Good Luck and Prosperity
FU and LU for the coming Year of the Pig! That's Good Luck and Prosperity in Chinese (characters pictured above).
The Chinese New year is celebrated on the first day of the First Moon of the lunar calendar. This year, that falls on February 5th and marks the year 4698, also known as the Year of the Dragon. The most important aspect of this holiday is the family, present and ancestral. Much of the symbolism and ritual surrounding the Spring Festival revolves around attracting wealth and prosperity and keeping the evil away.
Being a 15-day holiday, preparations begin early. First comes the Sweeping where the house is swept clean of any bad luck, symbolizing finishing up old business of the past and preparing for new good luck to come. Doors and windowpanes are given a new coat of paint, usually red. Debts are paid, good wishes are written in black ink on red paper (red or scarlet being the color of good luck).
Symbolic flowers and fruit are placed in the house. If a flower blooms on New Year's Day, it is highly auspicious as foretelling a year of prosperity. Tangerines and oranges are often used as tangerines are symbolic of good luck, and oranges are symbolic of wealth. They became symbols because the word for tangerine has the same sound as "luck" in Chinese, and the word for orange has the same sound as "wealth".
Tradition dictated that all foods be prepared before New Year抯 Day, so that all sharp instruments, such as knives and scissors, could be put away to avoid cutting the "luck" of the New Year. The Eve of the New Year is very carefully observed.
New Year's Eve Dinner is a time for family. One of the most popular foods is jiaozi, dumplings boiled in water. Every light is to be kept on the whole night. At midnight, the whole sky is lit up by fireworks and firecrackers. On New Year抯 Day, unmarried adults and children are given good luck money wrapped in little red envelopes. You can read about the fifteen days of the festival.
To keep Good Luck and Prosperity with you for the coming year, you can place the characters that I have above on a page or your desk. Download them for free at FourRiver. Available are Chinese characters for prosperity, good luck, longevity, happiness, and more.
Other methods of attracting good luck and harmony include Feng Shui. Translating to "the wind and the water," this is the Chinese art of correct placement. Arranging our furnishings to align with nature, draws harmony and good health into our lives.
Fu and Lu for the Year of the Pig.....
Date：2007-1-29 【Return】
