Discover the key preparations, essential rituals, and auspicious days leading up to Chinese New Year.
Chinese New Year, also known as the Spring Festival, is a time of renewal, joy, and togetherness.
But before the grand celebrations unfold, there’s an essential period of preparation that sets the stage for a prosperous year ahead.
Chinese New Year preparations span several days, each filled with rituals to clear bad luck and invite prosperity.
These traditions help create a fresh start, ensuring a harmonious and fortunate year ahead.
By performing these customs, families prepare their homes for a joyful and prosperous Chinese New Year celebration.
The rituals leading up to the New Year carry deep meaning, fostering peace, happiness, and abundance in the coming year.
Let’s explore the key Chinese New Year preparations and the significant rituals that take place before the start of the festival.
Here’s a List of Days for Chinese New Year Preparations
Contents
23rd Day of the 12th Lunar Month
Sending Off the Kitchen God (送灶神)
The 23rd day marks the sending off of the Kitchen God, an important figure who oversees the well-being of the household.
Families perform rituals to offer sacrifices, including sticky sweets like sugar or candies, as a way to ensure the Kitchen God will deliver a favorable report to the Jade Emperor.
This day is also the beginning of spring cleaning in the home, where families sweep away bad luck to make room for new opportunities.
This is one of the most important Chinese New Year rituals to ensure good fortune for the coming year.
Image: Canva Chinese New Year Preparations Hang Red Lanterns
24th Day of the 12th Lunar Month
Final Preparations (大扫除)
On this day, families focus on final preparations before the New Year.
The main activity is shopping for food, clothing, and decorations, with an emphasis on purchasing auspicious items such as red couplets, lanterns, and other festive ornaments.
This is also the day for buying gifts for loved ones, further promoting the tradition of sharing blessings.
It’s a day of bustling activity as families stock up for the celebrations to come, ensuring that they are well-prepared for all Chinese New Year customs.
Image: Canva Chinese New Year Decorations
25th Day of the 12th Lunar Month
Reopening of Shops (开市)
After a brief holiday break, businesses reopen on the 25th day.
This day is especially significant for shopkeepers and business owners, as they perform rituals to attract good fortune, prosperity, and customers in the upcoming year.
It symbolizes a fresh start for commerce and invites the flow of wealth and opportunities.
This day aligns with Chinese New Year traditions, where businesses aim to start the year strong and prosperous.
26th–28th Day of the 12th Lunar Month
House Cleaning and Set Up Offerings
These days are dedicated to thorough house cleaning to sweep away any remnants of bad luck from the previous year.
From top to bottom, families clean every corner of their homes, ensuring they are spotless and ready for the New Year.
This is also the time for setting up offerings to honor the deities and ancestors, signaling a respectful and auspicious start to the year.
These actions are an essential part of Chinese New Year preparations, setting the tone for a fresh, clean start.
Image: Canva Chinese New Year Preparations Spring Cleaning
29th Day of the 12th Lunar Month
Preparing for the Reunion Dinner (团圆饭)
The 29th day is spent preparing for the Reunion Dinner, one of the most important meals of the Chinese New Year.
Families come together to cook a feast, with dishes symbolizing prosperity, unity, and happiness.
It’s a time for bonding, reflection, and setting the tone for the grand celebrations to follow.
The Reunion Dinner is a core part of Chinese New Year traditions, where families unite, honoring the past year while welcoming the new one.
Image: Canva Chinese New Year Preparations Reunion Dinner
Chinese New Year preparations Summary
Chinese New Year preparations involve cleaning, decorating, and cooking.
Cleaning the home before the New Year removes bad luck and makes space for good fortune.
Red decorations, such as lanterns and scrolls, along with citrus fruits, kumquats, and flowers, symbolize prosperity and luck.
Families also cook a special dinner for the New Year’s Eve reunion, featuring dishes like dumplings and spring rolls, which represent wealth.
Other traditions include getting a haircut, setting off fireworks, and exchanging red envelopes filled with lucky money.
These customs ensure a prosperous and joyful start to the new year.
Image: Canva Chinese New Year Preparations Ang Pow
Importance of These Rituals
The rituals performed in the days leading up to Chinese New Year hold deep cultural significance.
These Chinese New Year customs are designed to invite good fortune, prosperity, and harmony into the household, while also sweeping away negative energy and bad luck.
By honoring these practices, families ensure that they start the year with a clean slate, a well-prepared home, and the blessings of their ancestors.
Each day is a step closer to the grand celebrations, creating a sense of anticipation and excitement.
Conclusion
The preparation days before Chinese New Year are as important as the festivities themselves.
They lay the foundation for a successful and harmonious year ahead, ensuring that everything is in place for the grand celebrations.
By observing these Chinese New Year preparations and rituals, families invite positivity into their homes and begin the journey to a prosperous new year.
The careful attention to these details makes the Chinese New Year traditions all the more meaningful and special.
