The story of the origin of the Cold Food Festival
The Cold Food Festival has a long history, from the Spring and Autumn Period to the Western Han Dynasty. From the "Cold Food Festival" in Jin Wengong to the Qin and Han Dynasties, Taiyuan County formed the custom of not eating with fire for five days in the dead of winter, and "dare not disobey if you are sick". From the Eastern Han Dynasty to the Southern and Northern Dynasties, in view of the long cold food festival in the middle of winter (Wei Wudi said that it was forbidden to light a fire after the winter solstice 150 days), the old, the weak and the sick were unbearable. Out of the desire to protect the original productive forces of agricultural society, Zhou Ju, Wei Wudi, Schleswig and Emperor Xiaowen of the later Wei Dynasty successively implemented the measures of banning, but the folk worship, beliefs and holiday customs of frugality and promotion remained the same. It reached its peak in the Tang and Song Dynasties. From the Tang Dynasty, the Cold Food Festival gradually moved to Yangchun and March, and prevailed from the royal family, the government and all walks of life to the Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties. The Official History of Song Dynasty records that New Year's Day, Winter Solstice and Cold Food Festival have seven days off each. "History of Song Dynasty, Biography of Foreign Countries, Gao Changguo" contains: "Gaochang is Xizhou. This place has a 7-year calendar, and March 9 is the Cold Food Festival, Yuershe, winter solstice. " During this period, during the Cold Food Festival, there were activities such as poems, flowers, ceremonies, banquets, cuju, outings, willow insertion, fighting a hundred herbs, hooking, throwing, swinging and cockfighting. The cold food holiday lasted about seven days, and the title began to use "Qingming", with many activities and Chinese participation; From Liao Dynasty to Qing Dynasty, during the period of development and inheritance, during the reign of brothers and ethnic minorities, the Cold Food Festival was also paid attention to. "The Biography of Jin Zong" contains: "In February of the first year of Ming Chang, Ren Yin ordered a company to take a five-day winter vacation." "The system of judging posts in Greater Tong Yuan" stipulates: "Anyone who is in exile shall not be allowed to take leave unless it is on New Year's Day, cold food, heavy noon and other festivals. (meaning that prisoners can enjoy their holidays in these three festivals). "Qing thomas lee" contains: "New Year's cold food and the first frost festival, worship the grave, wear plain clothes to the grave ... so it's called sweeping the grave". During this period, the Cold Food Festival played an important role in mediating ethnic contradictions and promoting the great integration of ethnic cultures. From the Republic of China to the founding of New China, the "Cultural Revolution" was a continuous and endangered period. During this period, the historical origin and cultural connotation of the Cold Food Festival were forgotten by the world, and other activities were relatively reduced, so the title of the Cold Food Festival was replaced by Qingming. Since1990s, there has been a period of promotion and revitalization. Looking at the evolving history of the Cold Food Festival, we can see that the Cold Food Festival has become an important festival to carry forward China's fine traditions, promote national cultural identity, and promote social harmony and stability. People attach great importance to it and reflect the ancestral culture of the Chinese nation.
In the long process of development, the Cold Food Festival has formed rich cultural and activity contents:
1, No Smoking and Cold Food: Cold Food Festival was also called "No Smoking Festival" in ancient times. Every family is forbidden to make a fire and eat cold food. However, due to the persistent pursuit of sages by Chinese people, it was repeatedly banned from the Eastern Han Dynasty to the Southern and Northern Dynasties, and it was not until the Tang Dynasty that it was recognized and participated by the royal family.
2. ancestor worship: the cold food festival was regarded as a "wild sacrifice" from the southern and northern dynasties to the Tang dynasty. In the Tang Dynasty, it was included in Volume 87 of "Opening Ethan", which was worshipped by princes (cold food worship) and became one of the auspicious gifts officially recognized and advocated. Later, it evolved into a royal mausoleum; Official sacrifices to Confucius Temple and sages; People go to sweep graves and so on. At that time, a family or clan went to the ancestral grave to sacrifice, add soil and hang paper money. Then spread swallows and snakes and rabbits on the top of the grave, roll them down, put them on with willow branches or needles, and put them in the high place in the house to show their virtue.
3, cold food diet: cold food includes cold porridge, cold noodles, cold food pulp, green rice, glutinous rice; Cold food offerings include noodles, snakes and rabbits, jujube cakes, refined rye, immortals, etc. There are dozens of drinks, such as spring wine, fresh tea, clear spring and sweet water. Most of them have profound implications, such as offering sacrifices to snakes and rabbits, which means that "snakes and rabbits will be rich", meaning that people are expected to be rich and the country is strong; Zituiyan, take the word "nian" in Jiexiu dialect, and don't forget to introduce and promote honesty.
4. Cold food willow: the symbol of vitamin cold food festival, originally intended to miss Jie Zhitui's pursuit of political clarity. As early as the Northern and Southern Dynasties, there was a record in the Chronicle of Jingchu that "every family broke willow during the cold food between Jianghuai and Suzhou", and it is still popular to wear mustard flowers and wheat leaves instead of willow branches in Anhui, Suzhou and other places. According to historical records in various places, there are some sayings, such as "willow branches are inserted into graves", "willow branches are folded into households", "willow branches are inserted into the eaves of sleeping stoves", "wearing a head or a tie", "offering Buddha gods in bottles" and "willow branches are inserted into doors", so there is a saying among the people that "Qingming (cold food) does not wear willow, and the beauty becomes bald".
Cold food outing: also known as spring outing, Sheng Xing in Tang and Song Dynasties. Song Lizhi's words "What I saw in the East Valley" say: "I swept things, and then I went home happily with my brother, wife, relatives and deeds." In the Ming Dynasty, a brief introduction to the scenery of emperors recorded the scene of walking in Beijing: "During the Qingming Festival, people were walking, and there were thousands of tourists, passengers and pedestrians." Can be said to be extremely prosperous.
6. Cold food swing: The swing was originally a palace women's amusement project of the ancient cold food festival. Wang Renyu's "Kaiyuan Tianbao Legacy" in the Five Dynasties recorded that "the Tianbao Palace Mid-solstice Cold Food Festival actually erected a swing, which made the wives and concubines in the palace laugh and thought it was a feast. The emperor called it a semi-fairy play, so the scholars in the capital called it. " Wen Yanbo, the prime minister of the Song Dynasty, wrote the poem "Cold Food Day Crossing the Dragon Gate", which is described as "the willow on the bridge hangs on a line and hangs more colorful ropes."
7, cold food Cuju: popular in the Tang Dynasty, Song's "Literature General Examination" contains: "Cuju, Gai began in the Tang Dynasty. Plant two bamboos, several feet high, and wrap the net on the net to measure the ball for the door. The ball is divided into friends and friends, and the game is divided into corners. " History: Tang Dezong, Xian Zong, Mu Zong and Jing Zong all like to play cuju, and Yuan Gui, the state capital, wrote: "In the twelfth year of Zhenyuan, Tang Dezong, the Cold Food Festival was held in February, and the Imperial Palace East Pavilion was used to watch Wu Dachen and Wu's children, and a banquet was held for the ministers to be slaughtered." In the Song Dynasty, there was "Taizu Cuju Map".
8. Poems of Cold Food Festival: During the Cold Food Festival, the literati homesick for their relatives, or made love through the scenery, with many feelings, sudden inspiration, great poetry and many chanters. According to the survey, there are more than 300 poems by Xuanzong, Zhang Shuo, Du Fu, Han Yu and Liu Zongyuan in Tang Dynasty, and there are more than 100 poems by Song Jinyuan, which has become a wonderful work in China's poetry art. In addition, there are many activities during the Cold Food Festival, such as banquets, flower viewing, cockfighting, egg carving, tug-of-war, drilling wood for fire, flying kites, shooting herbs, throwing pottery, etc. These activities greatly enriched the social life in ancient China.
Judging from the long development process and rich cultural activities of the Cold Food Festival, the Cold Food Festival has the following characteristics:
1, the festival formed early. Originated in the Spring and Autumn Period, Jiezhi burned in Mianshan, Jiexiu. Jin Wengong ordered a ban on fire and cold food on the anniversary of the child's death, and sent grief with cold food. By the Tang Dynasty, the national statutory festivals had been formed, which was the earliest of the traditional festivals in China.
2. It has a long history. Two thousand six hundred and forty years ago, there were five days, one hundred and five days, one month, three days, two days, five days and seven days in different historical periods, and finally it became one day.
3. The cultural connotation is profound. Respect for the media and dedication, carry forward the political ambition of loyalty to the monarch and patriotism, retiring after success, being honest and clean, do not violate the filial piety of relatives, and develop into an important festival that unites people's hearts, embodies the Chinese soul and reflects the ancestral culture of the Chinese nation. And form a series of cold foods such as glutinous rice and green rice.
There are many festivals. Sweeping graves, smoking bans, ancestor worship, cold food, willow planting, outing, cuju, swinging, flower viewing, chicken fighting, banquet feeding, poetry reading, etc. 5. Spread widely. From Jiexiu and Taiyuan County to all parts of the country and even overseas (for example, Gao Changguo has designated March 9 as the Cold Food Festival since the Tang Dynasty).
Looking back at the historical development, the Cold Food Festival has become one of the venation of ancient social civilization in China. Therefore, from the perspective of historical research, social research, tourism and other social activities, the unique value of the Cold Food Festival deserves people's attention.
1, social and historical value
The Cold Food Festival was established in the Spring and Autumn Period to commemorate Jie's ascension to heaven, and has a history of 2640 years. Throughout the ages, it has never stopped. Although it was repeatedly banned by Zhou Ju in the Eastern Han Dynasty, Cao Cao in the Three Kingdoms, Xerox in the Later Zhao Dynasty and Emperor Xiaowen in the Northern Wei Dynasty, it was repeatedly banned and revived, and the custom of cold food spread all over the country and was deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. In response to public opinion, Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty issued an imperial edict, which included the Tomb-Sweeping Day of the Cold Food Festival in the Kaiyuan Ceremony and made it a national statutory holiday. Colorful cold food activities enrich social life, enhance social interpersonal harmony, and play an important role in alleviating social contradictions and promoting social progress. Especially in the Northern Wei Dynasty, Liao Dynasty, Jin Dynasty, Yuan Dynasty and Qing Dynasty, the recognition and participation of brothers' national rulers in the cold food festival customs played a subtle role in promoting national unity and consolidating political power through the exchange and integration of cold food festival culture.
The Cold Food Festival contains the political ambition of worrying about the country and the people, being loyal to the monarch and patriotism, being honest and clean, and the dedication spirit of "not seeking merit, but seeking merit, and retiring after success". It is an ancient social ethical norm and a link between social stability and national unity, and it still has important practical significance.
The cultural connotation of cold food with loyalty and filial piety as the core and honesty extended from loyalty and filial piety are the essence of meson spirit, the core of Chinese traditional morality, the foundation of national ancestral culture and the moral force to maintain national and family unity. In today's society, it is an important way of activity and spiritual concept to unite people's hearts, unite the soul of China, realize the peaceful reunification of the motherland and build a harmonious society.
The pursuit of political clarity is the unanimous wish of the broad masses of the people for thousands of years, which has far-reaching practical significance for the construction of contemporary democratic politics.
In addition, from the seven-day spring outing of the Cold Food Festival in the Tang Dynasty, it has evolved into today's "Golden Week of Tourism"; From cold food to fire ban, it has evolved into today's forest protection and fire prevention; From cold food to willow, it has evolved into today's national afforestation; From cuju to football, which is now popular all over the world, it has far-reaching significance and cannot be underestimated.
At the same time, the evolution of the Cold Food Festival in 2640 is a reflection of the ideology of many social strata in ancient China, and it is one of the important clues for the contemporary study of ancient sociology in China.
2. Cultural values
Historically, the activities of the Cold Food Festival were mainly promoted by memorial institutions to ban smoking and fasting, and gradually evolved into ancestor worship. The concept of loyalty, filial piety and honesty contained in it fully conforms to the traditional moral core of China's ancient countries' need for loyalty and filial piety, and has become an important carrier of family harmony and social stability. In modern times, the Cold Food Festival has become an important form of remembering revolutionary martyrs and educating young people. At the same time, during the Cold Food Festival, compatriots from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan and overseas Chinese returned to their hometowns to pay homage to their ancestors, which became an important festival to inherit the Chinese nation's ancestral culture and reflect national identity and cohesion.
The ancient ancestors insisted on banning smoking and fasting at the Cold Food Festival, expressing their immortal memory of the ancient sages. There are dozens of cold drinks, most of which are meaningful. For example, there is a saying in Jiexiu custom that "snakes and rabbits will be rich", which means that the country is expected to enrich the people and strengthen the country; At the expense of eating noodles, Jiexiu dialect is to educate future generations to "miss" and not forget to introduce the public and the virtuous. The Cold Food Festival symbolizes the pursuit of political clarity. ...
In Yuan Zaju, modern Peking Opera, Jin Opera, modern Jin Opera and novels of Ming Dynasty, there are many special songs and chapters of Jietui and Cold Food Festival. Since the Eastern Han Dynasty, legends, stories and inscriptions about Jie Zhitui have also become important historical materials for the study of folk literature and epigraphy in Sanjin.
3. Artistic value
During its development, the Cold Food Festival produced many literary works: Twenty-four Years of Zuo Zhuan Gong, which was quoted many times by historical masterpieces such as Historical Records and Zi Jian, and was incorporated into the enlightenment book of ancient prose in Qing Dynasty. The first essay on China's prose appreciation was Introduction to Lu. Among the poems of past dynasties, the poems dedicated to the Cold Food Festival have never stopped, from Qu Yuan in the Warring States, Sun Chu in the Western Jin Dynasty to modern times. There are nearly 300 poems of the whole Tang Dynasty, and more than 0/00 poems of the Song Dynasty and Yuanqu/kloc, involving historical celebrities such as Tang Xuanzong and Zhang Shuo, and representatives of various factions such as Du Fu, Bai Juyi and the Eight Masters of Tang and Song Dynasties, which have become important materials for studying the history of China's poetry development.
Since 1995, Mianshan Scenic Area Development Co., Ltd., Jiexiu City, Shanxi Province has resumed the development of Mianshan Mountain, invested a lot of manpower, material resources and financial resources, and restored the ruins of Jiegongling, Jiegongci, Jiecemetery and Qixian Valley, which bear the spirit of intermediary promotion, and collected a large number of documents and literary works related to the cold food festival culture, effectively protecting the inheritance of the cold food festival culture. Up to now, Mianshan Development Company has invested a total of182.5 million yuan to guarantee the Cold Food Festival.
Cold Food Festival is an important folk festival in Shanxi in spring.
The specific date of the Cold Food Festival is after the winter solstice 105. At present, the day before Tomb-Sweeping Day is the day to celebrate the Cold Food Festival in most parts of Shanxi. Some places, such as Yushe County, celebrated the Cold Food Festival two days before Tomb-Sweeping Day. Yuanqu County also pays attention to Tomb-Sweeping Day's Cold Food Festival the day before, and the light cold food the day before.
The source of the Cold Food Festival should be the fire worship of the ancients. The ancients could not live without fire, but fire often brought great disasters to mankind, so the ancients thought that fire had gods and should be worshipped. The fire offered by each family must be extinguished once a year. Then rekindle a new fire, which is called changing the fire. When changing the fire, a grand ancestor worship activity should be held, and the symbol of millet, the god of cereal, should be burned, which is called human sacrifice. After the custom was passed down, it formed the later No Fire Festival.
After the fire ban, it became a cold food festival to commemorate the famous minister of Jin in the Spring and Autumn Period. Legend has it that during Jin Wengong's exile, Jiezitui once cut meat to satisfy his hunger. After Jin Wengong returned to China and proclaimed himself emperor, he forgot to push when he was enfeoffed. Jiezitui didn't want to boast about his achievements and compete for favor, so he took his mother to live in seclusion in Mianshan. Later, Jin Wengong personally went to Mianshan to find Jiezitui, who didn't want to be an official and hid in the mountains. Wen Gong's people released Yamakaji. The intention is to force mesons to show their faces. As a result, meson pushed his mother and was burned to death under a big tree. In order to commemorate this loyal minister's righteous act, he didn't make a fire to cook on the day of Jiezitui's death, but wanted to eat cold food. This is the so-called Cold Food Festival.
During the Han Dynasty, Shanxi folks banned fire for one month to commemorate it. During the Three Kingdoms period, Cao Cao, Emperor Wu of Wei, ordered the cancellation of this custom. There is a saying in Yin Penalty Order, "It is said that in Taiyuan, Shangdang and Yanmen, it is forbidden to eat cold food within 150 days after winter, and the cloud pushes it as a child" and "no one is allowed to eat cold food. Otherwise, the parents will be sentenced to half a year's imprisonment, and the chief officer will be sentenced to 100 days, and he will get a salary in January. " After the Three Kingdoms returned to Jin, because they were homophonic with Jin in the Spring and Autumn Period, they paid special attention to their stories in Jin, and the custom of banning fire and cold food in memory of meson push resumed. But the time was shortened to three days. At the same time, the idea of commemorating mesons at the Cold Food Festival was spread all over the country. The Cold Food Festival has become a national festival, and the prohibition of fire and cold food has also become the same customs and habits as the Han nationality.
Today, the folk custom of banning fire and cold food in Shanxi is mostly one day, and only a few places are used to banning fire for three days. People in southern Shanxi are used to eating bean jelly, cold noodles and cold cakes. In northern Shanxi, people are used to cooking (that is, steamed cake noodles or white noodles are cut into dice-sized squares, then dried and fried with earth) as food for the Cold Food Festival. In some mountainous areas, the whole family eats fried noodles on this day (that is, stir-fry whole grains, mix various dried fruits and grind them into noodles).
The Cold Food Festival is celebrated by steaming cold swallows. Flour is kneaded into swallows, songbirds and animals, melons and fruits, flowers, etc. The steamed swallows are colored, inserted into the needles of jujube trees, decorated indoors and given as gifts.