At some Chinese weddings, a little boy is invited to roll across the wedding bed while chanting blessings, praying for the couple to have children and enjoy prosperity.
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Known as gun chuang or “rolling the bed”, this centuries-old tradition originated in northern China but has since spread nationwide.
In ancient China, when populations were small and productivity low, families desperately hoped for a male heir to help with agricultural work.
Legend tells of a woman from the Zhao family who, after bearing six daughters in a row, became desperate for a son.
One night, she dreamed of a wise old man with flowing white hair who whispered to her the secret to bearing a son.
The next morning, the wife visited her brother-in-law’s house, brought back two little boys and had them roll on her bed three times.
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Months later, she gave birth to twin sons, and this method of “praying for a son” soon became a widely known tradition.
