Chinese Culture (General)

Is this for real? Sheep Placenta as natural skin food? Who dare to swallow these capsules? Saw this in a local Traditional herbal shop.... .... Vomit..... vomit....

Shifu can I.check for me this year is 49 years old and lunar is 50.yeaes old...can I celebrate my birthday ha? As heard many said 49 don't do anything? Thanks

Vocabulary for English to Chinese (Mandarin) and Chinese (Mandarin)to English is different. And it is very easy for lots of signs in China to have very poor gramma mistakes.... This sign at the Beijing airport; Starbucks cafe shows: " PERMISSION TO WISH" Huh? Where or how do we get permission ot wish? This is a mystery.. indeed Hahahaha

Dear Anon, 1. In ancient China, camels were used as `workhorse' mainly to transport salt between China and Central Asia especially through the harsh Gobi desert. 2. Actually, the Chinese do not have a good impression of the camels as they considered it a lazy animal. 3. Only during one of the dynasties i.e. Tang that art and artwork on camels arise. Otherwise, it has always been an `uninteresting' animal as compared to the Dragon etc... Warmest Regards, Cecil

Dear Anon, In my opinion, there is no significance of planting red chilly plants such as `chilli padis' which are the hottest type of chillies. Those that are similar to Tabasco source but because of the high vinega content in Tabasco, it is really not as hot as those small chilli plants that some Chinese love to plant and of eat. I believe, the edible ones are planted so that they can be plucked and eated during lunch or dinner. These plants grow chillies very fast and plucking them often helps more chillies to grow. For the non-edible ones.. I am not too sure. Frankly, I have not seen a non-edible one locally. Perhaps, the owners would not bother to plant them at all. …

The Russian culture also has a similar tradition: As soon as the couple is married the families greet them with bread, salt and an icon. It is considered bad luck not to have any bread in the house.

Dear Anon, 1. Dyed eggs are eggs, placed in hot water and red edible dye. 2. Red is an auspicious colour. 3. Birthday 6, 8 or 12 eggs are boiled with the red edible dye. No. of eggs boiled depending on the number of family members. 4. Baby's One Month Celebration 2, 4 or 6 eggs are given out plus other gifts such as `treats' are given out. Nowadays, eggs and a full rounded each cake are given out to relative and friends. Warmest Regards, Cecil

Dear Susan, 1. In Chinese culture, the toad and frog are symbols of the moon. 2. Generally, the Chinese do not distinguish between the toad and the frog, as they are typically regarded as the same. 3. Since the Chinese cultivate rice in wet fields, toads and frogs are commonly found in these areas as they thrive in such environments. 4. Due to their slippery texture, the Chinese refer to frogs as 'Heavenly dew' and consider them to be the heavenly chicken or celestial cock. 5. According to ancient Chinese lore, rulers and scholars found the croaking of frogs and toads to be 'irritating,' and legend has it that if they instructed the frogs or toads to be silen…

Source & Credit: The Sunday Times APRIL 10, 2011 GRAVE TOURS BUKIT BROWN CEMETERY (LORNIE ROAD) Bukit Brown holds the remains of many Singapore pioneers including Chew Boon Lay, Lim Chong Pang and Lim Nee Soon as well as Tan Kim CHing, eldest son of Tan Tock Seng. It also includes what may be the oldest grave in Singapore - the final resting place of a certain Fang Shan who died in 1833. CHUA CHU KANG CHINESE CEMETRY Many graves here are built in the shape of animals such as fish or snakes, in accordance with feng shui principles. In the night, it also attracts many mediums and their followers, who conduct regular seances there. JAPANESE CEMETRY PARK…

Dear All, 1. It is interesting to note that in China, a nunnery (for nuns) and a monastry (for monks) cannot be situated too close. These nuns and monks live a life of celebracy (singlehood) 2. This is due to the Yin and Yang concept. Furthermore, commonsense tells us that situating both too close may lead to temptation. Warmest Regards, Cecil

Dear Anon, There is indeed some validity to this idea. The traditional belief is that the East represents the dragon and the Yang side, while the West symbolizes the tiger and the Yin side - especially in a large macro environment. However, in modern times, this is less relevant concern to smaller spaces such as a home apartment. The impact of sleeping on one side or the other is minimal. What truly matters now is not the position in which one sleeps, but rather how to maintain a successful marriage. Understanding theoretical concepts is futile if it does not contribute to a lasting and fulfilling relationship. Warmest Regards, Cecil

This pictures shows some items that are brought into a new house: 1. Usually, an auspicious date (and time) is chosen. 2. On the auspicious day and time, the owner of the home brings some auspicious items into the home: 2.1 A packet of salt, rice and sugar. 2.2 Some of the items shown in the picture are: - A red charcoal stove - A red container containing coal (representing gold) - A `huat' quay or self-raising cake (symbolic of a `raise') - For the Hokkien (Chinese dialect group), a pineapple is rolled from the main entrance door into the house. A `pineapple' represent luck. - Some sweets etc... Take a look at the picture Besides the above, water is boiled immediately af…

Dear Anon, It is quite expensive to change doors and windows every year. Unless they are made of material that has a high wear and tear and need replacement yearly. You will be surprised to learn that not many Chinese know the art of Feng Shui especially the Flying Star Theory. In the past, there is a veil of secrecy in Feng Shui. One Chinese Emperor also planted falsehood in Feng Shui for fear that others use it also. It was said that this Emperor kept the real `secrets' of Feng Shui and planted falsehood. This is why, till this day, it is said that not all Feng Shui theories are 100 percent applicable. We must therefore, sieve out the not workable from what is relevan…

Mother of all Jade: Pure white Jade or known as "Imperial Gem"

The Spring Lantern Festival is on the fifteenth day of the first month in the Chinese lunar calendar. This day is also referred to as “Chap Gor Mei “ on Hokkien meaning the 15th night. Which means by night time; Chinese New Year will be over.

Spring water and China - Laoshan Oldenlandia Water Dear Anon, I took the opportunity to take a picture of what the `green' mineral water looks like. By the way, the correct `English' spelling on the bottle is: Oldenlandia Water. This is the description on the label: OLENLANDIA WATER Make of the abstracted fragrant essense of oldeniadia with Laoshan mineral water rich in mineral elements and it is indeed a refreshing drink for all seasons around the year with a tradition of quality sinces 1962. It is bottled by Qindao Laoshan Oldenlandia Water Co Ltd, China. It is the addition of oldeniadia to Laoshan mineral water that gives it a unique flavour. I …

Dear cecil, Can you tell us what each figurine is holding since we cant tell by looking at the picture and also what is the significance of different poses. Thanks.

Nowadays, offerings on Qing Ming includes:- Source and Credit: REUTERS Paper replicas of first-generation iPads and iPhones sit on a shelf among other electronic gadgets for sale for the Chinese Qingming festival or Ancestors Day at a prayer supplies shop in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia. Ethnic Chinese flock to cemetries during Qingming Festival and honour the dead by offering prayers, food, tea, wine, as well as paper replicas of bungalows, flashy cars, technological gadgets and Louis Vuitton bags, for their dead to enjoy in the afterlife. REUTERS

Dear Anon, I remember Raymond Lo, did his own analysis of Bruce Lee's death in one of his Pillars of Destiny (on people) book. I don't have the book. You can search for it. I believe he explained it based on Pillars of Destiny. I believe, this analysis was done without mention of the position of his father's grave. Yin Feng Shui or Feng Shui for the death in relation to the location and position of graves are in my opinion, equally important in Feng Shui. Cremation is considered " neutral " and does not `impact' on the decendants. If you ask many Traditional FS Masters/Practioners, they do believe in the proper sitting of an ancestor's grave. I vaguely remember that som…

Fewer in Singapore streets today He seems to use poker cards... lol

Dear Anon, The rationale for some people saying that a dragon chair needs a strong person to sit on are: 1. As we are aware, a dragon is considered the Yang(est) of all Yang elements. This could be the reason why some people say that the chair is meant for `strong' people especially the conotation of a male or masculine person. 2. The other reason is because traditionally Chinese emperors are the only ones that are allowed to either wear dragon emblems or have carvings on their throne with dragons (4 or 5 claw ones). The lesser officials can wear "serpents" which are considered `lesser' dragons. In my opinion, this is not fully correct. As I have seen antique chairs a pai…

Dear Anon, I believe, th Sung dynasty Chinese poetry and painting associates the horse with military greatness. The horse also symbolises courage and strength. The galloping horse represents engery, perserverance and speed. Thus overall, the hourse has many auspicous meanings and thus, featured widely even under the Sung dynasty. In fact, the horse, turned out to originate from the west and brought into China since as early as the Shang Dynasty period. Warmest Regards, Cecil