On Chinese New Year's Eve, while many will gather for the reunion dinner, others will head for the airport or train station to “flee” from such festivities.
With a growing number of Singaporeans going on overseas tours during this time - some to give Chinese New Year celebrations a miss - the Chinese New Year holiday which used to be a lull period for travel agents has in recent years become a peak season.
Isn't Chinese New Year the most important traditional festival for the Chinese？ Well, for those who choose to take flight, it means an opportunity to enjoy a holiday out of the country. The concern is, if even Chinese New Year can be ignored, what other traditional festivals cannot be disregarded？
Why do we need to preserve traditional festivals？
Firstly, they are inseparable from our ethnic identity. The Chinese, Malays and Indians all have their own traditional festivals from which they derive “a sense of belonging to a particular community”。 So if any Chinese does not see himself as one, there is no need for him to celebrate any Chinese festivals.
True, everyone has the right to reject traditions. The problem is： You cannot deny your ethnic origins or change your skin colour. We are born with a certain skin colour which cannot be “bleached”- if one has a “yellow face” and yet refuses to identify with the Chinese, who else can he or she identify with？
Secondly, the fundamental spirit of the more than 2000-year-old Chinese New Year is closely intertwined with the traditional culture and values of the Chinese. At its core is the Confucian value of“仁”or“benevolence”- to be “benevolent is what makes humans truly human”。 The word “仁”also means two persons or person-to-person when you break it up. In today's language, it can be described as interpersonal relations.
Traditional Chinese festivals invariably centre on maintaining and improving human relations.
Reunion dinner helps to deepen family ties while the exchange of gifts and greetings enhances relations between friends. To skip the reunion dinner and stay away from Chinese New Year means losing many great opportunities to forge stronger kinship and friendship ties.
On the other hand, people who grieve over and lament the loss of traditions would do well to do some re-thinking.
Are there elements in our traditions that have become outdated？ Should we be more concerned about the meaning of a tradition or the form it takes？
To keep up with the fast-changing times, we can change the way a tradition is observed without it losing its meaning.
A tradition must be capable of being passed down from one generation to another. Yet this does not mean traditions cannot be changed. Over the years, the way Chinese New Year is celebrated has always been changing. The most obvious example is： We no longer light firecrackers.
Many found the ban hard to accept when it was first imposed here years ago. Without the sound and fury of firecrackers, they felt that Chinese New Year just seemed to have lost its festive atmosphere. But the lighting of firecrackers is by no means a must. Many big cities in China have introduced a similar ban.
As for the reunion dinner, it can be eaten at home or a restaurant. The venue is immaterial - the important thing is the presence of all family members.
To adapt a tradition to changing circumstances does not signal the demise of that tradition. On the contrary, it is by adapting that we can preserve and safeguard traditions. Of course, this must not be done at the expense of the true spirit of any traditions.
Even for people who prefer to take a holiday during the Chinese New Year period, some may do so only after having the reunion dinner and may visit places like China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan which also celebrate the festival. They are not shunning Chinese New Year as such, just spending it in other places. But those who do not even bother to have the reunion dinner may be “overdoing things a bit”。
The sad thing is that some will deliberately pick some destinations with few or no Chinese at all. Well, if some people are determined to have nothing to do with traditions, there is not much that we can do.
（The writer is an Executive Sub-editor of Lianhe Zaobao. Translated by Yap Gee Poh.）
你過(guò)年,我避年；除夕夜,有人合府共享年夜飯,有人一家分頭赴機(jī)場(chǎng)、火車(chē)站。
過(guò)去,每到年關(guān)旅行社就幾乎“冬眠”,如今風(fēng)氣大變,越來(lái)越多人出國(guó)旅游,有些人是為了避年,旅行社的生意像冬天里的一團(tuán)火。
不是說(shuō)春節(jié)（農(nóng)歷新年）是華人最重要的傳統(tǒng)節(jié)日嗎？在那些避年者眼里,春節(jié)的意義是：利用假期出國(guó)逍遙。連最重要的傳統(tǒng)節(jié)日也可以不要,還有什么傳統(tǒng)節(jié)日不可拋？
為什么要保留傳統(tǒng)節(jié)日？首先因?yàn)檫@些節(jié)日是跟自己的民族身份分不開(kāi)的。華人、馬來(lái)人、印族人過(guò)各自的傳統(tǒng)節(jié)日,他們就有了“我是這個(gè)民族的成員”的自我意識(shí)。如果有哪個(gè)華人不認(rèn)自己是華人,他當(dāng)然也就沒(méi)有慶祝華族傳統(tǒng)節(jié)日的必要。
每個(gè)人都有權(quán)放棄傳統(tǒng),問(wèn)題是：你沒(méi)法放棄你的民族特征,沒(méi)法改變你的膚色。人的膚色是與生俱來(lái)的,現(xiàn)在還沒(méi)有一種漂白劑,能將有色種人來(lái)個(gè)全身“漂白”,你也沒(méi)法改變那黃棕色的臉。你不愿跟自己的民族認(rèn)同,你想跟誰(shuí)認(rèn)同？
其次,延續(xù)了兩千多年的春節(jié)其基本精神是跟華人的傳統(tǒng)文化與價(jià)值觀(guān)分不開(kāi)的。以儒家為代表的傳統(tǒng)意識(shí),其核心是一個(gè)“仁”字：“仁者人也”,這個(gè)字分來(lái)就是“二人”,也就是“人”與“人”,用現(xiàn)代的話(huà)來(lái)講就是人際關(guān)系。
華族的傳統(tǒng)節(jié)日都離不開(kāi)維系人倫與增進(jìn)人際關(guān)系這個(gè)基本主題。通過(guò)團(tuán)圓飯,增進(jìn)親情,通過(guò)送禮拜年,增進(jìn)友情。錯(cuò)過(guò)了團(tuán)圓飯,避開(kāi)了農(nóng)歷新年,那就等于錯(cuò)過(guò)了增進(jìn)親情與友情的大好時(shí)機(jī),那是不是一種損失呢？
那些面對(duì)傳統(tǒng)失傳而痛心疾首的人也要好好反思：我們的傳統(tǒng)是否有些過(guò)時(shí)的成分？我們是重視傳統(tǒng)的內(nèi)涵,還是傳統(tǒng)的外殼？
為了適應(yīng)時(shí)代,我們?cè)诒Ａ魝鹘y(tǒng)的精神實(shí)質(zhì)的前提下,可以改變傳統(tǒng)的表現(xiàn)方式。傳統(tǒng)必須能一代一代往下傳,不能傳的,還能叫“傳統(tǒng)”嗎？傳統(tǒng)也不是一成不變的,兩千多年來(lái),慶祝春節(jié)的方式一直在變,一個(gè)最明顯的改變是：過(guò)年不再燃放爆竹。
在新加坡禁止爆竹之初,很多人一時(shí)沒(méi)法接受,認(rèn)為沒(méi)有爆竹就不像過(guò)年。如今連中國(guó)大陸的大城市春節(jié)都禁燃爆竹了,誰(shuí)敢說(shuō)春節(jié)非放爆竹不可？
再說(shuō)說(shuō)年夜飯,可以在家里吃,也可以到酒樓吃,在哪里吃并非最重要,最重要的是一家人要團(tuán)圓,可見(jiàn)傳統(tǒng)是可以改變的。
改變不是為了告別傳統(tǒng),恰恰是為了更好地保留好傳統(tǒng)、捍衛(wèi)好傳統(tǒng)。如果改變帶來(lái)的是傳統(tǒng)精神的喪失,那是不值得鼓勵(lì)的。
就以新年期間出國(guó)來(lái)說(shuō),不妨做具體分析,如果是全家高高興興吃過(guò)團(tuán)圓飯才出國(guó),所到的還是華人生活的地方（如中國(guó)大陸、港澳、臺(tái)灣）,在那里還能感受到濃濃的春節(jié)氣息,那叫做“易地過(guò)年”而不是避年,有何不可？連團(tuán)圓飯都不吃就走,那是不是走過(guò)頭了？
遺憾的是,有些人刻意找個(gè)沒(méi)有（或極少）華人的地方避年,有意跟華人傳統(tǒng)“絕緣”。對(duì)于這些下定決心要“永別傳統(tǒng)”的人,我們能做什么？只能是“有看法,沒(méi)辦法”。
With a growing number of Singaporeans going on overseas tours during this time - some to give Chinese New Year celebrations a miss - the Chinese New Year holiday which used to be a lull period for travel agents has in recent years become a peak season.
Isn't Chinese New Year the most important traditional festival for the Chinese？ Well, for those who choose to take flight, it means an opportunity to enjoy a holiday out of the country. The concern is, if even Chinese New Year can be ignored, what other traditional festivals cannot be disregarded？
Why do we need to preserve traditional festivals？
Firstly, they are inseparable from our ethnic identity. The Chinese, Malays and Indians all have their own traditional festivals from which they derive “a sense of belonging to a particular community”。 So if any Chinese does not see himself as one, there is no need for him to celebrate any Chinese festivals.
True, everyone has the right to reject traditions. The problem is： You cannot deny your ethnic origins or change your skin colour. We are born with a certain skin colour which cannot be “bleached”- if one has a “yellow face” and yet refuses to identify with the Chinese, who else can he or she identify with？
Secondly, the fundamental spirit of the more than 2000-year-old Chinese New Year is closely intertwined with the traditional culture and values of the Chinese. At its core is the Confucian value of“仁”or“benevolence”- to be “benevolent is what makes humans truly human”。 The word “仁”also means two persons or person-to-person when you break it up. In today's language, it can be described as interpersonal relations.
Traditional Chinese festivals invariably centre on maintaining and improving human relations.
Reunion dinner helps to deepen family ties while the exchange of gifts and greetings enhances relations between friends. To skip the reunion dinner and stay away from Chinese New Year means losing many great opportunities to forge stronger kinship and friendship ties.
On the other hand, people who grieve over and lament the loss of traditions would do well to do some re-thinking.
Are there elements in our traditions that have become outdated？ Should we be more concerned about the meaning of a tradition or the form it takes？
To keep up with the fast-changing times, we can change the way a tradition is observed without it losing its meaning.
A tradition must be capable of being passed down from one generation to another. Yet this does not mean traditions cannot be changed. Over the years, the way Chinese New Year is celebrated has always been changing. The most obvious example is： We no longer light firecrackers.
Many found the ban hard to accept when it was first imposed here years ago. Without the sound and fury of firecrackers, they felt that Chinese New Year just seemed to have lost its festive atmosphere. But the lighting of firecrackers is by no means a must. Many big cities in China have introduced a similar ban.
As for the reunion dinner, it can be eaten at home or a restaurant. The venue is immaterial - the important thing is the presence of all family members.
To adapt a tradition to changing circumstances does not signal the demise of that tradition. On the contrary, it is by adapting that we can preserve and safeguard traditions. Of course, this must not be done at the expense of the true spirit of any traditions.
Even for people who prefer to take a holiday during the Chinese New Year period, some may do so only after having the reunion dinner and may visit places like China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan which also celebrate the festival. They are not shunning Chinese New Year as such, just spending it in other places. But those who do not even bother to have the reunion dinner may be “overdoing things a bit”。
The sad thing is that some will deliberately pick some destinations with few or no Chinese at all. Well, if some people are determined to have nothing to do with traditions, there is not much that we can do.
（The writer is an Executive Sub-editor of Lianhe Zaobao. Translated by Yap Gee Poh.）
你過(guò)年,我避年；除夕夜,有人合府共享年夜飯,有人一家分頭赴機(jī)場(chǎng)、火車(chē)站。
過(guò)去,每到年關(guān)旅行社就幾乎“冬眠”,如今風(fēng)氣大變,越來(lái)越多人出國(guó)旅游,有些人是為了避年,旅行社的生意像冬天里的一團(tuán)火。
不是說(shuō)春節(jié)（農(nóng)歷新年）是華人最重要的傳統(tǒng)節(jié)日嗎？在那些避年者眼里,春節(jié)的意義是：利用假期出國(guó)逍遙。連最重要的傳統(tǒng)節(jié)日也可以不要,還有什么傳統(tǒng)節(jié)日不可拋？
為什么要保留傳統(tǒng)節(jié)日？首先因?yàn)檫@些節(jié)日是跟自己的民族身份分不開(kāi)的。華人、馬來(lái)人、印族人過(guò)各自的傳統(tǒng)節(jié)日,他們就有了“我是這個(gè)民族的成員”的自我意識(shí)。如果有哪個(gè)華人不認(rèn)自己是華人,他當(dāng)然也就沒(méi)有慶祝華族傳統(tǒng)節(jié)日的必要。
每個(gè)人都有權(quán)放棄傳統(tǒng),問(wèn)題是：你沒(méi)法放棄你的民族特征,沒(méi)法改變你的膚色。人的膚色是與生俱來(lái)的,現(xiàn)在還沒(méi)有一種漂白劑,能將有色種人來(lái)個(gè)全身“漂白”,你也沒(méi)法改變那黃棕色的臉。你不愿跟自己的民族認(rèn)同,你想跟誰(shuí)認(rèn)同？
其次,延續(xù)了兩千多年的春節(jié)其基本精神是跟華人的傳統(tǒng)文化與價(jià)值觀(guān)分不開(kāi)的。以儒家為代表的傳統(tǒng)意識(shí),其核心是一個(gè)“仁”字：“仁者人也”,這個(gè)字分來(lái)就是“二人”,也就是“人”與“人”,用現(xiàn)代的話(huà)來(lái)講就是人際關(guān)系。
華族的傳統(tǒng)節(jié)日都離不開(kāi)維系人倫與增進(jìn)人際關(guān)系這個(gè)基本主題。通過(guò)團(tuán)圓飯,增進(jìn)親情,通過(guò)送禮拜年,增進(jìn)友情。錯(cuò)過(guò)了團(tuán)圓飯,避開(kāi)了農(nóng)歷新年,那就等于錯(cuò)過(guò)了增進(jìn)親情與友情的大好時(shí)機(jī),那是不是一種損失呢？
那些面對(duì)傳統(tǒng)失傳而痛心疾首的人也要好好反思：我們的傳統(tǒng)是否有些過(guò)時(shí)的成分？我們是重視傳統(tǒng)的內(nèi)涵,還是傳統(tǒng)的外殼？
為了適應(yīng)時(shí)代,我們?cè)诒Ａ魝鹘y(tǒng)的精神實(shí)質(zhì)的前提下,可以改變傳統(tǒng)的表現(xiàn)方式。傳統(tǒng)必須能一代一代往下傳,不能傳的,還能叫“傳統(tǒng)”嗎？傳統(tǒng)也不是一成不變的,兩千多年來(lái),慶祝春節(jié)的方式一直在變,一個(gè)最明顯的改變是：過(guò)年不再燃放爆竹。
在新加坡禁止爆竹之初,很多人一時(shí)沒(méi)法接受,認(rèn)為沒(méi)有爆竹就不像過(guò)年。如今連中國(guó)大陸的大城市春節(jié)都禁燃爆竹了,誰(shuí)敢說(shuō)春節(jié)非放爆竹不可？
再說(shuō)說(shuō)年夜飯,可以在家里吃,也可以到酒樓吃,在哪里吃并非最重要,最重要的是一家人要團(tuán)圓,可見(jiàn)傳統(tǒng)是可以改變的。
改變不是為了告別傳統(tǒng),恰恰是為了更好地保留好傳統(tǒng)、捍衛(wèi)好傳統(tǒng)。如果改變帶來(lái)的是傳統(tǒng)精神的喪失,那是不值得鼓勵(lì)的。
就以新年期間出國(guó)來(lái)說(shuō),不妨做具體分析,如果是全家高高興興吃過(guò)團(tuán)圓飯才出國(guó),所到的還是華人生活的地方（如中國(guó)大陸、港澳、臺(tái)灣）,在那里還能感受到濃濃的春節(jié)氣息,那叫做“易地過(guò)年”而不是避年,有何不可？連團(tuán)圓飯都不吃就走,那是不是走過(guò)頭了？
遺憾的是,有些人刻意找個(gè)沒(méi)有（或極少）華人的地方避年,有意跟華人傳統(tǒng)“絕緣”。對(duì)于這些下定決心要“永別傳統(tǒng)”的人,我們能做什么？只能是“有看法,沒(méi)辦法”。