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Happy New Year
Special> Happy New Year
UPDATED: January 23, 2009 NO. 5 FEB. 5, 2009
Happy Niu Year
Ox is one of the favorite animals of the Chinese and also the representative of the farming culture of China
By LIU LIAN
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BULLISH CUT: Paper-cut ox is one of the popular decorations in the houses of Chinese during this year's Spring Festival (CFP)

According to the Chinese lunar calendar, every year corresponds to an animal, and there are 12 animals--rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, rooster, dog and pig--which make up the zodiacs to symbolize different years. The year 2009 is the year of niu (ox).

Importance of the ox

In the sequence of 12 animal signs, ox ranks second. Ox is one of the favorite animals of the Chinese, and many have a special sentiment for it as, in their eyes, the animal represents industriousness and being upright.

Ox is also the representative of the farming culture of China. The Chinese civilization has its roots in the development of agriculture. In the farming economy with its autarkic operation, oxen are the major draught animals hauling plows. An old Chinese saying goes that oxen were the lifeline of the peasants.

Of course, the good of oxen are not limited to plowing. Actually the whole body of an ox is full of treasures. They are also seen as "boats on land" for their capability to carry loads, and their meat and milk are nourishing food. The skin of oxen can be used to make clothes, shoes and hats and the hair can be twisted into ropes or rolled into felt carpets. Apart from this, oxen excrement can be used as fuel. With all these attributes, oxen are viewed as generous creatures. Today, oxen can still be found to haul plows across the fields of villages in China's hinterland.

In the past, oxen played an important role in the spiritual life of the Chinese. They are important and indispensable in various ceremonial occasions such as sacrifices, feasts, weddings or funerals. Even today, oxen play an important role in some folk activities. For example, people of the Pumi ethnic group who live in southwest China's Yunnan Province will cook cattle bone soup and share it among family members and relatives when holding the right-of-passage ceremony for children who reach 13. The Pumi people believe that the cattle bone soup symbolizes the blood relationship and cohesion among family members and the unity and prosperity of the family.

Because of the contribution of oxen and the important role oxen have played in their lives, the Chinese people feel deeply indebted to the animal. In addition, the use of oxen in rituals and the thanks people feel to oxen helped develop various conventional customs, which becomes an important part of the folk culture of the Chinese nation.

There are a lot of poems or tales in China that praise oxen, most of which depict them as creatures that are accommodating and value friendship and affection. In the widely known tale about Niulang (cowherd) and Zhinu (weaving maid)), the ox is generous and loyal to its owner, Niulang. In the tale, the ox not only informs Niulang of the coming of Zhinu, a fairy in the heavenly palace, but also manages to help Niulang marry Zhinu. Finally, in order to help Niulang to meet Zhinu, who has been torn apart by the Milky Way from Niulang, the ox sacrifices its skin to its owner. By taking on the skin, Niulang gets the capability to fly to the heaven and see his wife in the sky.

In some Chinese myths, oxen are deified as creator of the universe. For example, an epic story comes down from generations in some areas in Yunnan Provine inhabited by the Hani ethnic people, in which an ox is depicted as the deity of nature. According to the story, the sun is made of the left eye of the ox, the moon the right eye of the ox and the land the flesh, while terraces are made of the ribs, stars the teeth, rivers the blood, rains the tears, and trees, flowers and other plants are made of the animal's hair. In other words, everything in nature evolves from the body of the divine ox or things related with it, which embodies man's respect and worship to the animal.

In ancient China, the status of ox was very high in fetes or other holy occasions. Generally speaking, living creatures were slaughtered in sacrificial ceremonies. But only on very important fete occasions would oxen be used.

Some folk activities in China were held to express the affection of people for ox. For instance, on the 16th day of the first month according to the lunar calendar, people would run to shake off diseases, and during their run they would take their oxen along, an indication that they regarded the creature as human. Another example is that in east China's Shandong Province, local people have a tradition to feed oxen well on the Qingming, a traditional festival that falls around April 5 of the solar calendar. On that day, people would offer rich and palatable food to oxen in recognition of their hard work. For the Han nationality, the fifth day of the first month in the lunar calendar is believed to be the birthday of ox. On that day, oxen are well treated and freed from work. It is also forbidden to slaughter oxen on that day.

Spring oxen

The Beginning of Spring is one of the 24 seasonal division points of China accoring to the lunar calendar, by which the solar year is divided according to the sun's ecliptic movement. At least in the Han Dynasty (202 B.C.-A.D. 220) the Beginning of Spring developed into a festival.

On that day, spring oxen were indispensable. Originally spring oxen were made of clay, called Clay Oxen. Later, they could also be made of bamboo or paper. In the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), there was the custom of preparing Clay Oxen in the east suburbs before the Beginning of Spring, and on the day of the Beginning of Spring, officials would go to the spot to welcome spring and carry back the Clay Oxen, during which ordinary people would pour into the streets and witness the parade.

The Chinese believe that Clay Oxen have a supernatural power that can dictate the destiny of the humankind. They worship oxen, hoping these divine creatures will bring about favorable weather, rich harvests, good health and increase of family members in the coming year. In some families, people would post paintings or paper cuttings with the theme of spring oxen, expressing their wish to live a wealthy and happy life.

The author is a folklorist and senior editor of the Beijing-based Academy Press

Characteristics of People Born in the Year of the Ox

According to the lunar calendar, an animal is used to identify a year in a 12-year cycle and becomes the shuxiang (sign of the birth year) of people born in that year. The Spring Festival (the lunar New Year) of 2009 ushers in the year of the ox. Thus, babies who will be born in 2009 and people who were born in 1997, 1985, 1973, 1961, 1949, 1937, 1925 or 1913 have the ox as their shuxiang. In traditional Chinese belief, people who share the same animal sign, or the same shuxiang, would have a similar character, temperament and even fortune in their lives.

It is believed that people born in the Year of the Ox are patient, speak little and inspire confidence in others. They tend, however, to anger easily and have fierce tempers. Although they speak little, they are quite eloquent when they do. They are also mentally and physically alert. Generally easy-going, they can be remarkably stubborn, and they hate to fail or be opposed. They are most compatible with people born in the years of the snake, rooster and rat.

(Source: website of the Chinese Culture Center of San Francisco) 



 
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