Category Archives: Folk Beliefs

Superstition – Chinese

Nationality: Chinese
Age: 54
Occupation: Engineer
Residence: Irvine, CA
Performance Date: April 26, 2008
Primary Language: Chinese
Language: English

Chinese Superstition

“Uncle Joe bought a carving of a Chinese dragon-horse.  This Chinese dragon-horse, a scared animal that looks fierce and is suppose to be a good warrior, was carved out a special stone from somewhere remote China.  This object is supposed to scare the evil away and bring good luck.  Uncle Joe put it in his apartment and his family began to feel uncomfortable, like headaches and feeling not relaxed and too tense.  Finally, they brought in a person who is believed to have the ability to communicate with the supernatural.  That person identified that the Chinese dragon-horse was too mean and too strong.  He told Uncle Joe to wash the carving in warm water.  When Uncle Joe rinsed the dragon-horse, the water turned red, indicating that the dragon-horse was bloody, meaning it had killed a lot already.  After the dragon-horse was watched and put back in the apartment, the apartment felt more pleasant to live in.”

My dad told me this Feng Shui story.  Uncle Joe, who lives in Beijing, China, is a good, longtime friend of my dad.

The Chinese dragon-horse is a folk object.  It is hand carved from a single stone, which is usually a precious, special stone, although the Chinese dragon-horses do not have to be carved from the same type of stone.  Each Chinese dragon-horse is unique because each one is carved from a different stone, has a different shape, and has its own unique details.  These items serve the same physiological purpose as guard dogs, except the dragon-horses are inanimate objects. The reliance on the dragon-horses for protection demonstrates how greatly the Chinese believe in supernatural powers.

This story demonstrates how popular Feng Shui is, especially among the Chinese and is an important aspect of the Chinese culture.  The belief in supernatural power plays a very large role in the Chinese culture.  Uncle Joe’s story shows how Feng Shui is very key when it comes to someone’s home.  It is important that one’s home has good, positive energy because the energy in the atmosphere affects the lives of the people in the household.  Since the Chinese dragon-horse’s spirit was too strong, it had a negative impact on Uncle Joe and his family.  However, once they bathed the Chinese dragon-horse and reduced the strength of the spirit, the environment at Uncle Joe’s home became more comfortable.  Uncle Joe’s story is an example of the Chinese’s belief in achieving harmony and balance.  Feng Shui is so important that it is incorporated into building and buying homes, and also the decorating of the house.

Tradition – Buddhist

Nationality: Chinese
Age: 54
Occupation: Engineer
Residence: Irvine, CA
Performance Date: April 26, 2008
Primary Language: Chinese
Language: English

Cultural Traditions

“When my uncle passed away, my grandma had a tape recorder that played Buddhist chants continuously near the urn containing his ashes.”

I asked my dad about why there was chanting at my grandma’s home after my uncle passed away.  He said that when someone of the Buddhist religion passes away, Buddhist chants are played near the deceased’s remains (such as his/her ashes).  These chants are played continuously, for the first forty-nine days or more.  The longer the better because the chanting is harmony that helps the soul of the dead keep focused to get ready for the message or messenger from the Western Heaven.  The soul needs to be focused in order to receive the message to get the opportunity to get to heaven; otherwise, they will be reincarnated and remain on Earth.  The chanting helps the soul make sure they find a home for their eternal happiness.  The chanting, which is in an old Buddhist language, consists of the Buddah’s name and his different titles.

This folk ritual reflects the Buddhist belief that the soul carries on, even when the body no longer physically functions or exists.  Therefore, although the death of a loved one is always hard to deal with, by having the Buddhist chants, it may comfort the family and friends of deceased to know that the deceased’s soul is being taken care of to a better place.

Hand Symbol – University of California, San Diego

Nationality: Japanese
Age: 18
Occupation: Student
Residence: Irvine, CA
Performance Date: March 28, 2008
Primary Language: English

Hand Symbol

Danielle Ishihara is a freshman at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD).  She says that the hand sign is supposed to symbolize a triton, which is the mascot of UCSD.  The person is supposed to put his/her ring finger down, while the pinky, ring, and index finger are supposed to be spread out to represent the three peaks of the triton. Danielle first learned the triton hand symbol when she went to her first basketball game at UCSD.  Danielle says the triton symbol is usually used at sporting events. She says the hand symbol pretty much looks just like the shocker sign except the index and the ring finger are not touching. Even though it is not the shocker sign, she says people always joke that it is. A popular saying regarding this UCSD hand symbol is “Shock ’em tritons”.  Danielle shared this information when we were home for spring break and our group of friends where sharing information about our respective universities.

Every school, whether it is a high school or a university, seems to have a hand symbol that represents their mascot.  Most commonly, these hand symbols are used at sporting events and are accompanied by a saying which also happens to be a reflection of the school’s mascot.  I think hand symbols related to the school are most commonly used at sporting events because it allows a person to identify and announce their alliance to their school.  It is a way for a person to support their school.  The symbol is recognizable and meaningful among the members of the school; therefore, it is similar to ethnic folklore and occupation folklore, where only members of the group understand the gesture and its meaning and background history.  By knowing what the hand symbol is, one can identify who is truly a member of the school.  Each school’s hand symbol is unique because of its meaning and history, even if the hand gesture looks the same as something else.  UCSD’s hand symbol reminds me of USC’s V-sign created by the index and middle finger with its accompanying phrase “Fight On!”.  These are used at USC events, most often at the sporting events.

Superstition – Chinese

Nationality: Chinese
Age: 18
Occupation: Student
Residence: Irvine, CA
Performance Date: April 26, 2008
Primary Language: English
Language: Mandarin

Superstition

“Eat long noodles on birthdays for longevity.”

I learned this Chinese birthday tradition when I was younger, in the 90s.  When I was younger, my grandmother would always cook dinner on my dad’s birthday.  The main dish was always noodles – long Chinese noodles.  My grandmother says that there should always be long noodles for dinner on someone’s birthday because long noodles are a symbol of longevity.  The birthday person should always eat the noodles in hopes of a long life, while everybody else eats the noodles to wish the birthday person a long life.

Long noodles symbolize a long life because of the length of the noodle.  The noodle represents one’s life.  This superstitious belief that eating long noodles on one’s birthday will give one a long lift is what Frazer would describe as contagious magic because in order to ensure a long life, one must actually eat the long noodles.  The long life cannot be accomplished by just simply having noodles present at the dinner.  The eating of the noodles serve as a transfer of power; by making physical contact with the noodle through ingestion, the longevity of the long noodles is transferred directly into one’s body.

Folk Belief

Nationality: Chinese
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Irvine, CA
Performance Date: April 29, 2008
Primary Language: English

Folk Belief

“If your friendship bracelet breaks, make a wish.”

Emilie Wong told me about friendship bracelets during a sleepover.  She told our friend, Charlotte, and me how to make these friendship bracelets.  The bracelet is formed from a series of multiple knots.  Emilie learned about friendship bracelets in third grade, when her best friend lived across the street.  She said that they use to make friendship bracelets for fun.  At one point, she had five to seven bracelets on her ankle.  Even when she went swimming or played soccer, Emilie did not take off her bracelets because one is not suppose to.  When one’s friendship bracelet breaks, one has to make a wish.

These bracelets are a symbol of friendship because friends make them at the same time together.  Moreover, the bracelets form a continuous circle, representing a never ending, never broken friendship.  In a sense, it means the friendship will last.  Therefore, I view the breaking of a friendship bracelet as a bad sign, which is maybe the reason why one should make a wish, probably a wish such as to maintain the friendship, when the bracelet breaks.  Following the idea of circle symbolism, a broken friendship bracelet would mean a broken friendship, such as the ending of friendship or tension among the friends.  The bracelet should not be removed because that would signify the end of a friendship.  By wearing the friendship bracelet, one is proclaiming one’s friendship.