Chopsticks

First of all, chopsticks are round at one end and square at the other. The round one symbolizes heaven. The square one symbolizes the earth, which corresponds to the heavenly circle; this is the Chinese understanding of the basic principles of the world;

Secondly, when holding the chopsticks, the thumb and index finger are on the top, the ring finger and pinky finger are on the bottom, and the middle finger is in the middle, which is the image of the heaven and earth and human beings, which is the Chinese understanding of the relationship between human beings and the world.

Yin and Yang Concepts

Then, the Chinese observe the concepts of Tai Chi and Yin and Yang.

Tai Chi is one and Yin Yang is two;

The division of one into two, which represents that everything is made up of two opposites.

The union of two into one, this combination of yin and yang, also implies a perfect result.

The Chinese speak of merging two into one, for example, both Eastern and Western civilizations originated from mythology. In the West, there was a separation of man and god, and things were done by science, and people were done by religion. But in China, everything fits together: He Xianfu, Tie Qiao Li, Lu Dongbin, Sun Wukong, Piggy's Eight Rings, these gods and goddesses are also human beings.

Chinese ideals and realities, souls and bodies, are also merged into one.

So when you call out to a waiter in a restaurant, "Get a pair of chopsticks," you're definitely Chinese; if you say, "Get two chopsticks," you're definitely a foreigner.

"Zhouyi" in the Ming gossip: Qian, Kan, Burgundy, Zhen, Xun, Li, Kun, Tui; dark gossip: Hugh, life, injuries, Du, Jing, death, shock, open. Chopsticks have two is two, corresponding to the gossip is "兑" hexagram, is "mouth" means. Chopsticks itself straight, long corresponding to the gossip of the "Xun" hexagram, is the meaning of "into".

When using chopsticks, one chopstick is active and the other is passive; active is Yang and passive is Yin, which is the image of the two instruments.

A pair of chopsticks lying on the dining table is like a pen lying on a desk.

Standard length

The standard length of chopsticks is seven inches and six minutes, which represents human beings' seven emotions and six desires, to show that they are fundamentally different from animals.

Chopsticks also have the function of pointing, massaging and scraping. In the old days, people traveled the world, as long as there is a pair of chopsticks, what is wrong with them can be fixed even if they forget to bring them, hand break a twig or reed, broken, grinding on the stone, washed in the water, can also be used.

There are also a lot of rules when applying chopsticks, for example, you can only clip food from top to bottom, called "riding a horse clip", and from the bottom to the top of the flip clip is called "carrying a sedan chair clip" is not allowed.

Twelve taboos

The following are the twelve taboos of the Chinese use of chopsticks:

1, three long and two short:

This means that before or during the meal, the chopsticks will be unevenly placed on the table, this practice is very unlucky, usually we call it "three long and two short! "It means "death". Because the Chinese people used to think that after the death of a person is to be put into the coffin, after the person is put into the coffin, not yet cover the lid of the coffin, the coffin is part of the front and back of the two short boards on both sides of the bottom of the three long boards **** five boards together into a coffin is exactly three long and two short, so this is extremely inauspicious things.

2, the immortal pointing the way:

This practice is also extremely unacceptable, this method of taking chopsticks is, with the thumb and middle finger, ring finger, little finger pinch chopsticks, and the index finger out this in the eyes of the Beijing people called "cursing the street," because the index finger out at dinner, always pointing to other people, the person Generally, when you stretch out your index finger to point at the other person, it mostly carries the meaning of accusation. So, eating with chopsticks with fingers, is tantamount to accusing others, which is the same as cursing is the same, can not be allowed There is also a case of this meaning, that is, eating with others and talking with chopsticks pointing to people.

3, the art of tasting the sound:

This practice is also not allowed, the practice is to put the end of the chopsticks in the mouth, the mouth to go back and forth to sip, and from time to time to make a sizzling sound, this behavior is regarded as a lowly practice. This behavior is regarded as a cheap practice, because sipping chopsticks with the mouth while eating is a kind of impolite behavior in itself, and coupled with the sound, it is even more disgusting. Therefore, this practice is generally regarded as a lack of discipline and should not be allowed.

4, knocking the cup:

This behavior is regarded as begging, the practice is to use chopsticks to knock the plate and bowl during the meal. Because in the past, only those who wanted to use chopsticks to hit the rice bowl, the sound of its mouth with the lament, so that pedestrians to pay attention to and give alms to this practice is regarded as an extremely lowly thing, by others not to be ashamed of.

5, chopsticks patrol the city:

This is the practice of holding chopsticks in your hand, acting as if no one else is there, and using the chopsticks to go back and forth on the table looking for the dish, not knowing where to place the chopsticks. This behavior is a typical lack of cultivation performance, and no one in sight is extremely offensive.

6, fan chopsticks planing graves:

This refers to the hand holding chopsticks in the dish, in order to look for prey, like grave robbers planing graves in general this practice with the "fan chopsticks patrol the city" is similar to the lack of cultivation practices, it is disgusting.

7, tears chopsticks missing pearl:

In fact, this is the use of chopsticks to their own dishes, chopsticks to their own dishes, the hand is not good, the soup will flow down to other dishes or on the table. This practice is considered a serious breach of etiquette and is equally undesirable.

8, upside down:

That is to say that the meal will be used upside down chopsticks, this practice is very much looked down upon, as the so-called hunger, so much so that they do not care about the face of the chopsticks to make the inverted, which is absolutely not allowed.

9, the pin:

In the meal with a chopstick to insert the dishes in the plate, this is also not allowed, this is considered a humiliation to the table dining staff, in the meal to make this move, is tantamount to the public in Europe to the people with the middle finger is the same meaning, this is also not allowed.

10, public incense:

Then it is often out of goodwill to help others to serve rice, in order to facilitate the convenience of a pair of chopsticks inserted in the rice handed to each other will be regarded as a great disrespect, because the tradition is to do so for the dead incense, if a pair of chopsticks inserted into the rice, it is the same as the same as to give incense to the dead, so that chopsticks inserted into the bowl is never accepted.

11, cross cross:

This is often not noticed by people, in the meal will be chopsticks casually cross on the table this is not right, people think that playing a fork on the table, is the table of other people's total negativity, just as the students write the wrong homework, by the teacher in the book of the nature of the fork, can not be accepted by other people in addition to the practice is also disrespectful to their own! Because of the past lawsuit to draw a confession only when the fork, which is also undoubtedly in denial of their own, which is also not acceptable.

12, fall to the ground to scare God:

The so-called "fall to the ground to scare God" means that the chopsticks fell to the ground, which is a serious breach of etiquette, the ancestors are all long in the ground, should not be disturbed, chopsticks fall to the ground is the same as the ground to stir up the ancestors, which is a great unfiliality, so this behavior is not permitted. is not allowed, but this has broken the law, but the chopsticks fall to the ground, you should hurry to fall with the chopsticks according to their own sitting direction, draw a cross on the ground, the direction of the first east and west after the north and south means I'm not east and west, should not have disturbed the ancestors, and then pick up the chopsticks.