Do you remember the family that was interviewed last Christmas Eve by Malaysian and Thai news media for recreating a Bangkok trip at their front yard? Here’s the recap:
Recently, the family took a step further; instead of travelling to a different country, they travelled back in time by recounting the origins of Chinese New Year. The plot is about a zodiac/Nian monster (年兽) named “Xi” (夕) who terrorized a village every year. This explains the reason behind the tradition of hanging red cloths, putting up spring festival couplets, shooting off firecrackers and having lion dance performances. It also reveals why Chinese New Year’s eve is called “Chu Xi” (除夕). Here’s how the story goes:
A long, long time ago, there was an underwater zodiac named “Xi”. Every spring festival, this man-eating monster would come out of the water to find food. Therefore, the villagers would hide in a cave until it left the next day, which is why it’s called “Getting over Nian” (过年)
The newborn baby played the role of a villager preparing to hide in the cave with some essentials such as her diapers and feeding bottle.
A year later, when the villagers were about to hide, a hungry old man (Actor: the father) from another village came by. However, no one attended to the old man as everyone was panicking. Only a kind old woman invited him to her house and gave him some food, which the old man appreciated immensely.
In return, the old man told the woman the Nian monster’s greatest fear – the colour red and crashing sounds. He suggested that she wear red clothes and prepare some red cloth and bamboo. He then tied the red cloth in front of the woman’s door, started a fire, and made a lion with the bamboo.
At midnight, the monster woke up and broke into the village, only to find one house with the lights on. Its curiosity piqued, the monster decided to check it out. As soon as the old man saw it, he burned the bamboo, causing it to run away after seeing the red cloths, the ‘lion’ that looked bigger than it was, and hearing the loud crashing sounds.
After that incident, the Nian monster never returned, so the night became “the night Xi was chased away” (除夕夜) and the traditions are observed until now.
The mother, Siew Yi Low mentioned that her family took one and a half hour to finish the play. However, it was definitely worth the time as they had so much fun and laughter. At the end of her post, she wished everyone a happy and healthy Chinese New Year and urged everyone to stay home and tell your children stories. #StayAtHome #KitaJagaKita
Disclaimer: Only Siew Yi Low’s friends can directly see the post, but we’ve got you covered with her consent! If you still wish to see the post for yourself, feel free to add her on Facebook.
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Sources: Facebook /Siew Yi Low
Editor: Raymond Chen
Proofreader: Sarah Yeoh
