Lunar New Year's Eve
celebratory red wedding clothes
resembled fire to the monster, so it did not dare to approach them. The other
family was unharmed because their children were playing outside setting off
noisy firecrackers, and the noise scared the monster away. Ever since, people
have worn red clothes, set off firecrackers, and put up red decorations on New
Year's Eve to keep the vicious monster Nian away. Later, according to the
legend, the Emperor Star deity struck Nian down with a flaming orb and bound him
to a stone column. Only then was there peace in the world. Ever since, people
stay up all night and burn incense on New Year's Eve, entreating the Emperor
Star to descend to earth and protect them.
Every year on New Year's Eve, people paste up images of the Door God on their
doors. The Door God, or guardian of the threshold, is a very old deity. In its
earliest incarnation, it was embodied in the door itself. The Door God was first
portrayed in human form during the Han Dynasty, first as the warrior Cheng Qing, and later as
Jing Ke. The door gods of the Northern and Southern Dynasties were named Shen Tu and Yu Lei.
During the Tang Dynasty, two great generals named Qin Shubao and Yuchi
Jingde were in charge of protecting the officials of the imperial palace.
Emperor Tang Taizong (Li Shimin) felt that the generals were working
too hard, so he ordered their portraits to be painted and hung beside the palace
door to assist them. The two generals thus became associated with the ancient
guardians of the threshold, and have been known as door gods ever since. During
the Five Dynasties Period, Zhong Kui became the new door god. The Song Dynasty saw the
further development of existing guardians and protectors. In addition to door
gods, images of the gods of Blessings, Prosperity, and Longevity, as well as the
Ten Thousand Deities and the Three-Treasures Buddha, are often hung in living
rooms and bedrooms. These guardian deities were thought to protect the household
from evil influences and repel demons.
New Year pictures, as their name implies,
are made especially to celebrate the Lunar New Year holiday. With the coming of
Spring Festival, these pictures appear in households throughout the nation,
their bold outlines and vibrant colors adding to the excitement of the holiday
season. New Year's pictures are an ancient Chinese folk art, reflecting the
simple and thrifty customs and beliefs of the common people, and embodying their
hopes for the future. New Year pictures, like Spring Festival couplets, trace
their origins to China's ancient door gods. After a certain point, however,
these pictures were no longer limited to depicting the various protective
deities, and became increasingly rich and colorful. Among the common subjects of
New Year pictures are "A Surplus Every Year," "Peace Year After Year,"
"Blessings from Heaven," "An Abundance of Grain," "Flourishing Livestock," and
"Spring Comes with Good Fortune."
|
