If you think that fruit offerings are offered simply because fruits are a kind of food, that is delicious, you couldn’t be more wrong. Actually, there is more to it than meets the eye. Every single fruit you find on the altar has its own meaning and reason that it is there. We thought that you would’ve guessed, I mean, there must be a reason we don’t offer durians, right??
Grapes
The big chunks of seemingly countless purple cuties are tasty, but when put on an altar, it means praying for children for the family. Using a chunk of grapes to pray for a chunk of kids, geddit?
Mandarins
Those bright orange fruits are a common sight during CNY visitings. It is believed to bring good fortune for people because the word ‘ju‘ in the name ‘juzi‘ sounds like ‘ji‘ in ‘jili‘(good fortune).
Big round fruits
Melons are symbolic of family unity, they hold out the wish that the family will, like the moon, stay round, large, whole, and also united. When families sit together and share these fruits (You can’t eat one all by yourself, right?), family cohesiveness is also promoted.
Pineapples
The Hokkien for pineapples ‘OngLai‘ sounds similar to ‘come fortune‘ in Hokkien, ‘OngLai‘. The Chinese just loves to play with words!
Pomegranates
Pomegranates are a symbol of fertility because the fruit contain many seeds.
Apples
Apples symbolises peace because the word ‘ping‘ in ‘pingguo‘ (apple) sounds like ‘ping‘ (peace).
Peaches
Peaches represent longevity. You can find one on the staff of the God of Longevity in every statue of his.
Pomelo
The Chinese for pomelo ‘youzi’ sounds like having a son, and hence people use it to pray for sons.
Banana
Banana leaves are one of the fourteen precious items of a scholar. By offering bananas, one is praying for wisdom.
Sugared fruits
Some people believes that the sweeter the fruit, the sweeter the year.
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The post The ultimate guide to the meaning of the fruits Chinese use for praying appeared first on Goody Feed.