The most interesting folklore

Chapter 16 The most interesting festive culture (4)
Folks believe that a child's clothes, hat, shoes, or toys often have a mystical effect on another child's life.Thus, lending the clothes of a child who escaped premature death to another child protects him.Conversely, the clothes of a child who dies bring misfortune to the child who wears them.

39. What is the custom of the folks recognizing their relatives
In the past, when the living conditions and medical conditions were very bad, people worried about whether their children could grow up healthy and healthy.In order to protect children from disasters and illnesses and grow up healthily, people come up with ways to recognize their godparents, thinking that if they recognize their godparents, their children will have an extra layer of protection.There are also parents who "fate poisonously" and "harm" their children, and they also recognize a god-in-law.

The custom of recognizing godparents exists in both the north and the south of our country. In the north, it is called "recognizing godfather and godmother", while in the south it is called "recognizing foster parents and foster mothers".Although the names are different, the meaning is the same.Generally speaking, as long as the child kowtows to the godfather and godmother, it is enough to change the name to godfather and godmother.The two parties who agree to be relatives should give gifts to each other.Godfathers and godmothers should prepare clothes, hats and pockets for their children, especially rice bowls, chopsticks and longevity locks.Rice bowls and chopsticks are not easy to break, otherwise, if they break easily, it is unlucky.Sons and daughters should also respect godfather and godmother, the most important thing is to give godfather a hat and godmother a pair of shoes, the so-called "godfather's hat godmother's shoes".In addition, some clothing, snacks and the like should be sent.

In some places, relatives must be identified with the surname Chang or Liu, and the homonyms of "Chang" and "Liu" are used to indicate that the child can always be there and stay.There are also worship places for godmothers, Luke for godfathers, and Luke for stone stones, which are hard and strong, and the homonym of "chang" means long life.

Some people also look for surnames with the same pronunciation as their original surnames for their children to consider as relatives. For example, children whose surnames are Yang and Hou often recognize people with the surnames Ma, Zhu, and Niu as relatives, because sheep, monkeys, horses, pigs (Zhu), Cows and the like all have four legs and are of the same kind.

40. Is the crown ceremony a man's coming-of-age ceremony?
The crowning ceremony symbolizes the adulthood of a man by adding a crown, and there is a set of strict etiquette.In the Zhou Dynasty, when a man turned 20, the family would hold a crown ceremony in the ancestral temple.The father of the young man first uses divination to determine the auspicious day for the salute, and then uses divination to decide which distinguished guest to invite to crown the youth.On the day of the coronation ceremony, everything will be prepared in the morning, and the crowned young man will stand in the room. His father invites the distinguished guests to enter the door, and the Renzong Temple specifies the location.When crowning the crown, the distinguished guests will put on the prescribed hats and costumes for the young people.There are three times of crowning: the first time a black linen cap is added, which is called "Shijia"; the second time a white buckskin cap is worn, which is called "Additional"; the third time is a red and black flat cap, called "Three Plus".When crowning, a special person sings "Congratulations".After the coronation, the VIP congratulated the youth with wine.Then the young man goes to worship his mother, and when he comes back after seeing his mother, the distinguished guest will give him a character (name after adulthood), so that the crowning ceremony is over.

After the ceremony, the young man's father sent the distinguished guest out of the temple gate, held a banquet to entertain him, and finally gave him gifts such as silk silk and deerskin.The young people who are crowned must first meet their brothers and sisters, and then go to meet Jun, Qing, doctor and Mr. Xiang (Mr. Xiang is an old man who once went out to be an official, and then retired and returned to his hometown to teach), etc., in order to obtain all parties. Confronted with the acknowledgment of his adulthood.

From then on, this young man has the right to rule the people, serve in the army and participate in sacrifices, and he can also marry and start a family.

42. Is the coming-of-age ceremony for women called Jili?

Ji ceremony is a woman's coming-of-age etiquette.In ancient times, no matter boys or girls, their hair drooped naturally when they were children, which was called "hanging hair". become synonymous with childhood.When a girl reaches the age of 15, she should coil her hair up and put it on a hairpin, which means she has become an adult.This is also a symbolic ritual.

The crown ceremony and the Ji ceremony are both symbolic coming-of-age rituals in ancient times.This rite of passage is highly valued in noble families.Traditional Chinese society has always valued boys over girls, so the crown ceremony is much more grand than the Zhazha.

42. What are the coming-of-age rites for ethnic minorities?

Today, although there are no coming-of-age ceremonies such as crown ceremonies in Han areas, traditional coming-of-age ceremonies with primitive features are still retained in some ethnic minorities.

In some Yi villages in Yunnan, when a girl turns 15, her mother and girlfriend will hold a secret "dress-changing ceremony" for her.When a group of sixteen and seventeen-year-old girlfriends come in, all outsiders have to back out.So, they opened their foreheads for the girl, combed the single braids into double braids, tore off the ear wires hanging on the earlobe, replaced them with new silver earrings, and hung a silver medal on the collar.Finally, replace the red and white children's skirt with a black and blue pleated long skirt.After the ceremony, the girl can go shopping, go to the market, watch the horse race, sing and dance with young men and women.

In the past, Gaoshan and Gelao men and women had to pull out one or two upper teeth before they could get married.Today, young men and women of the Blang and Dai ethnic groups in Yunnan have to dye each other's teeth when they reach the age of marriage.When Jino brides get married, they must first dye their teeth black and their lips red.This is the evolution of the legacy of "knocking teeth to get married" in ancient times.

43. Is the "dujie" of the Yao nationality a coming-of-age ceremony for youth songs?

Young people of the Yao nationality in Xishuangbanna, Yunnan Province usually hold a ceremony of "dujie" when they are [-] or [-] years old.Every adult man has to go through this ceremony to become a formal member of the society, to participate in all village activities, to have the right or qualification to be elected or to be the head of the village, and to obtain the protection of the gods. Only after death can he be included:' "Ancestors of the same family" and can accept incense offerings. Those who have not passed the precepts or have not passed the precepts are not considered real men and are not qualified to talk about love. It is difficult to get the love of girls and they will be discriminated against for life. Therefore, men Precepts are taken very seriously.

The precepts are presided over by the master for seven days and seven nights.During this period, Dujie men must live in the master's house, not go out, and wear hats and bow their heads when walking.Don't talk to anyone except Shigong, don't eat oily or meaty food.In the evening, learn various religious etiquette with the master, recite religious classics and the history of the nation and family, and receive traditional life knowledge education.In the three days before the ceremony, you must insist on bathing and purifying your body, and make various preparations for the precepts.When the ceremony is held, a flat ground should be selected outside the village, and a wooden platform more than two feet high erected on four wooden stakes is erected on the flat ground, which is called "Yuntai".A rattan net or straw or quilt is laid under the cloud platform, and the person rolls down from the cloud platform and falls on the rattan net, straw or quilt.

The "Dujie" ceremony is mainly based on "jumping on the cloud platform".The precepts are dressed in red robes, and they form a group of two, taking the stage under the guidance of the teacher.Then, the teacher goes around the stage and recites the scriptures, and the preceptees on the stage should show that they have firmly remembered the teachings of the preceptor and the life knowledge imparted by them, and then put their hands on their knees and prepare to roll off the stage.After jumping off, the hands should not be loosened, and the limbs should not be turned to the sky, otherwise it will be regarded as a failure of the precept, and people will laugh at it, and will regret for life because of "incomplete cultivation of merit and virtue".The precepted person fell into a coma after getting down all over his body, and people immediately carried him around the stage three times.After he regained consciousness, the master fed him, and he was given a name by the preceptor to become a real person.

This rather thrilling ceremony symbolizes the descent from the sky of the ordain, whose life has since been given new meaning.Successful men can openly participate in various social activities, freely choose a spouse, have a romantic relationship with a girl, start a family and start a career.

44. Why is it possible to "live a birthday" when you are over half a hundred years old?

Generally speaking, people under the age of 50 call their birthdays "birthdays", and those over 50 years old begin to call their birthdays "birthdays". The year is the year of "destiny".In some places, it is called "birthday" before the age of 50, and it is called "birthday" before the age of 60.In some places, regardless of age, only seniority is considered. For example, in Jiaodong and other places, after adding a grandson, you can celebrate your birthday.There are also places where "respecting relatives does not dare to say old age", if parents are still alive, even if they are over fifty years old, they cannot "celebrate their birthday".

Birthday celebrations are also divided into big and small ones, every fifth and tenth is a whole birthday, and it is customary to have five small celebrations (55 and 65 years old) and tenth birthdays, which are generally more grand, especially the 66th birthday and the subsequent 66th and 66th birthdays. Sixty-six birthdays are a popular birthday custom in the provinces of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River specially for the elderly who have reached the age of 66.When the father or mother reaches the age of 77, the married daughter will celebrate the birthday of her father or mother.In Juancheng, Shandong, the 66-year-old daughter gave meat, and the 77-year-old daughter gave chicken. The local saying goes: "66, cut a piece of meat; 66, kill a chicken." This custom is also popular in Jinshan area.If the parents are still alive at this time, when one of them celebrates the 66th birthday, the daughter must make a pair of green shoes for the parents to wear, and burn 66 pieces of braised pork for the [-]-year-old parents to eat in one meal (of course, the meat is cut carefully. Very small, about the size of a dice).There is a folk proverb circulating in the local area: "[-], if a daughter eats a bowl of meat at home and wears green shoes, she can live a long life, and a person can live to a hundred and a fraction."

45. Why do you "do nine instead of ten" when you pass your life

In some places, there is a saying that "celebrate nine but not ten" and "do nine but not ten" when celebrating a full birthday. The whole birthday is often celebrated one year in advance. It is a taboo to say that "all things are full, and fullness will cause damage". Some people also think that "ten" is a slam, meaning the end, and "ten" is a taboo because the pronunciation of "ten" in the local area is similar to "death". Nine" means forever, and I hope the elderly will live longer.In some places, ages with nines such as 80, 79, and 59 are called "Ming Jiu", and multiples of nine such as 69, 79, 54, and 63 are called "Dark Nines".In addition to doing "Ming Nine", he also pays great attention to "Dark Nine". "Dark nine" is a multiple of "nine" in the annual ring of life. On the birthday of dark nine, relatives, friends and descendants come to congratulate and congratulate them, hoping to resolve the bad luck.

47. What age taboos are there in various places?
Men and women in the Miao area avoid getting married at the age of 18. They think that if they get married at this time, they will suffer "18".Avoid 20."20" is taboo in Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces. When you encounter this number, you read it as "Nian". It is said that during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States period, King Wu had a daughter "Er Shi" who was killed by fish bones, and "Er Shi" and "20" are homophonic. So avoid it.

Avoid 36."36" is taboo in Changyang, Hubei. It is said that Zhou Yu died at the age of 36.People say that 36 is a "big festival" (dangerous moment), therefore, avoid 36's turn.When people give gifts and remember wealth, when 35 people are written, leave 36 empty, and then write 37.

Taboo 45.According to Li Jiarui, hping custom Lou Zheng?"Language" quotes "Guan Ji" saying: "Yan people keep taboo about 45, people may ask it, instead of saying '44 years old last year', they say '46 years old next year', I don't know what it means." According to "Bian Liang Suo Ji": "Folk folklore in Biandi: Lao Bao (Zheng) was ordered to deliver grain to Chenzhou. He was robbed on the way, disguised as a bastard (the turtle foot of a low-ranking prostitute in the rivers and lakes), escaped from the dangerous place, and survived. He was 45 years old at the time. It is believed that the age of 45 must be bad luck, so it is forbidden to say 45 years old, and it is often called 44 or 46 years old to avoid it.” It can be seen that the taboo of 45 years old is actually related to dangerous things such as being in danger and being a king. .Avoid saying "hundred years old".Centenary is often used to refer to the extreme limit of life, such as "a hundred years of reconciliation", "a hundred years' plan", "a hundred years later", etc. all imply the limit of life, so if you want to ask someone's age, It is taboo to say a hundred years old.If you are really 100 years old, you should only say that you are 99 years old, otherwise, it is unlucky.In the area of ​​Tai'an in Shandong Province, it is said that 100 years old is a donkey, and in the areas of Linqing and Binzhou in Shandong Province, it is said that 100 years old is an old hedgehog.

47. Why is the sixtieth longevity cabinet

(End of this chapter)