New Year is here, so lively. Post Spring Festival couplets and set off firecrackers. My daughter wants flowers, my son wants cannons. The old woman bought a wooden knot, and the old man bought a new felt hat. "The ballads sung in urban and rural areas of Xuzhou express the joy and hope that the Spring Festival has settled in the hearts of young and old. Xuzhou is the hometown of Han culture, and the New Year in Xuzhou is different from other places. There are only a few days until the New Year! How much do you know about the various customs during the New Year in Xuzhou?
The so-called "year" in Xuzhou does not only refer to New Year's Eve and the first day of the Lunar New Year. Elderly people say that from The period from the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month to the Lantern Festival is the "New Year" in Xuzhou.
On the third and fourth day of the lunar month, people pick up their daughters and treat their sons-in-law. On the sixth day of the lunar month, business is opened and friends are received. On the seventh day of the lunar month, it is the day to respect ancestors and elders. Students drink hot porridge ("one chicken, two dogs, three pigs and four sheep, five oxen and six horses, seven people"). "Eight Grains"?), on the eighth day of the lunar month, choose grains, which will herald a good harvest; on the ninth day of the lunar month, prepare to go out; on the tenth day of the lunar month, prepare the lanterns. On the eleventh day, it will be noisy, on the 12th day, a lamp shed will be built, on the 13th day, high lanterns will be hung, on the 14th day, the lanterns will be bright, on the 15th day Steamed noodle lanterns.
Sacrifice to the Stove
The activity of worshiping the Stove in the twelfth lunar month is commonly known as "Guan San Min Si". First, please ask the Stove Lord to code (that is, buy the Stove Lord's image, the codes are red, green, and yellow). Color printing), stick it on the stove at night, add a couplet on both sides: "God speaks good things, the lower world keeps peace", write on the forehead: "Head of the family", and at the same time read: "Kitchen King, Kitchen King, please eat sweets" , God says good things, and returns to the palace to bring good luck." When worshiping the Kitchen God, the whole family kowtows in turn, opens the glutinous rice as an offering, and rubs a little on the Kitchen God's mouth. After the second watch, the offering is collected, and the whole family shares the glutinous rice.
New Year's Eve Songs: As busy as if there were no New Year's Eve
The 23rd of the twelfth lunar month: Every family celebrates the New Year
Once the 23rd of the twelfth lunar month passes, I always feel a lot. The New Year's goods are not ready yet.
Folk proverb says: On the 23rd, I send the Kitchen God to heaven; on the 24th, I boil sugar and fry peanuts and fried fruits; on the 25th, I buy a new broom to sweep the house and dust; on the 26th, I go to the market. Go and cut the meat, kill a chicken on the 27th, steam the steamed buns on the 28th, take out the garbage on the 29th, and burn incense and keep vigil on New Year's Eve. If there is no New Year's Eve, everything needs to be prepared in advance. So I am even more busy. So there is a folk saying: I am so busy that I have saved everything for a year, and I am happy to see my children grow up.
Spring Festival couplets and window grilles: Welcome blessings and auspiciousness
Xuzhou people are accustomed to posting Spring Festival couplets on New Year’s Eve. The simplest thing is to put one on the courtyard door. Many people have to put stickers on their stoves and stoves, on their cabinets, tables and chairs, and on their water jars and stone grindstones. Before the liberation of Xuzhou, the common Spring Festival couplets were "good weather, good life," and "contentment, happiness, and the ability to endure oneself." "An", "Another year" and so on.
Spring couplets are the art of calligraphy, so window grilles and door labels are the art of paper-cutting. Window grilles are a folk art that integrates decoration, appreciation and practicality. Door stickers, known as "Spring Banners" and "Spring Victory", are a great piece of festive art and are affixed to door and window lintels and flutter in the wind, so they are also called "wind curtains". It is the evolution of the ancient "hanging mahogany charms"
Nowadays, the urban and rural street markets in Xuzhou are full of people selling Spring Festival couplets and window decorations.
New Year’s Eve: Ancestor vigil and setting off firecrackers
“The ear-shattering sound of firecrackers was heard, and the weak grandson jumped in front of the painting hall. He was determined to teach Zhou Gongli and asked me to add new year’s money. It was shocking. The years are full of regrets, wax and smoke are being offered in the hall, clothes and hats are solemnly bowed like sacrifices, and people stay up all night with good food."
The poem "Traveling on New Year's Eve" by Bu Xiaotian, a poet of the Republic of Xuzhou, depicts Xuzhou at that time. People’s customs and mood on New Year’s Eve. The New Year's Eve vigil does not mean that family members sit in silence, but there are many things that need to be done, and they need to be done seriously and carefully.
After dinner, the ancestor worship begins. The tables are wiped clean and the statues of the ancestors are offered. Chickens, fish, meat, and fruits are arranged one by one, and incense is burned before worshiping. Although ordinary people's sacrifices are simple, they still need to put four plates of offerings, light incense sticks, sprinkle a glass of wine, and say a few prayers. They also burn "New Year's Papers" at intersections to express their feelings to their old friends.
The family then reunited. The family usually travels far and wide, but during the Chinese New Year they reunite at home, sitting indoors around the fire, paying homage to ancestors and keeping vigil, eating fruits and drinking fragrant tea. Adults look back on a year of hard work and watch their children grow into adults; children listen to the teachings of their elders, look forward to the gifts and joy of the New Year, and wait for the coming of the new year.
When the clock rings, everyone sets off firecrackers and cooks dumplings. This is called "Jiaozi", which means the beginning of the new year and everything is renewed.
Now on New Year’s Eve, with the CCTV Spring Festival Gala, the vigil topics have become even richer. It usually starts at eight o'clock. Before eight o'clock, there is enough time for the sacrifice, and everything can be completed as usual.
New Year's customs from the first to the fifteenth day of the first lunar month
On the first day of the Lunar New Year: eat vegetarian dumplings to celebrate the new year and be vegetarian for a new year
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, set off firecrackers and burn gold foil. It is commonly known as connecting heaven and earth. Children should get up early to pay New Year greetings.
Wear new clothes on the first day of the new year, otherwise you won’t have a new look for the whole year. On the first day of the new year, you must speak civilly, otherwise you will become blind and live in dissatisfaction for a year. Therefore, children in the first grade of junior high school are the most obedient, kowtow when asked, shout whatever they want, and get lucky money.
On the first day of the Lunar New Year in Xuzhou, for the first breakfast, you cannot eat leftovers or drink noodle soup, which indicates a year of confusion and procrastination. You can only eat vegetarian dumplings for the first meal, not meat dumplings. Vegetarian dumplings wish you a pure and pure year ahead. Housewives in Xuzhou should cook the prepared vegetarian dumplings in the early morning of the first day of the Lunar New Year. After they are cooked, the first bowl is dedicated to heaven and earth, the second bowl is dedicated to seniors, and then they are eaten at home. Nowadays, it is fashionable to have New Year's Eve dinner in restaurants. When serving the staple food, the first dish must be a plate of vegetarian dumplings stuffed with mushrooms, spring leeks, beans, tofu and other stuffings. This is something that businesses must pay attention to. This may be the custom of Xuzhou people for hundreds of years.
The second grade of junior high school: visit the mother-in-law
Visiting relatives begins on the second grade of junior high school. The old rule was "Grandma and aunt on the second grade of junior high school, visit the mother-in-law on the fourth and fifth grade of junior high school." Now it has become "grandma and aunt on the third grade of junior high school". I will visit my mother-in-law on the second and third day of the lunar month, and I will visit my aunt on the fourth and fifth day of the lunar month." The same is true in the Xuzhou area. The second day of the Lunar New Year is the day when the mother's family picks up her daughter and takes her son-in-law, which is the busiest day for the mother. In the Xuzhou area, a son-in-law is called a "high guest", and he is expected to give all he has to him to entertain him warmly.
The third day of the Lunar New Year: Red Dog Day
The third day of the Lunar New Year is also called Red Dog Day, which has the same pronunciation as "Chikou". People usually do not go out to pay New Year greetings. Legend has it that it is easy to have quarrels with others on this day. dispute. However, this custom has long been outdated, because now it is rare for people to get together during the Spring Festival, and it has been downplayed a lot.
The fourth day of the Lunar New Year: Worship the God of Wealth, do not go far away
The fourth day of the Lunar New Year is the day to worship the God of Wealth. In the past, the boss wanted to "fire" someone, so he would not be invited on this day. If you come to worship God, the other party will know it well and pack up and leave. There is also a legend that the Kitchen God is coming to check household registration on this day, so it is not advisable to go far away.
The fifth day of the first lunar month: Make offerings to gods and seek wealth, take out garbage and do work
On the fifth day of the first lunar month, people in Xuzhou call it the "Five Busy Days". When you get up in the morning, you first burn incense to offer to the gods, and then collect the offerings in the evening. On this busy day, it is forbidden to work with needlework. People in the suburbs and within dozens of miles around go to the Chenghuang Temple in the city to offer incense until the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.
Southern merchants doing business in Xuzhou worship the God of Wealth, mostly on the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, and there is a saying of "robbing the God of Wealth". The so-called robbery is to go to the Temple of Wealth to worship early in the early morning of the fifth day of the lunar month.
On the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, some places call it "Powu", and shops can open for business. Therefore, many businesses in Xuzhou choose this day to first go to the Temple of Wealth to worship the God of Wealth, and then set off firecrackers to welcome the fifth day of the Lunar New Year. A customer. The fifth day of the Lunar New Year is still a day to "give away the poor". From this day on, you can dump garbage, do household chores, and go on long trips.
The sixth day of the lunar month: the sixth day of the lunar month, business is open and friends are welcomed
On the sixth day of the lunar month, the old shops and restaurants officially opened for business, and they set off firecrackers, no less than the situation on New Year's Eve . Legend has it that the most popular people on this day are boys who have reached the age of 12, because 12 is twice as much as 6, which is called Liuliu Dashun. On this day, every household has to throw away the garbage accumulated during the festival. This is called giving away to the poor.
The seventh day of the first lunar month: "Human Day"
The seventh day of the first lunar month is the "Human Day" in traditional Chinese customs, also known as "Human Victory Festival", "Human Festival", etc. Legend has it that when Nuwa created the world, she created humans on the seventh day after creating animals such as chickens, dogs, pigs, cows, and horses. The activities on this day are to show the power of people. When Su Shi was an official in Xuzhou, he led his people to hunt in the countryside on the seventh day of the first lunar month. After the victory, he "still removed millet when he returned, boiled celery and polygonum with salt and soybean" and gathered together happily.
The eighth day of the lunar month: Choosing the Grain, a Good Harvest Year
The eighth day of the lunar month is Grain Day, which is said to be the birthday of millet. It is also called the Shunxing Festival. It is said to be the day when the stars descend to the lower realm, and the sky is filled with stars. If the weather is sunny on this day, it means a good harvest of rice this year. If the weather is cloudy, it means a good harvest.
The ninth day of the Lunar New Year: Sacrifice to Heaven
On the ninth day of the Lunar New Year, it is the folk custom to hold a grand ceremony to worship the Heaven on the birthday of the Jade Emperor.
The tenth day of the lunar month: Sacrifice to the stone
The tenth day of the lunar month is the birthday of the stone. On this day, all stone tools such as grinding and milling are not allowed to be moved, and even the stone must be sacrificed.
Eleventh Day: Son-in-law Day
The eleventh day of the first lunar month is "Son-in-law Day", which is the day when the father-in-law entertains his son-in-law. There is still a lot of food left over from the celebration of "God's Birthday" on the ninth day of the lunar month, apart from eating it for one day on the tenth day of the lunar month. Therefore, the mother's family does not have to spend any more money, so they use the leftover food to entertain their son-in-law and daughter. The folk song is called "Eleventh Day" Invite your son-in-law."
Twelfth to fifteenth: Lantern Festival lighting
After the eleventh day of the first lunar month, people begin to prepare to celebrate the Lantern Festival. The nursery rhyme goes like this: "On the eleventh day the lamps are chirping, at the twelve they set up the lamp shed, at the thirteen they turn on the lamps, at the fourteenth the lamps are bright, at the fifteenth it is half a month, and at the sixteenth they finish the lamps." The fifteenth day of the first lunar month is the "Lantern Festival" , it is the first full moon night of the year, and it is also the night when the earth rejuvenates, also known as the "Shangyuan Festival". The custom of lighting lanterns during the Lantern Festival began in the Han Dynasty. On this day, it is indispensable to eat Yuanxiao and glutinous rice balls. The 16th night of the first lunar month is a children's festival. All the children take out their lanterns and bang them against others. This is called "lantern bumping". The important thing is that this year's lanterns cannot be kept until next year and must be destroyed by "touching the lanterns."
Inventory of Xuzhou’s traditional Spring Festival entertainment activities
Visiting parties, temple fairs, and township meetings
In order to celebrate the Spring Festival, in previous years, rural areas would In the twelfth lunar month, enthusiastic people organize Spring Festival entertainment activities. They are called worship gatherings in the suburbs, Yingshen gatherings in Tongshan, and township gatherings in Pizhou. They are all spontaneously organized by farmers, with lion dances, land boat rowing, big-headed monks, bench gatherings, bamboo horses, and flower drums. In other forms, they are connected in series and paraded and performed in various villages.
Pizhou's "Tanshang Township Chronicles" said: For hundreds of years, many village people have raised funds to hold meetings. As soon as the twelfth lunar month comes, they start "pan meetings" or rehearsals. From the first to the eighth day of the first lunar month, Performances in each village. The participants ranged from children of several years old to elderly people in their late teens. However, it was banned as a feudal superstition in the 1960s and 1970s.
The Spring Festival Township Meeting in 1978 was resumed. The township association plays until the Lantern Festival, and the lanterns are held on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, pushing the Spring Festival activities to a climax. It just adds new forms and new content than before.
Celebrating the New Year: Gongs and Drums, Song and Dance Parade
Li Shiming, vice president of the Xuzhou Historical Records Association, recalled that Mr. Miao, who was almost 90 years old in Kuishan, excitedly talked about what happened back then---doing What? Meet you. The visit here does not refer to private exchanges of courtesy between neighbors and relatives, but to mutual worship, entertainment, and competition among village communities through performances such as gongs and drums, acrobatics, land boats, and lion dances, showing the might, unity, and etiquette of the village.
The leader of the team is a group of people such as suona, sheng, yun, cymbals and gongs to clear the way, followed by a sturdy man, holding a large cymbal with a diameter of more than a foot in each hand, the sound of the cymbal is loud, followed by the four sides or There are six large red-painted drums, with up to eight sides, either slung across the chest, beating on their own, or carried behind someone's back. The drummer jumps, beats, and shouts, which is very majestic. There is a long queue behind. The first few people are holding grains and weighing scales, and some are wearing masks and pretending to be ghosts and gods. Then there are the villagers, men, women, old and young. The strange thing is that everyone is holding a stool with a long handle and two ends turned up. , following the rhythm of beating drums, while shouting, he bowed his waist and knocked the ground with the bench, left and right, front and back, the leisurely sound of the suona, the excitement of the bench hitting the ground, and the bursts of cloud-stopping shouts, it was very spectacular.
Old people say that this kind of activity is not carried out once or twice. It can be extended from the third day of the Spring Festival to the Lantern Festival, and the climax is set on the seventh day of the Lunar New Year (Human Day). During the Lantern Festival, they also competed with gong and drum troupes from other villages.
This kind of New Year folk custom has a very strong local color and is rare in other areas. There is no record in Xuzhou’s previous local historical records and folklore writings in recent years. There was "Nuo dance" in Xuzhou in ancient times. There were images of Nuo dance on the Han Dynasty stone portraits. They sang and danced with simple and rough movements. This kind of visit in Kuishan obviously has the original and simple meaning of community and sacrifice.
Similar social sacrificial activities are called "Yingshen Saihui" in Tongshan and are popular in Liuxin area. Pizhou is called "township meeting". It was all prepared years ago. On the second day of the Lunar New Year, we went to perform in neighboring villages, and the neighboring villages also came to report the performances until the Lantern Festival.