Cultural Traditions In China
By Richard Monk

Unlike the United States which is 200 plus years old, China is an ancient country and civilization. This has led to long standing rules of conduct in society that are of great interest.

China is an ancient country, with thousands of years of history which lay a rich basis for the lives of its inhabitants today. While some of the ancient Chinese myths and cultural traditions have been forgotten or are no longer observed, many of them are still remembered and incorporated into everyday life. Taking a look into the cultural traditions of China can reveal a lot about the way that the people live.

One of the most interesting bits of Chinese lore can be found in what is known as the Jade Culture. Jade is a stone that was first identified in the first Chinese dictionary, known as Shuo Wen Jie Zi, in around 100 AD. There are two types of jade: soft jade, known as nephrite, which is native to China, and hard jade (jadeite) which was imported from Burma starting in the 1200’s. Jade is important in China not only because of its beauty, but also for its virtue and cultural significance. Confucius said that jade had 11 virtues, some of which include the fact that it stands for beauty, purity and grace. The Chinese character for jade, Yu, is often used in names and sayings to connote beauty.

Another of the many Chinese cultural traditions is the bamboo culture. Bamboo is one of four favorite plants seen in China – they are bamboo, Chinese plum, chrysanthemum and orchid. The characters of these plants are highly prized, so much so that Chinese people want to be like the plants in character. Bamboo is grown pretty much everywhere in China, with most people having gardens in which they grow bamboo. Bamboo chopsticks are the most common form of tableware in China, and bamboo is also the material out of which the Chinese flute is made. People often use bamboo paintbrushes, and bamboo culture festivals are even held throughout the year.

A final cultural tradition can be seen in the dragon culture. Dragons are an important part of Chinese tradition, so much so that people from China often consider themselves to be “the descendants of the dragon”. China’s emperors believed that they truly were dragons, calling the beds they slept on dragon beds, and even their robes dragon robes. Dragons are also seen all over the imperial palaces, and dragon screens are seen as a symbol of the emperor’s power.

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Today, I went on a search for the perfect tattoo. I wanted something beautiful, simple and with deep spiritual meaning. I hadn’t a clue what I was looking for. Then I tripped over Chinese calligraphy. I was taken back by the words brush stroked eloquently and masterfully on the paper. They spoke to me. Without even knowing what they meant, I could tell each word held a world of thought within it’s own. As I went thru the page, the calligraphy got only better, making it difficult which one I should choose to eternalize on my skin. I was so entranced with the Chinese calligraphy letters, I impatiently pushed right on thru to see how they were put together as words. Even more beautiful. All had a deep meaning applicable to the personality of one.

Chinese calligraphy is an ancient art form stemming back to almost 3000 years ago. This style of writing is said to be abstract art. Many masters throughout Chinese history have left behind their own unique interpretation of the Chinese characters. It was Tu Mang, however, who correlated it all together with form identification and style. He established names for the techniques used to describe the words. For instance, a “carefree” style has an unfixed or unknown direction. On the opposite end, a “carefully executed” form insists on careful execution and thought behind the work. “Mysterious” is to use your imagination. There are 120 existing expressions used for Chinese calligraphy, many born by great masters.

This graceful serene art form called Chinese calligraphy is a greek word meaning “beautiful writing” and is seen everywhere from art galleries to restaurants, and tattoo shops. Which takes me back to the search for the perfect Chinese word. Once I had the words I wanted to immortalize on my back, after learning so much more about Chinese calligraphy, it occurred to me I would have to choose a form as well. What kind of brush strokes would best represent the meaning of the words I had chose? I could go with a more classic, traditional style used in ancient times or even something called the “grass” style, looking more whimsical to me. I had not realized the depth of expression involved not only in searching a tattoo, but the actual essence, personality, and layers upon layers of meaning associated with this beautiful art.

Beyond the style, there are phrases, and the writing itself…traditional vertical or modern horizontal. I could opt for quotes, 4 character idioms, or even 7 character extractions from famous poems. I could get my name or my children’s names translated to Chinese or frame the words with other Asian art. The more I searched on Chinese calligraphy, the more infatuated I became of the work, yet I was not getting closer to choosing a tattoo because, quite honestly, each word or quotation inspired a feeling in me. There were simply too many I identified with on a deeper, more spiritual level. For now, I would have to ponder

JayKay Bak aka The Unselfish Marketer CEO @ Unselfish Marketers Co. Ltd. http://unselfishmarketer.com/showme

Out of 2003 came the emergence of Asian rap star “Jin” with social cultural hit “Learn Chinese”. It appeared as refreshing insight into the music subculture of Asian American and attempted to bring a whole new perspective to rap music. It was a shout out at a rapidly growing popular trend by young Asians to get on the rap music money train and express themselves about their social concerns. One of those social concerns is how they are perceived by Americans. Much of the lyrics they sing contain a sort of animosity for racial stereotyping of their culture. Rap music has typically been reserved for the African American culture with a few white rap icons, like Eminem, bursting out into scene sparingly. Thanks to Jin, a message was developed but met with much controversy from Asians themselves. Most agreed the music including some background lyrics in Cantonese was little to be desired, and overall, was not what they would sing, but agreed in was an intriguing relief for his command of the English language. Many were not impressed, and yet some understood and appreciated his attempt at breaking social stereotyping of Asians in American culture.

Jin was discovered after a freestyle competition landed him into the arms of Ruff Ryder records where he was promptly signed. Since then, he has fused his career tight into the business of rapping. He did well in aggressively voicing his pride of “being a chinaman” in his lyrics, while dismissing the need for him to fall into the stereotype of Asian Americans by saying “your gonna learn Chinese”.

Maybe he had a point about us learning Chinese. Increasingly, we are witnessing the economy merge into universal highway where interactions with each other means we are gonna have to learn Chinese. Chinese is used all thorough out Asia, and rapidly being used in the western world. The old boundaries have been broken in media and arts, allowing emerging stars like Jin break onto the scene and popularize even more the Chinese culture. Chinese characters are now an art form found on the walls in homes. Fung Shui is a popular home design to encourage balance, serenity and prosperity. The Chinese culture rich in history promises restoration in life flows, almost guarantees success with what they value and believe. As westerners, we listened and became infatuated with their calm sense of being and their belief system. Even their work ethics have us silently amazed. To see Jin “learn Chinese” video represent china in a hip hop music art form was fascinating.

Jin has done a lot of variety of things not many know. For the “2 Fast 2 Furious” film he not only landed a small role as a mechanic, his song “Peel Off” was featured on the soundtrack. Jin also has a new album soon to be released in 2007. Whatever Jin chooses next, we have already tasted his influence on hip hop in a new delivery, bringing us that much closer to having to learn Chinese.

JayKay Bak aka The Unselfish Marketer CEO @ Unselfish Marketers Co. Ltd. http://unselfishmarketer.com/showme