Lunar New Year 2021: Starting the Year of the Ox

Lunar New Year falls on February 12 this year, when we say goodbye to the Year of the Rat and inaugurate the Year of the Ox.

Here’s a quick guide to the 15-day Lunar New Year / Spring Festival celebration and all that it involves.

Year of the metal ox

Although you may have heard of the 12-year Chinese zodiac calendar, represented by 12 different animals, it is actually much more complicated.

A year is not classified just by its zodiac animal. There is also a complex sexagenarian cycle – a combination of one of the 10 celestial trunks and one of the 12 terrestrial branches.

For example, February 12 marks the beginning of xin chou year, according to the sexagenarian cycle. “Xin” represents the celestial rod for the metal element, while “chou” is the symbol of the earthly branch for the ox, making it the Year of the Metal Ox.

We asked Thierry Chow, a Hong Kong-based feng shui master, to share his thoughts on what this means for the coming year.

“The year of xin chou will have a strong emphasis on the metal yin element,” she says. “The metal element represents anything shiny, from jewelry to the needle of a syringe. Therefore, we can see a greater emphasis on the metal-related industries in 2021.

“The ox, in Chinese culture, is a hardworking zodiac sign. It usually means movement, so hopefully the world will be less static than last year and move again in the second half of the year. ”

Many people take the 60-year calendar very seriously and believe that each person’s birth sign will be affected differently by the celestial stems and earthly branches of the year. Therefore, the calendar plays an important role in making major life decisions for the coming year, such as whether they should get married or start a business.

The followers believe that, for each of the signs of the Chinese zodiac, the luck will depend largely on the positions of the Tai Sui – the stars directly opposite to Jupiter.

If your zodiac sign conflicts with Tai Sui – also known as the Grand Duke of Jupiter – in a given year, you may experience interruptions.

“People born in the Year of the Ox will face their ‘Ben Ming Nian’ – the year of their own zodiac,” says Chow. “So there will be more changes and instability in general.”

People born in the Year of the Goat will face Tai Sui (Ying Tai Sui) this year, “which means that there must be a big change ahead,” said Chow.

That said, followers believe there are ways to improve their luck.

“Some people will resolve their conflicts with Tai Sui by participating in celebrations, such as getting married or attending more positive events,” says Chow.

But the feng shui master is quick to remind us that this is just an overview of what the year means for each animal in the zodiac. In Chinese geomancy, each person’s birthday map is made up of a wide range of elements, such as the day and time of their birth, which means that they can interact with the year a little differently.

Preparations for the Lunar New Year during Covid-19

The pandemic has forced many to change the way they celebrate the Lunar New Year.

In response, some tourist sites are offering free admission to those who are forced to spend the holiday away from their families. Meanwhile, companies have launched tools for people to have a “lunar new year in the cloud”, providing everything from virtual markets to conference tools for online meeting dinners.

But no matter how one celebrates, there is a lot of preparation involved if you want to follow the Lunar New Year rule book.

It all starts about a week before the new year.

On the 26th of the last lunar month – February 7 of this year – festive cakes and puddings are made. The word for cakes and puddings is “gao” in Mandarin or “go” in Cantonese, which sounds the same as loud, meaning improvements and growth for the coming year.

The big cleaning is done on the 28th, which is February 9th of this year.

Lunar New Year lucky banners will be hung on February 29, 10.

Typically, Lunar New Year fairs will be organized during the last days of the lunar year, most selling baubles and flowers for the new year. But because of the pandemic, many cities have reduced or canceled their festivities.

The year usually ends with a large family reunion dinner on the eve of the Lunar New Year, which falls on February 11 this year.

The menu is carefully chosen to include dishes associated with luck, including fish (the Chinese word for that sounds like the word for “surplus”), puddings (symbolizing advancement) and foods that look like gold ingots (like dumplings).

After the party, families will stay up until after midnight to welcome the new year.

The whole festival lasts 15 days

Although many Western nations refer to the Lunar New Year / Spring Festival holiday as a Chinese New Year, keep in mind that it is celebrated not only in Chinese communities around the world, but in other Asian nations like Vietnam and South Korea. .

Countries that celebrate the Lunar New Year generally offer three to seven days of holidays, but celebrations are not completed until the 15th day of the first lunar month, also known as the Lantern Festival. (The Lunar New Year in 2021 runs from February 12 to February 26).

Families tend to have different sets of rules and traditions, but most will bless each other with auspicious words like “san tai gin hong” or “shen ti jian kang” (I wish you good health).

During normal times, when people are not in prison, they must visit relatives and friends during the festival – except on the third day of the month. The third day of the Lunar New Year (which falls on Valentine’s Day this year) is called chi kou, or red mouth. Discussions are believed to be more likely to happen on this day, so people will visit the temples and avoid social interactions.

There are many other rules and superstitions associated with the Lunar New Year. For example, do not wash or cut your hair on the first day of the new year. The Chinese character for hair is the first character of the word to prosper. Therefore, washing or cutting it is seen as destroying your fortune.

You should also avoid buying shoes throughout the lunar month, as the term for shoes (haai) sounds like losing and sighing in Cantonese.

Throughout the festival, the hosts will prepare boxes of sweets and snacks for their guests. Couples are expected to deliver red packages full of money to children and single adults to wish them luck.

It is said that the seventh day (February 18th) was the day when the Chinese mother goddess Nuwa created humanity and is therefore called renri (the people’s birthday).

Different communities in Asia will serve different birthday foods that day. For example, people in Malaysia like yeesang, or “Prosperity Toss” of raw fish and shredded vegetables, while Cantonese people eat sweet rice balls.

The highlight comes on the last day (February 26). In ancient Chinese society, it was the only day when girls could go out to admire lanterns and meet boys. Therefore, it was also dubbed Chinese Valentine’s Day.

Nowadays, cities around the world still exhibit large displays of lanterns and fairs on the last day of the festival.