but the sums are often smaller than the packets given to family members or close friends.

Chongyang Festival or Double Ninth Festival

More than one hundred couples celebrate their 50 years

of marriage in Shanghai during the Double Ninth Festival

That is today! On the ninth day of the ninth month of the Chinese lunar calendar, Chinese people would like to drink chrysanthemum wine, have chrysanthemum cakes, go hiking, and pay special respect to seniors.

The chrysanthemum is often used as a Chinese herbal medicine. People in ancient times believed that, in addition to detoxification, chrysanthemum could drive away evil spirits and prevent one from getting a chill in late autumn.

Since "nine" is the highest odd digit, people take two of them together to signify longevity. Therefore, the ninth day of the ninth month has become a special day for people to pay their respects to the elderly and a day for the elderly to enjoy themselves. It has also been declared China's Day for the Elderly.

The Chongyang Festival is based on the theory of Yin and Yang, the two opposing principles in nature. The ninth day of the ninth lunar month is a day when the two Yang numbers meet. So it is called Chong Yang. Chong means double in Chinese. Chong Yang has been an important festival since ancient times.

There are many stories which are closely related. As recorded in a historical book of the sixth century, in ancient times, there lived a man named Huan Jing. He was learning the magic arts from Fei Changfang, who had become an immortal after many years of practicing Taoism. One day, the two were climbing a mountain. Fei Changfang suddenly stopped and looked very upset. He told Huan Jing, "On the ninth day of the ninth lunar month, disaster will come to your hometown. You must go home immediately. Remember to make a red bag for each one of your family members and put a spray of dogwood on every one. Then you must all tie your bags to your arms, leave home quickly and climb to the top of a mountain. Most importantly, you must all drink some chrysanthemum wine. Only by doing so can your family members avoid this disaster."

On hearing this, Huan Jing rushed home and asked his family to do exactly as his teacher said. The whole family climbed a nearby mountain and did not return until the evening. When they got back home, they found all their animals dead, including chickens, sheep, dogs and even the ox. Later Huan Jing told Fei Changfang about this. Fei said the poultry and livestock died in place of Huan Jing's family, who escaped disaster by following his instructions.

Since then, climbing a mountain, carrying a spray of dogwood and drinking chrysanthemum wine became the traditional activities of the Double Ninth Festival, to avoid evil spirits and misfortunes.

It is also a day for Outing. The Chongyang Festival falls in the golden season of autumn, it is usually perfect for outdoor activities. Many people go hiking and climbing in the countryside, enjoying Mother Nature's final burst of color before she puts on her dull winter cloak. Some will carry a spray of dogwood to pray for health and longevity.


Content and image source: Chinadaily.com.cn
Edited by Ping Sun

Mid-Autumn Festival

A modern Chinese design with lucky clouds and classic round shape

A modern design with Western elements

A traditional Chinese deisgn with imperial colors and classic mofits

August 15 of the Lunar Calendar is the traditional Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival, which is today this year (September 14, 2008 of the Western calendar). It is for family gathering, much like Thanksgiving in the United States. It has also evolved into an important gift giving event, among friends and business acquaintances.

Family members get together to celebrate the harmony, to appreciate the beauty of the full moon, and to enjoy the delicious moon cakes.

The packages of the moon cake has become an important phenomenon of the festival, carrying the tradition with modern taste. Although the designs are evolving year after year, the theme is always the same - wish everyone harmony, prosperity, and love.