CHINESE NEW YEAR: LEI SI (利事), FAMILY DINNER (年夜飯), AND HAPPY WISHES (吉祥話)

In another three weeks it will be Chinese New Year, which is on Friday January 31 in 2014. This event entails a bit of preparation. If you are Chinese, you will have paid off your debts, cleaned the house (年廿八，洗邋遢 'nin yaa baat, sai laa taat' - "on the 28th. day scrub out the trash"), bought new clothes to be worn on that day, and started preparing little red packets of leisi (利是 'lucky money') for younger kin-folk, friends' kids, business associates, and favoured customers.
You are calculating all the leisi in advance, because it is so important, and it will require careful thought and financial planning.
There cannot be any mistake or oversight.


利是 (利事)，紅包。
LEI SI, HONG BAU
[The red envelope.]

The monetary amount will be carefully graduated. Your unmarried kin get more -- much more -- than the children of your friends or junior business associates. And favoured customers will likely only get a token amount, just enough to buy them some shots of whiskey.

The money should always be an even number, because odd sums are associated with the mollificatory envelope given to guests at funerals. For similar good-luck reasons, four is to be avoided (sound like death), and eight is very appropriate (sounds like striking it rich).

You must also prepare many incidental packets for spur of the moment gifting; a single ten or a twenty dollar bill is actually quite common in Chinatown, so is a five. Anything else should be two crisp bills.
If you slipped in a fifty or hundred, no one would complain.


The nominal purpose of the red packets is to spread joy and make sure only happy and propitious things are said.
But there is an undercurrent to the act which could be of equal weight.
Especially in families, where leisi is a serious affair.

Money, of course, is power. But money is ALSO a message. What you could be telling your adult unmarried offspring by handing over the packet of cash is: "why aren't you married yet yes I understand that you can't seem to find any one who actually likes you enough to do something stupid we might have to find you someone or bribe the local orphanage please graduate from college first and for crapsakes do something with your life idiot." This is a complicated and nuanced statement; it may require quite a bit of moolah.
The only thing you might actually voice is 學業進步 ('hok yip chün pou'; "achieve progress in your studies"). Their muttered response could be 龍馬精神 ('lung maa jing san'; "may you have the vim of a dragon or a horse"), which wishes the older person a longer and more energetic life.

The leisi for everyone else simply says: "you are younger than me".
Along with "be happy, please don't say anything unlucky".
And: "I would like you to have a good year".

If the recipient is actually older, but NOT married, it still says that they are younger.

It goes without saying that employees should be given leisi, in addition to any bonuses that are their due, such as an entire month's salary, so that they too can fulfill their obligations at this crucial time.
Withholding salaries is an extremely bad idea.
So is absconding with the cash box.
Though not unheard of


年卅晚
NIN SAA MAAN
[The thirtieth evening.]

Possible the most important thing to do, however, is celebrate New Year's Eve with family. Train stations and airports will be jammed, scenes of utter madness and chaos, as hundreds of thousands of migrant workers and middle-class people posted to distant provinces scramble to get home before that night. And home, often, is either the village from which the clan originated, or the place where the most senior members of the family live. Couples who haven't seen each other all year because they work in different cities are desperate to meet again, and spend time together. College students will return, if possible -- difficult in the United States, where Lunar New Year is scarcely known -- and overseas relatives might plan to spend a few weeks 'down on the farm' (返鄉下 'fan heung haa') in the old country, if finances permit.

The new year's eve dinner (年夜飯 'nin ye faan') is immense, so that everyone can start off the year satisfied, but also so that there will be enough food left over that no cooking at all needs to be done on the first day, when lighting fires and running water is considered bad luck.

Essential dishes will include a whole steamed fish, because the word for fish sounds the same as 'surplus' (魚 'yü'; 餘 'yü'), as in the phrase "nin nin yau yü" (年年有餘 "may there be a surplus every year", OR "may there be a yearly surplus").

A whole chicken, usually plain poached or boiled, then perhaps brushed with sesame oil, is also served, which is suitable as an altar offering, and often there will be a roast duck alongside, because the combination of those two symbolizes a happy couple and a harmonious household.

Another dish which is popular is Luo Han Chai (羅漢齋 'lo hon chai'), a vegetarian hutchepot which combines bamboo shoots (竹筍 'juk suen'), beancurd sheet (腐竹 'fu juk'), black mushrooms (冬菇 'dong gu'), carrots (紅蘿蔔 'hong lo baak'), bean thread noodles (粉絲 'fan si'), dried golden needle lily (金針 'kam jam'), gingko nut kernels (白果 'baak gwo'), lotus seeds (蓮子 'lin ji'), water chestnuts (馬蹄 'maa tai'), small cabbages (白菜 'baak choi'), soaked black wood ear fungus (木耳 'muk yi'), and fried wheat gluten lumps (炸麵筋 'jaa min gan').
The ingredients are added according to their required cooking time, the broth includes yellow rice wine (黃酒 'wong jau') and soy sauce (豉油 'si yau'), but rarely garlic (蒜頭 'suen tau') or ginger (薑 'geung'), which are not really acceptable according to Buddhists. Utter heretics would also add fresh shrimp (鮮蝦 'sin haa'), dried oysters (蠔豉 'ho si'), oyster sauce (蠔油 'ho yau'), and any other vegetables that strike their fancy, or even pork.

Mmmmm, pork!

Luo Han Chai is brought to the table in a casserole, from which dinners help themselves. Sharing food like this is an embodiment of both fortuity and family togetherness. For the same reason, instead of luo han chai, a sumptuous hotpot may be featured.
If Dried Oyster and Hair Moss is NOT served as a separate dish, then the hair vegetable will be added to the Luo Han Chai.

Dried Oysters and Hair Moss (蠔豉髮菜 'ho si fat choi') is a traditional preparation which sounds particularly lucky in Cantonese, being a phrase wishing everyone good business affairs and prosperity (好事發財 'ho si fat choi'). The dried oysters are rehumidified, then stewed with braised fatty pork, with stock, wine, and hair vegetable (髮菜 nostoc flagelliforme) added in a fairly small quantity, just enough to clearly demonstrate its presence.

Recipes for 好事發財 can be found by clicking this link:
dried oysters with black moss.

Further essential dishes are assorted meats in a savoury sauce, something with vegetables that are round or circular when sliced (mushrooms or carrots), one or two dishes with luxurious ingredients such as sea cucumber or fish maw, and anything with a red or orange hue.
White vegetables must probably be avoided.
Because white is an unhappy colour.


Dumplings (餃 'gaau'), which are reminiscent of gold ingots (a traditional good fortune design) are also a very good idea, but if you are Cantonese you might prefer to eat them the next day, along with such snackity things as year cake (年糕 'nin gou'), turnip cake (蘿蔔糕 'lo baak gou'), and others.


Melon seeds, fresh citrus fruits (lucky colours!), and a selection of old-fashioned candies (particularly those made of lotus root, because of its connotations) are also important.


吉祥話
GAT CHEUNG WA
[Good wishes.]

It's not just about money and foods. One important aspect of the entire fifteen day festival is what comes out of your mouth. What you say may cause bad luck, and to avoid even the chance of maladicta jinxing the year, many businesses will be closed for at least one day, often several, upon the start of the celebration.
In addition, several phrases are so ingrained that people will utter them automatically, sometimes without thinking, but never the less very sincerely meant.


Here is a good selection to start; you might want to internalize these sentences:

新年進步 San nin chuen bo: New year advances and progress.
心想事成 Sam seung si sing: Hearts desires become complete.
富貴長春 Fu gwai cheung chun: Wealth, honour, and a long spring.
年年有餘 Nin nin yau yü; Year after year surplus.
新年快樂 San nin faai lok: New year happiness; happy new year.
新年大吉 San nin taai gat: New year greatly fortunate; be lucky this year.
歲歲平安 Seui seui ping on: Year after year peace and safety.
生意興隆 Sang yi hing lung: Business prosperity.
萬事如意 Maan si yü yi: All your aspirations be fulfilled.
身體健康 San tai gin hong: physical health.
長命百歲 Cheung ming baak seui: Long life one hundred years.
闔家全福 Hap gaa chuen fuk: Entire family complete happiness.
五福齊天 Ng fuk jai tin: five good fortunes equal to heaven.
五福臨門 Ng fuk lin mun: five good fortunes approaching the gate.
吉慶多福 Gat hing do fuk: Auspicious happiness much good fortune.
舉家歡樂 Geui gaa fun lok: Entire family joyous.
福疊富貴 Fuk daap fuk kwai: Fortune upon wealth and honour.
福壽如意 Fuk sou yü yi: Good fortune, longevity, and all desires.
福如東海 Fuk yü tung hoi: Good fortune as vast as the ocean.
福壽雙全 Fuk sou seung chün: Good fortune and longevity both complete.

If all else fails, you can always fall back on "gung hey fat choi" (恭喜發財). It's more of a congratulatory phrase than a new year wish, but it works.
'Reverent happiness and get rich'.
We all want that.


年節, 過年, 春節, 農曆年初一～十五
NIN JIT, GWO NIN, CHÜN JIT, NUNG LIK NIN CHO YAT DAU SAP NG
[The annual event, passing the year, Spring festival, agricultural calendar year beginning one through fifteen.]


1. The first day of the new year is 元旦 ('yuen daan'; perfect dawn). It begins at midnight, and setting off fireworks is a traditional way to scare away any evil or ill-fortune, besides scaring the bejayzus out of recent immigrants to the city from the Midwest. Then you light incense at the family altars, and welcome the protective deities of heaven and earth. Buddhists will not eat meat on this day. Relatives visit each other, and everyone honours the most senior members of the family.

2. The second day officially "opens" the year (開年 'hoi nin'), and married women pay their respects to blood kin, especially their parents. In Hong Kong, a representative of the government is sent to the Che Kong Temple (車公廟) to get the city's fortune for the year read.

3. The third day (赤口 'chek hou'; crimson gullet) is a lousy day for visiting people,but an excellent time to burn offerings and set celebratory fires.

5. The fifth day is the birthday of the God of Wealth (財神 'choi san'). It's good to pay your respects to him, as well as to Lord Guan (關羽、 關公、 關二哥; 'gwan yü', 'gwan gong', 'gwan yi go').
Make noise, set off firecrackers.

7. On the seventh day, don't eat meat. There's a Buddhist reason.

8. On the eighth, have a celebratory dinner for your family or employees, and mark the birthday of the ruler of heaven (天公 'tin gong'). Which is actually tomorrow.

9. Ruler of heaven. See number eight.

13. Buddhists will avoid meat again on the thirteenth day, and businesses will pay reverence to Lord Guan, in the hope that he will look out for them in the coming year.

15. The fifteenth day of New Year is the Lantern Festival, which marks the end of the festivities.



後記 HOU KEI
[Afterword.]

Things you should avoid at all costs immediately after the year has begun because they are symbolically bad luck include saying negative stuff, speaking of disease or death, criticizing other people, sweeping or house-cleaning, throwing stuff away, and running the water excessively. In fact, try not to let any water at all go down the drain on the first day or two, as water stands in for wealth.

If you are white, none of this applies to you.

So don't get your knickers in a twist.

Just make sure they're clean.

And, perhaps, new.


Final note: wash your hair sometime on the last day before new year, as you should not bathe on the first day. Plus get your hair cut beforehand.
And you might want to leave the house just before midnight for a quick smoke outside, so that you are the first person to enter in the new year.
Also prop the broom upside down against the front door.
It scares away thieves and burglars.
Or so I've heard.



恭賀新禧
Gung ho san hei.




==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================