Friday, February 4, 2011

Happy Chinese New Year 2011!

Xin nian kuai le! Gong xi fa cai! Wan shi ru yi! These three phrases mean "Happy new year", "More prosperity to you", and "Ten thousand matters according to your way". I would like to congratulate all readers a happy year of the rabbit as 2nd/3rd of February marks the beginning of the Chinese rabbit year.

Why rabbit year? Rabbit is one of the twelve animal symbols in Chinese zodiac. Aeons ago legend has it that twelve animals race against each other to reach the gate of the Emperor God's palace. The order in which they arrived was finally used to determine the way the 12 years repeat. The first is rat, while the second is bull and so on. Bull was supposed to finish first, but how cunning and sleazy the rat was, he jumped out of nowhere in the bull's shoulder that it crossed the finish line first.
Credits to azureseilue of deviantart

Why I'm writing all this? Aside from sharing this culture with you, this is also a personal wish since yours truly actually do have some Chinese blood in him :) Happy Chinese new year again; Rabbit is often associated with peace in Chinese culture, so even though you're not celebrating it, enjoy this weekend in peace :) Wan shi ru yi!

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