農曆新年知多d（三）

Chinese New Year (3)

（The English version is available below)

勿踩禁忌好過年！

雖然過年習俗演變至今已簡化不少，但很多人依然重視過年該有的「儀式感」，認為這樣做才會顯得有年味。大家不妨參考以下有關除夕、初一至初三習俗和禁忌！

❖ 除夕：圍爐

除夕這一天，白天會祭拜家神祖先，還要祭拜地基主，祈求闔家平安；晚上的重頭戲則是全家團聚，一起圍爐吃年夜飯；其它習俗還包括發壓歲錢、守歲、搶頭香。「守歲」就是除夕夜晚睡，能幫父母添壽；「搶頭香」則是大型廟宇的習俗，民眾搶拜第一柱香可以得到神明的眷顧和保佑。

除夕的禁忌則主要包括：「清潔打掃」會把家中錢財掃出門和趕走財神爺；「打破東西」代表破財、破運等不吉利的含義；「吵架罵人」會倒楣一整年，過年應和氣生財，多說吉祥話，能為新的一年帶來好運。

❖初一：走春

大年初一穿新衣，前往廟宇拜拜，祈求新的一年平安順利，並到親友家拜年，就是俗稱的「走春」。年初一的禁忌和除夕一樣，忌掃垃圾出門、忌打破碗、忌罵人吵架。如果非要掃地不可，可從外頭往內掃；如果不小心打破東西，可說句「歲歲（碎碎）平安」化解掉。此外，忌吃稀飯，在以前吃稀飯象徵貧窮。

❖初二：回娘家

初二俗稱「迎婿日」，結婚的女兒會帶著丈夫、兒女回娘家，向父母拜年。回娘家的女兒必須帶伴手禮和紅包，且數量、金額都必須成雙，代表吉利。初二這天的禁忌是避免洗衣服，因為據說水神生日是初一、初二，洗衣會得罪神明。這天也不能睡午覺，避免懶洋洋或精神不濟，影響來年的運勢。

❖初三：睡到飽

傳說初三是老鼠的娶親日，當天晚上早早入睡，避免打擾老鼠娶親，並在睡前於家中角落灑些米糧和鹽巴，代表人鼠相安。由於初一、初二已外出拜訪親戚，因此在俗稱「赤口日」的初三可以睡到飽補眠。而在赤口日的這天，容易與人發生口角爭執，也不建議外出拜年。

大家欲知初四至初七期間的習俗和禁忌，請看下回分解

Don't step on the taboo for the Lunar New Year

Today the customs of Chinese New Year has been much simplified, but many people still attach to the “sense of ritual”, thinking that doing so will make the Chinese New Year appears to be more meaningful. You may refer to the following taboos from New Year’s Eve, the first day to the third day of Chinese New Year.

❖ New Year’s Eve：Fireplace

On New Year’s Eve, during the day, the Family God and ancestors as well as the Ground God will be worshiped to pray for the safety of the family. In the evening, the first highlight is to have a family reunion dinner around the stove to exhibit the sense of togetherness. People then rush to the temple to grab the first stick of the incense to get the protection and blessing from the God. Lastly people tend be sleep late (Shou Shui) so that the parents’ life can be prolonged.

The taboos on New Year’s Eve mainly include: “Cleaning” will sweep away the money in the house and drive away the God of Wealth; “Breaking things” means loss of money, bad luck and other inauspicious events.; “Quarrellings and Scoldings” will bring bad luck for the entire year. On the other hand, harmony and speaking auspicious words can bring wealth and good luck for the year.

❖ First Day of the Chinese New Year : Spring Celebration

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, people wear new clothes, go to temples to pray for a safe and smooth year; visit relatives and friends to celebrate the new year. The taboos on the first day of the new year are the same as those on New Year's Eve. Avoid sweeping garbage out, breaking bowls, cursing and arguing. If you have to sweep the floor, you can sweep from the outside to the inside. In case that you accidentally break something, you can say "Sui Sui Ping An” (means safe) to dissolve it and what’s more, avoid eating porridge, which in the past symbolized poverty.

❖ Second Day of the Chinese New Year : Wife Going Back Home

The second day of the Lunar New Year is commonly known as "Welcoming Son-in-law Day". A married daughter will bring her husband and children back to her natal home to pay New Year's greetings to her parents. Daughters who return to their natal home must bring gifts and Ang Pow (red envelopes with money) and the number and amount must be in pairs, representing auspiciousness. The taboo on the second day of the Lunar New Year is to keep away from washing clothes because it is said that the birthday of the Water God is on the first and second day of the Lunar New Year and doing laundry will offend the god. You can't take a nap on this day to avoid laziness or lack of energy, which will affect your fortune for the year.

❖ Third Day of the Chinese New Year : Sufficient Sleep

Myth about the third day of of the Lunar New Year is the wedding day of the mouse. Go to bed early that night to avoid disturbing the marriage of the mouse. Before going to bed, sprinkle some rice grains and salt in the corner of the house to represent the peace between humans and mice. Since the first and second days of of the Lunar New Year are out to visit relatives, the third day of the Lunar New Year, often recognised as "Red Mouth Day", referring to have a good sleep. On "Red Mouth Day", it is easy to quarrel with others, thus it is not recommended to go out to pay New Year's greetings.

If you are interested in the customs and taboos during the period from the fourth day to the seventh day of the Lunar New Year, stay tune for the next chapter.