Spring Festival - Chinese New Year

Celebrate the Chinese New Year with lion dancers, delicious foods, firecrackers and lucky red envelopes!

The Chinese New Year, also known as the Spring Festival brings hope for a good harvest in the year ahead. Chinese New Year follows the lunar calendar and is celebrated somewhere between January 21 and February 19.

Chinese New Year is celebrated in most of China, Taiwan and Hong Kong. Cities around the world with Chinese populations also host a variety of festivities featuring traditional foods, flowers and firecrackers. The Festival often carries on for many days.

Every year in China is named after one of 12 animals. This year, 2008 is the Year of the Rat. How did the Rat become the first animal to have the year named after him?

According to legend, the animals were arguing over which of the twelve should be the first in the cycle of years. The gods said the animals must have a race across the river. The animal arriving first on the other side would be the first New Year animal.

All of the animals jumped into the river at the same time. The strong Ox was soon at the lead while all of the other animals struggled behind him. Except for the ray, that is. No one was paying attention to the Rat crouched upon the Ox's back. Just before reaching the other side the rat jumped onto the bank winning the race!

Many people celebrate Chinese New Year as a religious festival. Long ago there was only one religion which had many gods and spirits. This included Door Gods who watched over the family at home. The Door God was once a famous soldier. Every New Year people put up his picture to guard them.

The story of The Door God began one night when Emperor Taizong was ill and suffered terrible nightmares. All through the night ghosts howled and screamed in his head. The next day he told his two best soldiers about the dream.

The next night the two soldiers, Qin Qiong and Yuchi Gong stood guarding the emperor's bedroom door. One soldier had an iron rod while the other held a club. The next morning the emperor announced that he had a restful sleep through the night. The soldiers could not stand outside the emperor's door night after night, so the emperor had an artist paint pictures of the two soldiers. These were then hung as guards on the palace gates.

Word spread that the paintings were guarding the palace against evil spirits and people began to place pictures of the two soldiers outside their homes, too. Currently during New Year, millions of Door Guard pictures can be seen guarding the homes of families.

Long ago people would celebrate Chinese New Year for fifteen days, presently most people only celebrate the first three days. Discover what you need to know and do to celebrate the New Year.

Before the holiday everyone helps to clean the house. Lucky red decorations are hung over the doors and around the rooms. Holiday foods are prepared and all debts are repaid. Flowers represent a symbol of plenty so flower and gift stands are set up.

On New Year's Eve the temples are full of worshipers. Families gather to share a special meal and throughout the night the streets are full of joyous people.

Other people follow the older New Year tradition of staying home, locking the doors and windows tight to prevent evil spirits from entering. Tree branches are set afire and firecrackers set off to scare away the spirits.

The doors and windows are unlocked on New Year's Day and positive wishes are shared. On this day you can shout "Gung Hei Fat Choy" or "Happy New Year" hoping for wealth for everyone. Little red envelopes with "lucky money" are exchanged as family join together, each dressed in new clothes.

There are some things which can't be done on New Year's Day. People do not eat meat on this day. Bathing and cleaning the house is forbidden because if you do all of the wealth that the gods have brought will be washed or swept away. Be careful not to break anything, for this will bring bad luck. Also on the unlucky list is falling over, using bad language, knives, or scissors.

The second day is for visiting friends and family. On this day gambling is allowed, so some people take advantage of the opportunity.

Day three is not the day to visit friends because you could end up having an argument. This is a good day to visit a temple and discover your future with fortune sticks.

Teams of dancers dress up on the fourth day. From the fifth to fifteenth days people get back to normal, returning to work and cleaning the house. It is a good time to look for bargains while shopping. All of the gods in heaven join together on the eighth day and some people ask for their blessings. Day nine incense is burnt to commemorate the birthday of the king of the gods, the Jade Emperor. Days ten to fifteen lanterns are bought with good wishes written on them and the Lantern Festival ends the New Yea.

Firecrackers are set off to drive away evil spirits for the coming year. Long ago, people believed that the noise and bright lights of firecrackers chased away ghosts, devils, and the huge mountain giant. FAncient folklore tells of a angry giant who came down from the mountain at the end of the old year and ate every living thing he found. The giant was afraid of loud bangs and bright lights. The people set bamboo stems on fire and chased the giant up the mountain.

Before there were firecrackers the people set fire to bamboo stems.Because the center of bamboo is hollow when lit, the air inside expands and the bamboo splits open with a loud crack.

During the Spring Festival people attend the temples to pray for peace and success. They light joss sticks for good luck. Joss sticks are made of strips of bamboo cane that are dipped in sawdust and the sweet-smelling powder made from tree gums.

Long ago, lucky charms were made from peachwood and good fortune rhymes were written on them. Today the rhymes are written on red strips of paper and put on doors throughout the house.

The tradition of loud gongs, drums, and dancers in animal and clown costumes comes from southern China. Each New Year villagers join in drum contests. Each band has a drum, a pair of cymbals, and several gongs. Each team will play to the rhythms of their own drum, while al teams compete at the same time, trying to be the loudest of all!

New Year dancers can be seen between the fourth and fifteenth days of the New Year, as teams of dancers tour the country. A team will have about ten members. Some may be dressed in a uniformed costume, carrying swords and clubs as soldiers do. Among these dancers will be the bright paper heads of cats, lions and roosters. The animals' heads are decorated with ringing bells and the dancers move them to the beat of the gongs and drums. The animal dancers move about, acting and moving like the animals they represent as they entertain the crowd.

Rice is associated with a bountiful harvest next year. Chestnuts, dates, walnuts, hazlenuts, melon seeds, lotus seeds, and oranges are considered lucky.

Favorite meats include duck, chicken, and goose. Meat and fish are also taken to the temple to offer to the spirits and gods..

In northern China sweet dumplings in the shape of little golden shoes that was used as currency in ancient China. In southern China eating lots of sticky cakes brings good luck.

The Lantern Festival occurs on the night of the New Year's first full moon. Paper lanterns are tied to strings and hung from a pole. Other lanterns, representing animals are carried along the street.

A World of Holidays: Chinese New Year by Catherine Chambers, Raintree Steck-Vaughn Publishers, Austin Texas - 1997