“Do not kill the hen for her eggs.” -Chinese proverb
Eggs abounded everywhere this past weekend (plastic and real). We even decorated some ourselves:
In Chinese, there’s also a custom involving dyed eggs. Red eggs. (As an aside, Orthodox Christians also use red eggs, symbolizing the blood of Christ and rebirth.) My own reference is to a cultural red egg and ginger party.
These festive occasions arrive on the one-month birthday of a new baby in the family. In the old days, the one-month mark was very significant. Because of the high mortality rate, babies who succeeded in reaching that age would usually go on to survive.
What’s the importance of the different components?
- Egg–to symbolize life and fertility
- Red–for good luck and prosperity
- Ginger–to add hot spice and balance yin & yang; also to provide energy to the new mother
I’ve been to a few red egg parties and never really knew the real meaning of it other than my own thinking of welcoming a baby into the world. Thanks for the explanation!
Glad I could help, Romelle!
Another informative post. Eggs are, in all cutures, very symbolic. Like Romelle I didn’t know about the color red and the eggs.
Being addicted to ginger in all its forms, I like the idea of a ginger egg party.
Thank you, Jennifer.
You’re very welcome, Evelyne! Ginger’s in a lot of Chinese dishes. There’s even ginger candy in the supermarket aisles.