DRAGON
[PHOTO - Fireworks
explode behind the Rizal Monument in Manila's Rizal Park during celebrations
welcoming the Lunar New Year. JOVEN
CAGANDE]
MANILA, JANUARY 24, 2012 (STAR) The
Dragon is a creature of myth and legend, and in ancient China, the celestial
Dragon represents an emperor and power. Today (Monday), it is the ultimate
auspicious symbol signifying potent, benevolent power, wisdom, wealth, and
happiness.
The Year of the Dragon, which begins on Jan. 23, is considered particularly
auspicious for new businesses, marriage and children. The Dragon, after all, is
considered the mightiest of signs because it combines parts of different animals
— the head of an ox, the muzzle of a donkey, the eyes of a shrimp, horns of a
deer, the body of a serpent covered with fish scales, and the feet of a phoenix.
But of all the Dragon years, the 2012 Black Water Dragon is most likely to
bestow the Chinese Five Blessings of Harmony, Virtue, Riches, Fulfillment and
Longevity, adding even more weight to the growing belief that 2012 will be about
breakthroughs and not disasters. Water calms the Dragon's fire and since it
bestows a more peaceful disposition, this Dragon will act wisely and
intelligently.
[PHOTO - Golden Dragon with a Red Ball. The Dragon stands for
courage, prosperity,determination and completion luck that relates to all four
directions of north, south, east and west. The red ball stands for the
attainment of one's dreams.]
SM Homeworld welcomes the Year of the Dragon with figurines, wall décor and
table top accents inspired by this celestial creature. Made from jade, mother of
pearl, capiz, and glowing in gold, these Dragons will not only bring luck, but
also an exquisite touch to your home.
The Chinese New Year collection is available at the Homeworld Department of
all SM stores. Designs may vary per branch.
FROM SUN-STAR ONLINE
Bacolod welcomes Year of the Dragon By Carla N.
Canet Monday, January 23, 2012
TODAY, Monday, is the highlight of the 7th BacoLaodiat Festival
in the City of Bacolod to welcome the Chinese New Year, which falls under the
Year of the Dragon.
To welcome the Chinese New Year, Bacolodnons celebrate the 7th BacoLaodiat
Festival, which kicked off with a grand opening ceremony last January 20.
Anchored on a theme "Majestic spirit in a challenging year", this year's
edition of the BacoLaodiat gained the overwhelming support not only of the
Filipino-Chinese community but also of people from all walks of life.
The North Capitol Road and Lacson Streets turned into a huge festival site
with hundreds of bright red Chinese lanterns lighting up the sky, live bands
churning out the latest hits in every corner and Chinese food available all over
the venue.
BacoLaodiat Inc. chairman Leonito Lopue said that the center of activities
Monday will be at the Bacolod Government Center while the Bacolaodiat Fest
Champions' Night will battle it out for a grand showdown at the SM Event Centre
at 3 p.m.
At 5:30 p.m., ABS-CBN will showcase the Kapamilya Night at the New Government
Center to be followed by fireworks at 8:30 p.m.
A live band will also be provided by Manila Beer at the Manila Beer Night
still at the NGC at 10:30 p.m.
And to formally welcome the New Year, everybody is invited to attend the
Chinese New Year Mass at the Queen of Peace Parish Tuesday at 7:30 a.m. to be
followed by the traditional dragon dance and Chinese dance presentations.
Published in the Sun.Star Bacolod newspaper on January 23, 2012.
CHINESE NEW YEAR
[PHOTO - LIT LANTERNS FLOAT IN SKY AS DAVAO
CELEBRATES 2012 LUNAR NEW YEAR]
Chinese New Year starts with the New Moon on the first day of the new year
and ends on the full moon 15 days later. The 15th day of the new year is called
the Lantern Festival, which is celebrated at night with lantern displays and
children carrying lanterns in a parade.
The Chinese calendar is based on a combination of lunar and solar movements.
The lunar cycle is about 29.5 days. In order to "catch up" with the solar
calendar the Chinese insert an extra month once every few years (seven years out
of a 19-yearcycle). This is the same as adding an extra day on leap year. This
is why, according to the solar calendar, the Chinese New Year falls on a
different date each year.
New Year's Eve and New Year's Day are celebrated as a family affair, a time
of reunion and thanksgiving. The celebration was traditionally highlighted with
a religious ceremony given in honor of Heaven and Earth, the gods of the
household and the family ancestors.
The sacrifice to the ancestors, the most vital of all the rituals, united the
living members with those who had passed away. Departed relatives are remembered
with great respect because they were responsible for laying the foundations for
the fortune and glory of the family.
[PHOTO - FIRE FOR WATER GRADON: A fire breather performs in Chinatown in Manila a day before the Chinese New Year
ushering in the Year of the Water Dragon on Sunday, January 22, 2012. The Lunar
New Year falls on January 23 and is the beginning…INQUIRER
PHOTO]
The presence of the ancestors is acknowledged on New Year's Eve with a dinner
arranged for them at the family banquet table. The spirits of the ancestors,
together with the living, celebrate the onset of the New Year as one great
community. The communal feast called "surrounding the stove" or weilu. It
symbolizes family unity and honors the past and present generations.
ASIANS CELEBRATES YEAR OF THE DRAGON BEIJING (AFP) – A billion-plus Asians welcomed the Year of the Dragon on
Monday with a cacophony of fireworks, hoping the mightiest sign in the Chinese
zodiac will usher in the wealth and power it represents.
From Malaysia to South Korea, millions of people travelled huge distances to
reunite with their families for Lunar New Year -- the most important holiday of
the year for many in Asia – indulging in feasts or watching dragon dances.
As the clock struck midnight, Beijing's skyline lit up with color as families
across the Chinese capital set off boxes and boxes of fireworks to ward off evil
spirits in the New Year – a scene repeated across the country.
Pollution levels in the city, which has come under fire for its bad air
quality, spiked in the early hours of Monday morning as fireworks filled the
skies with particulates, before falling back down again, official data showed.
Those living in the Philippines, meanwhile, were able to sleep in on Monday
after the Lunar New Year became an official holiday for the first time, despite
objections from some in the business community.
The dragon is the most favorable transactionsand revered sign in the 12-year
Chinese zodiac – a symbol of royalty, fortune and power that is also used in
other cultures that see in the Lunar New Year, such as in Vietnam.
As such, hospitals across China and in Chinese communities are bracing for a
baby boom as couples try to have a child this year.
Nannies in Beijing and neighboring Tianjin are charging more in 2012, and the
beds in the capital's Maternity Hospital are all booked up until August,
according to the official Xinhua news agency.
Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong even took advantage of the Dragon
to call on the country's residents to boost a stubbornly low birth rate, in an
attempt to reduce the government's heavy reliance on foreign workers.
"I fervently hope that this year will be a big Dragon Year for babies... This
is critical to preserve a Singapore core in our society," he said in his New
Year message. But in Hong Kong, where tens of thousands of pregnant mainlanders
come to give birth every year to gain residency rights for their babies, the
Dragon may not prove such a boon as it could exacerbate problems such as limited
beds and soaring delivery costs.
And according to some astrologers and geomancers, the Dragon may bring
natural disasters and financial volatility to an already destabilized world.
Hong Kong feng shui master Anthony Cheng warned a "scandalous
corruption case" would rock China in the second half of 2012, and also said
high-ranking Chinese officials would be forced to step down, thrown behind bars
or even die.
But people across Asia disregarded the doomsday predictions over the holiday,
preferring to feast and celebrate with their families, and pray at temples or
pagodas.
Highways in Malaysia, where 25 percent of the population is ethnic Chinese,
were clogged at the weekend while the capital Kuala Lumpur became almost
deserted as people travelled home.
In South Korea, which also celebrates the Lunar New Year, more than half of
the entire population – or some 31 million people – took to roads, railways and
planes for the holiday.
But stores in the capital Seoul – normally quiet at this time of year –
bustled with activity as tens of thousands of tourists from China swamped major
shopping areas to spend an expected 100 billion won ($88 million) in January.
"I feel like I'm walking on the street in China. There are so many of them,"
Park Eun-Yong, a South Korean college student, told AFP.
Chinese tourists also flocked to Tokyo, where interpreters in Mitsukoshi –
one of Japan's most prestigious department stores – were on hand to help with
purchases and announcements were made in Mandarin.
Chief News Editor: Sol Jose Vanzi
© Copyright, 2012 by PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE
All
rights reserved
PHILIPPINE
HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE [PHNO] WEBSITE
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