Year of the Fire Horse: 7 things you should avoid today for a prosperous 2026

Today marks the first day of the Lunar New Year, marking the Year of the Fire Horse - this particular animal element combination only occurs once every 60 years.

This day coincides with the first new moon of the lunar calendar, where a 15-day festival takes place every year (January 21 and 20 February 20).

Various traditions and superstitions that coincide with the celebration, in particular, things we do in our daily life that we should avoid today.

Here is a round up of some of them:

Don't wash or cut your hair

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On Chinese New Year's Day, it is considered bad luck to wash your hair - so even if it is your designated hair wash day, it is best to avoid.

That's because in Mandarin, hair (发, fa) has the same pronunciation (and indeed is the same character) as fa in facai (发财), which means 'to become wealthy', according to China Highlights.

It means it's not good to "wash one's fortune away" as the New Year starts.

Thinking about a new haircut? Think again, at least today as China Highlights says it "might bring misfortune to uncles."

Don't sweep or dispose of rubbish

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Put down that brush for the Chinese New Year, as it is seen as brushing your luck away for the year ahead, and don't take rubbish out either, this is because it represents dumping out the good luck or good fortune from the house.

The chores will have to wait!

Don't take medicine

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It is also considered bad luck to take medicine on the first day of the Lunar New Year, this is due to the belief that it will cause you to be ill for the remainder of the year.

Avoid eating porridge for breakfast

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Porridge is perceived by some as the food people from lower socioeconomic backgrounds have for breakfast, and therefore it is considered a bad omen to eat porridge at the beginning of the year for this reason.

Don't wash clothes

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The first and second day of the Lunar Year is the birthday of the “Water God", and so you're not meant to wash your clothes as a sign of respect to the "Water God".

Don't wear black and white (wear red)

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Although black and white clothing may be a wardrobe staple, it is best not to wear them during the Chinese New Year as they are considered mourning colours. Instead, you should wear red because it is seen as a lucky colour.

Avoid breaking plates, bowls, and glass

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Breaking something fragile is annoying, but particularly during the Lunar New Year, it represents "incompleteness and bad luck," as per China Highlights, and symbolises disruption.

So what should you do if this does happen?

Wrap the fragments of the shattered object in red paper or cloth and throw it away on the fifth day of the new lunar year, according to CNN.

Alternatively, saying the phrase “Sui Sui Ping An," the words for “year” and “broken” sound similar in Mandarin, so saying them together is believed to expel bad luck.

Elsewhere from Indy100, Why is Gen Z so obsessed with the Year of the Fire Horse? Here's why 2026 could change everything, and Tom Felton’s Draco Malfoy is now a Chinese New Year mascot – and Harry Potter fans love it.

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