“It rains heavily during the Qingming Festival, and pedestrians on the road want to die.” Qingming Festival, also known as the Outing Festival, Xingqing Festival, March Festival, Ancestor Worship Festival, etc., falls at the turn of mid-spring and late spring. The Qingming Festival originated from the ancestral beliefs of early humans and is the most solemn ancestor worship festival of the Chinese nation. Qingming Festival has both natural and cultural connotations. It is not only a natural solar term, but also a traditional festival. Do you know what customs there are during Qingming Festival? 1. Eating Qingtuan Rice Balls
It is said that in order to commemorate Jie Zitui, who "cut his flesh to serve the emperor", Duke Wen of Jin designated the day before Tomb Sweeping Day as the Cold Food Festival. No fire was made for cooking, and only cold food was eaten. Later, Cold Food and Qingming Festival were connected together, and eating Qingtuan became a custom. Green dumplings are made from mugwort juice that only appeared around the Qingming period, mixed with proportioned glutinous rice and kneaded by hand, then wrapped in different fillings according to everyone's preferences and steamed. The prepared green dumplings are eaten. It tastes sweet, fragrant, soft and glutinous, with the aroma of mugwort leaves. 2. Kite flying
In addition to normal entertainment, kite flying in ancient times also had a special meaning - to eliminate disasters and avoid disasters. When the ancients flew a kite, they would carry a pair of small scissors with them and write all the disasters they knew on the kite. After the kite flew high, they would cut the string and let the kite float away in the wind, symbolizing themselves. Diseases and filthy odors are all carried away by kites, thereby achieving the purpose of eliminating disasters and avoiding disasters.
From a modern scientific point of view, during the Qingming Festival, people go out and fly kites, bathe in the sun, stretch their muscles, stretch their necks, gaze into the distance, and walk slowly, which makes them stay indoors for a long time in winter, causing the internal heat to accumulate and the air to cool down. People with blood stagnation can breathe fresh air as much as they can to improve blood circulation and enhance lung breathing capacity, which can clear "internal heat" and expel the old and absorb the new. 3. Outing
Outing During the Qingming Festival, spring returns to the earth, and nature is full of vibrant scenes. It is a great time for outings. Chinese people have long maintained the habit of going outing during the Qingming Festival. Legend has it that the Qingming Festival outing existed a long time ago. The intrinsic meaning of Qingming outing is to comply with the seasonal solar terms. In March of spring, when vitality begins to flourish and all things sprout, people walk out of their houses and go to the wild to actively cater to the weather and promote the flow of Yang Qi in their bodies, which is good for the body. Health benefits a lot. 4. Swinging on a swing
Swinging on a swing is an ancient Qingming Festival custom in my country. Swing means moving by holding on to the leather rope. It has a very ancient history. It was first called Qianqiu, but later was changed to Swing to avoid taboos. In ancient times, swings were mostly made of tree branches and tied with colorful ribbons. Later, it gradually developed into a swing with two ropes and pedals. The swing play was already popular in the Southern and Northern Dynasties.
Swinging has been a very common game in the Tang Dynasty and has become an important part of the Qingming Festival customs. Since swings can be seen everywhere during the Qingming Festival, the Qingming Festival was designated as the Swing Festival during the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. Swings were also installed in the palace for the queens, concubines and maids to play. Playing on the swing can not only improve health, but also cultivate bravery. It is still loved by people, especially children. 5. Eat eggs
When it comes to the Qingming Festival, older people in the family will prepare some eggs, which have a very auspicious meaning. Eating eggs on the Qingming Festival means good health in the new year and good health at home. No one will get sick. Eating eggs during the Qingming Festival is called "eating eggs". There are two types of eggs, one is "painted eggs" and the other is "carved eggs". The colorfully painted eggs can be eaten, but the "carved eggs" are only for viewing.
Boiled eggs are good at preserving and can be easily combined to satisfy hunger. They are the first choice for people to spend the holidays!
These are the customs I know about the Qingming Festival. Friends, what else do you know?