Spring Festival couplets are an indispensable tradition during the Chinese Lunar New Year. Every Spring Festival, households paste red couplets with black or golden characters on doorframes, walls, or windows to enhance the festive atmosphere and pray for peace and happiness in the coming year.
The history of Spring Festival couplets can be traced back thousands of years to ancient times. In the agricultural era, Chinese people had a custom of hanging peachwood charms to ward off evil spirits. Over time, these charms evolved into couplets, and their content expanded from simple blessings to praising a beautiful life and expressing New Year wishes. Spring Festival couplets are not just holiday decorations but also carry profound cultural significance and literary artistry.
Typically, a pair of couplets consists of two lines with matching structure and meaning. The number of characters in the upper and lower lines is equal, their meanings are antithetical, and their rhymes harmonize. Additionally, a horizontal scroll is often included above the door, serving as the finishing touch. For example, a traditional Spring Festival couplet might read:
Upper line: Welcome spring, receive blessings, and celebrate a prosperous era Lower line: Accept fortune, invite harmony, and rejoice in a bountiful year Horizontal scroll: Happy New Year
There are also specific customs for pasting couplets. Generally, the upper line is placed on the right side of the door and the lower line on the left, aligning with the traditional Chinese right-to-left reading direction. When a "Fu" (blessing) character is pasted upside down, it symbolizes "fortune arriving," signifying good luck.
In modern times, the forms and content of Spring Festival couplets have become more diverse. Some people choose to write their own couplets by hand, adding a personal touch, while others prefer to purchase beautifully printed couplets for convenience. Regardless of the format, Spring Festival couplets remain an indispensable part of the New Year celebration, symbolizing hopes for a good life and the continuation of traditional culture.
Conclusion
Spring Festival couplets are not merely New Year decorations but a means of cultural inheritance and continuation. Through these small red papers and black characters, we can feel the strong festive atmosphere and appreciate the historical and emotional values they embody. Spring Festival couplets are a gateway to traditional culture, allowing us to admire their beauty and significance while preserving this precious cultural heritage.