Tet

by: Hoang Lan

        In Vietnam, the special celebration for the New Year which is called Tet, is the biggest even of the year, comparable to the American Christmas, New Year, Easter and the Fourth of July combined.  It marks the beginning of the Lunar Year and Spring at the same time.  The holiday usually falls in late January or early February of the Solar calendar.  Tet this year falls on February 16.  Each year is symbolized by a special animal in a 12-year cycle.  The animals are consecutively: mouse, buffalo, tiger, cat, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog and pig.  1999 is the year of the Cat. 

        On the twenty-third day of the twelfth month of the preceding year, a special farewell ceremony is held in honor of the Kitchen God.  According to a legend, a week before Tet, the Kitchen God must travel back to Heaven to report to the Heavenly God, on the spiritual, moral, and social progress of the family where he is in charge.  Each family would like the Heaven God to be given the “best possible report” about its behavior for the year and so a special farewell ceremony is held for the Kitchen God’s favor with all good presents as far as the family’s imagination can go.

        Just before Tet, all Vietnamese want to pay off their debts, because it is bad luck to owe money during Tet.  Employers give their employees bonuses.  Special foods are prepared ahead of time and displayed on ancestral altars before which family members will take turns thanking their ancestors for their existence.

        At midnight on the New Year’s Eve, the firecrackers go off and Tet actually begins.  Religious services are celebrated at pagodas and churches with huge crowds of worshippers.

        Following the altar ceremony on the first morning of Tet, grandparents receive greetings from their children and grandchildren.  The children in turn are given a special cash gift from their grandparents and parents.  The cast gift is placed in a red envelope to reward the children for their good behavior during the part year.

        Following this beautiful tradition are visits to relatives, neighbors and friends.  Vietnamese people attach great importance to the first visitor on New Year’s Day because he is believed to influence the happiness or well-being of the family during the rest of the year.

        On the first day of Tet many people buy scrolls inscribed with New Year’s wishes in ancient Vietnamese Script to display in their houses.  No one sweeps the floor on that day for fear of sweeping out the good fortune.

        Tet is also a time for correcting bad deeds, forgiving and forgetting past offenses.

        As a holiday, Tet simply means a renewal of body and spirit.  It is a time when people remember their ancestors and also think of themselves mixing sorrow for the past with enjoyment of the present and hope for the future.

Russia: The Land of Lost Hopes

by: Andrew D’Anthua

        When the immigrants from Eastern Europe arrive to America, the cultural difference between an old country and a new one does not seem so enormous as the difference in welfare of the people.  Tow largest Eastern European countries – Russia and Ukraine are mostly Christian nations like the United States, and their societies support the same moral values and standards of behavior.  In other words the eternal truth of the Ten Commandments is a moral guideline every where in the world, whether in Russia or in America.  However, the language, culture, traditions, and national mentality (to be candid – the subtlest thing to understand) do differ very much.

        Language:  The Russian language which is related to English through the Indo-European family, is different by its internal structure.  In Russian, nouns and verbs are being formed with suffixes and endings, rarely with the help of words like “to have”, “to be”, “would”, “should” etc., as in the English language.  That’s why the linguists define English as “analytical” and Russian as “synthetical” language.  Actually those who speak English, as a native language will face more difficulties studying Russian than a Russian speak mastering English.

        Religion:  Both the United States and Russia are mostly Christian nations.  The Autocephalous Russian Orthodox Church takes its origin from Byzantine Orthodox Church, and before the Russian Revolution the Church was an integral part of the governmental establishment.  In spite of persecutions and upheavals of the post-revolutionary period, the Russian Orthodox Church managed to survive, and beginning from the forties its influence has been rising.  The Church remains one of the most conservative institutions in Russia, rejecting any modernization both in Orthodox ideology and in religious worship.  An example worth mentioning is that no electronic equipment (microphones, loudspeakers etc.) and musical instruments has ever been used by the Orthodox Church.  Moreover the Church is still relying on the calendar developed by Julius Caesar.  According to this calendar, Russians celebrate Christmas on January 7.  Since the fall of Communism, it is again a public holiday in Russia.

        National Mentality:  Like Americans, Russians live in an enormous country, which stretches from Europe to Asia, and used to be a superpower.  A lot of people in Russia sincerely believe that their country has been chosen by God to dominate over neighboring nations.  this conception is widely supported by medieval ideas that Moscow is the Third Rome and a direct successor of Roman and Byzantine Empires.  Thus the dark an excessively bloody Russian history is being widely interpreted as a kind of a “special mandate” conferred upon their nation.

        It is also worth mentioning, of course, that Russia gave birth and inspiration to a number of really great poets, writers, and musicians.  However, political corruption and economic mismanagement brought this richest nation to the level of developing countries of Africa and Asia.  That is, probably, the very answer to the question why so many Russians abandon their native land to look for a better life somewhere else, most of all in America, of course.

A Kurdish Letter

by: Dr. Pary Karadaghi

        Winter in Fairfax is very different from back home in Kurdistan.  While the long evenings in Kurdistan marked story telling and homework assignments, they also marked a sense of safety, well being and anticipation.  We talked with excitement about the upcoming spring and the Kurdish New Year or Newroz, in March.  Sometimes they marked sadness about persecution, human rights abuses and disappearances.  In March 1988, 5,000 Kurds died in Halabja through chemical weapon use against the Kurdish villages.  Halabja’s destruction was the only one who made it to the news.  It was the tip of the iceberg because thousands of other villages were destroyed as well.

        The second National Conference was a great success because it brought leaders from around the country to meet here in Fairfax.  The National Conference is that time of year when we meet again, go back to the drawing board and plan future programs.  We found out what happening in other communities around the country, listen to experts from different walks of life celebrate our cultural heritage and reenergize.

        This year’s program focused on economic self-sufficiency, by the Kurdish Human Rights Watch (KHRW) in Fairfax, and San Diego, California.  Kurdish issues through Kurdish eyes, grass-roots democracy building, and effective orientation conducted by KHRW.  Professor Yona Sabar, who was a panel presenter, is a Jewish Kurd form Zakho, a city in Iraqi Kurdistan.  He left Kurdistan and lived in Israel before coming to America.  He lives and teaches in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures at UCLA.  Professor Sabar summed up the love of Kurds for Kurdistan by this proverb “You can take a Kurd out of Kurdistan, but you cannot take Kurdistan out of a Kurd.”

        This winter is also special for KHRW and the families in our program.  For the first time in the history of a Kurdish service organization we are providing homeless families with safe housing and support services.  Our services have at their core the well-being of these families and hold the key to their future self-sufficiency and economic self-determination.

        However, there is a long road ahead of us and there is still a lot to do.  we have to build a bridge to the 21st century.  We can’t do it alone.  We have to work together in unity.  Kurds need to work together regardless of their affiliations and political views.  We also need to work closely with mainstream organizations in a spirit of cooperation and “good neighbor” approach.

        I receive a lot of calls and requests about different services.  There are also a lot of rumors, demands and expectations about what KHRW can do and provide.  Clients and the community expect quite a lot.  However, the services KHRW can provide are limited.  Allow me to reiterate in a nutshell some facts.  KHRW is a non-political, community based service agency.  Due to the self-help concept many call organizations such as KHRW a Mutual Assistance Association or MAA.  KHRW is committed to grass-roots community involvement, advocacy and client’s well-being.  Helping clients find jobs, housing, furniture, English language skills, immigration counseling, mentoring, and orientation into life in America, cross-cultural training, and community building.

        Best wishes for the celebration of the holy month of Ramadan Jashntan Piroz Bet.  I wish you on the occasion of the holiday season a Happy New Year.  May you and your families, friends and dear ones be happy, healthy and prosperous in 1999.   

Bosnia: Pleasant Reminiscence of The Past

by: Aljo Imamovic

        The land of small country of Bosnia, presently known for its unfortunate conditions of civil war, has become familiar to the entire global community.  However, very few know about people’s life experience in this unique, green, surrounded with mountains part of the world.  

        Banja Luka, the second largest city in the region of Bosnia, was a historical center known for its authentic beauty and elegance.  The old city streets told a tale of their life through the walls of its medieval castles and monuments, shady streets and green landscapes.  Summers in Banja Luka were best known for a unique competition of bridge diving.  One of the oldest bridges in Banja Luka, the Gradski bridge, is spread across beautiful Vrbas river.  That is where one August Sunday every year young men sponsored by commercial organizations and corporations dive off Gradski bridge into the river, competing for the utmost athletic performance.  It is wise to not that the bridge clearance is 50 feet, which makes diving very challenging, requiring athletes to possess remarkable dexterity and stamina.  The violent current of the mountain river truly tests the participants’ diving and swimming ability, in spite of life guards on standby in speed boats nearby.

        Truly spectacular, this competition attracts thousands of local admirers from a large surrounding area, followed by colorful festivities well into the late night.  It is unfortunate to realize that this and many other great sporting events and festivals have been interrupted by the civil war.  Most likely, such peaceful gatherings will not take place for a long time in the future…  However, it is everyone’s hope to see great Bosnian traditions to shed their light of happiness upon people’s lives some day once again.  Top