THIS week marks the beginning of the two-week long Chinese New Year celebrations as Chinese around the world get ready to say goodbye to the goat year and prepare for the awakening that will define 2017 — the Year of the Rooster.
It was at a past celebration at the Republic of China’s Suva Embassy that the true meaning of Chinese New Year became more apparent to me. His Excellency, the Chinese Ambassador to Fiji, acknowledged my work in Fiji as a culinary ambassador and thanked me on behalf of his government.
Thinking that he was confused about my birthplace, I whispered to him that I was not from China, to which he replied, “Yes, but you are Chinese. You are one of our people.” It was the first time in my life that I had realised that despite my heritage and upbringing in Australia, I was a part of the 50 million Chinese diaspora that lived outside of China.
Although spiritually and geographically disconnected from my mainland China heritage, the Chinese New Year celebrations is a reminder of my sense of belonging, identity and connection to one of the oldest civilizations on the planet.
It is at this time of the year that every Chinese descendant, no matter where they live or how much of the culture they embrace in their daily lives, are reminded of the weird, wonderful and delicious meaning of the New Year celebrations.
The Chinese are among the most superstitious people on the planet, and it is always around the time of the Lunar New Year that its most deep held thoughts and beliefs on everything to do with longevity, luck and prosperity comes to bare.
As any Chinese will tell you, the closing days of the old and beginning of the New Year is not just about reflection and celebration, it is a reconnection and reminder of an ancient ritual where auspicious foods play an important role in the coming New Year.
It is said that if you don’t eat enough of these lucky foods during this festive period, one’s fortune would sorely be diminished. The Year of the Rooster will begin on January 28, 2017, with 16 days of celebrations beginning on Chinese New Year’s Eve; making this the longest holiday in the Chinese calendar. Chinese New Year takes place on a different date every year, because it is based on the new lunar moon, but it always falls between the end of January and mid-February.
Why are animals used
in the Chinese horoscope?
Each year is denoted by a different symbol from the Chinese 12-year animal zodiac. 2016 was the Year of the Goat. The Chinese calendar attaches different animals from the zodiac to each lunar year in a cycle of 12 years. This year is the Year of the Rooster but unlike Western zodiac mythology, your animal year is not always a good luck year and will almost certainly be full of challenges. For people born in a rooster year — 1921, 1933, 1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005 and 2017 — it is set to be an unlucky time because tradition denotes that the year of your birth makes for an unlucky 12 months.
Many elderly Chinese believe it is best not to take huge risks if it is your animal year, and from my personal experience they are usually right. Superstition runs deep in Chinese culture and major life events like starting a business, getting married or tempting fate is generally avoided if it is “your year”. Roosters are the tenth sign in the zodiac and are seen as confident, honest and hardworking. They also enjoy being around people but can be seen as attention seekers.
Preparing for the new year
No matter where Chinese live across the globe, preparations for the New Year is filled with symbolism and beware those who do not attempt to acknowledge and respect their ancestral rituals. By ignoring thousands of years of tradition, many Chinese believe you’ll be inviting bad luck and misfortune in the new year. New Year’s Eve is seen as a very important day to lay the groundwork for the coming year, with families gathering together for the traditional “reunion dinner” to rekindle connection to family. Firecrackers are then let off to signal the end of last year and the beginning of next.
Red envelopes stuffed with “lucky money” are given to children and single family, along with wishes to grow up healthy. People also decorate their houses with red paper cutouts, banners and special New Year paintings during the festive period.
This year is also likely to see many Rooster themed decorations. Some Chinese people believe that they mustn’t do cleaning or wash their hair in the first three days as that will sweep/wash away good luck. A cry of a child is believed to also bring bad luck to the family, so the young are often placated with sweets to keep them quiet.
To ask for a loan during festivities is a big “no-no” as begging for money may bring a year of bad fortune. Another interesting superstition is red underwear; be it bras, boxer shorts, underwear or g-strings! In China, you will see red underwear and lingerie being sold at supermarkets and street markets as red is believed to ward off bad luck and misfortune, so many wear it from top to toe during the festivities.
Eating the seven lucky foods
Whether you are a believer or not, certain dishes are eaten during the Chinese New Year for their symbolic meaning to bring good luck for the coming year. The auspicious symbolism of these foods is usually based on their pronunciations or appearance, and how they are prepared, served and eaten. The most common Chinese New Year foods include dumplings, fish, spring rolls, and glutinous rice cake, but if you are really into eating for good luck and fortune, there are seven traditional dishes that are a must:
* Fish — an increase in prosperity
Eating fish during the festive season is serious business for the Chinese. In the Chinese language, “fish” (yú) sounds like “surplus”. Chinese people always like to have a surplus at the end of the year, because they think if they have managed to save something at the end of the year, then they can make more in the next year. The fish should be the last dish left with some left over, as this has auspicious meaning for there being surpluses every year.
The head should be placed toward distinguished guests or elders, representing respect, just as the Fijian kava bowl is positioned to point towards the chief. Diners can enjoy the fish only after the one who faces the fish head eats first, and the fish shouldn’t be moved as it’s eaten with the main bone carefully removed without turning over the fish. The two people who face the head and tail of fish should drink together, as this is considered to have a lucky meaning.
These old customs are often observed in light-hearted spirit, but who dares to go against tradition; especially if it might bring bad luck!
* Chinese dumplings — wealth
With a history of more than 2000 years, dumplings (Jiaozi) are a classic Chinese food, and a traditional dish eaten on Chinese New Year’s Eve. Chinese dumplings can be made to look like Chinese silver ingots (which are not bars, but boat-shaped, oval, and turned up at the two ends).
Legend has it that the more dumplings you eat during the new year celebrations, the more money you can make in the new year! Dumplings generally consist of minced meat and finely-chopped vegetables wrapped in a thin and elastic white pastry. Popular fillings are minced pork, diced shrimp, fish, minced chicken, beef, and vegetables. They can be cooked by boiling, steaming, frying or baking. When making dumplings there should be a good number of pleats along its top edge.
If you make the junction too flat or with less pleats, it is thought to mean you are poor! Some Chinese put a white thread inside a dumpling, and the one who eats that dumpling is supposed to possess longevity and long life. Sometimes a copper coin is put in a dumpling, and the one who eats it is supposed to become wealthy. Dumplings should be arranged in lines instead of circles, because circles of dumplings are supposed to mean one’s life will go round in circles, never going anywhere.
* Spring rolls — wealth
Spring rolls (Chunjuan) get their name because they are traditionally eaten during the Spring Festival. They are a Cantonese delicacy of cylindrical-shaped rolls filled with vegetables, meat, or something sweet. Fillings are wrapped in thin dough wrappers, then fried, when the spring rolls are given their golden-yellow colour which symbolise gold bars.
* Glutinous rice cake — a higher income or position
In the Chinese language, glutinous rice cake (Niangao) sounds like it means “getting higher year-on- by year”. In many Chinese people’s minds, this means the higher you are the more prosperous your business is a general improvement in life. The main ingredients of niangao are sticky rice, or glutinous rice, sugar, chestnuts, Chinese dates, and lotus leaves.
* Sweet rice balls — family togetherness
Sweet rice ball (Tangyuan) is the main food for China’s Lantern Festival, however, in south China, people eat them throughout the Spring Festival. The pronunciation and round shape of sweet rice balls are associated with reunion and being together. That’s why they are favoured by the Chinese during the New Year celebrations.
* Longevity noodles — happiness and longevity
Noodles can be found at many Chinese celebrations including birthdays and weddings as noodles (Changshou Mian) unsurprisingly symbolise a wish for longevity. Their length and unsevered preparation are also symbolic of the eater’s life. They are longer than normal noodles and uncut, either fried and served on a plate, or boiled and served in a bowl with their broth. You never serve chopped noodles during festivities as it may symbolise cutting one’s life short!
* Good fortune fruit — fullness and wealth
Certain fruits are eaten during the Chinese New Year period, such as tangerines, mandarins, oranges, and pomelo. They are selected as they are particularly round and “golden” in colour, symbolising fullness and wealth, but more obviously for the lucky sound they bring when spoken.
Eating and displaying oranges is believed to bring good luck and fortune due to their pronunciation, and even writing. The Chinese for orange is cheng, which sounds the same as the Chinese for “success”. Eating pomelo is thought to bring continuous prosperity. The more you eat, the more wealth it will bring, as the traditional saying goes. The Chinese for pomelo (you) sounds like “to have” and “again”; symbolising to enjoy health and wealth more frequently.
Although there are many interesting myths and stories explaining the superstitions of Chinese New Year, the modern reasons for the festival are to celebrate a year of hard work, have a good rest, relax with family, and to wish for a lucky and prosperous coming year.
Chinese people believe that a good start to the year will lead to a lucky year so if you get the chance to celebrate the Year of the Rooster with Chinese family or friends (maybe you could quickly befriend a Chinese family) — eat up and don’t forget to wear your red underwear for that added good fortune. Happy Chinese New Year of the Rooster!
