(10 min read)
Love me, Love not
Happy
Valentine's Day to all Chinese who are in love, are partnered or still seeking
love!
Finally, the 15th day is here and it also means the end of the 15
days of Lunar Year of the Ox celebrations. It is also the Chinese Valentine's
Day!
My aunts used to say that singles in her younger days would
take the opportunity to go out with their friends to mingle at areas near the
river. It was a good chance to spot a potential partner. They did not have
social mingling apps like Tinder in those days. Moreover, women were expected
to stay at home and hone their skills in domestic affairs. Checking out men in
the malls and at parties were unheard of.
Match making was the sure way to be matched and parents had the
first and final say in those days. My parents were match-made. Thank goodness
that they were not too bad looking and I turned out fine.
Down with the Red
The 15th day is
also the day that the lunar new year decorations will be taken down.
Interestingly, it also marks the first full moon night of the new lunar new
year. Thus for every 1st and 15th day of every lunar month, some Chinese
partake of vegetarian meals and show more mercy to everything and everyone. In
Chinese majority countries, today is not a public holiday.
I believe many will still celebrate with good food, drink and
importantly good company.
Show me the way to Buddha or the Dao
Today lanterns
will be also be lit and be flown away to the heavens. How did this practice
come about? Legend has it that in the Eastern Han Dynasty, the
Emperor was a staunch Buddhist and he wanted to show respect to Buddha.
He heard that some monks in the Buddhist temples had the ritual of
lighting lanterns on the 15th day of the first lunar month.
He then ordered that the imperial grounds and all temples have
lighted lanterns. Since the Emperor was doing it, naturally his subjects
followed the ritual. Eventually every household commenced the practice till
this day.
Some parts of China and Taiwan have the novelty to lighting
lanterns and cast them into the skies. It is symbolic as it means sending ones
wishes to the gods in the heavens and wishing their prayers answered. Lighting
and setting the lanterns off can be a family bonding on this special day.
Besides going to light lanterns tonight, a visit to the
temple today to offer prayers for yourself and your loved ones is also a ritual
among the Taoist and Buddhist Chinese. I remember my late grandmother used to
offer prayers at a well known temple and often tagged along with her. Being
small and short, I could only see smoke which was above me. The smoky air was
caused by the many incense sticks stuck at the only cauldron that fronted the
centre of the temple. Holy smoke, I thought.
Clansmen Camaraderie
Since it was the Lantern Festival, the temples would be extra
bright tonight. Coincidentally the Chinese clans would also be opened for the
closing of the lunar new year celebrations. The Chinese clans with the
different family names would invite their clansmen for the dinner banquet, thanks
the Gods in a communal prayer session and ultimately have the lion dance. The
bigger ones in the villages would even have the dragon dance as well.
At the dinner banquet, a good meal would traditionally be served.
Some Chinese dialect groups have their traditional fare whilst others are happy
to have their favourite dishes. In modern times, we would still prefer a good
dinner meal today surrounded by loved ones. Rightfully, the Chinese restaurants
offer Yuan Xiao set dinners to cater to the masses.
This year, I believe take-outs would be more popular as we are
still in the pandemic restricted environment.
Deservingly Sweet
Dessert
Food is a popular topic of interest on this day. It is customary
to enjoy small round dumplings in soup or 汤圆 （tang yuan) today. These small round dumplings symbolise the offering of prayers for
oneself and loved ones on these days. The idea of having this small delicacy
with loved ones was believed to have started in the Song Dynasty. In those
days, these round dumplings were home made and each family had their own sweet
version.
The small round
dumplings are stuffed with sweet fillings like a light peanut paste, black
sesame paste, red bean paste, white lotus paste and the like. The soup could be
a light ginger sweetened soup or just sugared water.
These days, they are readily available from commerical vendors in
a myraid of flavours. My grandmother used to make hundreds of them and I was
tasked to scoop them up from the boiling water. It was a nerve wrecking
experience cooking them but always a yummy sensation to wolf down 30 when I was
younger. These days, I just walk into
the dessert shop and order a bowl of 4 tang yuan to savour them.
The Reality of
Virtual
This Ox year
marks the celebration of Yuan Xiao going virtual in a special way. A first or A
last, I wonder.
In such extraordinary
times, the brain has also devised new ways to enjoy Yuan Xiao a tat distant but
still celebratory way. The meaning of today stays intact but the format of
delivery has transformed.
As I write,
celebrations are on digital platforms in the virtual space. The lion dance,
dragon dance, singing, praying, partake of food, shouting cheers of joy and
wishing one well are said before a screen or a camera.
The temples would
be quiet or have a muted celebration. The bright lanterns would give adequate
lighting for the various cameras placed there to virtual tour the temple live.
Social media live events would be broadcasted live to temple devotees stuck at
home. The live events go to the people now as compared to people go to the live
events.
No more smoky air for a change.
A virtual lantern gets lit tonight for a change.
My prayers to the gods will be sent up still. No change.
I wish all a Happy Chap Goh Meh or 元宵快乐， 圆圆满满！
OXOX
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