Interesting Green: Chinese New Year 春節 (pinyin: chūn jié)

Source Website:
http://shihhenglin.wordpress.com/2009/11/10/chinese-new-year-%E6%98%A5%E7%AF%80/ (Texts)
http://community.humanityhealing.net/profiles/blogs/the-chinese-monster-nian-nian (Photos)
http://bbs.xwh.cn/thread-888556-1-1.html (Photos)
By shihhenglin | Chinese Culture, November 10, 2009

PHOTO: Chinese New Year or Spring Festival is the most important of the traditional Chinese holidays. It is often called the Lunar New Year, especially by people in mainland China and Taiwan.

http://att.xwh.cn/forum/201201/18/123521j6mz4kkujgn6f2uk.jpg
http://bbs.xwh.cn/thread-888556-1-1.html

Chinese New Year or Spring Festival is the most important of the traditional Chinese holidays. It is often called the Lunar New Year, especially by people in mainland China and Taiwan.

The festival traditionally begins on the first day of the first month (Chinese: 正月; pinyin: zhēng yuè) in the Chinese calendar and ends on the 15th; this day is called Lantern Festival.

Chinese New Year’s Eve is known as Chúxī (除夕). It literally means “Year-pass Eve”.

PHOTO: Chinese New Year is the longest and most important festivity in the Chinese Calendar. The origin of Chinese New Year is itself centuries old and gains significance because of several myths and traditions.

http://api.ning.com/files/dylGVKLZfNvKHFCYp1do9CpsxXA*DxUEwl9iq6Hc8hQ3*TozzkPy5CvNhhOaPIlJkLiItFZYuBvX4hQP3h*S1jQ5vdlhbFrF/Shen_Yun_Performing_Arts2.jpeg
http://visittheplace.ning.com/profiles/blogs/win-free-tickets-to-shen-yun

Chinese New Year is the longest and most important festivity in the Chinese Calendar. The origin of Chinese New Year is itself centuries old and gains significance because of several myths and traditions.

Ancient Chinese New Year is a reflection on how the people behaved and what they believed in most. Within China, regional customs and traditions concerning the celebration of the Chinese New Year vary widely.

PHOTO: 新年的团拜 (xīn nián de tuán bài)。Chinese New Year Traditional Gathering on the first day of the new year.

http://att.xwh.cn/forum/201201/18/123410blfgpjq8xemmgxlb.jpg
http://bbs.xwh.cn/thread-888556-1-1.html

People will pour out their money to buy presents, decoration, material, food, and clothing. It is also the tradition that every family thoroughly cleans the house to sweep away any ill-fortune in hopes to make way for good incoming luck.

PHOTO: Celebrate Chinese Lunar New Year. Chinese New Year traditions are very fashionista friendly. It's best to wear a new outfit for example, as well as to get a haircut, to symbolize a "fresh start" to the new year.

Red is the preferred colour to wear for the Lunar New Year in China as it's believed to repel evil spirits.

http://nwn.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341bf74053ef016760df1d6a970b-800wi
http://nwn.blogs.com/nwn/2012/01/style-for-chinese-new-year.html?cid=6a00d8341bf74053ef0162ffec38e3970d

Windows and doors will be decorated with red color paper-cuts and couplets with popular themes of “happiness”, “wealth”, and “longevity”.

On the Eve of Chinese New Year, supper is a feast with families. Food will range from pigs, to ducks, to chicken and sweet delicacies. The family will end the night with firecrackers.

PHOTO: Children will greet their parents by wishing them a healthy and happy new year, and receive money in red paper envelopes (Ang Pao).

http://imgs.ntdtv.com/pic/2011/2-1/p1509134a515068498.jpg
http://ntdtv.com/xtr/b5/2011/07/31/a487974.html.-%E3%80%90%E6%B0%91%E9%A2%A8%E6%B0%91%E4%BF%97%E3%80%91%E4%B8%AD%E5%9C%8B%E6%96%B0%E5%B9%B4%E9%A2%A8%E4%BF%97%E8%88%87%E5%85%B8%E6%95%85.html
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-OI0IiQe3FJjybdhOr5oKRX9UxBrj702kuPY_cqRq0aGCT3FfC8AdEk1YvMEP5fcF3ODhB662mfjSsERMfOCfTrRUVtZDuPrceMZrO16ltpPeQ90itHUTVv8OR28SLwkasxjZHwLF3VSk/s200/01300000098168123269715657212_s.jpg
http://esl100spring2011.blogspot.com/2011/03/lost-nian-monster-in-america.html

Early the next morning, children will greet their parents by wishing them a healthy and happy new year, and receive money in red paper envelopes (Ang Pao).

The Chinese New Year tradition is a great way to reconcile forgetting all grudges, and sincerely wish peace and happiness for everyone.

PHOTO: Children will greet their parents by wishing them a healthy and happy new year, and receive money in red paper envelopes (Ang Pao).

http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/123cn/123cn0901/123cn090100595/4194723-woman-wearing-cheongsam-giving-red-packet.jpg
http://www.123rf.com/photo_4194723_woman-wearing-cheongsam-giving-red-packet.html

Tale of mythical beast called the Nian or “Year” in Chinese

PHOTO: Mythical beast called the Nian or “Year” in Chinese. “Its body is bigger than elephant, its head is like lion, with strong power , its roar can shake the earth.”

From 山海經 (pinyin: shān hǎi jīng), an ancient mythological and geographic work, written in the warring states period (simplified Chinese: 战国时代; traditional Chinese: 戰國時代; pinyin: Zhànguó Shídài) with the author's name unknown; many old myth have been preserved in the book.

http://features.cgsociety.org/newgallerycrits/g86/20286/20286_1184560958_large.jpg
http://shihhenglin.wordpress.com/2009/11/10/chinese-new-year-%E6%98%A5%E7%AF%80/

According to tales and legends, the beginning of Chinese New Year started with the fight against a mythical beast called the Nian or “Year” in Chinese.

Nian would come on the first day of New Year to devour livestock, crops, and even villagers, especially children. To protect themselves, the villagers would put food in front of their doors at the beginning of every year. It was believed that after the Nian ate the food they prepared, it wouldn’t attack any more people.

PHOTO: Monster Nian
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkC86aYZ21seQFMrwxSLZ38GFLiFDUcC8ltePyrk6fhQkHn92TW6j83vWUZVWshyq1FVM_lQHDhVdz7jjtZCA761tqbgu0NBvPIGhBJ4eaaN_eysvhVqJMOTTr5qkpxBp8MmgEs0x0lW56/s1600/monsterNian.jpg
http://beling.net/articles/about/Hongjun_Laozu

One time, people saw that the Nian was scared away by a little child wearing red. The villagers then understood that the Nian was afraid of the color red. Hence, every time when the New Year was about to come, the villagers would hang red lanterns and red spring scrolls on windows and doors.

People also used firecrackers to frighten away the Nian. From then on, the Nian never came to the village again.

The Nian was eventually captured by Hongjun Laozu (鴻鈞老祖 hóng jūn lǎo zǔ), an ancient Taoist monk. The Nian became Hongjun Laozu’s mount.

Hongjun Laozu (simplified Chinese: 鸿钧老祖; traditional Chinese: 鴻鈞老祖; pinyin: Hóngjūn Lǎozǔ; Wade–Giles: Hung-chün Lao-tsu) lit. 'Great Balance Ancestor' is a Daoist deity and legendary teacher of the Three Pure Ones in Chinese mythology.

PHOTO: Hongjun Laozu (simplified Chinese: 鸿钧老祖; traditional Chinese: 鴻鈞老祖; pinyin: Hóngjūn Lǎozǔ; Wade–Giles: Hung-chün Lao-tsu) lit. "Great Balance Ancestor" is a Daoist deity and legendary teacher of the Three Pure Ones in Chinese mythology.

Hongjun 鴻鈞 is a graphic variant of hungjun (simplified Chinese: 洪钧; traditional Chinese: 洪鈞; pinyin: hóngjūn; Wade–Giles: hung-chün) "primordial nature", as used in the Chinese idiom Xian you hongjun hou you tian 先有鸿钧后有天 "First there was Nature and then there was Heaven".
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMdnOzqNsFvIkUjYweBxQLGrwH0JOcX4FFNrLZqgJdrWNbGdmYNvHTyKtA_rTtQCTXLreOtwylhC7mgjthYDERz65i2kPRwgF_e35RQugB_A8PFOCmDBUeH3JiMxHWOK4aRauOfa_yK4I/s1600/1448188755177526832.jpg

http://img169.ph.126.net/N5V-xFe2UdWLBBkHcxPr_A==/1448188755177526832.jpg
http://beling.net/articles/about/Hongjun_Laozu