Shaoxing folk custom
The first day of the first month, the beginning of the Spring Festival, was called "New Year's Day" in ancient times, also known as "Xinzheng" and "New Year's Day", which is the most solemn festival in Shaoxing.
Open-door firecrackers are commonly known as "open-door firecrackers" In the old society, this move had the meaning of exorcising evil spirits and eliminating epidemics, and "promoting to the third level". Shaoxing folks also have the saying that "set off firecrackers early and get rich early". Therefore, at three or four o'clock in the morning, firecrackers are one after another, more than home, to increase the festive atmosphere of the Spring Festival.
Every household in Shaosu posted Spring Festival couplets, saying "All the best in the New Year" and "All the best in the new pen". In the old days, Spring Festival couplets wrote many books, such as "Days add years, people prolong life, and spring is full of dry clothes". Today, the Spring Festival couplets are still auspicious, but the content is novel and full of the flavor of the times.
Communicate with god. In the old days, after the fireworks started, offerings such as glutinous rice balls, tea and fruits were placed in the hall, and parents led their families to tidy up their clothes, worship the Buddha in heaven and earth and the Buddha in jujube temple, and pray for the blessing of the gods. Everything will be fine in the new year. Now this superstitious custom of expressing good wishes to idols is rare.
Eat Fuju, Tangtuan, Ruyi cake, and drink Yuanbao tea. In the old society, after getting up on New Year's Day, we followed the custom of eating "firework dishes" (that is, food cooked with firewood) before speaking. Now, we usually have jiaozi, Ruyi cake and oranges for breakfast. Xinzheng, the main family used to entertain guests with Yuanbao tea. Kumquat, olive, candied dates, etc. According to the custom, it is put in tea, which means reunion, wishful thinking and happiness.
New Year greetings are also called "New Year greetings", "New Year greetings" and "New Year greetings". In the old days, the male host led the younger generation into the ancestral temple to worship their ancestors, and then returned to his own room to worship the portrait of their ancestors hanging on New Year's Eve. Then, according to seniority and ranking, the younger generation bowed down to their elders in turn. The younger generation wishes the elders, and the elders give back their teachings and wishes. Finally, the younger generation pays New Year greetings. At that time, the children were beating gongs and drums (commonly known as "beating gongs and drums in the New Year") and walking around for entertainment. Nowadays, the legacy of New Year greetings still exists, but the etiquette is greatly simplified.
From the second day of the first month, we will take longan, litchi, wine, sugar and cake to visit relatives and friends to celebrate the New Year. Relatives and friends will treat them warmly and come back another day. This custom usually respects early birth. Since 1950, the people's government has advocated civilized festivals. During the New Year's Day to the Spring Festival, Shaoxing urban and rural areas generally carried out activities such as supporting the army and loving the people, supporting the army's superior members, supporting the government and loving the people, and expressing condolences to retired cadres and workers. At the same time, various parties, social gatherings, cultural performances and sports competitions were held.
Traveling on the first day of the first month is an old custom of "being distracted and loving one side". Before you go, you must find out the direction of Nishi from the calendar, and then follow this direction. If the calendar says that "the northeast of Italy is not conducive to the southwest", you should start from your own doorstep and head northeast instead of southwest, so as to seek the protection of the western gods and get good luck. This custom was abolished today.
In the old days, there was a custom of counting arhats at Kaiyuan Temple in Fucheng on the first day of the first month, which was intended to be auspicious all the year round and to entertain ourselves. To enter the Kaiyuan Lohan Temple, you must first step at the foot of Lohan Hall and determine the direction of Lohan. If you cross your left foot first, from left to right, count the arhats of the same age according to one's age, that is, predict the future of the new year with their names and demeanor. If it is a long-browed arhat, it is a long life; If it's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, it's strong.
Catching chickens to sleep is actually a homonym of "rushing to sleep", which means going to bed early on the first night of the first month of the first month and having a good sleep. People were busy for many days before the festival. On the first day of the first month, they celebrated early, and the children were very tired after playing for a few days. So after dinner, they drove the poultry into the shed in advance and closed the door early to rest. This custom has been passed down to this day.
Taboos During the Spring Festival, there are many taboos for praying for good luck. If you avoid sweeping the floor and taking out the garbage, you will be afraid of sweeping away and losing everything; Avoid using knives and scissors for fear of bone diseases; Avoid porridge and soup in case it rains; Never break bowls, pots and other utensils for fear of losing money. If you make a mistake, you must say "it's normal to blame, but it's self-defeating", so as to eliminate disasters and masturbate, and avoid quarreling and throwing the toilet chamber pot, so as to avoid blasphemy. The words "death" and "poverty" are the most taboo. Adults are afraid of children's gaffes, and after more than a year, they will admonish and paste red notes with the words "Children's words are outrageous" and "All exonerated". Such taboos are often superstitious. The above taboo customs have gradually disappeared.
Begging in Kyrgyz. There used to be a saying in Shaoxing: "Begging is from the beginning of the year to New Year's Eve". During the Spring Festival, beggars beg by "sending cash cows", "jumping mud gods", "jumping cows", "sweeping the floor with sheep" and "going downstream". "Down the River" is usually performed by two beggars, one with a bamboo basket and the other with a giant paper. Gold ingot ",in front of the head of household, throw" gold ingot ".
A five-day journey. Five links, five links to the god of wealth, the custom takes the fifth day of the first month as the birthday of the god of wealth. On that day, all the merchants took over the God of Wealth, praying for wealth and a hundredfold profit in the market, and opened their doors from that day on. Generally speaking, there are also people who worship the god of wealth. This custom was abolished today.
Welcome to spring. Pay more attention to agriculture and mulberry, and hold cattle welcoming activities every day before spring. On that day, "all the officials below the county level have high horses and chariots" and "spring cattle prepare for old age" to "explain the farming in the coming year". Spring cattle are led by drum music, the officers sound gongs to clear the way, flags and umbrellas are accompanied by gifts, the magistrate or magistrate "parents" and "pole drivers", local gentry line up with each other, and the audience is like a tide. When they arrived in the countryside, the farmers greeted each other with smiles to welcome the spring cattle sent by their parents as a sign of the beginning of farming. Since then, farmers have ended their entertainment activities during the Spring Festival and started to prepare for farming.
In Shaoxing Fucheng, "the day before the spring, the officials of Fuxian Grain Capture Hall obeyed, went out to Wuyunmen to welcome the spring in the eastern suburbs, and entered the city to set up a government. The color of local cattle is drawn according to the spring cattle map of Qin Song Li Ben. Yellow is the valley, red is the sun, green is the wind, and black is the water that apologizes for the flood and drought. " On the second day after the Spring Festival, the spring cattle were crushed, and the villagers collected and hid their clods, hoping that the animal husbandry would flourish. "