Chinese New Year Visitations @ Rat Year 2008

Chinese New Year Visitations @ Rat Year 2008

Chinese New Year Festival (春节), marked by the Lunar Calendar, is celebrated by most of the Chinese Singaporeans. It is considered as a Chinese tradition to celebrate Chinese New Year (华人传统节日). In Singapore, the Chinese New Year Festival is celebrated based on their cultural practices (习俗) rather than their religious significance.

This section concentrates Temples and Homes Visitations.

Temples Visitation (拜太岁):

Many devout followers celebrate the festival at a Temple or Shrine. Some local Chinese do paying their respects to Lord Tai Sui (太岁爷). These are the Chinese who believed that they have got into conflict with Lord Tai Sui of Wu Zi Year. According to Chinese Custom Records, one can pay respects to a Lord Tai Sui on the start of a Chinese New Year, which is named as “Li Chun Day” (立春).

A list of the Lord Tai Sui Temples includes:

1. Bao Chi Temple (保赤宮) @ Magazine Road;
2. Yue Hai Qing Temple (粵海清廟) @ Philip Road;
3. Jade Emperor Temple (玉皇殿) @ Havelock Road;
4. Jade Emperor Temple (天公廟) @ Telok Blangah Road;
5. Tian Fu Gong aka Ma Zu Temple (天福宮) @ Telok Ayer Street;
6. An Ji Sheng Wang Temple (安濟聖王廟) @ West Coast Road;
7. Lei Yin Temple (雷音寺) @ Bukit Merah View.

(NB: Li Chun Day for Wu Zi Year falls on 28 Day of Lunar 12 Month, 04 FEBURARY 2008, after 19:03PM. For further information, please visit: Jave’s Religious Place).

Homes Visitation (拜年):

Most local Chinese conduct their family gatherings on the First (年初一) and Second Day (年初二) of the Chinese New Year.

As part of the Chinese traditions of ‘giving’, two mandarin oranges are often exchanged between the host family and the guest. Generally, sticky cakes known as “Nian Gao” (年糕) and “Eight-Treasures Boxes” (八宝盒) containing preserved fruits, peanuts and watermelon seeds are present to reflect a norm of eating sweets and symbolic foods during the festival. Gift boxes are also taken to the homes.

“Hong Bao”, known as Red Enveloped Packets (红包), are distributed to the host’s children as a customary expression of good luck. Greetings are coined at these home visitations as the Chinese loves to hear auspicious phrases, such as “Nian Nian You Yu” (年年有余), a wish for bountifulness and prosperity every year or “Gong Xi Fa Cai” (恭喜发财，红包拿来)!

(NB: The rules of visitation generally differ between different dialects).

Text by Ai San Yip and Jave Wu. Photography by Eugene Tang . All Rights Reserved.