New Year greeting is a traditional folk custom in China, and it is a way for people to bid farewell to the old and welcome the new. New Year greetings, also known as spring outing and spring exploration, refer to congratulating others on the New Year during the Spring Festival.
China is called "the state of etiquette". In ancient times, the original meaning of the word "Happy New Year" was to pay New Year greetings to the elderly, including kowtowing to the elderly, congratulating them on a happy New Year and greeting their lives. In case of friends and relatives of the same generation, you should also salute and congratulate. On the first day of the new year, people get up early, put on the most beautiful clothes, dress neatly, go out to visit relatives and friends, and wish each other good luck in the coming year. There are many ways to pay New Year's greetings, some of which are led by the same patriarch from door to door. Some colleagues invited several people to pay New Year greetings; Others get together to congratulate each other. This is called "group worship".
In the Song Dynasty, friends and relatives would greet each other, which was an early New Year card. In the Ming Dynasty, the design of New Year cards was more perfect and exquisite. The e-mail is not only printed with the name and address of the sender, but also with the messages of "Happy New Year" and "Good Luck". When paying a New Year call, the younger generation should first pay a New Year call to their elders and wish them a long and healthy life. The elders can distribute the lucky money prepared in advance to the younger generation. It is said that lucky money can kill evil spirits, because "old" and "special" are homophonic, and the younger generation can spend a year safely with lucky money.
Paying New Year greetings is a custom in the past, and it is also a kind of etiquette. In the new year, put on your latest and best clothes, send blessings to the elderly and peers, and visit from house to house. What a lively and festive picture. Now, although we don't pay attention to etiquette as in the past, the etiquette of greeting the New Year during the Spring Festival is still continuing. I believe that in the near future, people will pay more attention to the etiquette of New Year greetings.
Second, the legendary story of New Year greetings during the Spring Festival.
Legend has it that in ancient times there was a monster with a unicorn on his head and a mouth like a blood basin. People call it the year. On the thirtieth night of the twelfth lunar month, it jumped out of the mountain and preyed on people. People have to prepare some meat and put it outside the door, then close the door and hide at home. It was not until the first morning that Nian left after a big meal that people opened the door to meet each other and bowed to congratulate each other. One year, Nian came to the village again, and people found it afraid of red things and noise. So another year passed. Before that, people put red paper on their doors and hung red lanterns. Over the years, people have thrown firecrackers made of hollow bamboo on the ground and made a loud noise. Finally, nian was driven away. As a result, people later had the custom of putting up couplets, hanging lanterns and setting off firecrackers.
Third, the way to pay New Year greetings during the Spring Festival.
There are various ways and means to pay New Year greetings, and they are constantly innovating.
1, the old method is: face to face, mail red envelopes, greeting cards, letters, flowers and gifts;
2. Newer ways are: telephone New Year greetings, email New Year greetings and SMS New Year greetings.
3, the latest way is: mobile phone WeChat text New Year; Three-dimensional real-life New Year greetings, video New Year greetings and other online New Year greetings.
Fourth, the origin of the New Year greeting gesture "male left and female right".
China has been divided into "male left and female right" since ancient times, which is related to the Yin and Yang thought of China's philosophy: men are strong-willed and belong to the Yang on the left, while women are gentle and obedient, guarding the Yin on the right. Moreover, New Year greeting gestures are also divided into men and women.
According to the Book of Rites Internal Rules, knot men and women every day. Therefore, the New Year greeting gesture is exquisite, and men and women must not be wrong.
The standard man's New Year greeting posture is that his right hand becomes a fist and his left hand is wrapped up, because the right hand is the attacker and wrapped up to show goodwill; Women, on the other hand, don't make a fist, just press their hands. This is in line with the ancient tradition of "male left and female right". If the right hand is upside down, it is a funeral boxing, which is only used for mourning and begging for mercy. The custom of "male left and female right" is also closely related to the philosophical concept of ancient people.
In the concept of traditional culture, the two opposites that run through the universe are Yin and Yang. Things in nature are size, length, up and down, left and right, and so on. The ancients divided it into big, long, upper and left yang, small, short, lower and right yin. Yang is strong and yin is weak. A man's character, a strong man belongs to the left Yang, and a gentle woman belongs to the right Yin.
It is "auspicious" to make a fist in your right hand, palm in your left hand, and make a fist or bag or cover in your right hand.
There is a saying in ancient China that "Left" means respect. When bowing, put your left hand on the floor and show people with "left" to show sincerity and respect. On the contrary, the right hand holding the left hand is "fierce worship", which is generally used for funerals.
The two thumbs should be aligned, and the left hand should not press the right hand or the right hand should press the left hand. Just shake your hand three times when you pay a New Year call.
5. Etiquette of New Year greetings during the Spring Festival.
New Year greetings usually begin at home. On the morning of the first day, after getting up, the younger generation should first pay a New Year call to their elders, wishing them a long and healthy life and all the best. After the elders worship, they should distribute the "lucky money" prepared in advance to the younger generation. After greeting the elders at home, you should also greet people with a smile when you go out to meet them, and exchange auspicious words such as "Congratulations on getting rich", "Best wishes in the four seasons" and "Happy New Year". Neighbors, relatives and friends also visit each other or invite them to drink and entertain.
1 First of all, worship the elders at home. On the first morning, after the younger generation gets up, they should first pay a New Year call to their elders. Of course, after the elders worship, they will definitely distribute the "lucky money" prepared in advance to the younger generation. What you can't forget is to pay New Year greetings to your neighbors and elders. There is an old saying in China: A distant relative is better than a close neighbor. Therefore, it is second only to our own elders to pay New Year greetings to our neighbors and elders. Generally speaking, neighbors and elders will also give "lucky money".
2. Secondly, visit relatives and friends to celebrate the New Year. Be sure to go to your parents-in-law's house on the first or second day, and bring gifts. After entering the door, you should bow down to the Buddha statue, ancestor statue and memorial tablet, and then bow down to your elders in turn.
3. Then there is a courtesy New Year greeting. If you want to pay a New Year call to your friends, all you have to do is bow to the Buddha when you enter the room. If you are equal to your master, you just have to bow your head. If you are older than yourself, you should still take the initiative to bow your head. The host should get down from his seat to help you, or even say that he is not polite to show his humility. Under normal circumstances, it is not advisable to sit for a long time, and leave after greeting. After the host worships, he should also pay a return visit another day.
4. There are also grateful New Year wishes. Anyone who owes someone a favor in the past year, such as someone who has helped himself or a teacher, master, doctor, etc. You should buy some gifts for them and take the opportunity to express your gratitude.
Because of their hard work, people usually get up very late during the Spring Festival. If you visit your home too early, you will often catch your host off guard. Generally speaking, it is advisable for guests to stay for half an hour to 40 minutes, which is polite and does not affect the host's reception of other guests. When you come in to say "Happy New Year" and leave in a hurry, it will also give people the feeling of "lack of sincerity".
Gifts must be appropriate, hygienic and safe. If you make a beautiful little gift yourself, you can express your sincere friendship and show your talents. You must also pay attention to etiquette and etiquette when you pay New Year greetings. Neighborhood sittings, classmates' parties, and friends' parties should all be "saying good things in the New Year, and saying good things in the mouth".