TOSSING THE YEE SANG (LO HEI 撈起)

My Aunt Linda's birthday falls on the seventh day of the Lunar New Year.  This day is regarded as the birthday for all human beings.  Eich! This is like something out of the Bible where God created man on the seventh day.  Anyway, back to the Yan Yat or the seventh day.  In Malaysia and a few other South-east Asian countries, the Chinese community will enjoy a dish; namely “Yee Sang”,a simple mixture of coloured dry noodles, pepper, five types of spices, raw fish slices, fried sesame and cracker bits on this day and also throughout the 15 days of the first lunar month.
To the uninitiated, let me give you an account of how it is eaten.

1. All the ingredients for the dish are placed separately on the same plate.
2. Everyone then stands up, with their chopsticks ready to toss and mix all the ingredients. In the picture above alLof us are sitting as we are rather shy people.  Ahem!!! Except for me.
3. While tossing, we say out loud the word “loh hei”, which means liveliness, prosperity and longevity. The higher the "Yee Sang" is tossed the merrier it would be and the better the prospects for the year ahead.

The Chinese believe that the act of tossing the Yee Sang would herald success as yu sang is considered a symbol of abundance, prosperity and vigour.