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Chinese New Year to be celebrated in NWI with acupuncture, performances

Chinese New Year is a time for people to get together, Grace Yang said.

Yang, the Chinese student association faculty adviser at Purdue Northwest said often people go home to China to celebrate with family and friends. Since that’s not always feasible, Yang said an event Feb. 9 at Purdue gives students the chance to celebrate together.

“It’s among the biggest one on campus,” Yang said about the celebration. “Usually we expect 250 to 300 guests from our university, students, staff and also from local community.”

Chinese New Year, also known as Spring Festival or Lunar New Year, is based on a traditional Chinese lunisolar calendar, whose dates indicate the phase of the moon and the time of the solar year. It’s the Year of the Rat, which is the first zodiac sign in the Chinese zodiac cycle, and this year Chinese New Year will stretch from Jan. 25 to Feb. 11.

“This is the biggest holiday in China,” Yang said. “Back in China, it’s a two-week celebration. So, it’s huge.”

Chunyun, also referred to as the Spring Festival travel season, is a period of high traffic for traveling to China, due to people going home to celebrate Chinese New Year with their families. In modern China, the Chinese New Year is a celebrated public holiday and often people receive seven days of time off.

Yang has been involved in the event at PNW for more than 10 years, though it’s almost entirely put together by students, Yang said. This year the Feb. 9 event will take place in the Student-Faculty Library Building in Alumni Hall on the Hammond campus, and will feature Chinese food ordered from a local Chinese restaurant, pizza as well as a two-hour performance beginning at 4 p.m.

“Our students are quite talented,” Yang said. “Every time, it’s amazing. Sometimes they will also try to promote a little bit of Chinese culture, like the Chinese writing with the brush — people are interested.”

East Wind Acupuncture & Studios in Chesterton will also have an event to celebrate Chinese New Year beginning at 6 p.m. Jan. 25.

The free event, which happens every year, will feature astrology charting, guided meditation, chair massages and more.

“It’s just a really good thing to bring to the community, a connecting point to bring people together and show what we can do,” Alecks Voss, office manager at East Winds Acupuncture & Studios, said.

The event will also give participants the chance to receive a mini acupuncture session. Acupuncture is a traditional Chinese medicine practice in which acupuncturists insert hair-thin needles to specific acupuncture points throughout the body to restore the balance, relaxation and stimulate healing.

East Wind Acupuncture & Studios will also have a lantern release, which is another common part of Chinese New Year celebrations. The Lantern Festival traditionally marks the end of the Chinese New Year, falls annually on the 15th day of the Lunar New Year, and celebrates family and aims to promote peace, among other things.

“I think the special lighted lantern release is going to be super awesome,” Voss said. “We write an intention on the paper and attach it to the lantern and then we release the lanterns.”

Chinese New Year traditionally lasts 15 days. Each day holds significance, and traditionally allows people to spend time with family.

“We’re trying to do our best to let the students away from home still have a chance to celebrate,” Yang said. “We want to promote Chinese culture to the entire campus and community.”

Hannah Reed is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.