The sounds of firecrackers can be heard exploding all over the place.
Young happy children with 'Ang Pao' (red envelopes containing money) in
hand and processions of dragon dancers make their way down the roads of
Chinatowns around the world. They represent the coming of the Chinese
New Year--the most important day on the Chinese calendar.
The Chinese New Year is also known as the
Lunar New Year, is on the first day of the first month based
on the Chinese style lunar calendar. Some people call New Year’s
day ‘The Spring Festival’ because it is the beginning
of spring.
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They are praying to their dead ancestors.
You can see that lots of food and drink which they offer to their
ancestors. |
Two days before New Year
Chinese people go to the market to buy
food and other offerings on this day. It is also the last day
for shops and stalls to open. All the shops will be closed until
after the New Year.
The last day of the year
Chinese pray and prepare offerings to the
gods and to their ancestors on this day. There are three different
kinds of prayers that must be performed, including prayers for
the Gods of the Land in the morning, prayers for the ancestors
at noon and prayers for the wandering souls with no relatives
in the afternoon.
These prayers show respect to the gods
and ancestors. They believe that these prayers will bring merit
and blessings. After each prayer, the Chinese burn golden paper,
believing that the paper will become money in the after life.
New Year's day
More prayers are done on New Year’s
day, this time for the gods of luck and good fortune. This prayer
is usually held in the early morning and you need to look at
the ‘Lear Yik Tao’ (the collective book of Chinese
culture and tradition) to know the best time to pray. After this
prayer, some families perform another prayer for their ancestors.
New Year’s day is the most festive
day of all the three days. People go to their relatives’
houses to give and receive blessings. They exchange oranges and
give away ‘Ang Pao’ to the younger children. Chinese
believe that doing this will bring them good luck in the New
Year.
During the celebrations, there are also
lion dance performances--believed to ward off demons. People
also refrain from fighting or being mean to each other during
this time because it would bring them bad luck throughout the
year.
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She is putting the incense sticks
in the shrine. |
She is offering the food to the
ancestors. |
They are burning the paper. |
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Chinese lion dance performances. |
Chinese street opera. It's free
to watch by the side of the road. |
