In China there is a custom called jiefengxichen/接风洗尘, which roughly translates to “welcome the winds and wash off the dust”, and it’s a way of welcoming guests from faraway. In old times the host would provide a basin of fresh water and a clean towel for the guest, then provide a small meal. In modern times this is mostly simplified down to a big meal or a trip to the restaurant, called a jiefengfan/接风饭. In our case we just went to a restaurant.
Mixed vegetables with starch noodles and sesame paste (it’s a cold dish, an appetizer, kind of like a salad):
Lightly stir-fried octopus:
Stir-fried beef and king oyster mushrooms with cashews. The yellow bowl-shaped decor on the side was apparently fried egg??? I have not the slightest idea how they fried the egg to look like that:
Red braised Chinese yam:
Steamed turbot fish:
Red braised pork belly on rice:
Duck soup with tofu:
Last but not least, a traditional pastry called shoutao/寿桃, or “longevity peaches”. These are peach-shaped steamed buns with sweet red bean paste or sweet lotus seed paste fillings. They are made to look like peaches because peaches are associated with longevity in Chinese culture and are usually served at birthday banquets (for older people).
We weren’t celebrating anyone’s birthday that day, it was just a gift from the restaurant because my relatives were regular customers there. Picture was taken after we started eating so that’s why there’s only four buns left (four is not a lucky number so the restaurant definitely would not serve just four buns; if I remember right it was eight buns at the start, and eight is a lucky number)
爆竹聲中一歲除
春風送暖入屠蘇
千門萬戶曈曈日
總把新桃換舊符
Amidst the sounds of fireworks, one year slips away.
Spring winds send warmth and enter the Tusu wine
Upon a thousand doors and ten-thousand houses, the bright and glistening sun.
All grab a hold of the new peach-wood to replace the old talisman.
—
First Day of the New Year (元日) by Wang Anshi (王安石). Song Dynasty. translated by Kuiwon (歸源).
Wang Anshi, courtesy name, Jiefu (介甫) was
a poet, Chinese economist, statesman and chancellor of the Song Dynasty. A
controversial but notable political figure, he was known for attempting major
socioeconomic reforms which were known as the New Policies. His poems reflect social, economic and political themes and he was ranked number seven of the Eight Great Prose Masters of the Tang and
Song (唐宋八大家).
First Day of the New
Year commemorates the Lunar New Year, but also echoes Wang’s socioeconomic
reforms which promise a new start in life. Created in the Han Dynasty, Tusu wine
is a liquor infused with Chinese herbs which was historically believed to ward
off plague, epidemic and bad spirits when consumed. Peach wood talismans are
images of the door gods placed on both sides of a house’s double gates to
prevent ghosts from entering.
During this ongoing process of picking my nanna’s brain on Chinese folk practices (which I grew up around due to her babysitting me 24/7 but I didn’t pay attention because I was a lil’ shit), I realized something very interesting.
Anyone who is familiar with Chinese and Japanese cultures, knows that the peach is a tree of great significance in their native folkloric beliefs. But in Chinese practices specifically, the peach has so many different uses attributed to each different parts of the plant. It’s very interesting to see how so many drastically different associations can be attributed to one plant.
The peach blossom: this pretty bright pink flower represents romantic love, lust, bond, and deep friendship.
The peach fruit: the actual fruit is a symbol of longevity and long life, as well as wisdom which comes with old age. Traditionally, a giant steamed bun would be made in the shape of a peach for your birthday, and little sweet red cakes with sweet filling would be presented to the elders of the household on certain festivals to wish them a healthy long life.
The peach wood: the number one and most powerful tool for exorcism and a piece of peach wood carved into a sword hung at your door or gate WILL keep any and all demons/evil spirits/unwanted entities away. The same sword would also be an important tool for Taoist priests/shamans/sorcerers during exorcism rituals.It is believed that even a chunk of the wood with a crude drawing of the “Men’shen”, the deity of doors/gates/entryways, is one of the most potent forms of protection for one’s home.
According to Chinese mythology, the celestial peaches which grow in the garden of goddess Xi Wang Mu (Queen Mother of the West) confers immortality on those who eat it. Thus traditional buns in the shape of peaches are popular at birthday celebrations, especially those of the elderly, embodying auspicious wishes for good health and longevity.
Unlike real peaches or peach buns made of flour, these adorable longevity peaches lovingly hand-felted out of real wool will never spoil. They would make perfect gifts for a special someone, particularly for birthdays. Or they could sit quietly on a shelf beside you in your daily life, delighting you with their magical presence.
The small peach is needle-felted out of pure wool whereas the large one is wool needle-felted around a Styrofoam core with glittery angelina added. It’s hard to capture the glitter via photos but I added bluish iridescent Angelina fibers to the large peach and golden Angelina fibers to its leaves in order to accentuate the celestial nature of the peach.
Available at my webshop (better prices than Etsy): Ink Jade Studio
