The Year of the Dragon (龍年)

Posted on by Patrick Siu

The Dragon is the fifth of the 12-year cycle of animals which appear in the Chinese zodiac. The Year of the Dragon (龍) starts on February 10, 2024 .

The Chinese dragon (龍) is a legendary creature in Chinese folklore and mythology. It is a complex creature containing a combination of features of various animals such as the head of a camel, the horns of a deer, the eyes of a rabbit, the ears of a cow, the neck and the long body of a snake, the scales of a carp, the claws of a hawk, the palms of a tiger. They traditionally symbolize potent and auspicious powers.  They are believed to have the ability to bring rain and control bodies of water.

Historically, the Chinese dragon was associated with the Emperor of China and used as a symbol to represent imperial power. Statues and images of dragons can be found nearly everywhere in the Beijing Forbidden City (紫禁城).

Nine-Dragon Wall (九龍壁) in Beijing Forbidden City

Massive marble paving stones with carved dragons leading to the Palace of the Hall of Preserving Harmony (保和殿)

The Dragon Throne of the Emperor of China in the Palace of Heavenly Purity (乾清宮).

Ornaments with dragon designs

Jade dragon pendant, Han Dynasty (漢)， 02 BCE-220 CE


Jade dragon ornament, Northern and Southern dynasty (南北朝)，420-589 CE
Blue-and-white dragon vase

Paintings of the dragons

Xu Beihong (徐悲鴻) (1895-1953), Dragon, ink and watercolour on paper

Dragon Dance

Dragon dance (舞龍) is often performed during the Chinese New Year. The dance is performed by a team of experienced dancers who manipulate a long flexible giant puppet of a dragon using poles positioned at regular intervals along the length of the dragon. It is believed dragon dance can bring good luck to people.

Please click the following link for more information :

Animal – The Year of the Dragon (龍年) – Patrick Siu Chinese Calligraphy & Landscape Painting 蕭燿漢談書畫

I wish my readers a blessed and delightful Year of the Dragon,

Patrick

The Lantern Festival (元宵節)

Posted on by Patrick Siu

Children playing with colourful lanterns
Children playing with colorful lanterns

The 15th day of the first lunar month is celebrated as the Lantern Festival (元宵節). In 2024, it falls on 24 February (Saturday). As early as the Western Han Dynasty around 210 CE, the Lantern Festival had become a significant festival. During the Lantern Festival, people have fun at night carrying paper lanterns and solve riddles on the lanterns (猜燈謎).

In the ancient days, young adults celebrated in the hope of finding loved ones. Matchmakers were busily pairing couples. In more recent times, it is touted as the Chinese Valentine’s Day.

Lanterns are used for decorations and they are always red in colour to symbolize good fortune.  They can also be made in the shape of animals.

The following images show traditional lanterns in different shapes and designs in a long scroll painting circa 1486 CE (明宪宗元宵行樂圖卷).

elephant lantern
elephant lantern

crab lantern, rabbit lantern
crab lantern, rabbit lantern

toad lantern, figure lantern
figure lantern and toad lantern

a traditional lantern
traditional lantern

People eat sweet glutinous rice balls, yuanxiao (元宵) also known as tāngyuán (湯圓), and enjoy a family reunion.

Famous Chinese poems related to the Lantern Festival

朱淑真（一說作者為歐陽修）《生查子》

去年元夜時，花市燈如晝。月上柳梢頭，人約黃昏後。

今年元夜時，月與燈依舊。不見去年人，淚濕春衫袖。

辛棄疾《青玉案之元夕》

東風夜放花千樹，更吹落、星如雨。寶馬雕車香滿路，鳳簫聲動，玉壺光轉，一夜魚龍舞。

蛾兒雪柳黃金縷，笑語盈盈暗香去。眾裡尋他千百度，驀然回首，那人卻在，燈火闌珊處。

唐寅《元宵》

有燈無月不娛人，有月無燈不算春。春到人間人似玉，燈燒月下月如銀。

滿街珠翠遊村女，沸地笙歌賽社神。不展芳尊開口笑，如何消得此良辰。

Acknowledgements :

The lanterns images come from 中國國家博物館  館藏文物研究叢書  繪畫卷  風俗畫 (2006)

Further readings:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lantern_Festival

http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%85%83%E5%AE%B5%E8%8A%82 (元宵節)

http://baike.baidu.com/view/24718.htm (朱淑真)

http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E8%BE%9B%E6%A3%84%E7%96%BE (辛棄疾)

http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%94%90%E5%AF%85 (唐寅)