The Grand Preparations for Lunar New Year
As the Year of the Dragon approached in the late Qing Dynasty, the Forbidden City buzzed with meticulous preparations under the watchful eye of Empress Dowager Cixi. The imperial household followed traditions dating back centuries, where every object – from ancestral portraits to furniture – underwent thorough cleaning. This ritual purification symbolized sweeping away the old year’s misfortunes to welcome prosperity.
The Empress Dowager personally consulted the imperial almanac to select an auspicious date for these cleaning ceremonies. On the chosen day – the twelfth day of the twelfth lunar month – teams of palace women and eunuchs sprang into action. Court ladies carefully dusted Buddhist statues while eunuchs handled heavier tasks. Even the imperial jewels received attention, though Cixi insisted her personal collection needed no cleaning, having been worn only by herself.
The Art of Imperial Gift-Giving
The New Year season brought an elaborate gift exchange ritual that revealed much about court politics. Regional governors competed through extravagant presents – Governor Yuan Shikai offered a pearl-embroidered robe so heavy with jewels it proved unwearable. The Empress Dowager’s reaction to these gifts spoke volumes; while she initially wore Yuan’s creation, it soon disappeared into storage, perhaps reflecting her complex relationship with the powerful official.
Court ladies participated in their own gift exchange that often turned comical. The same presents frequently circulated back to their original givers until the women devised a system to pool and redistribute items equally. This humorous tradition highlighted both the ritual importance and practical challenges of court etiquette.
Sacred Culinary Rituals
Food preparation took on spiritual significance during New Year observances. The Empress Dowager personally made the first ceremonial rice cake (nian gao), believed to predict one’s fortune based on how well it rose. Court ladies deliberately made inferior cakes to flatter their ruler, a subtle act of political theater. As one confided: “I could have made mine just as good, but that would have been most unwise.”
Another fascinating tradition involved offering sticky sweets to the Kitchen God. This folk custom, absorbed into imperial ritual, aimed to “seal” the deity’s mouth before his annual heavenly report on household conduct. Cixi humorously warned the kitchen staff: “The Kitchen God knows exactly what you’ve stolen this year.”
The Grand New Year’s Eve Celebration
On lunar New Year’s Eve, the palace hosted about fifty distinguished guests including princesses, noblewomen, and daughters of Manchu officials. The highlight came when Cixi distributed red money pouches (ya sui qian) – an ancient custom continuing today. Evening festivities included music, opera, and games where the Empress Dowager playfully tossed coins for her ladies to scramble after, showing rare moments of levity.
At midnight, a ceremonial copper brazier burned evergreen leaves and pine resin, filling the halls with fragrant smoke symbolizing renewed fortune. The women then made dumplings (jiaozi), the mandatory New Year’s Eve meal representing wealth with their ingot shape.
New Year’s Day Rituals and Revelry
The first day dawned with symbolic offerings to Cixi – apples (ping an for safety), evergreens (chang shou for longevity), and lotus seeds (lian xin for renewal). After formal greetings, entertainment commenced with operas performed in the courtyard. Even the exhausted young narrator fell asleep against a pillar, only to wake chewing candy playfully placed in her mouth by the Empress Dowager herself.
The usually stern Cixi appeared transformed during these celebrations, joking like a young girl. Only Emperor Guangxu remained withdrawn, offering just a quiet “Happy New Year” when questioned. This poignant detail hints at the complex family dynamics beneath the festive surface.
The Lantern Festival Finale
Fifteen days later, the celebrations concluded spectacularly with the Yuanxiao (Lantern) Festival. Elaborate silk lanterns in animal and floral shapes illuminated the palace grounds. The highlight was a 15-foot dragon puppet danced by ten eunuchs chasing a “pearl” lantern – the classic “Dragon Chasing the Pearl” performance.
The fireworks display that followed depicted historical Chinese scenes through pyrotechnic artistry. Protected in specially constructed viewing houses, the imperial party enjoyed hours of dazzling explosions and thousands of firecrackers – a sensory finale to the holiday season.
Spring Rituals: Connecting Court and Country
As spring arrived, the court performed symbolic agricultural rites emphasizing the emperor’s connection to his people. The emperor plowed the first furrow at the Temple of Agriculture while the empress cultivated silkworms – rituals demonstrating imperial respect for peasant labor. These ceremonies, open to public viewing, reinforced the Confucian ideal of ruler as societal model.
The empress’s meticulous silkworm cultivation – from egg to cocoon – produced silk that Cixi compared favorably to her own youthful work. This intergenerational quality control underscored the palace’s role as standard-bearer for traditional crafts.
Reflections on Imperial Tradition
These vivid accounts reveal how the late Qing court balanced solemn ritual with surprising informality. Behind the grandeur, we see very human moments – from recycled gifts to playful candy pranks. The Empress Dowager emerges as a complex figure: stern yet playful, vain yet pragmatic, maintaining centuries-old traditions while navigating a changing world.
These celebrations, preserved through eyewitness accounts, offer priceless insights into China’s imperial past and the cultural roots of contemporary Lunar New Year practices. The blend of spiritual ceremony, political theater, and simple human joy reminds us that behind the Forbidden City’s imposing walls beat hearts not so different from our own.