Fruit Symbolism Meaning For Prayers (Don’t Choose Wrongly)

Do you know that there is a fruit symbolism meaning to your prayer offering during events? Therefore, choosing suitable fruits is crucial, as using the wrong ones can lead to unintended consequences.

Each fruit has significance, and understanding the symbolism can help ensure your offerings are appropriate and meaningful.

By knowing the symbolism behind each fruit, you can ensure your prayer offerings align with the desired intentions and convey the appropriate message. It’s a fascinating aspect of cultural traditions that adds depth and meaning to your spiritual practices.

1. Apples

The apple is the most popular fruit in prayer offerings due to its auspicious meaning. Many people associate the Chinese word for apple with peace and safety because the word “苹” sounds like “平”, meaning “peace”, and the entire phrase symbolize harmony and safety.

In addition, the red colour has auspicious connotations in Chinese culture. Red symbolizes good luck, happiness, and prosperity. People usually use this colour in celebrations and special occasions, including festivals and weddings, to bring positive energy and auspiciousness. However, red might only be suitable for some events or spaces. For example, using red in the bedroom is unfavourable.

2. Oranges

These eye-catching bright oranges are seen during the Chinese New Year house visits and prayer offerings. People believe it brings good fortune and prosperity because “ju” sounds like “ji”, meaning auspicious and good luck.

In addition, the pronunciation of the word “orange” (橙 chéng) sounds similar to the word for “success” (成 chéng) in Mandarin, creating an auspicious association everyone loves.

3. Bananas

In some cultures, people have associated bananas with abundance and fertility. The banana plants can bear many fruits, symbolising productivity and prosperity. By offering bananas, people express their desire for the continuation of life’s blessings.

However, in Cantonese, it has the same sound of “招”, which means attract, so you should not use banana on a particular occasion. For example, do not use bananas for prayer during Qing Ming or Hungry Ghost festival to avoid attracting uninvited “friends”.

4. Pineapples

The pineapple‘s crown-like appearance and golden colour symbolize wealth, abundance, and success. In addition, the word resembles “good fortune coming your way” in Hokkien, so the pineapple has become a hot traditional feng shui symbol of wealth and good fortune. When moving house, it is one of the essential fruits you should prepare.

5. Peaches

Peaches symbolize longevity and immortality in Chinese culture, and people believe they are connected to the gods and represent eternal life. Offering peaches in prayer expresses the desire for a long, healthy, and fulfilling life.

6. Pomegranates

The numerous seeds inside the fruit symbolize fertility, growth, and the potential for abundance. Therefore, many believe that offering pomegranates in prayer can bring fertility, prosperity and fruitful life blessings.

7. Melon

The round shape of a melon symbolizes unity, togetherness and harmony. Offering melons in prayer can signify the intention to foster unity and peace and harness positive relationships.

8. Pomelo

The Chinese for pomelo, “You Zi”, sounds like having a son, so people use it to pray to get pregnant with children.

What is the Ideal Number of Fruits for Offering?

Now you know the fruit symbolism and meanings for prayer offerings, so use the right type. In addition, when worshipping, the number of fruits should be in odd numbers (symbolize Yang Energy), which is 1, 3 or 5.