Mythologies and Fengshui

What Colors are You???

Yin colors are the colors which bring healing and relaxation. There is a relation between colors and Feng Shui, for better understanding, let’s take a look at the examples below.

Blue: Blue color has ‘yin’ energy. It is calm and soothe. This color has great significance in Feng Shui as it reflects love as it heals and relaxes. Blue creates a feeling of peace and trust. Since it is the color of the sea and sky, Feng Shui associates blue with adventure and exploration. Navy blue is the color of intellect and wisdom.

Black: Black symbolizes money and income, black is great for careers, especially when it is combined with metal. It is the Feng Shui color of emotional protection and power.

Purple: Purple, the color that lies at the end of the spectrum, has a great significance in Feng Shui. The color is excellent for physical and mental healing and Feng Shui associates it with spiritual awareness.

White: In Feng Shui the white color represents poise, confidence and purity. Because of its yin energy, Feng Shui uses this color mostly in combination with gold or silver to generate a calm atmosphere.

The other yin colors of Feng Shui are pink and green. These colors also have their individual properties that are used in Feng Shui practice.

Yang Colors and Feng Shui

Yang colors tend to be fire and wood elements. Feng Shui believes that these are the colors that provide you the enthusiasm or the positive energy to do something end to be motivated. Here are the descriptions of colors that Feng Shui provides for your advantages.

Yellow: Yellow color is considered to be as auspicious as red. Yellow represents sunbeam, warmth, motion, cheerfulness and friendliness. However, the exposure to large amounts of intense yellow can cause anxiety.

Orange: With a lot of ‘yang’ energy the orange color has great significance for Feng Shui practice as it strengthens your concentration. You can use this color when your creativity runs to zero level. Orange color in Feng Shui is used to give you a sense of purpose. Orange is the color of organization.

The other ‘yang’ colors of Feng Shui are tan/beige, brown, red, mauve, maroon and lavender and gold. Each color has its significance such as money, luck or romance. These colors can be used in different combinations with Feng Shui elements for balancing the Chi of your Feng Shui home, Feng Shui bed room , or Feng Shui office.

Colors & Feng Shui also have a lot of contributions regarding the direction of your house. There are different colors that Feng Shui defines for the use of exterior facades of your house. Exterior colors of your house in Feng Shui practice can be used for matching or enhancing the basic house type that you have.

For example if your house is facing towards the south, painting its exterior with white, grey or blue enhances the flow of Chi in your house. For houses facing toward East, the colors in earth tones or metal tones are thought to be of much use for enhancing the positive energies of the house.

GODS FROM CHINESE MYTHOLOGY

SAN-XING

(Also known as SAN-HSING, THREE-IMMORTALS)

The Three Gods of Good Fortune, Happiness and Wealth.

Good things come in threes when China gets going. It means 'Three Stars' and then they are the starry-eyed stellar Gods who bring luck and wealth. They are FU-XING (God of Luck), LU-XING (God of Wealth), and SHOU-XING (God of Long Life). If you want to find them, it's easy. Just look for the three stars of ORION's Belt.

The SAN-XING is attended by stags, bats and cranes, which denote their respective qualities symbolically. We will find these on many a calendar at our local Chinese restaurant.

· FU-XING (known as FUK-XING, FU-HSING)

God of Happiness and Good Luck.

He is the Lucky Star member of the SAN-XING team, bright, cheery and full of boundless optimism.

· SHOU-XING (known as SHOU-HSING, SHOU-LAO, NAN-JI-XIAN-WENG)

God of Longevity and Old Age, and the most venerable member of the SAN-XING happiness squad.

It means 'Star Of Long Life'. He is old and bald, and always carries a Golden Peach of Immortality from XI-WANGMU's Holy Peach Garden. These are found only in Heaven and ripen once every three thousand years.

· GUO-ZIYI ( known as GUO-ZI-YI, KUO-TZU-I)

God of Happiness and Riches

It may seem unlikely, but he started out as a soldier in the Tang Dynasty (8th Century A.D.), became a mighty general, rose to become one China's greatest military figures, and ended up as a God having nothing to do with any of that at all.

The modern FENG-SHUI movement has claimed these three Gods for its own. A bewildering array of SAN-XING merchandise is available to cure all known ills, making them also the Three Gods of New Age Gift Stores.

CHINESE NUMEROLOGY

The earliest forms of numerology come from China. The origins of Chinese numerology date back 4000 years ago.

A famous tale is that the first of the five mythical emperors of China, Wu of Hsai, was working on the banks of the Yellow River trying to find a method to prevent the floods.

It was during the course of this work that Wu found a tortoise shell, which at the time was considered to be a very good omen. This shell, however, was extremely rare, unique and special because it had fascinating markings on it: a magic 3x3 square.

This square later became known as the 'Lo Shu Grid'. The 'Lo Shu Grid' is particularly remarkable because every row, column and diagonal on the grid add up to the number '15'.

Chinese numerology is based on mystical traditions, including the I-Ching. The common premise is that certain numbers are associated with 'good' or 'bad'. The element that makes a number 'good' or 'bad' is the punning and word play possible in this many-tone language.

Over time Chinese numerology evolved into three different systems that are being used today. There is the Western version of Chinese numerology, the traditional Chinese numerology and the Ki system. The following presents an introduction to some basic concepts used in Chinese numerology.

Six basic concepts in Chinese numerology!!
1. YANG NUMBERS (odd numbers: 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, etc.)
2. YIN NUMBERS (even numbers: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, etc.)
3. LUCKY NUMBERS (6, 8, 9)
4. UNLUCKY NUMBERS (4, 13)
5. FENG SHUI HOUSE NUMBERS:
6. KUA NUMBERS

Chinese numerology & the chinese elements!!

The five Elements are related to the numbers 1 to 9 as follows:

- Wood is associated with the numbers 3 and 4.
- Fire is associated with the numbers 9.
- Earth is associated with the numbers 2, 5 and 8.
- Metal is associated with the numbers 6 and 7.
- Water is associated with the number 1.

Famous People

The Legend of Man

International action superstar, Donnie Yen, who portrays the celebrated kung fu master Yip Man in this biopic set in 1930s Foshan at the height of the Sino-Japanese invasion. He also marks Donnie Yen’s fourth collaboration with director Wilson Yip (after SPL, Dragon Tiger Gate and Flash Point) and his reunion with SPL co-stars Simon Yam and Sammo Hung (who also serves as action choreographer). 

There is a brief biography of the legend of the Man- Ip Man:His Humble Beginnings Ip Gai-Man was born in Foshan City, Guangdong Province.For the first time he began learning Wing Chun in 1906 under the tutelage of Chan Wah-Shun, pupil of renowned Wing Chun master Leung Chun. Due to old age, Wah soon passed away and Ip Man continued his training under Wah’s pupil Ng Chung-sok. At the age of sixteen, Ip Man attended St. Stephen’s College in Hong Kong which was in Hong Kong and where he met Leung Bik, the son of former master Wah’s sifu, Leung Chun. 

Legend has it that when Ip Man first met Leung Bik, he did not know who Leung Bik was and arrogantly demonstrated his kung fu. When Leung Bik was less than impressed, Ip Man was unhappy and challenged Leung Bik to a duel. Ip Man was however easily defeated. Discouraged, he stormed out- only to return the next day when his classmate told him who Leung Bik was. Ip Man trained under Leung Bik for the next five to six years and acquired a complete mastery of the skill of Wing Chun. 

He returned to Foshan at the age of 24. Back at Foshan He became a police officer and taught to several subordinates, friends and relatives. His connections with wushu practitioners and occasional combats in the city however made him a well known figure in Foshan. When Foshan fell to the Japanese during the War, Ip Man remained faithful to his country and refused to join the Japanese militia. Instead, he started teaching Wing Chun in his good friend Chow Ching-yuen’s cotton mill factory. 

Return to Hong Kong Ip Man returned to Hong Kong at the end of 1949 and opened his first martial arts school teaching the art of Wing Chun. Some of famous pupils during this time include Wong Shun-Leung, Chu Shong-Tin and of course Bruce Lee, perhaps his most well known disciple who trained under him from 1954 to 1957. 

One of the unique ways of Ip Man’s style of teaching was his use of sport combats, or “hand talk”. He believed that such friendly sport combats could better help his pupils hone their martial arts expertise. It was through these public displays of “hand talk” that Wing Chun and Ip Man’s school grew in popularity and numbers. Throughout his years of teaching, Ip Man was always humble about his skills and was instrumental in advancing Wing Chun. Many of his accomplished pupils have also established schools overseas, enabling Wing Chun to flourish in other parts of the world. Today it is a martial arts form that has millions of followers, and Ip Man is widely regarded as one of the grates. (Rini Ritti)

 

Tsai Lun 

Written communication has been the center of civilization for centuries and our important records are on paper. Although writing has been around for a long time, paper has not.

Actually putting thoughts down in written form was not always easy or practical. The ancients  discovered simple drawings on th

e walls of caves. The Sumerians did around 4000 B.C. but it still was not practical because of its weight.

The word "paper" is came from the word "papyrus," which a plant was found in Egypt along the lower Nile River. About 5,000 years ago, Egyptians created "sheets" of papyrus by harvesting, peeling and slicing the plant into strips. The strips were then layered, pounded together and smoothed to make a flat, uniform sheet.

For about 3,000 years no changes in writing materials. Ts'ai Lun, a Chinese man who had invented paper. He lived and served as an official at the Chinese Imperial Court at the Han Dynasty in China at about 1800 years ago. In or about the year 105 A.D., he presented Emperor Han Ho Ti with samples of paper.

He took the inner bark of a mulberry tree and bamboo fibers, mixed them with water, and pounded them with a wooden tool. Then he poured this mixture onto a flat piece of coarsely woven cloth and let the water drain through, leaving only the fibers on the cloth. Once dry, Ts'ai Lun discovered that he had created a quality writing surface that was relatively easy to make and lightweight. This knowledge of papermaking was used in China before word was passed along to Korea, Samarkand, Baghdad, and Damascus.

Tsai, Lun was a eunuch. Because he was an officer, he had the access to lots of resources, including money and human resources, for papermaking research. He was promoted by the Emperor for his invention and became wealthy. Later he got involved in palace intrigue, which led to his downfall. Finally he ended his life drinking poison.

It's hard to imagine how the world be like without paper. Today, paper is the most commonly used materials in human life, not just as a medium of communication. Tsai, Lun's contribution to civilization is priceless. (Rini Ritti)

The Biography of Bruce Lee

Birth Name

Bruce Lee Jun Fan Yuen Kam

Date of Birth

27 November 1940, San Francisco, California, USA

Date of Death

20 July 1973, Hong Kong (cerebral edema)

Height

5' 7½" (1.71 m)

 

Trivia

Died of brain edema in Hong Kong at age 32.

He is considered the greatest martial artist of the 20th century.

Personal Quotes

·      Absorb what is useful, Discard what is not, Add what is uniquely your own.

·      Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do.

·      A teacher is never a giver of truth - he is a guide, a pointer to the truth that each student must find for himself. A good teacher is merely a catalyst.

·      When an opportunity in a fight presents itself, "I" don't hit, "it" hits all by itself.

·      Empty your mind. Become formless and shapeless like water. When water is poured into a cup, it becomes the cup. When water is poured into a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Be water, my friend. (Winda)

Food and Drink

Bakcang

Bakcang is a Tionghoa traditional food. Bakcang’s word comes from Hokkian dialect that Tionghoa citizens use for daily language. Bakcang is one of symbols to celebrate Peh Cun or Duanwu. The history of Bakcang is to celebrate Qu Yuan. Qu Yuan is a minister of Chu state as a chief assistant. He is a talented and loyal official to the state. He also gave a lot of ideas to improve Chu state by allied with Qi state to bear arms against Qin state. As time goes by, Qu Yuan got a lot of critiques from royal family. It made he felt sad and did suicide by jumping to Miluo’s river. This story had been noted on Shi Ji historical record. The myth tells that he jumped to the river on the fifth day of every fifth lunar month. Chu people felt sad and looked for the relics of the minister under the river. The citizens throw the rice and other foods to the river in other case to shift the fish and shrimp didn’t disquiet the minister. The citizen also thoght to avoid the food from river dragon, they wrapped with leaf so the food named bakcang. Every year there is a dragon ship race in order to celebrate the fisherman who looked for the relics with ship. Bakcang is made from glutinous rice and filled with meat, duck egg yolk, mushroom, small shrimp, ginger, and celery. Bakcang without filling named chaicang and usually chaicang eat with sweetsop fruit or ‘serikaya’. It is a jam which made from sugar, egg, and coconut cream. Bakcang is wrapped with bamboo leaf and bundle with string. Bakcang have triangle prism shape.

Moon Cake

Chinese community eat and share this cake as a way to thanks and pray to God for welfare and fortune they get through this year. Behind the taste and appearance that looks so sweet, this cake might hidden an interesting story in the past. Although the version are countless, but all of them has a great value of philosophy in it.

King Ho Le version

King Ho Le was a greedy king and likes to add wealth for his own good without considering about his people. The people in his régime was so agonize, especially when the King order the palace physician ( doctor ) to make him long live elixir. Queen Jango was the first lady in the palace and she does not agree with what her husband has requested, so she stole the elixir and drank it herself. After drank the elixir Queen Jango disappear and shown up on a master ( sifu ) dream. In that dream the Queen told that she is now live in the moon and therefore called herself Moon Goddess. Since that every year Chinese people always celebrate the struggle of Queen Jango to rescue people from King Ho Le Greed.

Chinese soldier version

Moon cake appears first when Chinese was been invaded by the Mongolian. At their last regime, the government system was so bad. King live in prosperity while citizen suffered. When the kingdom economy fall apart, a few activist spoke out about revolution. A revolution was planned carefully. But, because the control from the Mongolian empire is very strong, letter and messages from the rebel is impossible to be delivered. Finally an activist named Chu Yuen-chang and his senior deputy Liu Po-wen introduce a cake called moon cake. They said when we eat moon cake at bright moon festive ( Chung Chiu festive ) will make them healthy and cast away the diseases. Liu dress like a Tao priest and deliver the cake to townspeople. When the Chung Chiu festive arrive, they open the cake and found a piece of paper with a message in it, “ kill tartar people on day 15 at the 8^th month”. After that the people arise and conduct revolution to fight the Mongolian and they succeed ! Since then the moon cake become traditional cake at bright moon month. (mellyana)

Types of Noodles in china

There are three main categories of Chinese noodles (mien). The most common are wheat flour noodles, which can be made with or without eggs. While today wheat flour noodles are enjoyed throughout China, they originated in the north, where wheat is a staple crop. Depending on the remaining ingredients, wheat noodles can be white or yellow, thin as spaghetti or thick as fettuccine, stiff or extremely elastic.

Made from rice flour, water, and salt, rice noodles can also be thick or very thin, the latter almost resembling long strings of coconut. The same is true of rice sticks. There are also rice paper wrappers which come in either circular or triangular shape. Finally, cellophane noodles are clear noodles made from ground mung bean paste.

In China, making "hand-pulled" noodles is an art involving holding the stretched out paste in both hands and whirling it around several times. Then the paste is laid out on a board and folded and refolded repeatedly. Eventually the paste is transformed into long, thin, noodles. While in China it is still possible to watch vendors make hand-pulled noodles, today most noodles are made by machine.

How to Enjoy Noodles

Noodles are eaten hot or cold, steamed, stir-fried, deep-fried, boiled, or served in a soup. Noodles are an excellent source of protein, low calories; and high in complex carbohydrates.

Readers often ask me to explain the difference between lo mein and chow mein noodles. Actually, the difference between the two lies not in the type of noodles used, but in the way the two dishes are prepared. In the case of chow mein, the ingredients are stir-fried and then served over noodles that have been prepared separately. By contrast, lo mein involves tossing boiled noodles in the wok and mixing them with other ingredients during the final stages of cooking. This allows the noodles to pick up more of the sauce flavor.

There's no hard and fast rules about what type of noodles to use with either dish. (In fact, you'll often find chow mein recipes that substitute rice for the noodles). In the west, it is customary to use crisp noodles when preparing chow mein, while in China chow mein is made with soft noodles. Meanwhile, Italian pastas such as fettuccine or spaghetti work quite well in lo mein recipes. However, theoretically you could use the same noodles to prepare either one.

Types of Noodles used in Chinese cooking

Cellophane Noodles - Also called bean threads, slippery noodles, or even bean vermicelli, cellophane noodles are made from mung bean starch. Before using, soak them in hot (not boiling) water. Cellophane noodles work well in soups and stir-fries, absorbing the flavor of the foods they are cooked with. When deep-fried fried they puff up and become quite crispy.

Egg Flour Noodles - Yellow color, made with eggs, wheat flour, and water, they come in a number of widths and shapes, from the thinner vermicelli to flat thicker noodles (Instant Ramen noodles are a type of egg flour noodle). Used in soups and stir-fries, they need to be boiled before using.

Rice Noodles - Made with rice flour and water, a large variety of rice noodles are available, from thin rice vermicelli to the thick broad flat noodles used in stir-fries and heartier soups. The term “rice sticks” can refer both to the thinner noodles as well as medium-sized and thicker flat noodles. Rice noodles should be soaked in hot water for fifteen - twenty minutes before using. Medium sized rice noodles, called Banh Pho, are used to make Vietnam's popular Pho soup.

Rice Paper - Also made from rice flour and water, rice papers are available in either round or triangular form. The unique patterning on each paper comes from their being dried on bamboo mats in the sun. Available only in dried form, they are firm and must be softened in hot water before use. In Chinese cooking there is a trend towards using them instead of cellophane to make Paper Wrapped Chicken; in Vietnamese cuisine rice papers (Banh Trang ) are used to wrap spring rolls.

Wheat Flour Noodles - Made with wheat flour and water, they are available fresh or dried. As you can see in the photos below, the shape and thickness varies - the Broad Noodles are quite thick and flat, reminding me of coffee stir sticks, while the Tea Flavored Noodles are much thinner. The thinner varieties are often used in light soups, while the thicker ones work well in thicker soups and stir-fries. Boil before using.

National Anthem of the Republic of China