The most interesting folklore

Chapter 2 The most interesting festival culture (2)
Ancient science and technology were very underdeveloped, and people believed that something they did in life would indicate that something similar would happen in their future life.For example, "On the first day of the new year, don't eat rare rice" is a typical representative of this kind of taboo.

"On the first day of the new year, don't eat rare food" is also one of the important taboos during the Spring Festival.It is said that on the first day of the new year, porridge should not be eaten for three meals a day, otherwise during the year, it will definitely rain when traveling.No matter who it is, when going out for a long trip, they are looking forward to encountering sunny and good weather, and do not want to be caught in the rain.If it comes true, people should of course be cautious when eating during the New Year.

There are other obstacles to not eating rare food, which is not good for the next generation of young people.Porridge, also known as "porridge" or "confused" in many places, is easily reminiscent of meanings such as "faint", "unclear", "do not understand", "unconscious".Especially for children, if they eat thin during the Chinese New Year, they may become confused in reading, literacy and arithmetic, and will not be able to work.It is also said that if the child eats thinner on the first day of the new year, he will forget his relatives.

More importantly, "thin" means "thin". Eating thin on New Year's Day means that there is not enough food and drink for a year; rich.

There are also some food taboos on the first day of the new year.

In terms of food customs, in addition to not eating porridge, there is also the custom of not eating meat and medicine in the morning on the first day of the new year.It is said that the first day of the Lunar New Year is a grand meeting of all gods, and all the gods will come out to pay New Year's greetings. To show respect, first of all, people must eat vegetarian and not meat.In addition, except for serious illnesses, it is best not to take medicine on the first day of the new year, in order to be healthy in the new year.There are other taboos on the diet on the first day of the new year, such as avoiding eating without fish, avoiding eating all the fish, in order to seek auspiciousness of "more than fish"; eating bones, avoid saying "bone", and not saying "bone" when you are full. "I won't eat", because these are all unlucky words, and if it is not auspicious, it should be avoided.

12. When can the custom of eating spring pancakes be traced back in the beginning of spring?

The Qing Dynasty's "Peking Customs Class Symptoms?"Sui Shi" records: In the beginning of spring, rich families eat spring pancakes, prepare sauce smoked and grilled salted meat, and stir-fry vegetables of various colors, such as spinach, leeks, bean sprouts, dry powder, eggs, etc., and eat them with pancake rolls baked with flour.This is exactly the custom of old Beijingers eating spring pancakes during the late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China, and this food custom is still passed down in Beijing today.

Spring pancakes are round pancakes rolled out of white flour and baked.Qing "Tiao Ding Ji" records that the method of making spring pancakes is "rolling dough and wrapping ham, chicken, etc., or vegetable heart in four seasons, deep-fried for customers. Salted pork loin, garlic flowers, black dates, walnut kernels, foreign sugar (White sugar) is crushed together, rolled into spring pancakes and cut into sections." This is the way of eating in the Qing Dynasty.Now it has evolved into spring pancakes with sweet noodle sauce, rolled with onions and eaten.

Eating spring pancakes pays attention to wrapping and eating from the beginning to the end, which is called "the beginning and the end", which means auspicious.When eating spring pancakes, the whole family sits together, puts the baked spring pancakes in a steamer, and takes them as they eat, in order to have a warm meal.

The custom of eating spring pancakes can be traced back to the Jin Dynasty in my country, and flourished in the Tang Dynasty.For example, "Guanzhong Ji" written by Pan Yue in the Jin Dynasty said that people in Tang Dynasty "made spring cakes on the first day of spring and wrapped them with spring wormwood, yellow leeks, and Polygonum buds" and gave them to each other to welcome the spring.Chen Weisong of the Qing Dynasty also said in his "Chen Review Collection": "Eating spring cakes on the first day of spring is called 'biting spring'."In the old days, the custom of eating spring pancakes on the first day of spring was not only popular among the people, but spring pancakes in the palace were often presented as festive food to close officials.For example, Chen Yuanliang's "Sui Shi Guang Ji" also contains: "One day before the beginning of spring, spring pancakes are served in Da Nei, and wine is given to near ministers. The lettuce dyed radish on the plate is decorated and placed in the dowry."

It is said that eating spring pancakes and various vegetables contained in them will make the crops flourish and the animals will thrive.Some areas believe that eating spring cakes wrapped with celery and leeks will make people work harder (celery) and live longer (leeks).

13. When did spring rolls start in Lichun?

In addition to spring cakes, spring rolls are also a festive delicacy that people often eat in Lichun.

Spring rolls are stuffed with thin dough and deep-fried.Spring rolls were popular in the Song and Yuan Dynasties, and they were called "Spring" or "Tanchun" in the Song Dynasty. According to records, the spring cakes made by the palace in the Song Dynasty with shepherd's purse for spring plowing are "green strands of red silk, golden rooster and jade swallows, and are very delicately prepared. Each plate is worth ten thousand dollars".Its sophistication is unimaginable.The palace spring pancakes in the Song Dynasty were famous for being "thin as a cicada's wing".It seems to be talking about spring rolls stuffed with shepherd's purse.In fact, spring pancakes and spring rolls are both symbols of spring in the eyes of the ancients, but there is a difference between them. Spring pancakes are pancakes baked with noodles and eaten with rolled vegetables.The food name spring rolls was first seen in the book "Meng Liang Lu" written by Wu Zimu in the Southern Song Dynasty. In the book, two kinds of spring rolls, "thin skin spring rolls" and "child mother spring rolls", were mentioned.

14. What is the Heavenly Sun Festival and what is the Earth Sun Festival?
Legend has it that the ninth day of the first lunar month is the birthday of the Jade Emperor. Ask God to bless you.

Folk song: Everyone in the world depends on the heavens, and seek God to deceive the heavens before doing things; the mother-in-law worships Buddha and practices well, and she has no problems for a hundred years; good luck, disaster stars, good deeds and convenience for children and grandchildren.

Legend has it that the tenth day of the first lunar month is the birthday of the stone, which is called the Earth Day Festival.On this day, all stone tools such as grinding and milling cannot be moved, so as not to damage the crops. It is also called "stones do not move" and "ten moves".In some places, every family pays tribute to the stone by burning incense.Mobing is a must for lunch, and it is believed that eating buns will bring prosperity within a year.There is also the act of lifting a stone god.On the night of the ninth day of the ninth day, people freeze an earthen jar on a large smooth rock. On the morning of the tenth day of the lunar new year, the nose of the jar is tied with a rope, and ten young men take turns to carry the jar away.

Folk song: There is heaven and earth, rice, wheat, and grains are all grown on the earth, and the flavor of vegetables is used as sacrifices; he is happy on his birthday, and he will never forget loyalty, filial piety, and righteousness; human and animal houses are all based on the land, and things are done down-to-earth.How Tusu Wine is Brewed During Chinese New Year? In ancient times, people paid great attention to the quality of wine when drinking during Chinese New Year. Some wines are lost now, leaving only many moving wine names, such as "grape fermented grains", "Lanwei wine", "Yichun wine". Wine", "Plum Blossom Wine", "Peach Blossom Wine", "Tu Su Wine" and so on.The longest and most common one is Tusu wine.But there are different legends about how Tusu wine is brewed.

Tusu is a grass name, and some people say that Tusu is a kind of house in ancient times, because the wine is brewed in this kind of house, so it is called Tusu wine.It is said that Tusu wine was created by Hua Tuo, a famous doctor in the late Han Dynasty. Its formula is made of traditional Chinese medicines such as rhubarb, Atractylodes macrocephala, Guizhi, Fangfeng, pepper, aconitum, and aconite, which are soaked in human wine.This kind of medicine has the effect of benefiting temperature and yang, dispelling wind and cold, and avoiding epidemic diseases. It was later spread by Sun Simiao, a famous doctor in Tang Dynasty.Every year in the twelfth lunar month, Sun Simiao always distributed a pack of medicine to the villagers, telling everyone to make wine with the medicine and drink it on New Year's Eve, which could prevent the plague.Sun Simiao also named his house "Tu Su House".Later, drinking Tusu wine became the custom of Chinese New Year.

15. What is special about drinking Tusu wine?

In ancient times, the method of drinking Tusu wine was very special.Most people always drink alcohol from the elders, but drinking Tusu wine is just the opposite, starting from the youngest.Some people don't understand the meaning of this custom. Some scholars explained: "The young are old, so congratulate them; the old lose their old, so they are punished." This custom was still very popular in the Song Dynasty. It is said in the poem "Outside": "However, if you are poor and sorrowful, you will be healthy, and you will drink Tusu in the end." Although Su Shi was poor in his later years, he was very optimistic. Naturally, there is no need to refuse.This ingenious drinking order makes people feel a lot of emotions and leaves a deep impression on people.In the Qing Dynasty, many places still inherited this custom, so that the custom of drinking Tusu wine on festivals or in ordinary times spread.

16. Why is the fifth day of the new year called broken five

The fifth day of the Lunar New Year, commonly known as "Po Wu", got its name because many taboos in the past can be broken on this day.Because this day carries too many people's hopes and longings, there are many taboos on this day in ancient times, such as eating dumplings on this day, not using raw rice for cooking, and not allowing women to visit the house, etc.At the end of the Qing Dynasty and the beginning of the Republic of China, Tianjin poet Feng Wenxun wrote in "Bingyin Tianjin Zhuzhi Ci": "There are too many women in Xinzheng, and they can't cook raw rice even in the court. You must be careful when holding cups and bowls. Be careful of 'breaking five'."

According to the old habit, Po Wu has to eat "water dumplings" for five days, which is called "cooked dumplings" in the north.Nowadays, some people only eat it for two or three days, and some eat it every other day, but there is no one who does not eat it.This is true from the mansion of the prince to the small household in the street, even the hospitality.The women no longer taboo, and began to visit each other and congratulate each other.Newly married women return to Ning on this day.There is also a saying that it is not suitable to do things on the fifth day, otherwise things will be ruined this year.

In addition to the above taboos, breaking the five customs is mainly to send the poor, welcome the God of Wealth, and open the market for trade.Since the Han and Tang Dynasties, folks have had the custom of sending the poor away.Why are people poor?According to the legend, some people say that she is the son of Zhuanxu and Emperor Ku, some say that she is the son of Emperor Yao, and some say that she is the wife of Jiang Ziya.Han Yu's "Song Poor Wen" believes that there are five kinds of poor ghosts: "poor in wisdom, poor in learning, poor in literature, poor in life, and poor in friendship". "All these five ghosts are my five troubles."There are many ways to send the poor away. In some places, the house is cleaned on this day. It is said that the "poor ghost" lives in the dust and garbage, and when the garbage is dumped, the "poor ghost" is sent away.

"Broken Five" is also called "Splashing Pollution Festival", and people can take out garbage on this day. "Broken Five" also means sending off the new year. After this day, everything will slowly return to the order of daily life and work.

17. Why is the fifth day of the first lunar month called sending the poor
"Sending the poor" on the fifth day of the first lunar month is a distinctive folk custom in ancient my country.Its meaning is to offer sacrifices to poor ghosts (poor gods).Poor ghosts, also known as "poor sons".It is said that the poor ghost is the son of Poxu.He is weak and short, and likes to wear rags and drink porridge.Even if new clothes were given to him, he would tear them up or burn a hole with fire before wearing them, so the palace name was "Qianyu".

"Sending the poor" has strong regional characteristics in some places in our country.On this day, people use paper to make women, called "sweeping mothers", "five poor women" and "five poor women". They carry paper bags on their backs, sweep the dirt from the house into the bags, and send them outside to burn them with cannons.This custom is also known as "send the poor land" and "send the poor daughter-in-law out".In the area of ​​Hancheng, Shaanxi, it is forbidden to go out on the day of Po Wu, and it is necessary to stir-fry Madou to make it crack and make a sound. -J-~Break out of poverty and seek wealth.In addition, in some places, you have to eat very full on the fifth day of the first day, commonly known as "filling the poor pit".

18. What month and day is the Rensheng Festival?

The seventh day of the first month of the lunar calendar is the "Man's Day" in traditional Chinese customs, which has a history of more than 2000 years in our country.People commonly call "Man's Day" as "Man's Victory Festival", "Man's Celebration", "Seventh Yuan Day", "Population Day" and so on.Legend has it that Nuwa created the common people, created animals such as chickens, dogs, pigs, sheep, cattle, horses, and animals in sequence, and created humans on the seventh day, so the seventh day is the birthday of humans.Human day refers to the seventh day of the first month of the lunar calendar. According to ancient legend, the first day of the first month of the lunar calendar is the day of the rooster, the second day is the day of the dog, the third day is the day of the pig, the fourth day is the day of the sheep, the fifth day is the day of the ox, the sixth day is the day of the horse, and the seventh day is the day of the horse. Human day.

The Han Dynasty began to have people's festivals, and the Wei and Jin Dynasties began to pay attention to them.In ancient times, people had the custom of wearing "Rensheng". Rensheng is a kind of headdress, also known as Caisheng and Huasheng. on the hair.In addition, there is also the custom of climbing high and composing poems.After the Tang Dynasty, more attention was paid to this festival.Every man's day, the emperor bestows colorful thread to the ministers, and then climbs up to feast the ministers.If the weather is fine on the seventh day of the first lunar month, it means that the Lord will have a safe year and a smooth birth.

In the past, on this day, some places had customs such as "lighting sky lanterns with hemp stalks", "making porridge with beans to treat headaches", "women walking around to get rid of all kinds of diseases", "climbing high and composing poems".With the development of the times and social progress, some of these customs have gradually disappeared.

19. How did the Lantern Festival come about?
The fifteenth day of the first month of the lunar calendar is the Lantern Festival, also known as the Lantern Festival, Shangyuan Festival, and Lantern Festival. It is a traditional Chinese folk custom.

The Lantern Festival originated when Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty offered sacrifices to the god "Taiyi".Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty set up the highest heavenly emperor "Taiyi" god on top of the five emperors, and built a "Taiyi" shrine altar in Ganquan Palace.Beginning at dusk on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, grand lights are used for sacrifices, called "Shangyuan Lanterns", all night long, in order to pray for the gods to bless the year with peace and auspiciousness.Since then, there has been the custom of fifteen lanterns and colorful decorations on the first lunar month.

During the period of Emperor Ming of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Emperor Ming advocated Buddhism. He heard that on the [-]th day of the first lunar month, monks observed Buddha relics and lit lamps to worship Buddha. He ordered that the palace and temples be lit to worship Buddha at night, so that the common people of the gentry would hang lamps.Later, this Buddhist etiquette festival gradually became a grand folk festival.

During the festival, there are customs such as eating Lantern Festival, watching lanterns, playing with social fires, and guessing lantern riddles.The time for lighting the lanterns was one night in the Han Dynasty, three nights by Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, and five nights in the Northern Song Dynasty.The Lantern Festival is accompanied by fireworks, as well as advocacy and juggling string music, with lights and shadows in five colors, all night long.In the Qing Dynasty, "hundred operas" such as dragon dance, lion dance, dry boat running, stilt walking, and Yangko twisting were added, but the festival was shortened to four to five days.

20. Is February [-] the Spring Dragon Festival?

"Dragon raises its head, Dacang is full, and Xiaocang flows", although the custom of February [-] has been basically lost, this proverb is still widely circulated among the people. The second day of February in the lunar calendar is the Spring Dragon Festival, which is called the Dragon Raising its Head Day. The ancient Sometimes there are also titles such as Vegetable Picking Festival and Welcoming Wealth Day, and it is also called outing festival in the south.

The second day of the second month of the lunar calendar is the day when the Dragon King, who is in charge of clouds and rain, raises his head. From then on, the rain will gradually increase.Therefore, this day is called the Spring Dragon Festival.Xu Shen's "Shuowen Jiezi" records: "Dragon, the longest in the scales, can be dark and bright, can be thin or huge, can be long or short, the vernal equinox reaches the sky, and the autumnal equinox dives into the abyss." This is probably the "Spring Dragon Festival". "The earliest record of the custom.

From a scientific point of view, the second day of the second month of the lunar calendar is around the "Awakening of Insects", when the earth begins to thaw, the weather gradually warms up, farmers bid farewell to the slack season and start working in the fields.Therefore, "February [-]" was also called "Shang Er Day" in ancient times.Therefore, the Spring Dragon Festival, which is popular among the people in our country, was also called the Spring Plowing Festival in ancient times; ", "Green Dragon Festival", "Outing Green Festival", "Picking Vegetables Festival", "Wealth Wealth Day" and so on.

After the second month of the lunar calendar, the "rain" solar term comes, the lack of rain in winter ends, and the precipitation gradually increases.During the Spring Dragon Festival in Shandong and other areas, a dragon is drawn on the ground with stove smoke, commonly known as Yinqian dragon.It is commonly believed that there are two purposes for leading a dragon: one is to invite the dragon to come back, sow clouds and sow rain, and pray for a good harvest; the other is that the dragon is the god of insects, and when the dragon comes, the insects will hide, which is harmful to human health and crop growth. is beneficial.

Folks in Nantong, Jiangsu make longevity peaches and five animals with flour on February [-], steam them and insert them on bamboo sticks.At night, it is inserted in the cemetery and in the field, thinking that it is food for the god of hundreds of insects and offering sacrifices to ancestors, praying to the ancestors to drive away the plague of insects, and also hoping that the god of hundreds of insects will not harm the crops.A bumper harvest in agriculture requires plenty of sunshine, fertile land, and rain, so praying for rain has become an important part of the Spring Dragon Festival.At the same time, there is also a dragon play, which is a combination of offering sacrifices to dragons and praying for rain.

In most parts of northern my country, on the morning of the Spring Dragon Festival, people carry lanterns to the well or river to fetch water, and when they return home, they light lamps, burn incense and make offerings.In the past, people called this ceremony "Yintianlong".On this day, many people also eat noodles, fried oil cakes, and popcorn, which are compared to "picking the dragon's head", "eating gentian", "golden beans bloom, the dragon king ascends to heaven, the clouds spread rain, and the five grains are plentiful" to show auspicious.During festivals, it is common to add the title of "dragon" to the food name.Eating dumplings is called "long ear", eating spring pancakes is called "long scale", eating noodles is called "long beard", eating rice is called "longzi", eating wonton is called "longan" and so on.

Women can't do needlework on the second day of February, because the Canglong will look up at the world on this day, and using needles will hurt the dragon's eyes.Before women get up on the festival, they recite "February [-], the dragon raises its head, if the dragon does not raise its head, I will raise its head".After getting up, I have to light a lantern to illuminate the beams of the house, and read "February [-], when the beams are illuminated, there will be nowhere for scorpions and centipedes to hide".In some places, women stop washing clothes for fear of hurting the dragon's skin and so on.

21. What are the customs on the third day of February?

The third day of February is the birthday of Wenchang (the god of fame and fortune). On that day, literati and scholars in Japan worshiped Wenchang and asked to be ranked in the imperial examination.In the past, children performed the pen-opening ceremony on this festival. The pen-opening ceremony for enlightenment is an important etiquette of Confucianism, which indicates that children have officially started learning.In the past, scholars had to perform four ceremonies, namely, the pen opening ceremony, the advanced ceremony, the gratitude ceremony and the number one scholar ceremony.

The pen opening ceremony is the first big gift in life.The beginning of writing is to start writing articles. The ceremony mainly includes worshiping the statue of Confucius, teaching the most basic principles of life, and presenting the four treasures of the study.

22. What is the holiday on the third day of the third lunar month?

The third day of the third lunar month is Shangsi Day.In ancient times, the first day of the third lunar month was called "Shangsi".Shangsi Festival, also known as Yuansi, Sansi, Chusi, Shangchu, March [-]rd, etc., is an ancient festival and an important festival for the ancestors.According to legend, March is the birthday of the Yellow Emperor. There has been a saying in China since ancient times that "on February [-], the dragon raises its head; on March [-], Xuanyuan is born".After the Wei and Jin Dynasties, the Shangsi Festival was changed to March [-]rd, which was followed by descendants, and it became a festival for the Han people to have banquets by the water and outing in spring.

In the Tang Dynasty, during the third month of March, officials and civilians went out for outings, and banquets by the waterside were the most popular, and there was also a legacy of washing.The emperor often gave a banquet to Qujiangchi.Wu Zimu's "Meng Liang Lu" has: "The Tang Dynasty gave a banquet to Qujiang, and poured all the capital to drink and go outing." Du Fu left behind the famous poem "Beauty Walk", which wrote: "The weather is new on March [-], and there are many beautiful people by the water in Chang'an. "On Shangsi Day, there are folk activities such as repairing wedges, presenting flowers, singing and dancing cups, singing and dancing, hunting and wading across rivers.

The third day of March falls on Siri, which is a great time for spring outings.On this day, people spread shepherd's purse flowers on the stove and places where they sit and sleep, thinking that they can eliminate pests such as ants; On the head, I think I can avoid headaches and sleep very soundly at night.People also go mountaineering and outing, also known as welcoming spring, outing in spring, exploring spring, and spring outing.

The third day of the third month of the lunar calendar is also the day when the legendary Queen Mother held a peach party.There is a seven-character poem in the "Miscellaneous Songs of the Capital" in the late Qing Dynasty that describes the grand occasion of the temple fair in this way: "On the third day of March, spring is growing, and incense is burned in the Peach Palace; a slight wind blows along the river, and the red dust of ten feet is flying all over the ground."

The third day of the third lunar month is also the birthday of the Taoist Emperor Zhenwu.The full name of Emperor Zhenwu is "Beizhen Innocent Wu Xuantian Great", also known as Xuantian God, Xuanwu, and Zhenwu Zhenjun.Born in the age of Xuanyuan in ancient times, on the third day of the third month in the Chinese calendar, he is the righteous god in charge of military and war in Taoism.Taoist officials and temples all over the country will hold grand pujas on March [-]rd. Taoist believers will also go to temples and temples to burn incense and pray for blessings, or chant scriptures and pray at home on this day.

(End of this chapter)