Most main holiday You can celebrate endlessly throughout the year. Now also according to the lunar calendar. How to do this according to the rules? We study together with WomanJournal.ru.

Spring Festival

New Year According to the lunar calendar, it is a holiday revered not only by Asian peoples, but also by people who respect Eastern culture, rituals and customs of this sophisticated nation. Many of us admire the culture of the East and dream of celebrating the New Year according to all the rules. How to do this and what should be observed, what dishes can be prepared from traditional beans or rice, and what is best avoided?

China

Spring Festival

Custom. Nowadays, probably, even the Chinese themselves do not know exactly when the custom of celebrating the New Year (called the Spring Festival in China) appeared. Some rituals dedicated to this bright day, thank God, they have sunk into oblivion. But many of them have been preserved and are carried out by all members Chinese families. For example, there is a custom to place the so-called Money Tree- a cypress branch inserted into a bowl of fruit and rice. Copper coins are tied to the branch with red threads: in China they believe that such a design can bring prosperity and good luck in the coming year.

What is customary to give? In China, family is treated with reverence, so gifts in pairs are considered a sign of respect. For example, a pair of cups, a set bed linen for two, two food sets or two candles will bring much more positive emotions than one thing, but more expensive. After all, the main thing here is to respect traditions.

Home decoration. New Year's illustrations are hung on the walls, New Year's paired inscriptions are pasted on the external gates of houses. Sheets with wishes for happiness, health and prosperity are posted throughout the house, and the windows of the houses shine with fantastic patterns that the owners cut out of paper.

Rice traditions

Dish. The festive table in the Middle Kingdom is completely prepared in advance. One of the popular and delicious Chinese dishes is zongzi - rice dumplings.

Rice dumplings

Compound
½ cup rice

Rice traditions

Pepper, nutmeg
1 parsley
1 onion
4 carnations
1 small parsley
1 leek
1 carrot
1 turnip
2 eggs
3 crackers
¾ cup deep fat

Preparation
Boil 1.½ cups of rice, strain through a colander, pour over cold water, put in a saucepan, salt, pepper, add nutmeg, 1 parsley, 1 onion stuffed with 4 cloves.
2. Cover with a lid and cook until soft. Remove parsley and onion.
3.Chop very finely 1 parsley, 1 leek, 1 small carrot, a little turnip and pour in the broth, cook until soft, place in a sieve, mix with rice.
4.Add a raw egg.
5. Form dumplings with a spoon and place in a cool place.
6. After cooling the dumplings until they harden, five minutes before serving, roll them in egg and grated bread and deep-fry, then dry and serve garnished with herbs or dipped in broth.

What to avoid. Knife on New Year's table is a bad omen. It is believed that he, as it were, cuts off the family's luck. You should not give a watch, because this image, according to the inhabitants of the porcelain country, is associated with death.

Japanese holiday

Japan

Custom. The Japanese believe: if on the most important day of the lunar calendar you stock up on rakes decorated with expensive stones and painted with various designs and ornaments, then you can use them to rake in happiness all year long. In the first seconds of the upcoming holiday, it is customary to laugh, then luck will not give up and the smile will shine on your face for all twelve months.

Japanese holiday

What is customary to give? Oseibo - that's what they call it Gift Baskets, which according to tradition must be presented in the morning. The kits include tin cans, pieces of scented toilet soap and other useful household items. This tradition originated in the days of the ancient samurai, who exchanged gifts of similar content.

Home decoration. The Japanese, like the Chinese, customarily decorate their entrance doors. Bamboo and pine branches, symbols of longevity and fidelity, are the main decorations. In front of the house are the inhabitants of the Country rising sun they put up a kadomatsu - a gate made of three bamboo sticks, to which they tie pine branches so that the deity would favor them all year.

Dish. Mochi are traditional New Year's rice cakes, which no Japanese family can do without on New Year's Day.

Ingredients
Rice (amount depends on desired result)

Preparation
1. Rinse the rice.
2. Soak the rice in water for 8–12 hours.
3. Drain the water. Place the rice in a colander for 15 minutes.
4. Place a towel on the bottom of the steaming basket. Place mochi rice on top of one half of the towel, forming it into small “piles” with a hollow in the middle. Cover the rice with the other half of the towel.
5. Close the lid and steam for 30–50 minutes.
6. Place mochi on foil.
7. Without allowing it to cool, beat it with a mallet. After wetting your hands with water, turn over to the other side. The main thing is not to pour water into the mochi, wetting your hands.

What to avoid. Under no circumstances are ordinary Japanese allowed to give flowers for the New Year: this is a gift only for imperial persons.

Chinese New Year is another holiday that comes right after our traditional celebration. It is known that Chinese New Year does not have constant date and is celebrated every year at different times - the year of the Fire Rooster begins on January 28, exactly at 4 o'clock and 8 minutes at night Tbilisi time.

Celebration date

Chinese New Year has a variable date because it is entirely dependent on the lunar calendar. Chinese New Year falls on the second new moon after the winter solstice, December 21st. Every year this holiday may fall on one of the days between January 21 and February 21.

It is also a day marked by prayers for the environment, reminding us that we are good stewards of the world around us. Justinian's novels decreed that all official documents of the Empire must include a reference to the definition. When attempting to publish manuscripts from this era, it is useful to know the year of display, as exact dates or years are less common.

Harvest, Thanksgiving and Sowing

Anno Mundi served Starting point for calendars until the modern era in many parts of the world and is still a liturgical reference point for both modern Judaism and Christians. As preparations for winter have been made, so have preparations for the coming year.

Chinese New Year 2017 will begin on January 28th. More precisely, 2017 will be according to the Gregorian calendar, but according to the Chinese calendar we will meet the year 4715, which will come under the sign of the Fire Rooster and will last until February 15, 2018, when it will be replaced by the Year of the Yellow Dog.

As noted

On New Year's holidays, people visit each other with congratulations, gifts in the form of money in red envelopes, and necklaces of coins and tangerines, as a symbol of wealth.

For Christians, it was a time of thanksgiving, remembering the good weather and abundant rain that the Lord provided for this year's harvest, which we pray for at every Divine Liturgy. This draws parallels with the Feast of Trumpets for God's pre-educated people.

Chinese New Year traditions and signs

And the Lord said to Moses: Speak to the children of Israel, saying: In the seventh month, in the first month of the month, there will be your rest, a memorial of trumpets; This will be a holy meeting for you. You will not perform slave labor, and you will offer burnt offerings to the Lord. By celebrating the new year at harvest time, we are reminded each year of our dependence on God's hard work and blessings. Going beyond material goods and healthy cultures, it relates to imperial concerns, including prayers for protection from our enemies.

Throughout the New Year celebrations in China, fun events are held. folk festivals, fairs, costume dances and masquerade street processions. In anticipation of the New Year, Chinese residents change old clothes for a new one, they thoroughly clean their homes so that favorable energy circulates freely in it and does not stagnate. During cleaning, all the trash and unnecessary things accumulated over the year are thrown away.

You, who created all things in Your infinite wisdom and established the times by Your own power, grant Your victories to the Christian people. And when we consider the increasing natural disasters, droughts, floods, wildfires, hurricanes and famines, we must be more mindful in this modern age of technology and abundance to pray for such things - no less.

We have not worked out our way out of dependence on God. If anything, the more our abilities increase, the more we manifest a need for God's mercy and mercy. And this leads to my final point: the Church New Year is a day marked by prayers for caring for the environment.

Holiday treats are prepared accordingly. A favorite dish is dumplings, whose shape resembles a gold bar - a symbol of prosperity. Often houses are decorated with tangerines, always eight of them - a number symbolizing infinity.

Fire Rooster

The Year of the Fire Rooster promises to be a truly memorable event. The Chinese advise not to buy on the eve of the holiday. new shoes, do not cut your hair, because, according to them, misfortune awaits those who violate these rules. It is interesting that on the night before the New Year, the Chinese do not sleep, because in this way they protect themselves from troubles, illnesses and troubles for the entire next year.

Bartholomew is affectionately known as the "Green Patriarch" and is a frequent speaker on the international stage regarding the defense of Creativity. And it all makes sense. The beginning of the New Year has marked the beginning of the world for centuries. It is a day of God's grace for a bountiful harvest. It is a day that recognizes God's protection and providence for the world along with our responsibility and stewardship towards the same.

This all comes back to the story of Creation itself, and a story in which humanity, represented by Adam and Eve, is given the enormous responsibility of caring for every living thing. Restoring peace between humanity and the created order is at the core of redemption and deification, and this is ultimately what the New Spiritual New Year is all about.

The Rooster is bright and demonstrative, elegant and sociable. However, in addition to the animal itself, you also need to know the color and element of the patron sign of 2017. The element, like the color of the Rooster, directly affects what 2017 will be like for each person.

Asian countries celebrate the New Year differently than we do, but both cultures have something in common. By observing the traditions of celebrating the New Year according to the eastern calendar, you can attract happiness, wealth and good luck into your life.

Mary's Nativity is the first Great Feast of the year, while her Assumption or "falling asleep" is the last. In this series we see the incarnation of the God-man Jesus Christ at the heart of our history as the people of God. And between these two landmarks we have this holiday, which at first glance may seem like a peculiar or even inappropriate relic from the Roman Empire.

Rather, the Church New Year serves as the basis for our entire liturgical life each year. We give thanks for what the Lord has done and ask for his mercy and protection for the days ahead. We take a moment to consider our impact on the world around us, and whether our actions will come from hearts of selfishness or hearts of compassion. This is a holiday that points to the very essence of Christ's message of true Christian spirituality: prayer, fasting and almsgiving. Prayers for blessings seen and unseen, starving for the world and our own mortification, and almsgiving for the care of others.

Every year more and more people ask the question: when will the New Year begin according to the eastern calendar? The reason for the interest lies in traditions that are in many ways similar to ours, but at the same time have some extremely interesting differences. Knowing how it is customary to celebrate this holiday among residents of Asian countries, you can better understand the roots of the New Year according to the Eastern calendar.

Celebration in Russia

Self-sacrifice and promise, beauty and restraint. So pop open a bottle of champagne and present your petitions to the Lord. In many places, monthly lengths immediately following this change were not recorded, but were based instead on observations of the sky. The astronomer priests were instructed to announce when the new month? it was usually said to begin with the first appearance of the new moon. The length of the month at this time was simply the number of days that passed from one new lunar crescent to the next.

During those years in Rome, for example, the Pontiff observed the sky and announced the new moon and therefore the new month to the king. For centuries, the Romans referred to the first day of each new month as the Kalends or Kalends in their word kalare. The word calendar comes from this custom.

When is the New Year according to the Eastern calendar?

In eastern Asian countries there is no fixed date for celebrating the New Year: the holiday is celebrated on the first New Moon after the winter Solstice. The vacation lasts on average 15 days.

The general leitmotif of the New Year according to the eastern calendar is the obligatory presence of red, fireworks, firecrackers and loud laughter: it is believed that with their help you can drive out evil spirits that bring troubles in the coming year.

This practice of beginning the month at the first sighting of the new moon was observed not only by the Romans, but also by the Celts and Germans in Europe, and by the Babylonians and Jews in Lavant. All these nations began their month when a young crescent moon first appeared in the sky. This is still done for the Islamic calendar, but the date of the new moon is calculated for the traditional lunar calendars that are currently used in China and India.

During the period when the length of the month was not fixed, new moons were usually observed after 29 or 30 days. If on the thirtieth day the clouds obscured the vision, a new month appeared. When monthly lengths were identical to lunations, only those that lasted 30 days were considered normal. This was probably due to the fact that for such long periods of time, all months previously were 30 days.

Red color is a symbol of wealth and prosperity, so it is present not only in the decoration of streets and houses, but also in gift packaging, clothing and interior. People everywhere give money in red envelopes: it is believed that the color of the packaging will increase the wealth of the recipient. And here is white and blue colors are strictly prohibited and can be perceived as extremely inappropriate, because these two colors are mourning in Asian countries.

When does Chinese New Year start and end?

During this period in Greece, for example, months that consisted of 30 days were considered "complete"; those that lasted only 29 days were considered "empty". Months containing 30 days were also called "complete" in Babylon, but those containing 29 were considered "defective".

After monthly lengths in the Celtic calendar became fixed, those given 30 days were called "matos" and those given 29 days "tomatoes". This concept still exists today, with months of 30 days in the Hebrew calendar being called "complete" and those that are considered "imperfect".

New Year celebration traditions

Each of the 15 holidays has its own unique schedule, which allows you to cover all areas of life at the very beginning of the year and not spend this time in vain. Residents of Asian countries treat this holiday the same way as we do: it is considered a family holiday, and even distant relatives come to the common hearth to celebrate the New Year together.

When was the ancient new year?

In addition to their announcement of the beginning of each month based on the observation of the new moon, the astronomer priests were also tasked with determining the beginning of the year. By observing the movement of Sirius, the Egyptians were faced with a year that was more than five days longer than their venerable 360-day calendar. This led to a change in their method of approximating the length of the year, which had been in use for almost a millennium. But it also made them wonder where they came from additional days.

Instead, they returned to a fixed-length calendar, which had 12 months of 30 days each, but with five days added at the end. 10. Typically at a date later than the mid-eighth century, many other peoples who had previously considered a year to be 360 ​​days long reluctantly returned to a calendar of twelve 30-day months, but added five days to the end of their year. These additional days were considered very unsuccessful or unacceptable.

Day 1: The New Year is celebrated with family, symbolically burning bamboo chopsticks. Afterwards - a long family dinner filled with laughter and fun, fireworks, firecrackers and mass celebrations. On this day, it is customary to come to the cemetery and honor the memory of deceased relatives.

The two eastern Mediterranean peoples who did not embrace Islam were the early Christians in upper Egypt, whom we now call the Copts and their neighbors to the south, the Ethiopians. Probably because they were surrounded by Islamic peoples, the Coptic and Ethiopian churches never adopted the Western calendar. Instead, these two isolated pockets of Christianity continued to use the old 360-day calendar.

These two calendars are identical except for the year number. They both observe three 365-day years followed by one 366-day year. Their years are divided into 12 months of 30 days each, with an additional five or six days added after the twelfth month. B. with the birth of its founder, the prophet Zoroaster, they use a 365-day calendar. It consists of twelve 30-day months with five "gatha" days added at the end of the year. Each of the thirty days, as well as each of the gatha days, has its own name.

Day 2: On the morning of the second day, the whole family gets up for a common prayer, in which they ask for prosperity for the whole year, prudence, wisdom and health. After this, a visit to loved ones begins with the obligatory presentation of a cash gift in a red envelope. Also on this day it is customary to welcome the poor and give alms.

Days 3 and 4: This period of celebrating the New Year according to the eastern calendar is dedicated to friends and acquaintances: communication among friends strengthens connections and contributes to the continuation of communication in the New Year. Not coming to visit someone if invited is considered a refusal to further friendship.

They are referred to by this name in the same way as we speak of a day by its number in the month. One of Alexander the Great's generals, Seleucus Nicator, founded an empire that stretched from Asia Minor to India. He installed new calendar, which was essentially the same as the one used for some time in Syria. It contained twelve months of 30 days each and an additional five days at the end of the year. Every fourth year an additional day of six days was added at the end of the year.

In Persia under the Sassanids, as well as in Armenia and Cappadocia, the official time system was twelve months 30 days, followed by another five days at the end of the year. However, Arab astronomers said that the Sasanian year of twelve 30-day months was adjusted to the seasons, intercalating a month every 120 years.

Days 5 and 6: At this time, business organizations begin to resume their work, but the day always begins with fireworks. According to energy, the 5th and 6th days of the New Year are considered a time of wealth and material assets, so many people perform traditional rituals for wealth and money.

Water decides there is water in great abundance from the river, although no one has seen it. The ancient Babylonians used a calendar with alternating 29- and 30-day months. This system required the addition of an extra month three times every eight years, and as an additional adjustment, the king periodically ordered the addition of an additional extra month to the calendar.

The Babylonians, who lived in what is now Iraq, added an extra month to their years at irregular intervals. Their calendar, consisting of alternate 29-day and 30-day months, was roughly in line with the lunar year. To balance the calendar with solar year, the early Babylonians calculated that they needed to add an extra month three times every eight years. But this system has still not accurately compensated for the accumulated differences between the solar year and the lunar year.

Day 7: The morning of the seventh day also begins with prayer, but unlike the second day it is often spent alone. Prayer for the well-being of relatives, the health of older relatives and the right path for children is considered an obligatory beginning of the holiday: this time is dedicated to the soul.

Days 8, 9 and 10: As a rule, by this time all people have already returned to work, but they definitely spend three evenings having a family dinner with their family. This is the time for traditional New Year's cuisine, intimate conversations and plans for the coming year.

Day 11: This day is dedicated to the family ties between father-in-law and son-in-law. Each father-in-law gives his son-in-law a personal celebration and spends time with his daughter's husband, paying tribute to him.

This material has been prepared as a comprehensive answer to the question of when the Eastern New Year 2018 will begin. The Spring Festival, as it is commonly called in China, has been considered almost the main holiday in the People's Republic of China and a number of East Asian countries for more than 100 years. Although the traditions underlying the Chinese New Year go back to ancient times. Now let's talk about everything in order.

We will immediately note to you so that you do not suffer from this question when reading further text: in 2018 the Year of the Dog is coming, and this will happen on February 16. But more on this a little later.

Since ancient times, traditional Chinese culture obliges every person born in China to honor the New Year. This holiday is literally the most important event in family life. Each year it falls on a different date, due to the fact that it is based on the lunar calendar.

The Chinese believe that the Eastern New Year is the first day of spring, as a result, which goes without saying, if you adhere to exactly the same thought, on this day nature awakens and a new life begins.

As we said earlier in the text, the Chinese New Year is significant, in fact, not only for the Chinese, they are also Han, but also for many Asian national minorities, for example, Manchus, Mongols, Yaotians, Zhuans, Gaoshans, Daurs, Duns, Liyans and etc.

It just so happened that in 1911 the Xinhai Revolution took place, which began with the Wuhan Uprising. One of its results was the adoption of a new style of chronology, which is relevant for China to this day. To distinguish the Chinese New Year - Xinnian - from the European one, it was renamed the Spring Festival - Chunjie. However, today you can often hear that it is also called this: Gonyan.

Many scientists are still arguing about when the New Year, traditional specifically for their culture, was first celebrated in China. Most of them agree that this happened more than a thousand years ago. At that time, it is believed that one of the rituals of the holiday was the rite of sacrifice, which, by the way, can often be seen even today if you visit remote Chinese settlements.

On the other hand, another, perhaps more peaceful, attribute of the holiday was and remains the custom of creating remarkable decorations for the celebration. This can be expressed either in ordinary wishes, written, naturally, in hieroglyphs, for example, on paper - as a postcard, or in the form of dressed up large dolls, displayed in front of a large audience of adherents of such a significant event in the life of a large number of Asian peoples.

Chinese New Year is the best reason to start life with a clean slate

It is believed that the Chinese New Year is almost the best occasion to resolve a dispute with a person that has been going on for a very long time. On this holiday, you need to forget - and it’s better to do it once and for all - about all grievances and forgive your neighbor, wishing literally everyone around you peace, goodness and boundless happiness.

By Eastern calendar, 2018 is . For his followers it will be 4716. It will come on February 16th. Traditionally, Chinese New Year falls between January 21 and February 21 in the Gregorian calendar. If we start talking about eastern traditions, then for their admirers at this time the winter new moon begins, which marks the end of the full lunar cycle. The winter new moon is coming winter solstice. This is how it can be explained briefly.

You can often hear that the Chinese New Year is called the Lunar New Year, which in the context of all of the above, it seems to us, is not unreasonable.

Lantern Festival - an enchanting end to the Chinese New Year celebrations

In the cycle of New Year's celebrations among the Chinese and many other representatives of East Asia, there is the Lantern Festival, which is celebrated on the 15th day of the 1st month, if calculated by Lunar calendar. It becomes the logical conclusion of the traditional Chinese New Year, which lasted two weeks. Actually, on this day, custom obliges people to light colorful street lamps. This tradition, according to scientists, is too ancient: they believe that the first such case occurred back in 180 BC.

It is easy to calculate that in 2018, the Lantern Festival in China will be celebrated on March 2. It is on this day that you can see countless folklore performances right on the streets: dancing for every taste and color, walking on stilts, eating sweets and much more.

When the Chinese New Year 2018 arrives, the rest of the world, where they adhere to the Gregorian calendar, will already be closely preparing to welcome the long-awaited spring as such. For many people, a month and a half has already passed since the beginning of the New Year, while they still have another half month left to meet the upcoming beginning of March with dignity. And when the next Lantern Festival comes to China, the rest of the world will already be immersed in the web of spring blues for the second day. Literally and figuratively.

In conclusion, we note that the Chinese New Year is not just the most important, but also the longest holiday in the Chinese calendar, where both solar (which is more suitable for agriculture) and solar-lunar types are equally in demand. Perhaps because it is the longest, it is the most important, or vice versa. What do you think?

When is the Eastern New Year 2018?

When will 2018 come? Chinese calendar? Once again we answer this question specifically: February 16th. It will be Friday. The fifteen-day New Year celebration in China will end on March 2, also on Friday.

And yes, once again: 2018 according to the Eastern calendar will be the Year of the Dog. Now you know almost everything you need to know about Chinese New Year traditions. You just have to decide for yourself: stay at home and celebrate this kind of holiday remotely, or go to a place where you will literally become part of the holiday.

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Every year the number of people interested in eastern culture and the traditions of celebrating the New Year according to the eastern calendar is growing. How do they celebrate the New Year in these easternmost countries? We'll try to tell you!

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For almost all countries of East Asia, New Year according to the Eastern calendar is very important holiday! It is celebrated noisily and on a grand scale.

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Legend of the origin of the eastern calendar

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The lunar calendar consists of twelve cycles, each of which has its own animal symbol, but how did these symbols appear? It turns out that Buddha is involved in everything.

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Before leaving the earth, Buddha decided to gather all the animals and say goodbye to them. Twelve animals came and in the order in which they came, Buddha gave them a year. As a result, the first year is Rats (cunning), then comes the Ox (hardworking), Tiger (brave), Rabbit (quiet) and Dragon (strong), Snake (wise), Horse (beautiful) and Sheep or Goat (artistic), Monkey (smart), Rooster (bright), Dog (loyal) and Pig (happy)

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In addition to the fact that each animal received its own year, it conveyed its character traits to the year: both positive and negative. It is believed that a person born in the year of a certain animal also takes on these traits. He receives both the strengths and weaknesses of the animal, and must decide for himself which line of behavior to choose.

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New Year in Asian countries is one of the brightest and longest holidays. Traditionally, the color red is also given particular importance during the celebration.

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This is interesting! In the east, red symbolizes fire; it wards off bad luck and troubles. Asians not only wear red clothes to celebrate the occasion, but also write cards on red paper, give gifts in red packaging, and release wishing lanterns of this color.

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Chinese New Year lasts according to Chinese traditions, fifteen whole days, and literally translated means the Spring Festival - Chundze, the meaning of which among the Chinese comes down to the awakening and flourishing of nature after hibernation.

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During the Chunjie Festival, joyful and celebration atmosphere.

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Residents shop for their favorite holiday; New Year is the most important event for 1 billion 300 million Chinese. Everywhere, on the streets and in stores, there are toys and decorations in the shape of a Dragon.

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The Chinese adore this holiday and prepare for it in advance: they carefully clean and decorate their homes, while throwing out all the trash from the house, thus making room for wealth and happiness.

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Chinese New Year Traditions

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Chinese oriental traditions deserve special attention, according to which the inhabitants of the Middle Kingdom celebrate the Chinese New Year

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So, for example New Year's Eve The Chinese traditionally celebrate houses with their closest people. All family members, no matter how far they live from each other, should get together for a big festive table. New Year's Eve dinner together is as important a New Year's tradition as fireworks.

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Well, in the subsequent ones holidays They go to guests, where they give each other red envelopes with money. In addition, the pomp and scale of the New Year celebrations in China will surprise any visitor. Thousands of fireworks, firecrackers and firecrackers, according to Chinese residents, scare away everything bad, while, on the contrary, attracting only good things.

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Traditionally, before celebrating Chinese New Year, you need to thoroughly clean your home. Dirt in the house is a sign of disrespect for the owner of the next year. And if you meet the year of the wooden Goat in an untidy house, you can’t expect any favors from it.

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According to Eastern traditions, the New Year cannot be celebrated with debts, otherwise it will be very difficult to give them away.

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In the east, red means sun, joy, happiness and protects against evil spirits. Therefore, to celebrate the Chinese New Year, the house must be decorated in red shades.

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It is auspicious to stick on the entrance doors of the house hieroglyphs made with dark paint on a red background, as well as images of guardian spirits and the deity of wealth in the hope that they will bring happiness and prosperity to the house.

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Be sure to place vases with ripe tangerines throughout the house.- they represent wealth and prosperity. Instead of a Christmas tree, many Chinese buy tangerine trees.

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They are found on the streets, in shops and offices at every turn. In addition to tangerines, the house can be decorated with peach and apricot flowers - they will symbolize new beginnings.

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Traditionally, for Chinese New Year it is mandatory to wear new clothes . This is done in order not to carry over the problems of the outgoing year into the new year.

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On this day it is also necessary to show exceptional politeness to everyone, even with those people who are unpleasant to you. Under no circumstances should you utter any words that are associated with troubles and misfortunes.

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A rich table for Chinese New Year is the key to success and prosperity. The New Year's table should include both traditional oriental dishes: rice - a symbol of wealth, noodles - a symbol of longevity, fish - a symbol of prosperity, as well as dishes that will appease the animal that is the symbol of the coming year!

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The holiday is accompanied by posting paired paper inscriptions on both sides of the entrance to the house, the room is decorated inside with popular New Year's paintings, these images contain wishes for happiness in the future. In the past, this custom, like the release of firecrackers, was considered effective way expelling evil spirits and cleansing the house of evil spirits. Later, gluing splints became part of the Chinese holiday ritual, and is now very popular in the country.

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On the night before the holiday, called “chusi,” the whole family gets together. A rich festive dinner is arranged, after which they watch the performance of famous artists on TV, and conversations are held on different topics, games. In many families, young people stay up all night, this is called “shou sui” - waiting for the New Year.

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The next morning, many families eat jiaozi dumplings, dumplings resemble traditional gold and silver bars in their shape and symbolize the desire for wealth.

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After breakfast, you are supposed to go around the houses of relatives and friends with congratulations and wishes for all the best. On the first day of the New Year, family and friends, friends and colleagues visit each other and give gifts.

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Adults give children small money, wrapped in red paper, which symbolizes the wish of prosperity for the family and the success of the child’s development.

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There is also a legend associated with this custom, that once in the city of Jiaxing there lived a couple who only gave birth to one child in their old age. The couple were afraid that the evil spirit “sui” might kill their baby, and decided to keep watch at the child’s bedside throughout New Year’s Eve. They prepared several coins for the baby and began to teach him how to wrap them in red paper, but after that they were all tired and quickly fell asleep. And a red bag of coins was placed near the baby’s pillow. Night has come. And the evil spirit began to creep up on the child, but when he decided to pet the child, a golden ray suddenly burst out of the bag of coins. The spirit was very frightened and ran away.

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Although today no one pays attention to whether the evil spirit “sui” exists, on New Year’s Eve adults still give money to children for good luck.

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On the days of the Spring Festival, mass performances are organized: lion dances, dragon dances, round dances of “land boats”, performances on stilts.

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In the old days, New Year's celebrations lasted more than a month. With the acceleration of the pace of life, there can be no talk of such long holidays, but it is during this time in China that one of the three “golden weeks” of the calendar year falls - seven continuous days off.

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Appears new fashion and for gifts. Previously, the Chinese gave each other cigarettes, alcoholic drinks, and food. Today a good gift are fresh flowers, a membership to a sports club, lottery tickets.

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Ways of congratulations are changing. Instead of personal visits and greeting cards There are phone calls, emails and postcards over the Internet.

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After the noisy New Year's Eve, the Chinese will celebrate another traditional holiday, Yuanxiao - the Lantern Festival.

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During this time, it is customary to enjoy pies made from sticky flour with sweet filling and candied fruits, as well as admire the light of lanterns lit at night. The Lantern Festival ends the New Year celebration in China.

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To believe or not to Eastern traditions, to follow them or not, each person decides for himself. We don’t see anything reprehensible in learning more about the traditions of our closest neighbors, and on the eve of the New Year, try to do something according to the rules and bring the celebration to an organized system. In any case, at least feeding the symbol of next year will definitely not be superfluous.

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- traditional Chinese New Year according to the lunar calendar, the main holiday of the year in China.

New Year is celebrated twice in the country: on January 1 according to the solar calendar, as in most countries, and during the new moon. However, the Chinese people traditionally celebrate the Spring Festival more solemnly and with greater joy than the New Year according to the solar calendar. This is due to the fact that the majority of the country’s population are peasants who, by tradition, continue to live according to the lunar calendar, and all field work and holidays are closely intertwined with the lunar calendar.

Chunjie - family celebration. Millions of Chinese return to their hometowns to celebrate the New Year with their families. The New Year's travel season in China is specially called "Chunyun" and is considered the world's largest migration phenomenon.

According to scientists, the history of the holiday.

It has always been rich in a variety of customs, some of which still exist today.

On the eighth day of the last month according to the lunar calendar, many homes prepare aromatic porridge - "labazhou", which includes 8 types of products: glutinous rice, chumiza, grains of willow's tears (bead), dates, lotus seeds, red beans, longyan fruits ", ginkgo seed.

The twenty-third day of the last month according to the lunar calendar is popularly called “xiaonian” (i.e. “small New Year”). People who strictly follow traditions make sacrifices to the deity of the hearth.

Before the holiday, the country literally blooms with red. There are posters everywhere with the hieroglyphs “fu” (happiness) and “si” (joy) gracefully written on them, garlands of lanterns and other decorations, and all of them are exclusively red, meaning prosperity, luck and prosperity.

In the north of China, it is customary to eat dumplings for the New Year, and in the south - “niangao” (slices made from glutinous rice). Northerners prefer dumplings because, firstly, Chinese the word "jiaozi", i.e. “dumplings” is consonant with the words “seeing off the old and welcoming the new”; secondly, dumplings resemble traditional gold and silver bars in their shape and symbolize the desire for wealth. For the same reason, southerners eat "niangao", symbolizing the improvement of life every year.

A joyful festive atmosphere fills not only every home, but also reigns on every street of every city and village. On the Spring Festival, noisy folk festivals and fairs are held for several days in a row, where lion and dragon dances are performed.

The lion dance, according to legend, traces its history back to the events of the era of the Southern and Northern dynasties, when in a decisive battle one of the sides disguised itself as lions (which were never found in China) and won the battle because the enemy’s war elephants were frightened by the terrible masks and ran, throwing off their riders. Since then, Chinese soldiers have performed the lion dance on special occasions. In the 14th-16th centuries, this dance spread throughout China and began to be performed during the Chunjie festival. It is designed to scare away all the evil forces that can bring misfortune in the coming year.

The dance of dragons also has a long history. It was included in festive rituals back in the 12th century and expressed people’s admiration for the dragon and requests for it to tame the wind and shed rain to obtain a good harvest. The dragon, made of paper, wire and willow twigs, can reach 8-10 meters. His body is flexible and consists of a different, but always odd number of parts (9, 11, 13). Each part is controlled by one dancer using a pole; the undulating, writhing movements of the dragon require great coordination among the participants.

The first five days of the new year are meant for meetings. Relatives, friends, classmates, colleagues visit and congratulate each other on the New Year and give gifts.

New Year's festivities end after the Lantern Festival (Yuanxiaojie or Dengjie), on the fifteenth day of the first month of the Lunar calendar. Today, lantern exhibitions and competitions organized in large city parks are very popular in the capital. Lantern exhibitions last for several days and form an integral part of the New Year's holiday.