Articles by mgedwards

Xin Nian Kuai Le!

Happy Chinese New Year!  It’s also Seol-nal, or Korean New Year.  Both holidays are based on the lunar calendar.  This year is the Year of the Dog in the Chinese Zodiac, the 7th year in the current 60-year cycle.  As a Dog, I’m happy that my year has come once again.  However, I am also reminded that I’m getting older and heading rapidly towards the realm of Tol, or the age of wisdom, as the Koreans politely call one’s 60th birthday.  You know you are old…err, wise, after you complete five Zodiac cycles.  Celebrations across China today were very festive, with the Chinese incinerating over $124 million in fireworks across the country (talk about money going up in smoke!).  Sales of dogs as pets noticeably increased in China with the advent of the Year of the Dog, with many people giving them away as new year’s gifts to families and friends.  Here in Korea, the celebrations seem to be a bit more muted than in China.  While families in both countries gather from far and wide to celebrate the new year, Chinese are much more apt to celebrate the occasion with noise makers.

 

I wondered what year it is this year according to the Chinese calendar.  After all, the year itself (e.g. 2006), plays an integral part in the Western (solar) New Year.  Most Asians cannot tell you what year it is according to the lunar calendar, and if they can, their answer tends to vary.  A quick online search announced that this year is 4637, 4697, 4703, and 4704 according to the Chinese calendar  Here’s an interesting explanation from Helmer Aslaksen, a Norwegian scholar who teaches at the National University of Singapore, as to why it’s impossible to accurately determine the correct year according to the Chinese calendar.

I get a lot of e-mail about the Chinese calendar. I once got an e-mail from a greeting cards company who needed to know which year 2000 would be in the Chinese calendar. The answer is that the Chinese do not have a continuous year count. They started counting from one again with each new emperor. However, some scholars tried to reconstruct ancient Chinese chronology by adding up years of reigns, much the same way some westerners in the past tried to reconstruct Biblical chronology. Some claim that the calendar was invented by the Yellow Emperor,Huángdì (黄帝)), in 2637 BCE in the 61st year of his reign. However, others prefer to start the count with the first year of his reign in 2697 BCE. Since these years are 60 years apart, it follows that 1984 was the first year of either the 78th or 79th 60-year cycle. Using this as a starting point, Chinese New Year in 2000 marks the beginning of the Chinese year 4637 or 4697. To give you an example of the level of confusion on this point, in Chapter 3 of Volume III of the translation of the Shoo King (Shūjīng, 书经) by James Legge, he refers to the current year, 1863, as being in the 76th cycle, implying a starting point of 2697 BCE. However, the book has an appendix on Chinese astronomy, written by John Chalmers, where the starting point is taken to be 2637 BCE! Chalmers actually writes 2636 BCE, but that really mean -2636, using the astronomical year count, where 1 BCE is year 0, 2 BCE is -1, etc. This is fairly typical of the level of confusion about the continuous year count in the Chinese calendar, and simply illustrates the fact that the continuous year count is not an integral part of the Chinese calendar, but rather an afterthought. While there isolated incidents of Chinese scholars who have used it, it only gained popularity with the Jesuit missionaries. Most of the people who use it are Westerners who refuse to believe that it is possible to have a “civilized” society without a linear, continuous year count. That’s why I told the greeting cards company to stick with calling it the year of the Dragon!

To add to the confusion, some authors use an epoch of 2698 BCE. I believe this because they want to use a year 0 as the starting point, rather than counting 2697 BCE as year 1, or that they assume that the Yellow Emperor started his year with the Winter solstice of 2698 BCE. In particular, this system was used by Sun Yat-sen (孫逸仙, Sūn Yìxiān or 孫中山, Sūn Zhōngshān, 1866–1925). He and other political activists wanted to use a republican and “modern” year numbering system. This system actually won some acceptance in the overseas Chinese community, and is for example used occasionally in San Francisco’s Chinatown. (At least around the time of Chinese New Year!)

However, let me stress again that using an epoch is not the traditional way of counting years in Chinese history. The traditional way was to use emperor’s era name (年号 [年號], nían hào) together with the 60-year cycle. In the past, the emperor would often change his era name during his reign, but by the time of the Míng and Qíng dynasties, the emperors would use the same era name for their whole reign. This system worked well most of the time, but the Kāngxī Emperor (康熙) ruled more than 60 years. He ruled from February 7, 1661 to December 20, 1722. Since Chinese New Year fell on January 30 in 1661, the first year of his reign started on February 18, 1662, and the last year of his reign ended on February 4, 1723. Since both 1662 and 1722 are rényín years, the term Kāngxī rényín (康熙壬寅) is ambiguous. However, this is the only such problem in Chinese history. His grandson, the Qiánlóng Emperor (乾隆) ruled from October 18, 1735, to February 8, 1796. The first year of his rule started on February 12, 1736, but he chose to retire on February 8, 1796, as a filial act in order not to reign longer than his grandfather, the illustrious Kāngxī Emperor. Despite his retirement, however, he retained ultimate power until his death in 1799.

It is well known that the 60-year cycle was introduced during the Hàn Dynasty, so it came as something of a surprise when scholars realized that the 60-day cycle had been in use in the Shāng Dynasty (商朝, 1600–1046 BCE). This shows that the two systems are independent, and there is no point looking for an ancient origin with a (甲,子) day in a (甲,子) month in a (甲,子) year in either 2637 BCE or 2697 BCE. I should also point out, that while Chinese chronology is fairly reliable going back to 841 BCE, and oracle bones with date inscription go back to the 13th century BCE, modern scholars consider the Yellow Emperor to be a mythological figure. So this whole discussion of ancient dates is just a curiosity.

This concept sounds so foreign to a western thinker.  How can one call it a new year and not know what year it is?  This shows yet again how basic ideas can be challenged or seen in a very different light depending on one’s cultural orientation.  Asians might ask, Why is it important to know what year it is?  A Westerner might answer, Well, because it’s the way we do it.  There is a simple explanation as to why the year is not important in the Chinese (or Korean) calendar, when it’s central to the Western calendar.  The Chinese calendar is lunar, and the beginning and ending of lunar cycles are fixed.  The number of days in a Chinese year varies from year to year, but the number of full moons and lunar cycles per year is fixed.  The Western calendar is a solar calendar based on the number of days.  Hence, years are calculated by the number of days, and a fixed year can be determined.  Although the number of lunar cycles in the Chinese calendar is fixed, the number of days is variable, making it difficult to determine the correct number of days according to the lunar calendar.

Still, it should be possible for scholars to determine the number of lunar cycles in the Chinese calendar and determine which lunar cycle we are currently celebrating.  Are we celebrating the 78th or 79th lunar cycle?  We don’t really know.  It depends on when the first lunar cycle began.  It seems most logical to me that that would be at the start of the reign of the Yellow Emperor, China’s first emperor, in 2697 B.C.  That would indicate that we are in the midst of the 79th lunar cycle.  That would indicate that this year is year 4704 according to the solar calendar.  Because there are other variables involved, it’s an exercise in futility to precisely determine a date.  Nevertheless, as a westerner, it’s nice to know what year we’re celebrating!  An Asian would answer, It’s the Year of the Dog, of course!  Quit worrying about the date.

 

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Right-handed…I think so

I took a couple days off from blogging.  I spent Thursday evening drafting my career evaluation, and on Friday evening we went out with some friends to celebrate one of their birthdays.  Writing my own evaluation has been an agonizing experience.  It’s easy to blog about life in general; it’s much more difficult to evaluate your own job performance and anticipate what your supervisor and reviewer will write about you (good, I hope).  I have to give both of them material they can use to write their evaluations of me.  This annual ritual is one aspect of the job everyone seems to dread but knows is critical to career success.  Perhaps I should recommend changing the format of evaluations so that they’re more like blogs, or online journals.  That would never happen!
 
Last night my wife and I dined with friends at a "French" restaurant called "Pishon."  Marginally French, it actually served Italian-Asian fushion cuisine, although the ambiance invoked a districtly French aura.  The food was exquisite, and I was experience happy to see that they did not serve sweet pickles.  This is the first European restaurant I’ve patronized in Korea that did not serve sweet pickles, a kimchi substitute in Western restaurants.  The restaurant is cozy.  Seating is only available for about 30 people.  The kitchen could not have been more than 10′ x 8′, much too small to prepare multi-course meals.  I suspect that the restaurant prepares meals in another kitchen.  I also thought it interesting that the gentleman playing classical guitar (which was very nice and romantic, by the way) also doubled as a dishwasher.  At least the restaurant offered valet parking.  All in all, I would recommend "Pishon" to anyone living in Seoul who’s looking for fine dining.
 
My son and I spent the morning together while my wife caught up on her beauty sleep.  My son really missed us last night, so at 5 a.m. this morning he woke up, looking for mommy.  When she went to see him, he became so excited to see her that he couldn’t get back to sleep.  I took over at about 7:30 a.m. and was with him until he went down for an early nap.  I fed him some cereal and noted that he ate it with his right hand.  Later, when we went outside and played in the sandbox, I again noticed that he used his right hand to shovel dirt.  I realized that my son must be right-handed.  I’ve wondered for awhile whether he would be right- or left-handed, because I am left-handed and my wife is right-handed.  When he was younger, he used both hands equally, but now he’s growing increasingly right-handed.  Right-handedness is a dominant human trait, so I believe it likely that my son would be right-handed.   
 
In Chinese culture, children are still taught to use their right hands regardless of whether they are left- or right-handed.  As a left-handed person, (a.k.a. leftie or southpaw–not to be confused with someone who leans Left politically), I am critical of this practice, although I know that it is a manifestation of cultural tradition.  In certain countries, I will have to learn to use my right hand to write or eat, or I will risk offending my hosts.  Chinese and Koreans do not generally take offense when one uses their left hands to write or eat, although they still require their children to use their right hands.  In other areas of the world, especially in South Asia and the Middle East, locals can be very critical of people who use their left hands.  I maintain that lefties are essentially a "persecuted" minority, even in the West.  I learned long ago as a student to using scissors with my right hand, because no left-handed scissors were available, and I learned to study in undersized classroom desks designed for right-handed students.  I am dreading the day when I have to eat with my right hand to be polite, because it’s an offensive practice necessitated by protocol (it’s better to do it than offend your host).  Perhaps less malicious than forcing a vegetarian to eat meat or a non-drinker to drink alcohol, it still is offensive to lefties.  I cannot help but lament over the many left-handed people who are forced to use their right hands, stifling the benefits that come from being left-handed.  Left-handed individuals use the right half of their brain, and they tend to think and perform differently than right-handed individuals.  They are well known for being creative and talented, although these traits are not universal to southpaws, nor are they exclusive to lefties.  I would have been very proud if my son were left-handed, but considering that we may live overseas for a long time, I’m happy that he won’t have to worry about which hand he’s using.
 
I digress.  Let me go back to talking about my son.  Lately I’ve noticed that my son’s speaking has become more nuanced.  For example, rather than simply answering "yes" or "no" in English or Chinese, he now says, "I think so."  I think it’s cute to see this little guy answer questions with more than a curt reply.  I think it’s a phrase he picked up from one of us.  I don’t think he grasps the concept of "I think so" other than that it’s a positive way to answer a question.
 
Blog Notes:  I talked to my colleague, the community choir director.  He said that he’ll try to accommodate my schedule so I can remain part of the choir.  I will continue to be part of the choir.  It should be fun…and a lot of work.  I’m glad the schedule is flexible.

Shanghai Surprise

I received some unexpected but very good news today.  I was chosen for a two-week assignment in Shanghai, China.  Twice a year, four individuals are sent to other countries to work for two weeks.  Because I was involved in the APEC Summit and am now doing a short-term job assignment in my career field, I did not think I would qualify an assignment out of country.  It’s akin to winning the Triple Crown–most people only participate in one or two of these activities.  I am extremely grateful to have been chosen for the assignment, in spite of prior career opportunities.  In this line of work, “fair” is a “four-letter word,” meaning that nothing in this line of work is really fair.  Maybe you make more than your colleague.  Maybe you’re passed up for a promotion.  Maybe you get a better assignment than someone else.  Maybe you get more chances to shine.  Sometimes things go your way, and sometimes they don’t.  For example, we were placed in Seoul after my initial, preferred assignment became unavailable.  My stoic response is that everything evens out eventually.  When things aren’t going right, just wait for awhile, and the tide should turn.  I was fully prepared not to get this assignment, because I’ve already been extremely fortunate, more than I know some of my colleagues have been.  I was perfectly happen to defer to them.  At the same time, other colleagues have been given more opportunities than I’ve had in Seoul.  That’s fine by me.  I know that “fair” is a four-letter word and accept this reality.  I know that things won’t always be this good.  I know that someday I will face some unforeseen adversity.

My wife was ecstatic to find out that we’re heading to Shanghai for two weeks next March or April.  Her parents returned to Shanghai from Seattle following her grandmother’s death.  Our return to China will hopefully help lift everyone’s spirits and help bring the family closer together.  Because my wife works full time, she may only stay for one week.  We also talked about having my son stay with me for the full two weeks and have his grandparents take care of him during the day while I work.  We’re not sure yet.  This trip won’t be a vacation, because I have to work full time.  However, evenings and weekends will be free.  Perhaps we’ll take a trip to Hangzhou or back to Anhui Province.  Maybe we’ll catch a weekend in Xi’an or Guangzhou.  We haven’t decided yet.  It’s a good dilemma figuring out our travel plans.

With our trip to Shanghai and return to the U.S. in May, I may have to drop out of the choir I mentioned yesterday.  I will be away at least four weeks this spring, so I don’t know whether I will have time to commit to it.  I’ll talk to my colleague, the music director, and find out whether I should stay.  I’d rather drop out now than find out I’m going to miss some performances or sound lousy because I didn’t practice enough.  I also decided to forego studying and taking the German exam.  There is only one German-speaking assignment I could qualify for, and it’s very unlikely that I would be assigned to that job, because “fair” is a four-letter word in this line of work.  I decided to hold off studying and focus on Korean and Spanish or Chinese, whichever is required for my next assignment.

Blog Notes:  Tonight’s blog title beat out the other title that crossed my mind:  “We Got Shanghai’d.”

From the “Things that Make You Go Hmm…” Department:  Why is Google complying with Chinese authorities and offering Google.cn without blogging and E-mail features when it does not feel compelled to cooperate with U.S. authorities?  Google’s policy has been to work within the legal framework of countries where it does business.  Why is it so quickly cooperating with the Chinese and so willing to go to court with the U.S. Department of Justice?