What is the origin of Mid-Autumn Festival? ! ?
1, Spring Festival
Time: the first day of the first lunar month in a narrow sense, and the first to fifteenth day of the first lunar month in a broad sense.
Ancient names: Yuanri, New Year's Day, Jacky, Chen Yuan, Yuanshuo, Suidan, Suishou, Suichao, Xinzheng, Shouzuo, Sanyuan ("Zheng" means "Zheng" in the first month).
Commonly known as "Chinese New Year".
The Spring Festival refers to the traditional Spring Festival in the cultural circle of Chinese characters. The traditional names are New Year, New Year and New Year, but they are also verbally called New Year, Celebrating New Year and New Year. In ancient times, the Spring Festival refers to the beginning of spring in solar terms and is also regarded as the beginning of a year. Later, it was changed to the first day of the first lunar month as the New Year, and it is generally believed that it will not end until at least the fifteenth day of the first lunar month (Shangyuan Festival). The concepts of Spring Festival and New Year originally came from agriculture. In ancient times, people called the growth cycle of the valley "year". Hebe: "It's ripe." . It is difficult to know when the Spring Festival (the New Year in the summer calendar) originated, but it is generally believed that it originated from the activities of offering sacrifices to gods and ancestors at the end of the Yin and Shang Dynasties (La Worship) in China.
The name "nian" began in the Zhou Dynasty. As for the determination of the beginning time of a year (in other words, the arrangement of the order of months), it is also related to the astronomical calendar (as mentioned above). According to legend, summer was in the lunar month (the first month of the lunar calendar), Shang was in the ugly month (the December of the lunar calendar), Zhou was in the child month (the November of the lunar calendar, that is, the winter month), Qin was in the sea month (the October of the lunar calendar), and it was restored in the Western Han Dynasty.
In fact, the ancient "Spring Festival" refers to the "beginning of spring" in the twenty-four solar terms of the lunar calendar.
Related legend:
In ancient China, there was a monster called Nian. Its tentacles were very long and fierce. Nian lived on the seabed for many years, and climbed ashore every New Year's Eve, devouring livestock and hurting people.
Therefore, every New Year's Eve, people in the village fled to the deep mountains to avoid the harm of the "Nian" beast.
On New Year's Eve this year, people in Taohua Village were taking refuge in the mountains when an old beggar came from outside the village. He was leaning on crutches, carrying a bag on his arm, with elegant silver whiskers and staring at Matthew. Some villagers sealed windows and locked doors, some packed their bags, some herded cattle and drove sheep, and people shouted hisses everywhere, which was a scene of panic. At this time, who still has the mind to take care of this begging old man?
Only an old woman in the village east gave the old man some food and suggested that he go up the mountain quickly to avoid the "Nian" beast. The old man smiled and said, "If my mother-in-law lets me stay at home for one night, I will definitely drive the Nian beast away. When the old woman looked at him carefully, she found that he was young, healthy, energetic and had an extraordinary world outlook. But she continued to persuade and begged the old man to laugh without saying a word. My mother-in-law had no choice but to leave home and take refuge in the mountains.
At midnight, Nian beast broke into the village. It found that the atmosphere in the village was different from previous years: the old woman's house at the east end of the village had red paper on the door and bright candles in the room. The beast Nian trembled and let out a long whistle. Nian stared at her mother-in-law's house for a while, then screamed and rushed over. As we approached the door, there was a sudden explosion in the yard. Nian trembled and dared not go any further.
It turns out that Nian was most afraid of red, fire and explosion. At this time, my mother-in-law's door was wide open, and I saw an old man in a red robe laughing in the hospital. Nian was frightened and ran away in a panic.
The next day was the first day of the first month, and the people who came back from refuge were very surprised to see that the village was safe and sound. At this time, the old woman suddenly realized and quickly told the villagers the promise of begging from the old man. The villagers flocked to the old woman's house together, only to see red paper on her mother-in-law's door, a pile of unburned bamboo still exploding in the yard, and a few red candles still glowing in the house ... The ecstatic villagers put on their clothes and hats to celebrate the auspicious arrival and visit relatives and friends. The story soon spread in the surrounding villages, and people knew the way to drive away the "Nian" beast.
Since then, every year on New Year's Eve, every family has posted red couplets and set off firecrackers. Every household has a bright candlelight, so it is better to wait for the New Year. In the early morning of the first day, I want to say hello to my relatives and friends. This custom has spread more and more widely, and has become the most solemn traditional festival among the people in China.
Applicable area:
The Spring Festival is the most important festival of the Han nationality, but more than a dozen ethnic minorities, such as Manchu, Mongolian, Yao, Zhuang, Bai, Gaoshan, Hezhe, Hani, Daur, Dong and Li, have also had the custom of the Spring Festival, but the form of the festival has its own national characteristics and is more meaningful.
Custom:
At the end of the year, we will set off firecrackers, post Spring Festival couplets, eat jiaozi sausages and eat bacon to watch the Spring Festival Gala (only in recent years).
On February 2nd, the dragon looked up.
Longtaitou (February 2, South Japan, North Japan), also known as Spring Farming Festival, Farming Festival and Spring Dragon Festival, is a traditional folk festival of the Han nationality. The dragon heads up on the second day of the second lunar month every year, commonly known as the Qinglong Festival. Legend has it that this is the day when dragons look up. It is a traditional festival in urban and rural areas of China. People celebrate "Dragon Head Festival" to show respect for dragons and pray for rain, so that God can help ensure a bumper harvest.
Holiday customs:
Sacrifice to Hua Xushi to celebrate the "Dragon Head Festival" is full of dragon worship, thinking that dragons can control water and rain, decide whether crops are abundant or not, and must not be offended. In the past, people would worship the roller on this morning. It is said that the drum is the embodiment of Qinglong. Some even put scorpions upright, indicating that "the dragon looks up." As the saying goes: "If you don't shave your head in the first month, you will die." Therefore, adults and children often shave their heads and cut their hair on this day, which means shaving the "faucet" to show dignity and good luck. Women should avoid sewing to avoid "blinding longan"; Don't grind flour, rice or carts, for fear of "breaking the waist and tail of the dragon".
In fact, "if you don't shave your head in the first month, you will die if you shave your head." There are rumors that the "dead uncle" in it is actually a change of voice of "homesickness", and the cause of this statement is also related to Shenyang. After the establishment of the Qing Dynasty, many Han people didn't cut their hair in the first month to show their nostalgia for the Ming Dynasty, but they were afraid to openly confront the Qing government, so there was a saying that "my uncle died in the first month" and it has been handed down all the time.
The customs in northern China-attracting dragons, killing insects, smoking insects, shaving hair (haircut), eating customs, marrying for the Spring Festival, and taboos (no sewing, no carrying water, no washing clothes, no grinding noodles).
The custom in the south of China-Sacrifice Society (the main activities are offering sacrifices to the ground and gathering drinks from the society to entertain people by offering sacrifices to the gods).
On February 2, most farmers eat "bulging" (rubbing their faces with their hands), commonly known as "pushing the door and pushing the stick". Why eat "bloating"? Some people say that if you eat a "door stick" and hold the door, evil spirits will not enter and you will be safe for one year. Some people say that after the Spring Festival, everyone was bored and confused, ate a "bulging" meal and began to work and live. Some people eat jiaozi on February 2nd, saying that it is to stick the scales and nails of the dragon, so that the dragon can feel refreshed and pray for rain. A few ballads satirize the lazy woman: "After the 23rd day of the first month, the lazy woman was so anxious that there was nowhere to drill. I want to go to heaven again and have no shoes to wear; I want to drill again, but I don't have a knife tip; I'm going to be hanged again, and I can't live without oil on February 2. " There is also a local custom of frying beans on this day. The folk song says, "On February 2nd, the dragon looks up, peas explode in every pot, wake up the dragon king to get up early, and the rain will ensure a bumper harvest." Some people are still burning incense and kowtowing in the nearby Wang Yao Temple, praying for peace.
Local custom: On February 2nd, in Liaocheng, Tengzhou, Shandong Province, a man wanted a haircut, and the dragon looked up for a haircut on this day, hoping for good luck in the year. Eating chess pieces and frying beans in Tengzhou Qingdao symbolizes "golden beans blossom".
Stir-fried corn: The legendary tradition of stir-frying corn on February 2nd every year is to commemorate Yi Long's breaking the dogma in order to relieve the suffering of human drought. Legend has it that Yulong was imprisoned by the Jade Emperor because he couldn't bear the people to suffer from drought, and made a rule that only golden beans would be released when they were in bloom. People get together to fry corn because they appreciate Yulong's kindness. Because it looks like golden beans in full bloom, the responsible Taibai Venus made a mistake and released Yulong. The tradition of frying corn on the second day of February every year has also been preserved.
Festival legend:
There is such a fairy tale among the people in northern China. It is said that Wu Zetian became emperor, which annoyed the jade emperor and told the four dragon kings that it was forbidden to rain on earth for three years. Soon, the Dragon King, who was in charge of Tianhe, heard the cries of the people, saw the tragic sight of people starving to death, and worried that life on the earth would be cut off, so he violated the jade emperor's will and rained for the world. When the Jade Emperor learned that the Dragon King had been knocked down to earth and was crushed under a big mountain to suffer, a monument was erected on the mountain: "The Dragon King's rain violated heaven and should be punished for eternal life; If you want to re-enter the Lingxiao Pavilion, unless the golden beans bloom. " In order to save the Dragon King, people searched everywhere for golden beans in full bloom. On the second day of the second lunar month, when people are drying corn seeds, they think this corn looks like golden beans. Don't golden beans bloom when they are fried? So every household popped popcorn and put a case in the yard to burn incense for the blooming "Golden Bean". (The legend is wrong. Wu Zetian was a figure in the Tang Dynasty, and corn was introduced to China only in the Ming Dynasty. Where did the corn seeds come from? ) The Dragon King looked up and knew that the people had saved him. He shouted to the Jade Emperor, "The golden beans are blooming, let me out quickly!" As soon as the Jade Emperor saw that the golden beans in the yard of every household in the world were in full bloom, he would send a message to the Dragon King, asking him to return to heaven and continue to give sex to the world. Since then, people have formed a habit of eating popcorn on the second day of February.
3. Lantern Festival
This is an important traditional festival in China. The fifteenth day of the first month is the night of the first full moon in a year and the beginning of the Yuan Dynasty. On the night of the Spring Festival, people celebrate it and celebrate the continuation of the Spring Festival, so it is also called "Shangyuan Festival", that is, the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. In ancient books, this day is called Shangyuan, and its night is called Yuanye, Yuanxi or Yuanxiao. The name Yuanxiao has been used ever since.
Custom:
Because the Lantern Festival has the custom of decorating lanterns and watching lanterns, it is also called "Lantern Festival" among the people. In addition, there are customs such as eating Yuanxiao, walking on stilts, solve riddles on the lanterns, dragon dancing, watching lanterns and lion dancing.
Evolution:
The ancient calendars in China were closely related to the phases of the moon. On the fifteenth day of the first month, people ushered in the first full moon night of the year, which is naturally regarded as an auspicious day. As early as the Han Dynasty, the fifteenth day of the first month has been regarded as a day of offering sacrifices to gods and praying for blessings. Later, the ancients called the fifteenth day of the first month Shangyuan, the fifteenth day of July Zhongyuan and the fifteenth day of October Xia Yuan. At the latest, in the early Southern and Northern Dynasties, Sanyuan was the day when grand ceremonies were held. Of the three elements, Shangyuan is the most valued. Later, the celebrations in the Central Plains and Xia Yuan were gradually abolished, but Shangyuan was enduring.
Eat yuanxiao:
Eating Yuanxiao on the fifteenth day of the first month, as a kind of food, has a long history in China. In the Song Dynasty, a novel Lantern Festival food was popular among the people. This kind of food was originally called "Floating Zi Yuan", later called "Yuanxiao", and merchants also called it "Yuanbao". Yuanxiao, or "Tangyuan", contains sugar, roses, sesame seeds, red bean paste, cinnamon bark, walnut kernel, nuts, jujube paste and so on. And wrapped in glutinous rice flour into a circle, you can be vegetarian and have different flavors. It can be boiled, fried and steamed, which means happy reunion. Jiaozi, Shaanxi is not wrapped, but "rolled" in glutinous rice flour, or boiled or fried, warm and round.
4. Cold Food Festival
Cold food festival, that is, cold food festival, also known as "no smoking festival", "cold food festival" and "Hundred Five Days Festival". One hundred and five days after the summer solstice, and one or two days before Tomb-Sweeping Day.
Source:
Zhong Er, the son of the State of Jin who had been exiled for many years in the Spring and Autumn Period, returned to China and acceded to the throne [that is, Jin Wengong]. Besides meson tui, he also rewarded the courtiers who fled with him. Jie Zitui then lived in seclusion with his mother in Mianshan (now southeast of Jiexiu City, Shanxi Province). When Jin Wengong learned about it, he wanted to raise the bonus. He found Mianshan, but he couldn't find it, so he wanted to burn the mountain and force him out. But meson refused to be an official and could not persist. As a result, both mother and son were burned to death. To commemorate Jiexiu, Jin Wengong changed Mianshan to Jiexiu Mountain, set up a shrine to worship Jiexiu, and designated the day of burning the mountain as the Cold Food Festival. Fireworks are banned nationwide, and only cold food is eaten. Later, the custom of eating cold food to sweep graves on this day was formed.
Activities:
Smoking is forbidden and only cold food is eaten on this day, so it is called "Cold Food Festival". In the development of later generations, the customs of sweeping, hiking, swinging, cuju, holding hooks and breaking eggs gradually increased. The Cold Food Festival lasted for more than 2,000 years and was once called the largest folk festival. Many scholars have written poems about the Cold Food Festival.
5. Tomb-Sweeping Day
Tomb-Sweeping Day, also known as the Walking Festival, is at the turn of mid-spring and late spring, that is, the first 108 day from winter to the future. It is a traditional festival in China, and it is also one of the most important festivals to worship ancestors and sweep graves. The traditional Tomb-Sweeping Day of the Han nationality in China began in the Zhou Dynasty and has a history of more than 2,500 years. Influenced by the Han culture, 24 ethnic minorities in China, such as Manchu, Hezhe, Zhuang, Oroqen, Dong, Tujia, Miao, Yao, Li, Shui, Jing and Qiang, also have the customs of Tomb-Sweeping Day.
Qingming was just the name of a solar term at first, and later became a festival to commemorate ancestors, which was related to the Cold Food Festival. Jin Wengong designated the second day of the Cold Food Festival as Tomb-Sweeping Day. In most parts of Shanxi, the day before Tomb-Sweeping Day was the Cold Food Festival. Tomb-Sweeping Day in Yushe County and other places celebrated the Cold Food Festival two days ago; Yuanqu County also pays attention to Tomb-Sweeping Day's Cold Food Festival the day before, and the light cold food the day before.
Tomb-Sweeping Day is one of the important "eight festivals a year" in China. Generally, it is around April 5 of the Gregorian calendar, and the festival is very long. There are two sayings: 8 days before 10 and 10 days before 10, and these 20 days belong to Tomb-Sweeping Day. Tomb-Sweeping Day originally meant grave-sweeping day, and the government of the Republic of China designated 15 days after the vernal equinox in 935 as a national holiday, also known as the national grave-sweeping day.
It is said that the origin of Tomb-Sweeping Day began with the "grave-sweeping" ceremony of ancient emperors and generals. Later, people followed suit, and it became a fixed custom of the Chinese nation to worship ancestors and sweep graves on this day. On May 20th, 2006, with the approval of the State Council, Tomb-Sweeping Day announced by the Ministry of Culture of China was included in the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage list.
Tomb-Sweeping Day not only pays attention to the prohibition of fire to sweep graves, but also has a series of customs and sports activities, such as climbing, swinging, cuju, polo, swinging and inserting willows. According to legend, this is because it is forbidden to eat cold food during the Cold Food Festival. In order to prevent the harm of cold food and cold meal to people, everyone comes to participate in some sports activities to exercise. In Tomb-Sweeping Day, people avoid injections and washing clothes, and women in most areas avoid walking. Before evening, a gray line should be spread in front of the gate, which is said to prevent ghosts from entering the house. Therefore, this festival is a distinctive festival, with sad and sour tears to sweep the new grave and laughter for an outing.
Because of the combination of Cold Food Festival and Tomb-Sweeping Day, some places still keep the habit of eating cold food in Tomb-Sweeping Day. In Shandong, Jimo eats eggs and cool cakes, while Laiyang, Zhaoyuan and Long Island eat eggs and cool sorghum rice. It is said that if not, there will be hail. Taian eats cold pancakes and rolls bitter vegetables. It is said that his eyes are bright. Jinzhong area still retains the habit of banning fire the day before Qingming.
In many places, after the sacrificial ceremony is completed, food will be sacrificed. When people in southern Shanxi crossed Tomb-Sweeping Day, they used to steam big steamed buns with white flour, with walnuts, dates and beans in the middle, coiled into dragons outside, and an egg tied in the middle of the dragon's body, named "Zifu". It is necessary to steam a big "blessing" to symbolize the reunion and happiness of the family. When going to the grave, the "Zifu" is usually dedicated to the ancestors and shared by the whole family after sweeping the grave. According to the old custom in Shanghai, steamed cakes for sacrifice should be put on wicker and dried and stored. When they come in the long summer, they will be fried and given to the children. It is said that eating it in summer won't make you sick.
6. Dragon Boat Festival
The fifth day of the fifth lunar month is the Dragon Boat Festival, which is an ancient traditional festival in China. The real name of Dragon Boat Festival is Dragon Boat Festival, which means the beginning of Dragon Boat Festival. Because people think that May is an evil month and the fifth day is a day, they avoid May and change it to Dragon Boat Festival. Dragon Boat Festival was recorded as early as the early Western Zhou Dynasty. This is not a festival to commemorate Qu Yuan, but some customs after the Dragon Boat Festival have been influenced by Qu Yuan.
Dragon Boat Festival is the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, also known as Duanyang Festival, Noon Festival, May Festival, Dragon Boat Festival, Bathing Orchid Festival and so on. It is a traditional cultural festival popular in China and other countries in the Chinese character cultural circle. Dragon Boat Festival originated in China, and it was originally a festival to get rid of diseases and prevent epidemics. Before the Spring and Autumn Period in Wuyue, there was a custom of holding tribal totem sacrifices in the form of dragon boat races on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month. Later, because the poet Qu Yuan died in the Miluo River, it became a traditional festival in China to commemorate Qu Yuan. In some areas, Wu Zixu and Cao E are also commemorated.
Celebrating the Dragon Boat Festival has been a traditional habit of China people for more than two thousand years. Due to the vast territory, numerous nationalities and numerous stories and legends, not only many different festival names are produced, but also different customs exist in different places. Its contents mainly include: daughter going back to her mother's house, hanging Zhong Kui statue, welcoming the ghost boat, hiding in the afternoon, sticking leaves in the afternoon, hanging calamus and wormwood, traveling in all diseases, wearing sachets, preparing sacrificial bowls, dragon boat races, competitions, hitting the ball, swinging, drawing children with realgar, drinking realgar wine, drinking calamus wine, eating poisonous cakes, salted eggs, zongzi and seasonal fresh fruits.
Zongzi:
Now zongzi is more diverse and colorful. Nowadays, glutinous rice is generally wrapped in glutinous rice shells, but the color contained in it depends on local specialties and customs. The more famous ones are longan, meat, crystal, lotus seeds, candied fruit, chestnut, spicy, sauerkraut, ham and salted eggs.
Realgar wine:
The custom of drinking realgar wine on Dragon Boat Festival is very popular in the Yangtze River valley. There is an old saying: "Drink realgar wine and all diseases will disappear." Realgar is a mineral, commonly known as "Jiguanshi". Its main component is arsenic sulfide, which contains mercury and is toxic. The common realgar wine is made by adding a small amount of realgar to white wine or homemade yellow wine, and there is no pure drink. Realgar wine has the efficacy of sterilization, insect repellent and detoxification, and traditional Chinese medicine is also used to treat skin diseases. In ancient times, when there was no disinfectant such as iodine, soaking in realgar could detoxify and relieve itching. For children under drinking age, adults apply realgar wine to forehead, ears, ears, hands, feet, heart and other parts to disinfect and prevent diseases.
Huang Wu:
There is a custom of eating "Huang Wu" on the Dragon Boat Festival in Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces. Huang Wu refers to cucumber, Monopterus albus, yellow croaker, duck egg yolk and realgar wine in Gaoyou. In addition, the Dragon Boat Festival in northern Zhejiang also eats tofu.
Beat the cake:
Dragon Boat Festival is a grand festival for Korean people in Yanbian, Jilin Province. The most representative food on this day is sweet cake. Caking is to put mugwort and glutinous rice in a big wooden trough carved with a single wood and beat it with a long-handled wood. This kind of food has national characteristics and can add festive atmosphere. [ 13]
Fried pile:
In Jinjiang, Fujian, every household will eat "fried piles" during the Dragon Boat Festival, which are made into thick paste with flour, rice flour or sweet potato powder. According to legend, in ancient times, it was the rainy season in southern Fujian before the Dragon Boat Festival, with continuous rain. People say that God has pierced a hole to "mend the sky". The rain stopped after eating fried piles on the Dragon Boat Festival. People say that the sky has been mended. This diet custom comes from this.
7. Mid-Autumn Festival
Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as Moon Festival, Autumn Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, August Festival, Moon Chasing Festival, Moon Appreciating Festival, Daughter's Day or Reunion Festival, is a popular traditional cultural festival in many ethnic groups and countries in the Chinese character cultural circle in China, and falls on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month. Because its value is only half that of Sanqiu, it is named, and some places set the Mid-Autumn Festival on August 16.
The Mid-Autumn Festival began in the early years of the Tang Dynasty and prevailed in the Song Dynasty. By the Ming and Qing Dynasties, it had become one of the major festivals in China, which was as famous as the Spring Festival. Influenced by China culture, Mid-Autumn Festival is also a traditional festival for overseas Chinese in some countries in East and Southeast Asia, especially local Chinese. Since 2008, Mid-Autumn Festival has been listed as a national statutory holiday. On May 20th, 2006, it was listed in the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage by the State Council.
The Mid-Autumn Festival has customs such as offering sacrifices to the moon, enjoying the moon, eating moon cakes, enjoying osmanthus and drinking osmanthus wine. Since ancient times, and spread to this day, it lasts for a long time. The Mid-Autumn Festival is a colorful and precious cultural heritage. The full moon is a symbol of people's reunion, a sustenance for missing their hometown and relatives, and hopes for a bumper harvest and happiness.
8. Double Ninth Festival
The Double Ninth Festival on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month is a traditional Double Ninth Festival, also known as the "Old People's Day". Because the Book of Changes defines "six" as the yin number and "nine" as the yang number, on September 9, the sun and the moon are combined with yang, and 29 is the most important, so it is called Chongyang, also known as Jiujiu. The Double Ninth Festival was formed as early as the Warring States Period. In the Tang Dynasty, the Double Ninth Festival was officially designated as a folk festival, which has been inherited ever since. The Double Ninth Festival on March 3, also known as "stepping in autumn" and "stepping in spring", is a family matter. On this day, all relatives of the Double Ninth Festival will climb the mountain together to "avoid disaster", insert dogwood and enjoy chrysanthemums. Since the Double Ninth Festival in Wei and Jin Dynasties, the atmosphere has become increasingly strong, which is one of the traditional festivals sung by scholars in past dynasties.
Evolution:
The ninth day of the ninth lunar month is the traditional Double Ninth Festival in China. It is also a festival to respect the elderly in China. 1989, China designated September 9th as the festival for the elderly, which skillfully combined tradition with modernity and became a festival to respect, love and help the elderly.
Custom:
Every time I go to Chongyang, people will think of Wang Wei's "Being in a foreign land, I miss my relatives twice every festive season." I know from a distance where my brother climbed, and there is one person missing from the dogwood. "This poem. Since ancient times, the Double Ninth Festival has been a day when people respect the old and love the young, miss their parents and long for reunion. The specific customs are as follows:
(1), climbing
2. Eat Chongyang cake
3 enjoy chrysanthemums and drink chrysanthemum wine.
(4) Evodia rutaecarpa and Chrysanthemum morifolium
5. Drink chong yang wine.
However, there is also a saying in history that the 13th day of the seventh lunar month is a day to respect the elderly, but it was changed to September 9th in 1989.
Time: the ninth day of the ninth lunar month.
9. Winter solstice festival
Winter solstice is an important solar term in the China lunar calendar, and it is also a traditional festival of the Chinese nation. The winter solstice is usually called "Winter Festival", "Dragon solstice Festival" and "Asian New Year". As early as more than 2,500 years ago in the Spring and Autumn Period, China had observed the sun with the earth, and determined the winter solstice, which was the earliest of the 24 solar terms, and the time was between 0 and 23 in Gregorian calendar 65438+February 265438.
Climatic characteristics:
Astronomy regards the winter solstice as the beginning of winter, which is obviously late for most parts of China. There is a cloud in the poem: "The northwest wind hits a hundred herbs and declines, and the cold rises several times a day. The daytime is the shortest, but I see Jin Mei blooming. " (Heshui Zuo) The solstice in winter is the shortest day in a year. After the winter solstice, the direct point of the sun gradually moves northward, and the days in the northern hemisphere gradually lengthen and the nights gradually shorten. Therefore, there is a saying that "eating the winter solstice makes the day longer."
Climatically, during the winter solstice, the average temperature in the northwest plateau is generally below 0℃, and the southern region is only about 6℃ to 8℃. In addition, the winter solstice begins to count to nine, and the winter solstice becomes the first day to count to nine. As for "Counting Nine", there is a folk song that goes like this: "Don't do it in September, walk on the ice in March and April, watch the willows along the river in May and June, open the river in July and September, geese come in August and September, and cows go everywhere in September and September." However, in the southwest low-altitude valley area, even in the coldest local165438+ in early October, the average temperature is still above 10℃. It can be said that autumn goes and spring comes, and there is no winter all year round.
The winter solstice usually falls on the second day of Gregorian calendar 65438+February 2 1 or 65438+February 22. Because the winter solstice is not fixed on a certain day, it is called "live festival" like Qingming.
As a festival, the winter solstice originated in the Han Dynasty, flourished in the Tang and Song Dynasties, and has continued to this day. The first month of the weekly calendar is November in the summer calendar, so the first month of the Zhou Dynasty is equal to November in the solar calendar today, so there is no difference between New Year greetings and New Year celebrations. It was not until Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty adopted the summer calendar that the first month was separated from the solstice in winter. It can also be said that the simple "winter solstice festival" began in the Han Dynasty, flourished in the Tang and Song Dynasties, and has existed ever since.
The solstice in winter is a good time for health preservation, mainly because "Qi starts from the solstice in winter". Because from beginning of winter, life activities began to turn from decline to prosperity, from static rotation. At this time, scientific health preservation helps to ensure vigorous energy and prevent premature aging, thus achieving the purpose of prolonging life. During the winter solstice, the diet should be diversified, grains, fruits, meat and vegetables should be reasonably matched, and foods with high calcium should be selected appropriately.
In winter solstice, different places have different customs, and most places in northern China have the custom of eating jiaozi in winter solstice. After thousands of years of development, a unique seasonal diet culture has been formed from winter solstice to Sunday. Eating jiaozi has become the winter solstice custom of most people in China. Of course, there are exceptions, such as the custom of drinking mutton soup from winter solstice in Tengzhou City, Shandong Province, which means driving away the cold.
10, New Year's Eve
The last day of the twelfth lunar month is called New Year's Eve. In addition, the original meaning is "go" and it is extended to "easy"; The original meaning of the word "evening" is "sunset" and it is extended to "night". So New Year's Eve means "farewell to the old and welcome the new", which means "farewell to the old and welcome the new". In ancient times, "New Year's Eve" had other names, such as "except night, no night, except year, except year, all year round". Although there are many names, they always mean to send the old to welcome the new and eliminate disasters and diseases. New Year's Eve, or "New Year's Eve". It refers to the night before the first day of the first lunar month in China and other parts of the Han cultural circle. Generally speaking, this day is a day for people to eat, drink and be merry.
New Year's Eve originated from the "expulsion" in the pre-Qin period. According to Lu Chunqiu Ji, the ancients beat drums to drive away the "plague god" the day before the New Year, and there will be no disease or disaster in the coming year.
The customs of northerners are roughly the same. They make jiaozi and steamed buns during the New Year. However, in the south, customs are different, such as making rice cakes, making zongzi, cooking dumplings and eating rice. There are many different customs of the Spring Festival in different parts of the south. The shape of jiaozi is like an "ingot" and the sound of rice cakes is like "rice cakes", which are good signs of good luck.
The climax of New Year's Eve is that the elders give "lucky money" after the New Year's Eve. Next, post Spring Festival couplets and door gods and close the door. It was not until the morning of the first day that the door was opened to "pick up the god of wealth", and then the whole family kept the New Year.
The last day of the year is called "New Year's Eve" and that night is called "New Year's Eve". People often stay up all night on New Year's Eve, which is called keeping watch. Su Shi has "Shousui": "Children can't sleep, and they are happy at night." On New Year's Eve, people should not only clean their homes and outside, but also put up door gods, Spring Festival couplets, New Year pictures and hanging door cages. People put on new clothes with festive colors and patterns.
In addition, the ethnic minorities in China have their own traditional festivals, such as the Water-splashing Festival of the Dai nationality, the Nadam Festival of the Mongolian nationality, the Torch Festival of the Yi nationality, the Danu Festival of the Yao nationality, the March Street of the Bai nationality, the Gewei of the Zhuang nationality, the Tibetan calendar year and the Guowang Festival, and the jump flower festival of the Miao nationality.