(music) NARRATOR 200 years ago, Hawaiʻi was abundant with sandalwood.

This fragrant timber was traded to the Chinese helping to open up trade relations between China and Hawaiʻi.

Today, Chinese so nostalgically call Hawaiʻi the Sandalwood Mountains.

Prominent in the center of Honolulu is Chinatown where sights, smells and sounds are culturally unique.

Many aspects of Chinese tradition however, are not as conspicuous.

Douglas Chong of the Hawaii Chinese History Center provides us with a view into this fascinating and colorful culture.

Douglas Chong Well, the first Chinese came to Hawaiʻi probably around 1789.

The majority of them came as single cabin boys, boys working on the ships and the whaling ships and jumped ship made Hawaiʻi their home.

Then around the 1820s, there were some Chinese who began experimenting with sugar because the area that they came from in Zhongshan was very native to sugar.

It wasn't until the 1850s that the sugar plantations really began.

And for about 15 years, many of the Chinese that came as single laborers worked in these plantations and eventually moved off went back to China went on to the West Coast.

Then around the 1870s, there was another generation of powerful Cantonese known as the Zhongshan people, beginning with Chun Ah Fong who came in the 1850s on one of these ships.

He eventually married into royalty, became an advisor to the one of the Hawaiian kings, and brought bought out his own plantation.

He went back to China to Zhongshan area and recruited hundreds and hundreds of Zhongshan laborers who came into Hawaiʻi to work on the different plantations.

Many of them got off of the plantations after their period of contract and went into cultivation of rice.

At that time, much of the land that was not in sugar was in taro, and much of the land was still in swamp.

These Chinese went into the swamp areas and drained them and started to cultivate rice.

The Zhongshan area is made up of nine different Doos or sub areas.

And this district is located right across the Pearl River from Hong Kong, above Macau.

Around 60 to 70% of the Chinese in Hawaiʻi, come from the Zhongshan district.

The family structure, as it is today in Hawaiʻi, is really an offshoot of the ancient Chinese family structure, which clearly defines the role of each person's relation to the elders.

Much of that was brought over and the teachings of the Chinese system of education and Confucian values.

And throughout the different generations, Chinese have always regarded the family structure as the most important area in the social system.

The customs connected with family practices still go on today quite a bit in terms of the religious practices, and especially in terms of memorial practices, or remembering one's ancestors, remembering them at New Years, and then welcoming bride or paying respects to a young baby.

All of this is part of the family structure.

So, the festivals and the customs all tie back to the values of piety, love and respect for one's elders and parents.

NARRATOR Religion plays a meaningful role in supporting and sustaining family bonds.

Duane Pang, a Taoist master tells us how the Chinese approach their religions.

Rev.

Duane Pang The religious practices in Hawaiʻi, practiced by the Chinese community, falls mainly on to Taoism, the national religion of China.

What you see now in Hawaiʻi is usually practiced mainly by the elderly Chinese and the recent immigrants.

Also, Chinese Buddhism was introduced into Hawaiʻi about a quarter of a century already.

And the younger generations tend to believe more in the Christian Christian religion, mainly because of their lack of knowledge of language and the cultural traditions.

But in a household, you'd see all three practices of each religion being done together in harmony and understanding.

This is the Wah Kong Temple founded about 60 years ago by the Kutt Hing Society, which is a society for Chinese actors and musicians.

Enshrined in the altar is Wah Kong the patron deity.

Wah Kong is the patron saint of the Chinese actors and musicians, and also the protector of mischievous children.

Also enshrined on the altar is Cao Bak the treasure of heaven, whom a lot of people pray for wealth, and Liu Chu one of the immortals who had practiced internal alchemy and was noted for his Chinese medicine.

This temple is structured in the old Hawaiʻi style of a house where upstairs is the shrine, the alter, the temple and the society hall.

And downstairs where members could move freely and get assistance.

The ritual that will be performed today is called tso sun, giving Thanksgiving for the end of the Chinese year.

It consists of a Taoist ritual called jook sing pai dou, which invokes the pole star.

This ritual dates back to antiquity of about 2,000 years, where they have a bushel with rice, and a scissors, a knife, a ruler and a Chinese measure.

Its, it weighs man's goodness and badness.

And what we're doing today is praying for the forgiveness of our sins and asking for blessings.

This Taoist ritual consists of offering of incense invoking the spirits, purifying the altar, reading the documents, telling of today's event and purpose.

After that, then we will bring down in meditation we'll ritual dance, the Seven Stars of the Big Dipper to grant us blessings and bestow us whatever wishes or desires we have.

And after that, there will be offering of the libations of the tea and whiskey and offerings which the community of the temple has prepared.

(drumming) Rev.

Duane Pang The conclusion of this ritual today will consist of the sacrificing or burning of sacrificial paper offerings, which are in the form of the Chinese Imperial robe, boots and hats, which we believe that the deities or patron saints will be able to have a new set of clothing for the new years to come.

This will all be done outside of the incinerator which the congregation of the church will be offering.

NARRATOR To become a Taoist Master entails years of training and dedication.

A similar type of perseverance is required to become a good calligrapher.

Wah-Chan Thom has been practicing calligraphy for 50 years.

Wah-Chan Thom The Chinese have started the form of writing some 5,000 years ago.

It is a means of communication and fine art.

To begin with the Chinese characters are pictorial.

The Chinese have practiced it many thousand years ago as an art.

The first character here means dragon and the second one is flying.

See, it means that we look forward to be as active as a flying dragon.

Chinese calligraphy is a means of communication throughout the centuries.

Although we have different dialects in different provinces, the characters means the same and is written the same way.

Today, there are four styles of Chinese calligraphy in practice.

The first one is the standard style.

The second one is a little ancient way.

And then the third group is the walking type of calligraphy.

And the last one is that wiry type which is used for seals and chops.

Stephen Kow The Chinese seal has been used primarily as a instrument of authentification of documents.

It continues to be used today in China and Japan and Korea.

In fact, you even need it to cash a check.

It cannot be forged.

Today, seal engraving is also an art form, which encompasses 4,000 years of history.

It's considered the highest form of art in China, surpassing even painting and calligraphy.

NARRATOR Stephen Kow, also a calligrapher, learn this 4,000-year-old art of seal engraving by teaching himself.

Stephen Kow Composition takes up the most time.

This is where art enters.

Engraving itself is merely a technique, it can be learned in a few hours.

To have a good composition, one must have balance of yin and yang, which is substantiality and emptiness.

Once characters must stand up right, and most importantly, the chi or spirit must set right and flow.

Seals were originally made out of metal.

Today, the preferred material is soapstone.

Some of the qualities a seal engraver must possess are - first of all knowledge of Chinese characters.

Secondly, one must have a calm mind, good posture and proper breathing.

Thirdly, one must have a sense of continuity with the past.

When I'm engraving, I get totally absorbed by the art.

My ego disappears.

And there's some kind of creative spirit, which moves my hand.

I think it's important for me to spread this art to show people that there is something bigger than just your ordinary daily life and can be found in ordinary things in the stone.

I think Chinese culture for myself and for other people who study Chinese culture, it gives them an opportunity to be one with nature, to find art in ordinary things.

And for this, it offers much for the Western world.

NARRATOR The United Chinese Press is the only Chinese language paper published in Hawaiʻi.

It began operations more than 30 years ago and is presently located in Honolulu's Chinese Cultural Plaza.

Stephen Pan There are three steps involved in publishing this daily paper.

First, I select news items from local and foreign sources.

Then I rewrite or translate them before editing.

Next, I send the edited copies to Mr.

He Ren Wai, who sets the type.

Finally, the plates are sent to Mr. Xie Juishi, who prints the paper.

The United Chinese Press functions primarily as an information source.

Important news from the state and local government agencies should be known by all citizens.

However, such information is in English.

Therefore, this Chinese language newspaper is essential for those Chinese immigrants who are not yet fluent in English.

Our newspaper also performs a great service for the Chinese themselves.

Overseas Chinese speak various dialects because they came from different regions in China.

So, where a group of Chinese are together, although they may not understand one another through speech, they may all read the same written form and understand it.

NARRATOR Chinese music dates back to 3,000 BC.

Today it is performed at folk festivals, religious ceremonies, and theatrical productions.

A favorite style of music among the Chinese in Hawaiʻi is Cantonese Opera, here performed by the Wo Lok Music Club.

Peter Soong This instrument call yangqin it means foreign haplsichord.

In Chinese we call it, butterfly harp.

This instrument date back to 13th to 16th century.

I been played this instrument about 40 years.

(yangqin music) Harry Lee This is Chinese two string violin.

It called erhu.

I have been playing this for 40 years.

(erhu music) Daniel Chan This is a Chinese flute.

We call it won siu.

And Cantonese or zidi.

It is 2,000 years old, but I've been playing this for 16 years.

This hole is covered with a membrane.

(won siu music) We are from Wo Lok Chinese Musical Club.

Now, we like to play a song called a sup bui jao.

(instrumental music) NARRATOR Celestial Images is a contemporary dance company that participates in the Department of Education's Artists in the Schools Program.

Donna Ching Dang is the company's founder and artistic director.

Donna Ching Dang I began dancing when I was very young.

And I've always enjoyed things Chinese.

As I grew older, I began to feel that dance was a part of my whole life, and I couldn't let go of it.

And it was like Chinese is a part of my life.

And so, I went back to school to learn more about my art form.

I rediscovered different aspects of my Chinese heritage.

So, for my Masters of Fine Arts degree, I decided to do a Chinese ballet, a blending of both cultures.

Originally, I started on the Phoenix dance.

And as I did more research, I realized there were four great mythical creatures of the Chinese heavens.

And it was very exciting to, to study this, and to illuminate the animals that are very important in China and also over for the people of many different ethnic cultures.

So, as I started Monkeys Mirror of Chinese Heavens, I found that the I needed a storyline to tie everything together.

And that's how the Monkey King came in.

So, the Monkey King actually brought the humor into my ballet, and we created a whole story altogether.

This tale starts with monkey tumbling into the room.

And from an ancient mirror of the Tang Dynasty, monkey brings to life the four supernatural creatures of the Chinese heavens.

The first one is the dragon that comes to life.

He represents the emperor of power and strength.

The next one is the Phoenix of Peace, she represents the Empress and spring.

The third one is the unicorn.

She brings good omen, long life, happiness, and the last is the tortoise who represents longevity and endurance.

(ballet dance music) NARRATOR Contemporary dance uses many techniques from the past.

The Lion Dance is a martial art form that is inspired by a centuries old technique.

Kung Fu, sut joy em hei tsun man kei duck... Sifu Keuk Kin Lau The development of kung fu can be traced back about 3,000 or 4,000 years in China.

The basic philosophy behind it is the internal and the external.

Internal is to develop one's inner strength or Qi and the external is a development of using the Chi.

Lion dancing within a kung fu club requires a student to practice at least three years basic minimum, but you need kung fu as a basic foundation for the strength and agility to do the lion dancing with.

(lion dancing drumming) Lion dancing can be traced back about 1,500 or 1,600 years back to the Tang Dynasty.

In Honolulu history of about 100 years records lion dancing.

There are two types of lion dancing one is called the singsi or the awaken lion which kung fu clubs play.

And what one is called the siesi or the auspicious lion which the temple groups play.

And the lion represents the spirit and the capability of expelling all evil influences and bringing good luck so we usually perform it at weddings and birthdays and at temple celebrations where everyone was sharing a happy occasion.

NARRATOR The Lion Dance is an integral part of Chinese celebrations, because it brings good luck and chases away evil spirits.

Toy Len Chang, author of a book on Chinese festivals, talks about the significance of festivals among the Chinese.

Toy Len Chang There are many festivals celebrated by the Chinese in Hawaiʻi because it's a part of their heritage.

It's a time for the families to get together.

Chinese love to celebrate.

Chinese love to get together and they love to eat good food and to remember their ancestors and give thanks for the nice things that have happened during the year.

NARRATOR A very popular event is the Autumn Moon Festival celebrated on the 15th of the 8th month.

Traditionally, families and friends gather to admire the moon by drinking tea and eating mooncakes.

Toy Len Chang This is a mooncake.

It has a round shape like the moon and it's very popular among the Chinese people as well as other ethnic groups.

People have learned to like this moon cakes so in Hawaiʻi this cake is made all year round.

But during the Moon Festival, they make them with various fillings.

Within the cake there is an egg yolk, a duck egg yolk very orangey and bright.

And when the cake is cut, it shows a round egg yolk.

It looks like the moon.

The most important festival in Hawaiʻi is the Chinese New Year's celebration.

It's important because it heralds the coming of spring.

It's not like Christmas, which comes in the dead of winter but Chinese New Year is the beginning of a new period.

NARRATOR Among the traditions associated with Chinese New Year is the cultivation of narcissus flowers.

Ann Lock is in Chinatown to buy narcissus bulbs that have been imported from China.

Ann Lock The bulbs that come from Fukien produce the best flowers, they have the best scent and beautiful color.

And they have a better fragrance than the ones that are imported from the mainland.

And they say that the bulbs that come from Fukien last longer than the bulbs that come from the mainland.

The timing element is important because the Chinese believe that it if it's blooming before, couple of days before Chinese New Year is very good luck.

And if it blooms on New Year's Eve, that's even better.

Two ways of cultivating narcissus.

One way is to set the bulb itself in a bowl and brace it with rocks.

And this method is the straight method.

And the other way is to carve half of the bulb and then your chutes will be seen.

This is called the crab style.

(music) Ann Lock Weather plays a major role in the cultivating of narcissus flowers.

It needs a lot of sun.

And here in Hawaiʻi, we have very good weather.

And it takes 21 to 28 days for cultivating a narcissus bulb.

And with more sun, the blossoms seem to be stronger.

The Chinese in Hawaiʻi cultivate narcissus because it's a symbol of good luck.

There's a story of a man who found some flowers by the riverside and he sold them and he made a fortune.

And I myself cultivate narcissus because my mom did it way back when she was alive.

And I think that the tradition should be revived.

Toy Len Chang Another important part in the Chinese New Year's celebration is extending greetings to friends.

These are all extending good luck wishes.

During New Year’s, children look forward to receiving money packets, these called lai see or hungbao.

They're given by the grownups to children for good luck.

Originally, the Chinese wrapped the money in just this piece of square red paper.

This is the result.

Eventually, during World War Two, this envelope was evolved so that it eliminated the complicated folding.

Today, one could go down to Chinatown and purchase these fancy envelopes or hungbao.

They are in many designs.

They may have words and dragons or flowers.

During the New Year's celebration, children serve tea to the grown-ups, and when they do they receive lai see.

This is a part of their training in filial piety or showing their respect to the elders.

When they serve the tea to the grown-ups, bits of candied fruits or vegetables, tongguo, in other words, are put into the tea cup, and served to wish them a sweet life.

Although the Chinese in Hawaiʻi have assimilated Western ways, it is important for the young to appreciate Chinese traditions.

A way to achieve this is to teach the younger generation to appreciate their cultural heritage.

NARRATOR The Chinese preserved customs and traditions that have existed for centuries.

In Hawaiʻi, or as they say, The Sandalwood Mountains, many of these customs are practiced today through family bonds, religion, ancient crafts, music, dance, and philosophy.

Maintaining their unique traditions enable the Chinese to make a lasting contribution to the art and culture of Hawaiʻi.

(instrumental music)