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“Kung Hei Fat Choi!” – a Filipino-Chinese friend greeted me a while ago. Then I asked for a tikoy. Unfortunately, ubos na daw.
Before we start greeting each other “Kung Hei Fat Choi”, let’s have first the basic things we need to know about the Chinese Lunar New Year. (Note: these are just collated facts over the web)
The Philippines has a huge population of Filipino-Chinese descents (roughly around 5% of the total population) that is why the Chinese New Year had became one of the much anticipated events in the Philippine calendar.
February 3, 2011 is the dawn of the Year of the Metal Rabbit.
Wearing red clothing and lighting fire crackers during the Chinese New Year was believed to frighten Nian, the mythical beast who devoured everything the ancient Chinese people prepare for the first day of the celebration – from the food, to the livestock, and even the children.
Giving away money in ‘ang pao’ (red envelopes) should be of even numbers because amount of odd numbers are given away during funerals. In Chinese tradition, for example, 92 pesos is an odd number because of 9 rather than being an even number because of 2. They based it according to the first digit, not the last.
Dragon dance is an important part of the Chinese New Year celebration as it is meant to drive away evil spirits through the loud beat of the drums.
Cai Shen Ye (or sometimes Tsai Shen Yeh) is the God of Money.
Tikoy, a special cake made of sticky rice, symbolizes strong bond among family members.
Eating fish (for success) and noodles (for longevity of life) is also part of the Chinese New Year tradition.
Wear something new and red.
Not sure with the lucky color for the Year of the Metal Rabbit – some says it mustard yellow, others orange, white, and even purple.
If you believe in Feng Shui, there’s nothing wrong with it. Go wear all those “pangontra malas” charms and practice all these Chinese New Year traditions. At the end of the day, what matters is that you know that your life still depends on how you choose to manage it. You’re still the boss and the consequences depend on your actions. Wink. 🙂
