Ahhh yes! I am in the middle of the marriage thing right now. Thereâs the traditional Chinese wedding thing⌠But then thereâs the traditional Taiwanese wedding thing.
Taiwanese weddings involve wedding photos in glamorous poses and locations, invitations and expensive cookies. There is also the tray of cigarettes and betel nut for the guests.
Actually, in all seriousness the Taiwanese wedding has many different elements from many different eras and cultures. My wedding photographer and I were discussing Taiwanese culture and, like many Taiwanese, he proclaimed Taiwan has no culture⌠unitl I pointed out how he made his living.
This is a topic Iâd like to learn more about it. I think there used to be many rites of piety that were only permitted for a married son. Only a married son could be pious.
Thereâs many interesting and very very detailed rites for how a married couple must pay homage to their parents. In the presence of parents, they are not supposed to burp, sneeze, cough, yawn, stretch, blow their nose, spit, scratch, or if itâs cold, they canât put on more clothes. Sons must stand in his fatherâs presence, the eyes right, the body upright upon two legs, not leaning against any object, not bending or standing on one foot. With a low and humble voice of a followwer, there are morning and evening hommages. Afterwards, the son awaits orders.
As for cooking, the eldest son and wife cook for their parents. They are at the meal only to encourage their parents to eat. Whatâs left goes to the son and daughter. The sweet, tender, and succulent of the leftovers must go to their children. Whatâs left after that goes to the other sons and daughters of the parents.
âAt the marriage ceremony, they did not employ music,âhaving reference to the feeling of solitariness and darkness (natural to the separation from parents). Music expresses the energy of the bright and expanding influence. There was no congratulation on marriage;-it indicates how (one generation of) men succeeds to anotherâ
[quote=âmaowangâ]
Taiwanese weddings involve wedding photos in glamorous poses and locations, invitations and expensive cookies.[/quote]
Went to look at cookies yesterday, found out that normally you are supposed to give 6 boxes to each person, thankfully wifey and wifeyâs mother said we donât need to go to that length.
[quote=âgolfmadeâ][quote=âmaowangâ]
Taiwanese weddings involve wedding photos in glamorous poses and locations, invitations and expensive cookies.[/quote]
Went to look at cookies yesterday, found out that normally you are supposed to give 6 boxes to each person, thankfully wifey and wifeyâs mother said we donât need to go to that length.[/quote]
Youâve more or less been had by the shop. Every time I receive a red bomb, itâs one box only.
Like everything else in life, there are many variations of everything, even at the same place. For my wedding, we did have to give out sweets to friends, but not family members.
Talking to some friends from Hong Kong, giving out sweets is also a traditional wedding custom there. However, friends from mainland were quite impressed that people in Taiwan still maintain traditional Chinese custom.
