春節貼“福”字，爲什麼要貼倒？

The Chinese character “fu” means good fortune and happiness, and during Spring Festival virtually every family would paste it upside down on their doors in the hope that the word could bring blessings to their families. As to why “fu” should be placed upside down there are three interpretations.
中國漢字“福”意味着好運和幸福。每到春節，幾乎每個家庭都會將“福”字倒貼在家裏的門上，以希望這個字能給家人帶來祝福。爲什麼“福”字要倒着貼呢？這裏有三種解釋。

The first interpretation has the practice of pasting “fu” during Spring Festival originate in Jiang Ziya of the Zhou Dynasty (11th Century-256 B.C.). When Jiang Ziya was made a god, his wife demanded to be made a goddess. “After I married you I was always in poverty in my life,” Lord Jiang said. “It seems you are destined to be poor. So let me appoint you as the Goddess of Poverty.”
第一種關於春節貼“福”字的習俗跟周朝（公元前11世紀－前256年）的姜子牙有關。姜子牙成仙以後，他的妻子請求姜子牙將她封仙，“自從我們成親以後，我一直過得很困苦。”姜子牙說道，“似乎你命中註定就該貧窮，所以我封你爲‘窮神’。”

No knowing what being the Goddess of Poverty held in store for her, his wife was nevertheless happy about becoming a goddess. Cheerfully, she asked, “Now that I'm the Goddess of Poverty, where shall be my domain?” Jiang replied, “You are off limits wherever there is good fortune” When the residents got word of Jiang's instruction, they wrote the character “fu” on paper and pasted it on the doors and windows of their houses to keep the Goddess of Poverty away. Thus pasting “fu” during the Spring Festival became a Chinese tradition.
雖然不知道‘窮神’意味着什麼，他的妻子還是很高興能被封神。她高興地問道：“既然我已經被封爲‘窮神’，那我該管轄哪裏呢？”姜子牙答道：“有好運的地方你都禁止踏入。”居民們聽到姜子牙的指示，就在紙上寫下“福”字貼在家裏的窗戶上以趕走“窮神”。久而久之，春節貼“福”字就成了一種傳統。The second interpretation ascribes the practice to Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty. One year, on the 15th of the first lunar month, Zhu went incognito on a fact-finding inspection tour. When he arrived at a town he saw people huddle together and watch a painting that poked fun at women of west Anhui refusing to have their feet bound by featuring a bare-footed woman holding a large watermelon in her arms.
第二種解釋跟明朝開祖皇帝朱元璋有關。某一年第一個月圓之夜，朱元璋祕密外出巡查，當他來到一個小鎮時，他發現一羣人擠在一起，圍觀一幅婦女的畫。畫上的婦女赤着腳，手裏抱着個大西瓜，這幅畫是取笑安徽西部不裹腳的婦女們。

The emperor, however, misconstrued the meaning of the painting, thinking that people were laughing at his wife, Empress Ma. Who came exactly from west Anhui. Returning to his palace he sent some soldiers to look into the matter. He particularly wanted to know who were those people watched and commented on the painting, and who was the painter.
這位皇帝看到這幅畫誤以爲人們是在嘲笑他的皇后馬氏，因爲大腳馬皇后就來自安徽西部。回到皇宮後他就派士兵去調查此事。他命令追查到底有哪些人對這幅畫評頭論足，還有這幅畫的作者到底是誰。

He also asked the soldiers to paste “fu” on the doors of those who did not join in the crowd. Two days later, another team of soldiers arrived in town to arrest people from the houses whose doors were not marked with “fu” on charges of scoffing at the queen. Since then the Chinese have been pasting “fu” on the doors of their houses to shun trouble.
他還命令士兵將沒有參與這件事的人家貼上“福”字。兩天後士兵來到那些沒貼“福”字的人家裏，將那些人以嘲諷皇后的罪名抓走了。從此以後，中國人就在家門上貼上“福”字以躲避災禍。The third interpretation attributes the practice to Fu Jin, the Princes of Gong of the Qing Dynasty. Once, on the lunar New Year's Eve, the butler of the mansion of the Prince of Gong wanted to curry favor with his master.
第三種解釋跟清朝的恭親王福晉有關。某一年春節，親王家的管家想討主子歡心。

He followed past practice and had several large “fu” written and pasted on the front gates of the warehouse and the mansion. One of the men sent to do the pasting was illiterate and put the character upside down on the front gate of the mansion. Enraged, Fu Jin wanted to punish the perpetrator by whipping him.
他遵照傳統，命人在庫房和王府大門上貼了幾個大大的“福”字。有個奴才因爲不識字將王府大門的“福”字貼倒了。福晉因此十分生氣，打算鞭打那個犯錯的人。

The butler, who had the gift of the gab, hastened to go down on his knees and pleaded: “Your humble servant often heard people say that Your Excellency is a man of longevity and great fortune. Indeed, great fortune did arrive today; it is a good sign.” Fu Jin was convinced. “This is why the passers-by were saying that great fortune had arrived in the mansion of the Princess of Gong,” she thought, “Once an auspicious saying is repeated for a thousand times, my wealth could increase by 10,000 taels of gold and silver.”
這個大管家能言善辯，趕緊給主子跪下求情：“奴才常聽人說親王壽高福大造化大，如今大福真的到（倒）了，乃吉慶之兆。”福晉聽罷心想，怪不得過往行人都說恭親王府福到（倒）了，吉語說千遍，金銀增萬貫。

She then awarded the butler and the servant who pasted the paper upside down fifty taels of silver. Since then the practice of pasting “fu” upside down during Spring Festival has become a tradition followed by both imperial aristocrats and commoners.
福晉一高興， 便重賞了管家和那個貼倒福的奴才。從此以後，春節倒貼“福”字就成了封建貴族和普通百姓的共同傳統。