Folktale: How the Chinese New Year originated

1.         Once upon a time, a monster named Nián roamed China.

2.         This long-headed and sharp-horned monster lived in the depths of the sea almost throughout the year.

3.         It annually rose from the sea on New Year’s Eve to feast on human beings and village farm animals.

4.         People futilely kept food outside their homes to shoo away the gigantic creature.

5.         The villagers hid in the mountains to avoid its claws and fangs.

6.         A wise senior citizen who visited the village provided a solution for this.

7.         This brave man didn’t seek refuge in the peaks above.

8.         Instead, he frightened the beast away by sticking bright red papers on the door, burning bamboo to emit a crackling noise, lighting candles in homes and draping himself in red clothes.

9.         When the villagers returned to the plains, they were pleasantly surprised that their countryside was untarnished.

10.    They followed the prudent man’s instructions to keep the colossal being miles away every year.

11.    Nián retired to its oceanic abode forever.

12.    Guo Nián (过年) that means ‘Chinese New Year’, is celebrated to mark how the Chinese gained victory over Nián.

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