A Passage to China- The Life of Chinese

Confucius asked the Chinese to try their best to make full contributions to their family and the state; Taoists told the Chinese to let it be; and Buddhish preached that the life is a recycling process. Influenced by Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism, many Chinese people like to believe that life is a recycling process and this process can be highlighted on two occasions; wedding and, especially in the old times, succeeding in the official examination. In case of failure, people comfort themselves by believing that it is their fate. So the following occasions are supposed to be important to a Chinese during his or her life and after death.

Birth— the moment of birth is thought to be an important time for an individual’s lift span, as it is fixed by heaven. Traditionally the Chinese people believed that the particular combination of Heavenly Stems (Tian Gan) and Earthly Branches (Di Zhi) that define the year, month, day and hour of birth formed the Eight Cyclical Characters of the newly born baby. These Eight Characters determine a baby’s fate and the fate was immutable. But optimistically enough, the Chinese also believed that the time of birth was not the only factor influencing the course of a person’s life. Some other things such as right partner for marriage, right time for opening a business, right place for family’s graveyard and things like this an individual could control would benefit a person by the way of chance. Chance is variable. A good example is that if a person was born in a poor family, people say, his fate may not be good. But if he knew how to arrange things mentioned above, he could succeed in society through his effort. In this sense we can see Confucianism and Taoism go hand in hand influencing the attitude of the Chinese towards life. Although many people nowadays think that this belief is not scientific, yet parents still care about the baby’s time of birth and the hospitals provide special gifts for the babies and the parents, the coins on which the babies’ birth data are carved. The Chinese give each year a name of an animal, which is called Zondiac animal year. Being one of the main elements of a person’s Eight Cyclical Characters, there are twelve animals in the Chinese Zodiac. Every Chinese has his or her zodiac animal name among rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, rooster, dog and pig. According to statistics, in China the birth rate of the dragon year in 1989 and 1991 were the highest compared with the other animal years because many people still hold the old belief that the dragon year will be the good year for the baby’s promising future.

The Third Day after Birth— The third day after birth is the announcement day of the new life. The family will give hoiled eggs colored in red when they report the baby’s coming to the relatives around for good luck. If it is a baby boy, the number of eggs is odd; if it is a baby girl, the number is even. In a few places, the parents bathe the baby and give it a formal name as well.
One Full Month Ceremony— One full month ceremony is a celebration one month after the birth of the child. On that day relatives and friends are supposed to come gifts for congratulations. The new mother has finished her Mother’s Month off, too. The family people bathe the infant for blessing. After bathing the infant, people shave its head and in some places collect its hair. Now in many cities it is a good business to make writing brush with infant-hair for the parent to keep for memory. On that day “Full Month Banquet” is held to celebrate the infant’s fitness.

100th-Day Celebration— 100th-Day celebration is a ceremony to bless the infant to be fit and strong 100 days after the birth. Some people choose the 99th day after the birth for the lucky figure of double nine. The relatives and friends get together for a dinner, and gifts like silver or gold decorations around the neck and wrinkles are given to the infant for best wishes, especially in rural areas.

One Full Year Ceremony— One full year ceremony is called the second birthday, as the child is said to have reached a “full year”. The relatives and friends come over to get together to dinner for celebration. And in a couple of places, the family enjoys the test of the infant’s inclination. The family prepare a lot of things on the table such as books, pens, needles and threads, official documents and papers, fruits and candies, lipsticks and so on and so forth. The infant is put in the middle of the table. All the people are eager to see which object the infant grabs first. This is a folk practice to predict a child’s temperament, inclination and prospects. I f it is a baby boy, the parent is embarrassed to see it grab the lipstick first because a lipstick is meant for the lady. Books and pens are supposed to be the best to choose by the baby.

After one full year, or longer, the child is usually taken care of by its grandparents either on its monter’s side or on its father’s side, and would be taken care of by the kindergarten whenever necessary, usually after the kid is over one or two year of age.

Birthdays— Birthdays are celebrated, although city dwellers do so more frequently than their country cousins, and children and old people more than young and middle-aged people. No special ceremony is occasioned by a birthday. Many people like to eat “longevity noodles”, symbol of long life inspired by the noodle’s shape. Nowadays, many city dwellers choose to eat Western-style birthday cakes instead of noodles.

Nine Years with Compulsory Education— After being taken care of by its grandparents or the kindergarten, at the age of six or seven, the child goes to primary school for education for 6 year which lays some knowledge foundation for the growth of the kids. In China, all the kids are supposed to have nine years of compulsory education, in most urban areas, pupils spend six years for primary schooling and move on to middle school to study for three years; and in most rural places, pupils have five year in primary schools and four years in middle schools.
Two, Three, Four or Five Years in college or University— Two, three, four or five years in college or university is an opportunity for further education for graduates from senior high school if he or she is successful in the national college entrance examination. Those who fail in the examination have opportunities for a two-or three-year program of vocational education in universities or colleges or vocational colleges. Some students who have an economic backup can have a chance to go abroad for abroad for further study. The number of Chinese overseas students now is one of the biggest compared with that of other countries in the world.
Taking a Job— Taking a job is a landmark of every Chinese individual. In urban areas, most ot those who fail in the examination for senior high school can go to technical school at the age of 15 or 16. In rural areas, some of the failed students help parents in farming or may migrate to the urban area, joining the labour force there, especially in recent years. Considering the fact that the illiterate rate of the whole population now is around 7% in China, the quality of the Chinese work force is not so satisfactory. Those who fail in the examination of college or university enter into the work force at age form around 18. A college or university student enters into the work force around the age from 20 to 22. The work force aged from 15 to 64 is a about 72% of the whole Chinese population.

Marriage— Marriage is a happy occasion. According to the Marriage Law, the minimum legal age of marriage is 20 for the female and 22 for the male, and they should register marriage at the marriage registration office. At present, the average age for marriage is from 20 to 25. A wedding ceremony is not a necessary legal procedure for marriage, but only a way for congratulation and best wishes. Generally speaking, those who live in the rural area marry earlier and those who do not have higher education marry earlier as well. There is a tendency among the educated to marry late, or, in some cases, keep single. The newlyweds will offer “wedding candies” to their colleagues and friends. In return, their colleagues and friends will present the newlyweds with gifts. As the attitude towards the marriage of the young people changes, the attitude towards divorce also changes. In the year 1980, the divorce rate was only 0.7%, but now the rate is about 2%.

The Age of Thirty— The Chinese think it is time to establish one’s career, especially for a man, at the age of 30, and that is a Confucian idea. If he could not have a regular job at the age of 30, and that is a Confucian idea. If he could not have a regular job at the age of 30, he is thought to be an anxiety for all the family members, especially the parents. In that case, there will be few parents who would like to marry their daughter to him. So there is a strong competition for the young people to hold positions.

The Age of Forty— The age of 40 is thought to be the age of full confidence and handling things confidently according to Confucius. Especially for a man, he must play some role in his work; otherwise he cannot be considered a successful man. It is not an easy time for the people aged forty, because they have a heavier burden in the work and in family life as well. They have to take care of their aged parents, their young children and their younger sisters and brothers while they work and struggle for career and success. And at the same time, it is still harder to keep on holding the position they have obtained. The people most burdened in China are those aged around forty.
The Age of Fifty— The age of 50 is said to be the age of knowing fate. Influenced by Confucian ideas, most Chinese people accept the condition they have reached in their life whether good or bad. That may be the reason that Taoism has a chance to come into being. It is a comfort for those who have tried but failed to have a peaceful feeling believing in “let it be” philosophy. In China, the age for retirement is fifty for the female and fifty-five for the male if they work in the enterprises or business field. The female working in the public institution retires at the age of fifty-five, and the male at the age of sixty.

The Age of Seventy— The age of 70, according to Confucius, is supposed to be a free age for people to do whatever they like and not to break social rules. After so many ups and downs in society, the people aged 70 have experienced a lot and realized the truth of life. So they would enjoy the rest of their life with a free mind ,but they will not do anything wrong because their behavior has been already fixed by long years of social rules and practices. The image of a respectful elder person is that of kindness, peacefulness and wisdom. At the moment, the average life expectancy for women is 73 and 69 for men. China is country where seniors are always respected.

Thanks to the advancement of medical care, science, and improved life quality, the average life expectancy has increased greatly.

Funeral Ceremony— Funeral ceremonies vary in China. Usually, a memorial ceremony is held to pay last respects to the deceased and allow the living to express their grief. Cremation is the rule in cities, and interment in rural areas. White is the traditional color of mourning, but city people nowadays usually wear black gauze armbands for mourning.

The funeral in China is considered a very important occasion. It is called happy death if one is over 70 years of age at death. And for the Buddhists, life is a recycling process. Death is also a start for another life cycle. In real practice, there seems to have been two understandings about life after death. One holds that the deceased be dressed in clothes made of 100%pure natural material, such as cotton or linen, to help the deceased to come back to this world in the next life by transmigration easily. The other holds that the family prepares a lot of material things for the deceased to have a good life in the underworld. All the things are made of paper to cope the real world material such as color TV, house, cell phone and even paper-made “golden boy” and “jade girl” at service in the underworld. In rural area, this practice is common and sometimes paper-made luxury car and paper money in imitation are prepared for the deceased.

The funeral has become a more and more money-spending occasion in the rural area. Even though there is the encouragement of the government for all the deceased to burnt, the ashes of some deceased are buried again at a home graveyard in the rural area. In the urban area, the ashes of the deceased are put in a special building provided by the government for a small fee. Bur now public graveyards with high fees are provided. It is a false belief that the more money the family spend on the deceased, the more respect and deeper mourning the family shows to the deceased.

Fengshui— Fengshui in burial receives great importance in China. Fengshui literally means”wind and water”. It was originally the branch of knowledge in which the ancients studied astronomy and geography, and which expressed their view of environment and priorities. Fengshui brought together the three elements of time, place and man in a system for distinguishing good and ill fortunes. But later practitioners continually put such things as the five elements, and finally the realm of philosophy and took on a heavy popular coloring, and eventually came to be used merely as a tool to help individuals to get a promotion or to become rich. Now many Chinese still believe that if they choose a good place or a good location to bury their parents, their parents can protect then and bring them good fortune. In the rural area, there were people trying to secure a good place for burying their deceased parents, and in the urban area, people are willing to pay a large amount of money for a piece of land with good Fengshui for their parent’s burial. Fengshui is not only used in burial but also popular in choosing houses and offices. This phenomenon shows that no matter how modernized our life may become materially, people still need some kind of supernatural support spiritually.

Sprit Tablets— After the death of a parent, the mourners usually erect a wooden tablet with the parent’s name on it as a home for the spirit. This spirit tablet is a major object of Chinese ancestor worship. It is the most important part of the house. Its height, position and prientation must be carefully determined on. Every Chinese New Year or anniversary of a parent’s death, a feast would be set out before the spirit tablet, incense would be burned and prayers addressed to the tablet inviting the parental and other ancestor’s soul to join the feast. A deceased parent is treated just the same way as alive. Confucius placed great emphasis on filial piety. He said, “In life, serve them with propriety.” Now in rural areas, the ancestor worship is popular.

Memorial Ceremonies for the Deceased— Memorial ceremonies for the deceased are a bit complicated. China is said to be a nation that shows great respect for the deceased. According to the traditional rites, the family must hold ceremony for every seventh day for seven times after the death. It is called”Doing 7th”, which lasts for 49 days in all. Now in many rural areas, only the following seventh days see ceremonies, the 1st seventh day (7 days after the death), the 3 rd seventh day (21 days after the death), the 5th seventh day (35 days after the death) and the 7th seventh day(49 days after the death). Apart from that, ceremonies are also supposed to be held on the following occasions: the 100th-day ceremony (100 days after the death), first-year ceremony (1st anniversary after the death, second-year-ceremony (2nd anniversary after the death), third-year ceremony (the 3 rd anniversary after the death), sixth-year ceremony (the 6th anniversary after the death) and ninth-year ceremony (the 9th anniversary of the death).
Nowadays, more and more people in urban areas and intellectuals do not observe the traditional customs as their ancestors did in the past.

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