Why don't they still use spoons and forks in China and Japan?
It is impossible to imagine Asian cuisine with forks and spoons. It's like visiting the theater in scuba gear or hiking in the mountains in heels. Why is the tradition of using chopsticks so strong in China and Japan?
The content of the article
Who invented
According to historians, they began to be used in China approximately 5,000 years ago. It is assumed that at first they were not eaten, but used for cooking. The prototype was thin twigs, which are convenient for lifting and turning pieces of meat and fish over the fire.
There is a beautiful legend about a mythical Chinese ruler named Yu the Great. It says that he lived in the third millennium BC, and one day during lunch he took a piece of meat from a boiling pot with two branches. Archaeologists have found ancient tools dating back to 7,000 BC!
Due to the rapid growth of the Asian population, chopsticks became an integral part of the eating culture around 500 BC. e. To feed all family members, food had to be divided into small portions, because even a small piece of meat would be enough for everyone. Manufacturing does not require special skills; commoners used bamboo, which grew everywhere.
Aristocrats used silver items, believing that the noble metal would turn black when in contact with poison and would save lives by warning the owner of the danger.
Philosophical meaning
If you look at the question from a philosophical point of view, interesting facts and observations are revealed. It is believed that the use of wooden sticks was promoted by the great Chinese thinker Confucius. He was known as a vegetarian, preaching the philosophy of honesty, nobility and peace without violence. Metal, by this thought, is associated with weapons and carnage, so it has no place at the dinner table!
A person who makes cutlery is a priori incapable of evil.
It turns out that the spoon and fork become a symbol of war, and chopsticks correspond to the concepts of “Zen” - a teaching that calls for balance and peace. Even in the movements themselves an interesting detail is noticeable: the passive element is yin, and the active element is yang! The shape tells us the following: the rounded end means the sky, and the square end means the earth, while the fingers represent a person who feeds on the earth and sky. Even in such a simple subject we see the depth of observation of nature.
The length is strictly regulated and is 7 Chinese cun and 6 fen - 7 feelings and 6 desires, depicted in Buddhism.
The practical side of the issue
A certain ritualism and tribute to the traditions of their ancestors helps Asian peoples maintain the continuity of generations. We have already figured out that the ancient instrument has philosophical overtones, but what are the practical benefits?
- Eating with a spoon is convenient and quick, but this does not contribute to proper digestion. Chopsticks allow you to stretch out the process of eating, savoring every bite. The body becomes full slowly, managing to signal satiety in time. The Japanese and Chinese never overeat and digest food easily.
- In this way, the amount of food eaten is reduced. We put a spoon into our mouth one after another, without stopping, the stomach demands continuation, and this leads to heaviness and excess weight.
- Lunches and dinners are not served hastily. A philosophical approach to life and food allows you to enjoy the process and puts you in a good mood.
- Great finger training since childhood! Fine motor skills of the hands of Asian peoples are perfectly developed.
- All the muscles of the palm work and the points of nerve endings are stimulated, responsible for the functioning of the digestive organs.
The Japanese are confident that children who begin to eat with a spoon are developmentally behind compared to their peers who learn to use traditional utensils.
While eating, you should never move the dishes with them, just hold them in your mouth or wave them in the air. Etiquette does not allow pinching pieces of food or playing around at the table. For Eastern people, symbolism and rituals are important! I really like the tradition of giving wands to newlyweds; it signifies their spiritual closeness and inseparability. How well noted, isn’t it?
By becoming familiar with the cultural characteristics of other peoples, we develop our spirituality and broaden our horizons.
Somehow they forgot to mention that putting a spoon in your mouth is not very pleasant! That not very educated and poor people ate everything with a spoon for centuries - all the dishes in a row, then licked them and put them in their own boot for storage!! )) And the spoons were mostly wooden - and did not fit very well in the mouth due to their size)) Chopsticks, in terms of ease of eating, are much closer to a fork - the cutlery of wealthy, educated and cultured people who do not eat first course and salad from the same same unwashed dishes and the same spoon, which is also not washed when changing dishes! )))
The northern Han Chinese have a lot of soups; thin porridge is traditional for breakfast - and since time immemorial they have been eating such food with ceramic (now also plastic) round spoons. They often overeat; there are a lot of fat, pot-bellied men in the north. I’m not interested in the Japanese, but don’t lie about the Chinese.
The Chinese and Japanese have and always have had spoons; oddly enough, they use them to eat soups.
the square side is a symbol of the earth. seriously? I'll meet you around the corner)))
if they all took spoons, then the rest would have to eat with chopsticks((((
And the main reason is simply convenient. When I learned to eat with chopsticks in Harbin, I started eating dumplings faster than with a fork)
Since school, they have been pushing Darwin's theory of the origin of man from ape, but not proven by Darwin or anyone else, that Gavrila and gorilla are nouns with practically the same root. Fine.But where are the narrow-film monkeys of which Mongoloids are seen? Where have you seen red-skinned monkeys, some of which are Indians of North America? Why does a Chinese have chopsticks for dinner, a European has a spoon, and an Asian just has fingers? Why, given the colossal difference in culture, is the cutlery of the Japanese, Chinese and Koreans practically the same and such cutlery is not found in any other culture? These are the questions that need to be answered first. Everything else will follow by itself.
There would be something to eat.
Masochists.
Not a big problem. In any Chinese or Japanese restaurant, they will bring you both a spoon and a fork upon your request. Knives are usually not required: the meat is served only finely chopped.