Tradition
Because I’m on sabbatical, I find that I'm more reflective
about many things. One topic that has particularly drawn me and which I'm
striving to deepen myself about is 'tradition.' It's even become a central
concept in the book I'm currently writing.
Of course, I start with my own tradition(s). What is my/our
Tradition? What are the traditions I'd like to pass on to the next
generation, particularly, our daughter, my students, the members of my extended
family and clan? This question about tradition is also profoundly tied
with the question of identity: What is the identity behind the
tradition?
These thoughts have come to the fore because of the Moon
(Mid-Autumn Harvest) Festival this year which fell on September 13 (earlier
than the usual).
It seems I have passed on the use of the word 'tradition' to
our daughter because when I'd like to reinforce a practice or emphasize the
importance of a ritual, a behaviour, a way of doing things or practically
anything (e.g., why we eat certain things), I solemnly proclaim "It's our
tradition." I find our daughter also using the same expression to
emphasize the importance of things. D, my wife, finds my penchant for
proclaiming our "traditions" amusing. But then, tradition is without
question such an important thing. Without it, as the philosophers Hannah
Arendt and Simone Weil said in effect, people would be “rootless.” It is this
rootlessness that gives rise to more insidious things in society such as
totalitarian regimes.
This year, for the Moon Festival, in order to
"justify" our purchase of an elegant box of mooncake delicacies at
the Asian grocery nearby (they are not cheap!), as usual, I said, "It's a tradition."
So let me relate why I grew fond of mooncakes.
Mr Chung and His Mooncake Gifts
When I was a boy, a Chinese friend of my father, a certain
Mr. Chung (a least, his name sounded that way) would bring us mooncakes
from Manila's Chinatown. I only came to know recently that giving someone a
mooncake means that the giver wishes you well. People give mooncakes to
relatives and really dear friends. Mr. Chung and my dad must have really been
good friends for him to give us mooncakes regularly.
The mooncakes from Mr. Chung seemed to be really special
delicacies in a metal box, the type you want to use to store important things
later on. When you opened the container, a number of deliciously
looking mooncakes were staring back at you; some of them had salted egg yolks in them. These ones became
my favourites.
That's the origin of my love of mooncakes.
The Moon
 |
| the full moon as seen from our house |
Of course, the moon is the central symbol of the Mid-Autumn
Harvest Festival appropriately also known as "the Moon Festival." So
let me also relate my moon-experiences.
Years later when I lived in Japan in my 20s, when early Fall
came after the generally very hot and humid Tokyo summer, I would go out at
night to enjoy the cooler weather and also gaze at the moon. I fondly remember often
gazing at the autumn moon from the roof terrace of our seminary building
which was a prominent building in the neighborhood where I lived called
"Fujimicho” (literally, "town where Mt. Fuji is visible"), in
Chofu-Tokyo. Yes, one could see Mt. Fuji from that building's roof terrace on
clear days. And yes, the full moon was also beautiful from that vantage point.
It was in Japan where I learned how to observe nature more
carefully in keeping with this excellent Japanese characteristic of being sensitive
to nature. Thus, I learned to notice and observe better the subtle changes in
nature accompanying the different seasons of the year. I also realized how
really beautiful the autumn full moon is. Besides, Japan has its own tradition
of o-tsukimi (お月見, literally, moon watching)
when people would go outside, drink sake, eat tsukimi dango and of
course admire the beauty of the moon.
I cherish and treasure these memories.
So this is why I grew to be fond of mooncakes. This is why I
regularly buy mooncakes at the Asian grocery even now. This is also why our
daughter KH has also come to love mooncakes.
It's amazing that behind every so-called
'tradition,' there is a rich back story of experiences from one's personal
history. It is good to be aware of the origins of our so-called traditions.
