There are many different meanings for
red in every culture. It always means "blood" but even then it can be either blood shed heroically or the blood of a victim. In Asia,
red is almost always good luck.
Red (as with all colors) means different things depending upon the context in which it is used. In Japan,
red ink is a traditional method of writing a letter than ends a relationship (like a dear
john, or a pink slip). A
red sports car in the US might be thought of as a fun and "sexy" car, but if a middle-aged bald guy is driving it, it's seen as a pathetic display of male menopause. In most cultures,
red is used to get attention. It's been a banner of revolution since the French Revolution (and probably before) and as a flag has become a symbol of populist, usually communist, revolts.
The Chinese, for example, have more than 30 single characters describing different kinds of
red.
Red of wine,
red of silk,
red of wood,
red of meat.... Even more phrases are used to describe different levels of
red. All these are not just about words, but how the meaning of colors evolves from daily life, not just for a single color
RED. At least, we can know when is not a right time to use a color with right meaning
(wedding in Japanese uses white, while in Chinese is
red.)
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Colour was important in Hindu science and religion. For example, the spirit of
red cloth, or redness itself, could combine with a person’s moral substance and transform it, such that a “
red man” might be a sorcerer. Soldiers wore
red turbans in battle, women wore
red clothes and
reddened their hands and hair during
marriage or fertility festivals. Influenced by soldiers of the East India Company’s ‘
red coats’, Indian rulers in the eighteenth century adopted
scarlet English broadcloth to make their own armies more impressive. The ‘
red coats’ were appropriate to the tra- ditional colour-coding of the Indian warrior classes, and the use of
red serge spread from Nawab of Awadh’s 60,000 man army to those of his competitors and others.
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Cultures and Meanings:
Red• Australian Aboriginals: Land, earth
• Celtic: Death, afterlife
• China: Good luck, celebration, summoning
• Cherokees: Success, triumph. Represents the East.
• Hebrew: Sacrifice, sin
• India: Purity
• South Africa: Color of mourning
• Russia: Bolsheviks and Communism
• Eastern: Worn by brides, happiness and prosperity
• Western: Excitement, danger, love, passion, stop, Christmas (with green), Valentine's Day
• Feng Shui: Yang, fire, good luck, money, respect, recognition, vitality
• Psychology: Stimulates brain wave activity, increases heart rate, increases blood pressure
• Roses: Love, respect - red and yellow together means
gaiety, joviality
• Stained Glass (Dante): Divine love, the Holy Spirit, courage, self-sacrifice, martyrdom. A warm, active color.
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COLOR RED IN JAPANESE MYTHOLOGYRed bibs, robes, scarfs, and caps are related to certain deities:
Monkey. Sannou Gongen. Expels Demons of Sickness; Deity of Fertility
Fox (Kitsune) is the
messenger of Oinari (Inari), Deity of Rice Harvest
Bindorabaradaja (J); Also called Binzuru (J). Pindola Bharadraja (Skt). Binzuru; Healer; Most Revered Arhat in Japan
Koyasu Kannon - The Child-Giving Bosatsu, Goddess of Mercy
Jizo and Koyasu Jizo - Patron of Children, Giver of Children
Daruma, Zen Patriarch, Protector Agains Illness, Bringer of Good Luck
Shishi Lion Dogs Guard the Gates to Shinto Shrines
The Nio Kings Guard the Gates to Buddhist Temples
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To everything (turn, turn, turn)
