春联 Spring Festival Couplets

During the Spring Festival period every year, almost all families handpick a pair of Spring Festival couplets to paste on their doors, adding some joyous atmosphere to the festival. The couplets are generally written on red paper and the sentences contain auspicious meanings.

A couplet is composed of two lines of poetry that come next to each other, especially two lines that rhyme with each other and are of the same length. In addition, the lines should be posted vertically, with the first one on the right and the second one on the left. Some couplets also have a top scroll.

[chūn lián] 春联：Spring Festival Scrolls/Spring Festival Couplets
[shàng lián] 上联：the right scroll
[xià lián] 下联：the left scroll
[héng pī] 横批：the top scroll

Here are some examples:

• 上联：大顺大财大吉利
               Great peace, great wealth, and great luck.
  下联：新春新喜新世纪
               New year, new joy, and new century.
  横批：万事如意
              Everything goes well.

 

• 上联：佳年好景随春到
               A good year and a nice view follow the spring.
  下联：福乐安康顺意来
               Happiness and health arrive as you wish.
  横批：辞旧迎新
               Ring out the old, ring in the new.

 

• 上联：瑞雪纷飞辞旧岁
              The old year leaves amidst the falling snow.      
  下联：旭日东升迎新春
              The new spring comes with the shining glow.

Apart from traditional poetic lines, many people have also composed modern funny ones, which are much easier to learn.

• 上联：吃得不错、睡得不错、天天都开心
        Eat well, sleep well, and have fun every day.
  下联：努力学习、努力工作、钱越挣越多
        Study hard, work hard, and make more money.
  横批：给力
        Awesome.

 

• 上联：等了一年又一年
               I’ve been waiting year after year.
  下联：年年结婚没有咱
               Each year lots marry, but not me.
  横批：再等一年
               Wait one more year.

 

• 上联：新年好
  Happy New Year!    
  下联：钱来到
  Money Comes Running!

The following picture shows Spring Festival couplets composed by P.A.Nachimuthu, the President of Erode District China Radio Tamil Listeners Club. Do you want to have a try?