NEW YEAR COLOURS & SYMBOLS
To greet in the New Year, there are several colours and symbols that simply MUST be brought into the home, as these are the decorative enhancers that will ensure everything auspicious comes to you.
Red lanterns are one most easily identifiable as auspicious symbols of the New Year. Here, their colour red resonates with everyone as it is universally acknowledged as the most auspicious colour of the New Year. Thus red is always the principle colour used in restaurants and temples and on clothes worn by everyone to reflect the good energy it represents. For good luck, everyone wears red, or at least try to, during the first day of the Lunar New Year festivities.
Yellow Chrysanthemums bring increasing luck during the New Year. This is the time of year when the colour yellow – the kind almost bordering on gold – brings auspicious increasing prosperity luck. The flower itself is also auspicious as it is usually filled with an abundance of petals. If there is an altar in your home, placing these yellow blooms as offerings to your Gods and Buddhas through the fifteen days of the Lunar New Year is very auspicious.
Kam Kuat Orange Plants bring the symbol of gold into the home and in 2020, these bushy plants studded with bright juicy Kam Kuats ensure that wealth luck gets attracted into the home. Place a pair of these plants flanking your door inside or outside your home. The orange colour here can be closer to red or yellow, but both colours are considered to be auspicious, especially during the first 15 days of the New Year.
Gold on Red Calligraphy done on plaques or on rice paper art in auspicious rhyming couplets with master brush strokes are also very welcome during the New Year. The gold ink is considered very special as this signifies the colour of accumulated wealth. When the calligraphy has a red background, it is more auspicious. The use of auspicious words has been popular in China for centuries. They may remind readers of the strongly worded single word affirmations, which in recent years have become very popular as well.
To the Chinese, the word Double Happiness or Hei “喜喜” is considered very powerful for attracting good marriage luck, but it should always have red in the background to infuse it with the needed yang chi to activate its energy.
Pink and White Blossoms to indicate the coming of spring. This is one of the most important and colourful of auspicious symbols, as it has multi-layers of lucky meanings. They are known by the Chinese as the Three Friends of Winter – Plum, Pine and Bamboo; together, they symbolize steadfastness, perseverance, and resilience. They continue to live through the cold winter months and as soon as spring comes, they send out glorious blooms that signifies the growth energy of the Springtime Wood element – all extremely auspicious as they welcome a bright new year filled with blossoming chi energy.
Red Packets filled with Money This is one of the most important rituals of the Lunar New Year. This is when money is placed inside an auspiciously designed red packet to be given to all children and unmarried relatives in the family who visit your home to wish you a prosperous new year. In the old days, it was deemed very auspicious for the recipient to receive a red money packet from the elder members of the family and from the boss, but it was considered equally auspicious for the older relative or boss when they give the red packet.
The amount placed inside the packet is not as important as the sentiments behind the giving. It is advisable to place an even-numbered amount inside the red packet and even more auspicious when meaningful words are printed in gold and the packet itself is a bright vermillion red. You can use any lucky symbol to decorate your lucky money packet, as long as the packet is red in colour.
Using any other colour is considered very unlucky, even when the year deems the other colour to be auspicious. Remember that during the Lunar New Year, use red as background colour and gold as secondary colour and you will have a fortunate year!
LUCKY COLOURS FOR 2020
The Chinese believe that colours resonate with particular frequencies that have different strengths and affinities from year to year. In Chinese metaphysics, there are five main colours which signify the five elements, the five planets and the five directions – North, South, East, West and Center. Different homes have different colour affinities, and different personalities vibrate better with certain colours in different years. This dynamic aspect of the use of colours to ensure good fortune is a fascinating study in itself, but for the purposes of the TUNG SING, what is needed is a basic knowledge of colour affinities plus their resonance in the Year of the Metal Rat 2020.
For 2020, the colour green is very auspicious, as this symbolizes the colour that strengthens the WINDHORSE of the year, thereby bringing strong success luck. For almost all the animal signs, the colour green will be very auspicious in 2020.
Note that the colour green signifies the season of spring and it stands for steady and healthy growth chi energy. This is very important, as the year of 2020 starts before the beginning of LAP CHUN, the first day of spring. Green is the colour of Wood and because Wood is the element of resource in 2020, green is also the colour of success. If you are unwell, sit by a window overlooking fields of green. There is nothing more therapeutic than this. Green also signifies action and wearing green makes one feel energized and action-oriented.
The lucky gemstone associated with green is the FEI CUI GREEN JADE, probably the most expensive of this beautiful translucent stone so loved by the Chinese. Green Jade brings great good fortune to those who wear it close to their bodies, especially when worn as hand bangles near the pulse point at the hand.
Do note that because green is so auspicious in 2020, it is extremely beneficial to wear jade in 2020.
The colour RED
For 2020, the colour red is lucky as it brings friendship and networking luck; and is neither a colour that is in excess nor is the year short of Fire. Note that red is the colour associated with the planet MARS.
While the colour red is universally acknowledged as a very important and auspicious colour, it is important not to overuse this colour. Thus while wearing red is very lucky indeed, painting the whole house red is quite another matter. When Fire energy becomes excessive, it can turn destructive.
Red is always favoured for the New Year, for weddings and for the celebration of happiness events such as the month-old celebration of a new-born baby and birthdays for patriarchs and matriarchs. During such events, the yang chi of the colour red gets activated, attracting good fortune!
Red is also the favourite colour of temples and restaurants, as it is believed to be the most powerful colour for attracting customers and clients. Again, one should not overdo the use of red even in these public places.
The colour YELLOW
In 2020, the colour yellow represents intelligence and creativity. This is the colour of Earth which brings stability and patience; and makes one grounded and realistic. Because Earth is in excess this year, too much of this colour will cause excessive worrying and self-induced stress.
Yellow has always been a noble and high-class colour associated with the mandarins at court. The Chinese have always revered this colour, associating it with Imperial Authority, yellow being the colour of the Son of Heaven. Yellow is also the Emperor’s colour. It is also the colour of the Yellow River, which brings the much-needed water to the fields of rice and grain, and it is also the colour of the great nation China itself.
The colour WHITE
White is the colour associated with the element Metal, which in 2020 is the element that signifies Wealth and Financial success. The other colours associated with the Metal element are silvery grey and gold. Both of these metallic colours represent money, so they are always regarded as auspicious. The metal planet is Venus.The colour BLUE or BLACK
Both colours blue as well as black signify flowing water, which brings change and swift communication. The flow of news moves as fast as the waters that flow down the great rivers of the world. Wearing black or blue in 2020 strengthens recognition and promotion luck!
Black is not the evil colour many suppose it to be. It is also not a mourning colour. Nevertheless, it is not favoured during festivities and celebration occasions. Do avoid wearing black to someone’s wedding or birthday dinner, as it is simply not a nice thing to do. This is not because black brings bad luck. It is because the colour black is associated with the dark wandering spirits of the night.
When you enter a celebration occasion in black, the fear is that the wandering spirits are able to merge with you and enter to spoil the occasion. In Chinese, we call this causing the colour black to clash with someone in the dinner whose Spirit Essence is low. This can be the host or the host’s parents.
Blue is less of a danger, although many Chinese associate this colour with losing, and failure. Light blue however does not have the same connotations as black or a darker blue. If you need to enhance the Water element therefore, and need to wear blue, it is a good idea to wear lighter shades such as sky blue or the colour of aquamarine.
TWO COLOUR COMBINATIONS
There are several dimensions to the effect which colour combinations have on one’s luck. The first has to do with the combination of planetary forces, while the second has to do with the combination of elements. In many instances, two colours tend to make a stronger statement and have a stronger good luck effect than just wearing either separately as a single colour.
The LUCKY COMBINATIONS
GREEN & BLACK is a very lucky combination, as black Water replenishes the fast-growing green Wood. Here, the Wood of our earth is being nourished, causing it to generate great good fortune and life-giving energies. This combination is always auspicious. The meaning generated here is one of good health and continuous victory.
This is an excellent combination for 2020. You can use it for your corporate logo, your posters and your calling cards, as the hidden message of this combination is excellent.
GREEN & RED is likewise a favourable combination, as the hidden meaning generated with these two colours side by side is indicative of having ample resources to fuel your wishes and improves success. Here, the green of Wood is being used in a clever way, but it is the bright brilliance of the Fire element that will bring success luck. In 2020, this is a good combination that brings mentors and helpful people.
RED & YELLOW is a stable combination that brings good activity, favourable results and harmonious effects. Anyone wishing to work as a team and to foster goodwill between team players will benefit from this combination. So if you are looking for a good colour scheme for your sports team, this can be a winning combination.
YELLOW & WHITE is an excellent colour combination. This denotes the creation of wealth, the successful transformation of resources into a sustainable business and the making of good profits. But this is not favoured for flags and corporate logos, as here, the elements indicated are Earth producing Metal. These are elements best used in a grounding capacity. Thus they are great for house or office décor colours e.g. the combination of white walls with yellow highlights or light cream yellow walls with metal of any kind.
BLACK & WHITE is a good productive-type combination. Here, the Water element of black, which signifies wealth luck, is produced by the Metal white, which also signifies the creation of sustainable prosperity. This is thus a wealth-creating combination. It is excellent for sports teams and corporate logos. Black and white also signifies the unity of yin and yang.
YELLOW, WHITE & BLUE brings wealth. This is an excellent combination for those doing business or commerce. You can use gold instead of yellow, and black instead of blue, to achieve the same effect. The elements at work here are Earth producing Metal producing Water. Very auspicious.
RED, YELLOW & WHITE creates harmony and peace. The elements here are Fire producing Earth producing Metal, so ultimately, this is combination of three colours that also brings wealth. More importantly, it brings stability and harmony.
BLUE, GREEN & RED brings success, fame and recognition. This is an excellent combination for those wanting to climb the career ladder, as it is a success-bringing combination of colours. Here, the elements are Water producing Wood producing Fire. You can substitute black for blue, and brown for green as well.
The UNLUCKY COMBINATIONS
GREEN & YELLOW connects Wood with Earth element, which is a single-sided combination. Here the dominant colour is green, which soaks up everything the Earth element of yellow has to offer. The green colour in this combination causes yellow to lose its lustre and brilliance, causing the light to get dimmed and resources to be reduced.
This is not a good colour combination when two separate colours green and yellow are placed next to each other. But when the colours are mingled and mixed to create a lighter less green shade of green, the effect is neutral and may even be lucky.
WHITE & GREEN is definitely not lucky. Here the elements are clashing in a destructive way, with growth energy halted. The combination thus brings disaster and even violence. Metal destroys the energy of Wood and can also decrease immunity to illness. Only in exceptional cases would such a combination be beneficial, but that too only intermittently. It is safer to avoid it. If you want to use this combination, it is advisable to increase the green and reduce the white.
RED & WHITE is likewise a combination that denotes war, as the Fire of red devours the Metal of white. This combination is not recommended unless the white is so prominent as to render the red harmless.
BLACK & RED signifies the presence of Fire and Water, two opposing elements with black destroying red. This makes this combination potentially dangerous to the power of red, and in fact, the two elements represented become aggressive when paired together. Better to avoid this combination as it only brings discord and problems even though it may initially bring good results. Ultimately, this combination does not lead to sustainable good fortune.
A relation of the red/black combination is the red/blue combination which when mixed, creates the colour purple. This is a special colour which has a special meaning to the Chinese, as purple is the ultimate colour of perfection. It is also the colour of heaven, and when combined with yellow, becomes a combination denoting the harmonious and very auspicious union of heaven and earth.
YELLOW & BLACK represent the elements of Earth with Water – a destructive combination. The insects and animal worlds are full of poisonous examples of this combination and they signify danger to humans. Stinging insects and bees, tigers and other reptiles carry this colour combination. The yellow and black combination can also be seen on many road signs as warning signs of danger. But as a protective colour scheme, this is an excellent combination, as it creates a natural shield against those who would do you harm. Hence the popularity of Tiger amulets!
