China's number superstitions

7 - Seven (Qī)

Number seven in China could be good or bad, depending on the context. In the past, number seven was considered unlucky because people believed that the spirit of a dead person lingered in the human world for 49 days (7x7) after death. The seventh month on the Lunar Calendar was often associated as "Ghost Month".

Nowadays, people often associate the number seven with love. People consider number seven symbolizes "Togetherness" because the pronunciation is similar to "一起" (Yīqǐ), which means "together". The character 起 (Qǐ ) alone has the meaning, "Rise". Number seven is also often associated with 氣 (Qì) which means "energy" or "the essence of life". And don't forget, Qixi Festival (Chinese Valentine's Day) falls on the seventh day on the seventh month every year (according to Lunar Calendar).

 

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Original piece: http://bbs.chinadaily.com.cn/blog-1353795-17000.html 

   

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