Bai shou, the birthday bows
The celebrant bows to the ancestors first, then sits in the hall to receive the kneeling of children and the greetings of guests — and the right knee goes down first.
Pronunciation bài shòu｜Rites of life｜One entry in the Chaoshan glossary
What it means
The bows are usually before noon. The celebrant bows to the ancestors first, then sits at the centre of the hall — husband and wife side by side in the front row, each with a chair cushioned in red. Children and grandchildren kneel and greet them, then range themselves on either side and stay to receive the guests with them, kin of the house first and affinal kin after, by rank, bowing or inclining the head and speaking a blessing, and the celebrant returns each greeting.
Inside and outside means the family and the wife’s family: the sons and grandsons bow first, the wife’s own family next, then affinal kin and friends. When the bows are done tea is served and the tables taken; the celebrant gives a red packet to each who came, and to daughters-in-law usually gold or silver jewellery.
When you see it
Once the birthday hall is dressed and the guests assembled the bows begin, most often before noon. The Hakka of Jiexi are the exception: the celebrant bows to the star of the north measure before midnight, and receives the guests the next morning.
Words easily confused
The kneeling is the important part: the right knee goes down first, for left knee first is how one kneels to gods and ghosts — “the upright leg kneels to the living, the reversed leg to the dead”, as the saying goes. Nor is this kneeling the same as at the ancestral sacrifice: there one kneels to the ancestors, here to a living elder.
Read next: Birthday rites: from shang shou to the cai xian table.
See also: Rites of life: the five thresholds side by side.
Same group: the fiftieth year, the five fruits, the birthday table.
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Last revised: 4 November 2026