How We Celebrate Christmas in India|在印度我們也慶祝聖誕節

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One of the best things about growing up in India was all the holidays we celebrated. As a multicultural country, all festivals are celebrated with lots of joy and gusto. Some of the popular festivals are Diwali, Holi, and Eid, but you may be surprised to know that India is home to a considerable population of Christians, who, along with the rest of the country, celebrate Christmas with their own rituals and traditions.

在印度長大的最好的事情之一是我們會慶祝的所有節日。 作為一個多元文化的國家，所有的節日都充滿歡樂和熱情的慶祝。 一些流行的節日是排燈節，灑紅節和開齋節，但你可能不知道印度是大量基督徒的家園，他們用自己的儀式和傳統慶祝聖誕節。

Here are some of my memories of celebrating Christmas in India.

以下是我在印度過聖誕節的一些回憶。

A Catholic Christmas in India

印度的天主教聖誕節

I grew up in a Catholic family in India, and as children, we always looked forward to the Christmas break. Christmas in India is particularly religious, with church services playing a huge role in celebrating this festival. The preparations start — as in Western countries — on Advent Sunday. Churches start planning their celebrations and masses, and households start planning their food, sweets, and decorations.

我在印度的一個天主教家庭長大，作為孩子，我們總是很期待聖誕節的到來。印度的聖誕節特別具有宗教色彩，教堂在聖誕節是重要的一部分。如西方國家 - 教會開始準備慶祝活動和群眾，家庭開始準備食物，糖果和裝飾。

Bright Color & Lights

明亮的色彩和燈光

It is a colorful festival — as are most in India — and local stores, markets, and malls are draped in multicolored twinkling fairy lights, paper streamers, and flowers. One of the things that my daughter noticed about Christmas in India last year was the brightness of it all. For Indians, festivals are always celebrated with lights and colors, and Christmas is no exception. Churches are decorated using stunning light shows and look spectacular in the night.

這是一個豐富多彩的節日 - 就像印度的其他節日一樣 - 當地的商店，市場和購物中心都掛滿了五彩閃爍的童話般的燈，紙質飄帶和鮮花。我女兒去年在印度最喜歡的聖誕節的就是它的亮度。對於印度人來說，節日總是以燈光和色彩為主，聖誕節也不例外。教堂採用令人眼花繚亂的燈光裝飾，夜晚非常壯觀。

Most families put up a Christmas tree. Snow is in short supply, but that does not deter enterprising children from draping cotton wool all over their trees to imitate snow-covered evergreens. A lot of decorations and ornaments are handmade, and stars are everywhere. My dad put up Christmas stars all over the house and out on the roads to welcome friends, neighbors, and family to our home at Christmastime.

大多數家庭都會豎起一棵聖誕樹。雪是可遇而不可求的，但這並不能阻止的孩子們在整個樹上覆蓋棉花來模仿白雪覆蓋的常青樹的熱情。很多裝飾品都是手工製作的，星星無處不在。我父親在聖誕節期間在家裡和街道上張貼聖誕星，歡迎朋友，鄰居和家人來我們家。

Christmas Food in India

在印度的聖誕食物

Christmas cooking also starts early. Christmas sweets — mainly originating from Goa and adapted in the rest of the country — are traditionally called 「kuswar,」 and they range from deeply delicious dense Christmas fruitcakes to rose cookies and 「kidiyo」 (literally translating as worms, but these are deep-fried curly dough balls, dusted in icing sugar). We also make sweet dumplings called 「newrio,」 stuffed with palm sugar, sweet grated coconut, and sesame seeds. Savoury banana chips, crisp chaklis (a round, deep-fried savoury made with lentils), and cardamom and cashew macaroons round up a versatile collection of Christmas goodies.

聖誕食物也是提前準備的。聖誕糖果 - 主要來自果阿 傳統上被稱為「kuswar」，它們的範圍從美味濃鬱的聖誕水果蛋糕到玫瑰餅乾和「kidiyo」（字面意思是蠕蟲，但這些都是深油炸的捲曲麵團球，撒上糖霜）。我們還製作了名為「newrio」的甜餃子，裡面塞滿了棕櫚糖，甜磨碎的椰子和芝麻。美味的香蕉片，酥脆的chaklis（用扁豆製成的圓形，油炸的鹹味），以及小豆蔻和腰果蛋白杏仁餅乾，多種多樣的聖誕禮物。

Making these sweets is a family affair, as all the women in our extended family get together and make them over a weekend or two. It was an exciting time to be a child, as scraps were always plentiful, and we were also allowed to stay up late with our cousins and friends while our mothers gossiped around the kitchen.

製作這些糖果是一種家庭節日儀式，我們大家族中的所有女性聚在一起並提前一兩個周末製作。這成為孩子們激動的時刻，因為我們的母親在廚房裡一邊製作一邊閒聊，而我們則可以和兄弟姐妹聚在一起玩耍和吃著美食，現在想起來畫面很溫馨。

I love all the cultural influences that go into these sweets. Fruitcakes, for example, are heavily influenced by British plum puddings, and indeed, are also occasionally called plum cakes in India. Rose cookies are a result of the Dutch occupation, and a lot of the other sweets are the result of Portuguese and French cuisines. Our Christmas is, therefore, a true melting pot of all the cultures that were part of India during colonial times.

我喜歡這些糖果的所有文化。例如，水果蛋糕受到英國李子布丁的嚴重影響，實際上，在印度偶爾也會被稱為李子蛋糕。玫瑰餅乾是荷蘭人佔領的結果，許多其他糖果是葡萄牙和法國美食的結果。因此，我們的聖誕節是殖民時期印度所有文化的真正大熔爐。

The Christmas Crib

聖誕嬰兒床

Along with food, the nativity scenes — we call them Christmas cribs — are an important part of our Christmas traditions. We planned our cribs early in the month, as there was always (not-so) friendly competition in the neighborhoods and between churches as to whose crib was the most elaborate. My sister and I spent hours planning our own. We grew paddy plants in small trays, and we collected bricks and sand. We could hardly wait for the day our schools closed for the Christmas break, as that is when we would pull out all our nativity statues and go about creating beautiful, detailed cribs, resplendent with lights, fields, bridges, and waterfalls.

除了食物，關於聖誕節的場景 - 還有我們稱之為聖誕嬰兒床 - 是我們聖誕節傳統的重要部分。 我們在這個月初會提前準備了嬰兒床，教堂的嬰兒床是最精細的。 我和姐姐會花幾個小時製作我們自己的嬰兒車。 我們用小託盤種植水稻植物，我們收集磚和沙子。 我們迫不及待地等待聖誕節那天我們學校放假我，因為那時我們將把所有的耶穌誕生雕像拿出來，精緻的嬰兒床，璀璨的燈光，還有田野，橋梁和瀑布。

At midnight on Christmas Eve, we would reverently place the baby Jesus statue in the scene, and then admire our handiwork all through the season.

在聖誕節前一個晚上，我們會虔誠地將嬰兒耶穌雕像放置在場景中，然後在整個季節中都可以欣賞到我們的手工藝品。

Christmas Eve

平安夜

By the time Christmas Eve rolled around, we would be delirious with excitement. All that week, preparations for the day were being made. The pork (dukra maas) and chicken curries — staples of our Christmas dinners — were made in advance and left to mature. Batter was ground for sannas (steamed rice cakes) and left to ferment overnight for soft, fluffy breads, perfect to soak up all those curries. Last-minute alterations were made to our Christmas clothes and there was a lot of excitement in the air.

平安夜到來的時候，我們會興奮得睡不著。整個星期，都在準備當天的裝飾。豬肉（dukra maas）和雞肉咖喱 - 我們聖誕節晚餐的主食 - 都是提前製作的。將麵糊放入sannas（蒸米糕）中，然後放置過夜，以獲得柔軟蓬鬆的麵包，非常適合吸收所有咖喱。我們聖誕節服裝也是不可缺少的。

One of our most enduring Christmas traditions is that of the midnight mass. Churches start their services with carol singing, after which the Christmas mass is held. We were all dressed up in our best finery and after the service, we milled around the church, socializing and wishing everybody Merry Christmas. It was hot and dusty, and the smells of cooking permeated the air. After church, we usually went to visit family or friends, and shared a piece of rich fruitcake and small glasses of port wine. Us kids were allowed small sips from the grownups』 wine glasses. We were also allowed to have a small taste of that pork curry, deliciously spicy and fragrant, and we would then head back home, tired but still excited for Christmas day to arrive.

我們最持久的聖誕傳統之一是午夜彌撒。教堂以頌歌開始他們的慶祝，之後舉行聖誕彌撒。我們都穿著聖誕的服裝，在教堂周圍祝大家聖誕快樂。烹飪的氣味瀰漫在空氣中。在教堂之後，我們經常去探望家人或朋友，並分享一塊豐富的水果蛋糕和一小杯波特酒。我們的孩子們可以從成年人的酒杯中小口啜飲。我們也被允許品嘗一下那種豬肉咖喱，味道辛辣和香氣，然後我們會回到家裡，累了但是仍然很興奮聖誕節的到來。

Christmas Morning

聖誕節早晨

We don't  do Christmas presents in India. Instead, we would wake up to a hot, spicy breakfast, and then we would gather up the boxes of dark fruitcakes and homemade kuswar and head over to all our neighbors』, family, and friends』 homes. It didn't matter if they were Hindu, Christian, or Muslim — all neighbors got some goodies, and we wished them a Happy Christmas. We would finish our sweet errands by noon, after which it was time to savor a spicy Indian Christmas lunch.

聖誕節我們醒來時會吃到熱辣的早餐，然後我們會收集深色水果蛋糕和自製的kuswar盒子，然後前往我們所有鄰居，家人和朋友的家中。 無論他們是印度教徒，基督徒還是穆斯林都沒關係 - 所有鄰居都得到了一些小禮物，我們祝他們聖誕節快樂。 我們將在中午之前完成這甜蜜的事情，之後是時候品嘗辛辣的印度聖誕午餐了。

Lunch done, and pleasantly satiated, we would make up for our late night with a siesta, after which it was time to head to the Christmas dance with our friends. We danced the night away, and when the sun rose on Boxing Day, we all piled into cars and headed to the beach to watch the sun rise. Then it was breakfast in a small roadside café, and home to celebrate the end of another wonderful year and look forward to the new year.

午餐完成，吃得愉快，我們會在午睡時間休息一下，之後是時候和我們的朋友一起去跳聖誕舞蹈了。 我們在夜晚跳舞，也可以太陽升起時，前往海灘觀看太陽升起。 然後是在路邊小咖啡館吃早餐，回家度過了另一個美好的一年，並期待新的一年的美好。

In recent times, I have spent more Christmases away from my home in India, and while we celebrate it living in China with presents, Santa Claus, and baking, my old Christmas traditions in India will always have a special place in my heart. I try to recreate some of them for my daughter and family, and for us, it is a celebration that encompasses all our cultures. After all, Christmas is a time for family, friends, and food. And one cannot ask for anything more than to be surrounded by tradition, love, and happiness during this most joyous of seasons.

現在我很多聖誕節之際我沒有在印度的家中度過了，更多的聖誕節是在中國，在中國一樣用禮物，聖誕老人和烘焙慶祝，但我在印度的聖誕節在我心中佔有特殊的位置。 我試圖為我的女兒和家人重新創造一些，對我們來說，這是一個包含我們所有文化的慶祝活動。 畢竟，聖誕節是家人，朋友和美食的時間。 

India celebrates every festival in the world. Christmas In India is also celebrated with equal zest and fervor as in other parts of the world yet has given it its own flavor. We celebrate all festivals together, that's the beauty of growing up in India. Merry Xmas !

印度慶祝世界上的每一個節日。 聖誕節印度也與世界其他地區同樣的熱情來慶祝，但卻賦予了它自己的味道. 我們一起慶祝所有節日，這就是在印度的美好。 聖誕快樂 ！

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Source: thekitchn.com

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