How many asian style tanks do you have?

[kurtsshotgun]

Does my 25g sumatran (stock at least, need to work on plants) count:

1 pearl gourami, 4 harlequins and 11 kuhli loachs

There was originally 2 pearls and more harlequins. I fed some of the harlequins to my saums and need to replace them. The pearl had a run in with an impeller when I screwed up.

 

[elindra]

In my 125 of a few years ago I had: 1 18 inch silver arrowanna. 1 red tailed prochilodus (Fein Feng) that was 13 inches and a 10 inch chinese Hi-fin shark. My Chinese neighbor gave me the idea when he saw my arrowanna. He said the three fish together gave a family luck in China. Anyone ever hear of this?

No idea.
I'm asian and I've never heard of it before.
Anyway the Chinese have all sorts of formula for luck

 

[uting]

OK, at one point in time my 29g was a bit crazy-stocked.

I had 2 Angelfish, 3 Silver Dollars, 1 Clown Pleco, 1 Striped Peacock Eel, 1 P. mysteriosus cat, and 1 Black Ghost Knifefish.


Not anymore, but this was only a few months ago.

that's not Asian style tank yet.

 

[uting]

I use to have a super asian style tank before. I kept a 14" TSN a 15" Gar a 15" Marbled Cat and an 8'' Oscar in a 50gall tank before but anyway that was like 12 years ago. when I was 6 years old

 

[cockroach]

No idea.
I'm asian and I've never heard of it before.
Anyway the Chinese have all sorts of formula for luck

I agree, I know Asian arowanas are good and were the feng shui fish before the flowerhorn replaced it, and they bring properity to a home or business. Red fish bring luck thus the popularity of red blood parrots especially with red asian aros. Fei fengs are also something but I can't remember what right now.

 

[cockroach]

I use to have a super asian style tank before. I kept a 14" TSN a 15" Gar a 15" Marbled Cat and an 8'' Oscar in a 50gall tank before but anyway that was like 12 years ago. when I was 6 years old

That sounds more like what I am used to seeing when talking about asian style tanks.

 

[elindra]

I agree, I know Asian arowanas are good and were the feng shui fish before the flowerhorn replaced it, and they bring properity to a home or business. Red fish bring luck thus the popularity of red blood parrots especially with red asian aros. Fei fengs are also something but I can't remember what right now.

Yup those are the common lucky fishes
I also heard that Matamatas are lucky because they look like the Dragon Tortoise ( Long Gui) for Fortune and Career luck

Think the other lucky fish here is the Giant Gourami ... don't ask me why...

 

[cockroach]

I think you may be right about the giant gourami. I have my LFS guy delivering some fish to my house tonight. I will ask him about the lucky fish in Asian culture.

 

[elindra]

I think you may be right about the giant gourami. I have my LFS guy delivering some fish to my house tonight. I will ask him about the lucky fish in Asian culture.

Do update this thread with his replies.
It would be interesting to know

 

[cockroach]

Will do. i just found this online:

http://habitatnews.nus.edu.sg/guidebooks/freshfish/text/106.htm

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]

Contents
Index of fishes
General parts of a fish[/FONT]​

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Kelvin K P Lim and Peter K L Ng[/FONT]​

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Freshwater Fishes and the Singaporean[/FONT][FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Fish-keeping | Fishes in our culture | Fish as food | Role in the habitat[/FONT]

Freshwater fish also have a part to play in the cultures of the different ethnic groups in Singapore. Some Malays believe that the Climbing Perch has the supernatural power of warding off or warning against the presence of evil spirits in the house. Thus, one sometimes sees individuals of these being kept in small fish-bowls for this purpose.

A number of Malays also do not like to keep Fighting Fish (Betta splendens) in the house as they believe that the aggressive temperament of the fish will sow discord within the family.

The Common Walking Catfish (Ikan Keli) is capable of inflicting a nasty wound with its sharp pectoral spines which are suspected to be venomous. There is a Malay belief that if the brain of the "offending" fish is applied to the wound, the wound will heal without trouble. Some rasboras (Ikan Seluang) are reputed to be used for magic. If the eyes of this fish are pierced with a special needle selected from a score, and the eye of that needle is damaged, then the person responsible will have the ability to inflict blindness upon his enemies.

The Chinese similarly, have their own beliefs. The general Chinese geomancer (or Feng-shui master) will reveal that in order to bring good luck and prosperity to the home, it is essential to include paintings of fish in the home decor. The fishes depicted in these Chinese paintings are usually of carps or goldfish, so symbolic of the Chinese culture. That fish features so much a part of Chinese geomancy is no accident. Fish is as much a part of water (Shui), as is the bird of the wind (Feng).

The Chinese word for fish sounds very much like the word for surplus. Thus, to give fishes as gifts also carried with it the blessing of continued wealth and bounty for years to come. For the Chinese, the carp holds a revered position, being always associated with good fortune. Even in Singapore, one often sees many Chinese paintings depicting a carp (or carps) jumping over a wave. This is supposed to represent success, the fish jumping over a wave symbolising a man's ability to reach a higher, better level, or as folklore has it, the carp is ascending to the dragon's gate.

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The keeping of Goldfish is
believed to bring good luck[/FONT]​

[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]A very recent phenomenon of the eighties can be seen on the same note. That is the sudden popularity of the Golden Dragon Fish. A native of Malaysia and Indonesia, this fish, in the eyes of the Chinese, has the appearance and majesty of the mythological Chinese dragon, the symbol for good luck and prosperity. The whole thing began (it is believed) with a businessman purchasing and keeping one of these fish as a pet, and striking a big fortune.[/FONT] [FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]
The species is available in three colour forms: the green, the gold and the red. The red form is regarded to be the best, for the colour red brings the most luck, and consequently the most expensive of the lot to purchase (it can cost as much as $3000 per fish); the golden, somewhat less auspicious, but still desired and expensive; and the unfortunate green form is sometimes considered rather unlucky. Cantonese people who habitually gamble and keep the green form in their homes are said to "shee tou meen cheang cheang" (lose till their faces turn green!). Therefore, it scores very low points on the popularity chart. Along with the golden dragon fishes, both the silver and black South American Arawanas, the various goldfish breeds and the multi-coloured koi strains are also kept for good luck. The popularity of the goldfish is partly associated with it being a "good-luck" symbol, and forms a major part of our aquarium fish industry. [/FONT]