SOCIETY

CUSTOMS:
ChInese

 Fortune tellers have a big role as

consultant in matters of birth,
marriage and death.
Customs and taboos during
pregnancy and after birth are
followed to avoid bad luck such as
miscarriage, disability or death.

Pregnant women:
Not allowed to make housework such
as hammering for fear of babies born
deformed.
Not allowed to hit animals for fear of
getting cursed or badi that affects
their child

 Instead of the husband, taking care of

the pregnant wife is the duty of the
mother in law.
Naming of the child is also very crucial.
The name must contain gold, water,
fire, earth and wood, as well as
complimenting.

 In other words, the baby's name

should be organized in a balanced
manner and contains elements of
Yin and Yang.
Failure to give a good name to the
child will affect his or her life
path.

Full moon celebration

When the baby is one month old, the
family will celebrate full moon
celebration or sometimes known as
red egg and ginger party.
Guest will bring gifts of money in red
envelopes, or sometimes jewelery
and gold, if the baby is a girl.

 The colour RED is associated with luck

and happiness, and the rounded shape
of the eggs symbolises harmony, unity
and new life.
The ginger is
served for the
same
reasons
that mothers eat
it following the
birth, as a yang
food to balance
the qi in the body.

 In return they are treated to a

banquet and presented with plates
of red eggs and pickled red ginger.
If its a boy, you give out an odd
number of eggs, and if its a girl,
you give out an even number of
eggs.

Gift-giving customs
DO NOT give scissors, knives or
other cutting utensils as they
indicate a desire to sever the
relationship.
Flowers do not make good gifts as
they are given to the sick and are
used at funerals.
It is best to give gifts in even
numbers since odd numbers are