Fight the evil, as the Ox is here – by Vidya Anand
Chinese New Year, pronounced in Chinese as ‘xin nian’ starts with the New Moon on the first day of the New Year and ends on the full moon 15 days later. Lantern Festival is then celebrated on the 15th day wherein people adorn their houses with different types of lanterns. There are many stories behind the Chinese festival.
According to one of the tales and legends, the beginning of Chinese New Year started with a fight against a mythical beast called the Nian or “Year” in Chinese.
Nian would come on the first day of New Year to devour livestock, crops, and even villagers, especially children. To protect themselves, the villagers would put food in front of their doors at the beginning of every year. It was believed that after the Nian ate the food they prepared, it wouldn’t attack any more people. One time, people saw that the Nian was scared away by a little child wearing red. The villagers then understood that the Nian was afraid of the color red. Hence, every time when the New Year was around, the villagers would hang red lanterns and red spring scrolls on windows and doors. People also used firecrackers to frighten away the Nian. From then on, the Nian never came to the village again. The Nian was eventually captured by Hongjunlaozu, an ancient Taoist monk. The Nian became Hongjunlaozu’s mount.
After the legend, lets move on to analyze the Chinese calendar. Their calendar is based on a combination of the moon and sun’s movements. The lunar cycle takes about 29.5 days for its completion. In order for the lunar cycle to match with the solar calendar, the Chinese have insert an extra month once in seven years out of a 19-year cycle. This is similar to adding an extra day on the leap year. This is why the Chinese New Year differs each year. There is also an interesting fact about the Chinese. They have 12 animals for each year and one of the animals represents every New Year. For instance, 2005 was the Year of Rooster; 2006 was the Year of Dog, 2007 was the Year of Pig and 2008 was the Year of the Rat and now 2009 is the Year of the Ox. So next time, if someone asks you for your date of birth, all you need to remember is Which year of animal were you born!
In China, the New Year’s Eve and New Year Day’s celebrations are kept as a family affair, a time of reunion and thanksgiving. It is celebrated in a religious way to honor Heaven and Earth, the Gods of the household and the family ancestors. The presence of the ancestors is acknowledged on the New Year’s Eve with a dinner arranged on the family banquet table. The spirits of the ancestors, together with the living, celebrate the onset of the New Year. The communal feast is called “surrounding the stove”. It symbolizes family unity and honors the past and present generations. On the New Year’s Day, the family eats a vegetarian dish called “jai”. Although the various ingredients in jai are root vegetables or fibrous vegetables, many people attribute various superstitious aspects to them.
Other foods include a whole fish, which represents togetherness and abundance, and a chicken to represent prosperity. The chicken must be presented with a head, tail and feet to symbolize completeness. Noodles should be uncut, as they represent long life.
After the delicious delicacies, the Chinese also have a gift exchange ritual in which red packets called lai shi; are given by the married couples or the elderly to unmarried juniors. It is also common for adults or young couples to give red packets to children. This practice is to suppress the evil’s powers.
January 26, 2009 marks the beginning of the Year of the Ox. So be ready to welcome the Ox home in a novel style!
