The origin of the Spring Festival
According to legend, a long time ago, there was a young man named Wannian who was collecting firewood. He saw that the festivals at that time were very chaotic, and he was determined to fix the festivals. One day, he went up the mountain to collect firewood and was suddenly inspired by the moving shadows of trees. When he returned home, he designed a "sundial" specifically for measuring the length of the sun's shadow. But what to do when cloudy, rainy and foggy weather occurs? Later, he saw the spring water dripping rhythmically on the cliff. He had an idea and made a five-layer clepsydra and used the leakage method to time the time. Slowly he discovered that every three hundred and sixty-five days, the length of the day would repeat itself, and the shortest day was on the winter solstice.
Wannian brought a homemade sundial and water leaker to the emperor and explained the winter solstice and the cycle of the sun and the moon. After hearing this, the emperor felt that what Wannian said was very reasonable, so he kept Wannian to make the calendar, and built a sundial and a sundial in front of the Temple of Heaven.
After a while, the emperor sent The seasonal officer A Heng went to learn about the situation of the Wannian calendar. Wannian took out the cursive calendar he made and said: "There are three hundred and six sunrises and sunsets, and the cycle starts from the beginning again. The growth and decline of vegetation are divided into four seasons, and there are twelve circles in one year." A Heng was very jealous of Wan Nian's talent and was afraid that Wan Nian would be favored by the emperor, so he bribed an assassin to stab Wan Nian. When the emperor found out, he was furious, executed A Heng, and visited Wan Nian in person. Wan Nian pointed at Shen Xing and said: "Now Shen Xing has caught up with Canbaixing, the Xing family has recovered, Zi Shi Ye Yi, the old year is over, and spring has begun again. I hope the emperor will set a festival." "Spring is the year. First of all, let’s celebrate the Spring Festival.” The emperor said. Since then, the customs of the Spring Festival have been passed down to this day.
In addition, people call the Spring Festival "Chinese New Year".
It is said that "Nian" is a "one-horned, ferocious beast". Every year on the last day of the twelfth lunar month, it comes out to prey and bite people, threatening the safety of human life. However, through long-term practice, people have found that this kind of beast has "three fears" - fear of sound, fear of light, and fear of red color. In order to drive it away, people cut red peach wood into signs and hung them at the door, calling it " Peach charm". There were also burning cut green bamboos, which produced crackling "sounds" and "light" when burning. After seeing "Nian", all we could do was walk far away and run quickly. Early the next morning, everyone was safe and sound, and they congratulated each other, " This is where the saying "New Year's greetings" comes from.
Tian Family New Year's Day
Meng Haoran
Last night we returned to the north and today we are going to the east
I have become an official but have no salary and still worry about the farmers< /p>
Sangye plowed the fields with his father and his hoe and followed the shepherd boy
The Tian family accounted for the climate and said that this year would be prosperous
Yuan Day
Wang Anshi
p>Amidst the sound of firecrackers, the spring breeze brings warmth to Tusu
Thousands of households exchange new peaches for old charms
Yuan Day (Jade House Spring)
p>
Mao Pang
One year, all the lotus flowers drained out the Bijing Tusu Shenjing wine
The cold weather in the morning is still deceiving, the spring is slim and the willows are here first
< p>The beautiful lady urges you to live a long life, the cypress leaves, the pepper blossoms, and the fragrant green sleevesIn the depths of the drunken country, we have only known each other for a long time, but we are still friends with Dongjun
New Year's Day test (select one)
Chen Xianzhang
When the sky is full of wind and clouds, the temples and temples are fighting for the relics
The neighbors are beating the wall to entertain the guests with wine and the children are singing together to celebrate the New Year
Old age brings new years and spring brings more beautiful flowers
Where is the evening breeze when the Jianglou flute blows to the moon in the east sky
Ding Mao Yuan Day
Qian Qianyi
A bottle of New Year's wine goes to the court to get rid of the children and holds the clothes to comfort the screen
Serving the mother is still happy to have meat to celebrate the new year, and even more happy to dream of Weiyu
Diaolian In order to welcome the new nest, Yan Diyan also discarded the old books
I went to the neighboring chicken and millet bureau and came to my house without any trouble
Jiawu New Year's Day
Kong Shangren
p>Xiao Shu's white hair is dull and he spends the year by the fire, but he can't sleep
Cut the candles to dry up the supper wine, pour out the bag and buy spring money
Listen to the burning firecrackers and watch the exchange with a childish heart Taofu Lao Xing partial
Drums, horns and plum blossoms add a piece of music to greet the new year
Answer: wangmeng_88 - Magic Apprentice Level 10-7 11:45
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—Introduction to the Spring Festival—
Spring Festival, It is the first day of the first month of the lunar calendar, also called the lunar year, commonly known as the "New Year". This is the most solemn and lively traditional festival in our country. The Spring Festival has a long history. It originated from the activities of worshiping gods and ancestors at the beginning and end of the year during the Yin and Shang Dynasties. According to the Chinese lunar calendar, the first day of the first lunar month was called Yuanri, Yuanchen, Yuanzheng, Yuanshuo, New Year's Day, etc. in ancient times. It was commonly known as the first day of the new year. During the Republic of China, the Gregorian calendar was switched to the Gregorian calendar. January 1st of the Gregorian calendar was called New Year's Day. The first day of the lunar calendar was called New Year's Day. The first day of the month is called the Spring Festival.
The Spring Festival is here, which means that spring is coming, everything is revived, vegetation is renewed, and a new round of sowing and harvesting seasons is about to begin. People have just passed through the long winter of ice and snow, and the vegetation has withered, and they have long been looking forward to the days of spring and flowers blooming. When the New Year arrives, they will naturally welcome this festival with joy, singing and dancing.
For thousands of years, people have made New Year celebrations extremely colorful. Every year from the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month to the 30th day of the twelfth lunar month, this period of time is called "Spring Welcome Day" by the folks. It is called "Dust Sweeping Day". It is a traditional habit of our people to sweep dust and clean things before the Spring Festival.
Then every household prepares New Year’s goods. About ten days before the festival, people start to busy purchasing items. New Year’s goods include chicken, duck, fish, tea, wine, oil sauce, north and south roasted seeds and nuts, candies, bait and fruits. They must buy enough. It is necessary to prepare some gifts for visiting relatives and friends during the New Year. Children should buy new clothes and hats to wear during the New Year.
Before the festival, New Year messages written in red paper and yellow letters should be pasted on the door of the house, that is, Spring Festival couplets written on red paper. Brightly colored New Year pictures with auspicious meanings are posted in the house. Ingenious girls cut out beautiful window grilles and paste them on the windows. In front of the door, hang red lanterns or paste the word "Fu" and the statues of the God of Wealth and the Door God. The word "Fu" can also be pasted upside down, so passers-by can say blessing If it falls, it means blessing has arrived. All these activities are to add enough festive atmosphere to the festival.
Another name for the Spring Festival is the New Year. In past legends, Nian is an imaginary animal that brings bad luck to people. The year comes. The trees are withered and the grass is barren; as the year passes, everything grows and flowers are everywhere. How can the year pass? It is necessary to use firecrackers to blast the house, so there is a custom of burning firecrackers. This is actually another way to heighten the lively scene.
The Spring Festival is a happy and peaceful festival, and it is also a day for family reunions. Children who are away from home have to go home to celebrate the Spring Festival. The night before the New Year is the 30th night of the twelfth lunar month of the old year, also called New Year's Eve, also called Reunion Eve. At this time of transition between the old and the new, staying up late is one of the most important annual activities. On New Year's Eve, the whole family stays up together. Staying up on New Year's Eve, gathering together to drink and enjoy family happiness. In northern areas, there is a custom of eating dumplings on New Year's Eve. The method of making dumplings is to mix the noodles first, and the word "harmony" means "he"; the word "jiaohe" in dumplings is homophonic, and "he" and "jiao" mean "get together". Meaning, also takes the meaning of "Gengsui Jiaozi". In the south, it is customary to eat rice cakes during the New Year. The sweet and sticky rice cakes symbolize the sweetness and prosperity of life in the new year.
When the first rooster crows, or the New Year's bell rings, firecrackers blast in the streets, and every family is filled with joy. The new year has begun, and men, women, old and young are all dressed in festive costumes. First, we give New Year greetings to the elders in the family and celebrate their birthdays. During the festival, we also give New Year's money to the children and have a New Year's dinner. On the second and third day of the Lunar New Year, we start visiting relatives and friends, paying New Year greetings to each other, congratulating each other, saying congratulations on the new year, congratulations on getting rich, and congratulations. , wishes for a happy New Year, and activities such as ancestor worship.
The warm atmosphere of the festival not only permeates every household, but also fills the streets and alleys everywhere. In some local markets, there are lion dances, dragon lanterns, fire performances, flower markets, temple fairs, etc. custom. During this period, the city is full of lanterns and the streets are full of tourists. It is very lively and unprecedented. The Spring Festival is not really over until after the Lantern Festival on the 15th day of the first lunar month.
The Spring Festival is the most important festival for the Han people, but more than a dozen ethnic minorities such as Manchu, Mongolian, Yao, Zhuang, Bai, Gaoshan, Hezhe, Hani, Daur, Dong and Li also have the custom of celebrating the Spring Festival. The form of celebrating the festival has its own national characteristics and is more meaningful.
—The origin and legend of the Spring Festival—
The concepts of Spring Festival and Nian originally came from agriculture. In ancient times, people called the growth cycle of grains "Nian". "Shuowen" . "Hebu": "The year means that the grain is ripe:. In the Xia and Shang dynasties, the lunar calendar was produced, using the moon's waxing and waning cycle as the month, and the year was divided into twelve months. The day when the moon is not visible is the new day of each month, and the first day of the first lunar month is the new day. Zushi is called the beginning of the year, which is the beginning of the year, also called the year. The name of the year began in the Zhou Dynasty, and was officially fixed in the Western Han Dynasty, and continues to this day. However, in ancient times, the first day of the first lunar month was called. It was regarded as "New Year's Day" until the victory of the Revolution of 1911 in modern China. In order to adapt to the farming season and facilitate statistics, the Nanjing Provisional Government stipulated the use of the lunar calendar among the people, and implemented the Gregorian calendar in government agencies, factories, mines, schools and groups, with the first day of the first month of the Gregorian calendar as the day. New Year's Day, the first day of the first lunar month is called the Spring Festival.
On September 27, 1949, the People's Republic of China was founded. At the first plenary session of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, the use of the Gregorian calendar that was common in the world was adopted. , the first day of the first lunar month of the Gregorian calendar is designated as New Year's Day, commonly known as the Gregorian calendar year; the first day of the first lunar month is usually around the beginning of spring, so the first day of the first lunar month must be the "Spring Festival", commonly known as the lunar calendar year.
Traditional meaning. The Spring Festival on the twelfth lunar month refers to the period from the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month or the twelfth lunar month to the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, with New Year's Eve and the first day of the first lunar month as the climax. Ethnic groups hold various celebration activities, most of which focus on offering sacrifices to gods and Buddhas, paying homage to ancestors, bringing in good fortune, and praying for a good harvest. The activities are rich in variety and have strong national characteristics.
One of the legends of the Spring Festival: Staying up late on New Year's Eve
Staying up late on New Year's Eve is the custom of staying up late on the last night of the old year to welcome the new year. It is also called staying up late on New Year's Eve, and is commonly known as "staying up late on New Year's Eve". ". Looking into the origin of this custom, there is an interesting story circulating among the people:
In ancient times, there was a ferocious monster that lived scattered in the deep mountains and dense forests. People called them "Nian". Its shape It has a ferocious appearance and a ferocious nature. It specializes in eating birds, beasts, and scale insects. It changes its taste every day, ranging from kowtowing insects to living people, which makes people look pale when talking about "New Year".
Later, people gradually grasped the activity pattern of "Nian". It would rush to crowded places to taste fresh food every three hundred and sixty-five days, and its appearance time would always be after dark, until the rooster crows and dawn. , they returned to the mountains and forests.
Having calculated the date when the "New Year" would be rampant, the people regarded this terrible night as a critical moment, called it "New Year's Eve", and came up with a whole set of ways to celebrate the New Year's Eve: every day. On this night, every household has prepared dinner in advance, turned off the fire and cleaned the stove, fastened all the chicken pens and cattle pens, sealed the front and back doors of the house, and ate the "New Year's Eve dinner" hiding in the house. The dinner has an unlucky meaning, so it is very sumptuous. In addition to having the whole family gather around to dine together to express harmony and reunion, one must also offer sacrifices to the ancestors before eating, pray for the blessings of the ancestors' gods, and spend the time in peace. That night, after dinner, no one dared to sleep, so they huddled together and chatted to strengthen their courage. Gradually, we formed the habit of staying up late on New Year's Eve.
The custom of keeping the year old arose in the Northern and Southern Dynasties, and many literati in the Liang Dynasty wrote poems and essays about keeping the year old. "One night lasts two years, and the fifth watch divides two years." People light candles or oil lamps and keep vigil all night, which symbolizes driving away all evil plagues and looking forward to good luck in the new year. This custom has been passed down to this day.
Spring Festival Legend 2: Wannian created the calendar
According to legend, in ancient times, there was a young man named Wannian who had an idea when he saw that the seasons were very chaotic at that time. The plan to set the seasons accurately. But he couldn't find a way to calculate time. One day, when he was tired from going up the mountain to chop firewood, he sat under the shade of a tree to rest. The movement of the tree shadows inspired him. He designed a dial to measure the sun's shadow and measure the time of the day. Later, the dripping spring on the cliff inspired him, and he made a five-layer clepsydra to calculate time. As time went by, he discovered that every three hundred and sixty days, the four seasons cycled around again, and the length of the days repeated themselves.
The king at that time was named Zu Yi, and he was often distressed by the unpredictable weather conditions. After Wan Nian found out, he took the sundial and the clepsydra to see the emperor and explained to Zu Yi the principles of the movement of the sun and the moon. After Zu Yi heard this, Long Yan was overjoyed and felt that it made sense. So he left ten thousand years to build the Sun and Moon Pavilion in front of the Temple of Heaven, and built the sundial platform and leaky pot pavilion. He also hopes to accurately measure the laws of the sun and the moon, calculate the accurate morning and evening times, and create a calendar to benefit the people of the world.
Once, Zu Yi went to learn about the progress of the ten thousand year test calendar. When he climbed up to the Temple of the Sun and Moon, he saw a poem carved on the stone wall beside the Temple of Heaven:
The sun rises and sets three hundred and six times, starting all over again.
There are four seasons of vegetation and trees, and there are twelve circles in one year.
Knowing that the Wannian Calendar had been established, I personally went to the Sun Moon Pavilion to visit Wannian. Wan Nian pointed to the sky and said to Zu Yi: "Now is the end of the twelve months. The old year is over and the new year has begun. Please pray to the king to set a festival." Zu Yi said: "Spring is the beginning of the year, so let's call it the Spring Festival." It is said that this is the origin of the Spring Festival.
Winter passed and spring came, year after year, ten thousand years after long-term observation and careful calculation, an accurate solar calendar was formulated. When he presented the solar calendar to his successor, his face was full of silver. Must. The monarch was deeply moved. In order to commemorate Wannian's achievements, he named the solar calendar "Wannian Calendar" and named Wannian the sun, moon and longevity star. Later, people hung pictures of longevity stars during the Chinese New Year, which is said to commemorate the ten thousand years of high moral character.
Spring Festival Legend Three: Pasting Spring Festival Couplets and the Door God
It is said that the custom of pasting Spring Festival couplets began in the Hou Shu period more than a thousand years ago, which is evidenced by history. In addition, according to the records of "Jade Candle Collection", "Yanjing Chronicles" and other works, the original form of Spring Festival couplets is what people call "Peach Talisman".
In ancient Chinese mythology, it is said that there is a world of ghosts. There is a mountain in it. There is a large peach tree covering three thousand miles on the mountain, and there is a golden rooster on the treetop. Whenever the golden rooster crows in the morning, the ghosts who wandered out at night will rush back to the ghost land. The gate of the ghost realm is located in the northeast of the peach tree. There are two gods and men named Shen Tu and Yu Lei standing by the gate. If a ghost does something harmful to nature at night, Shen Tu and Yu Lei will immediately discover it and catch it, tie it up with a rope made of awning reed, and send it to feed the tiger. Therefore, all the ghosts in the world are afraid of Shen Tu and Yu Lei. So people carved their images out of peach wood and placed them at their doorsteps to avoid evil and harm. Later, people simply engraved the names of Shen Tu and Yu Lei on peach boards, thinking that doing so could also suppress evil and eliminate evil. This kind of peach wood board was later called "Peach Run".
In the Song Dynasty, people began to write couplets on peach boards, one without losing the meaning of peach wood to suppress evil, the other to express their good wishes, and the third to decorate the door for beauty. Couplets are also written on red paper, which symbolizes joy and auspiciousness, and are pasted on both sides of doors and windows during the New Year to express people's best wishes for good luck in the coming year.
In order to pray for the happiness, longevity and health of the family, people in some places still retain the habit of sticking to the door god. It is said that if two door gods are posted on the door, all monsters and ghosts will be intimidated. Among the people, the door god is a symbol of righteousness and force. The ancients believed that people with strange looks often have magical talents and extraordinary abilities. They are upright and kind-hearted, and it is their nature and responsibility to catch ghosts and demons. Zhong Kui, the ghost-hunting master that people admire, has such a strange appearance. Therefore, the folk door gods always have angry eyes and ferocious looks, holding various traditional weapons in their hands, ready to fight any ghosts who dare to come to the door.
Since the doors of Chinese houses usually have two doors opening opposite each other, door gods always come in pairs.
After the Tang Dynasty, in addition to the previous two generals Shen Tu and Yu Lei, people also regarded the two Tang Dynasty generals Qin Shubao and Yuchi Gong as door gods. According to legend, Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty was ill and heard ghosts calling outside his door, making him restless all night. So he asked the two generals to stand guard by the door with weapons in hand, and the next night there were no more ghosts to disturb him. Later, Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty asked people to draw the images of these two generals and paste them on the door. This custom began to spread among the people.
—Spring Festival customs—
The Spring Festival is an ancient festival in my country and the most important festival of the year. How to celebrate this festival has evolved over thousands of years of history. , formed some relatively fixed customs and habits, many of which are still passed down to this day.
1. Sweeping dust
"On the twenty-fourth day of the twelfth lunar month, dust and sweep the house." According to "Lu's Spring and Autumn Annals", my country had the custom of sweeping dust during the Spring Festival in the era of Yao and Shun. According to folklore: because "dust" and "chen" are homophonic, sweeping dust in the New Year means "removing the old and spreading the new", and its purpose is to sweep away all bad luck and bad luck. This custom entrusts people with their desire to destroy the old and establish the new and their prayers to say goodbye to the old and usher in the new. Every Spring Festival comes, every household has to clean the environment, wash all kinds of utensils, remove and wash bedding and curtains, sweep the Liulv courtyard, dust away dirt and cobwebs, and dredge open ditches and ditches. Everywhere is filled with the joyful atmosphere of doing hygiene and welcoming the new year cleanly.
2. Spring couplets
Spring couplets are also called door pairs, spring posts, antithetical couplets, couplets, peach charms, etc. They describe the background of the times and express emotions with neat, dual, concise and exquisite words. Good wishes are a unique literary form in our country. Every Spring Festival, every household, whether in urban or rural areas, selects a red Spring Festival couplet and pastes it on the door to add a festive atmosphere to the festival. This custom originated in the Song Dynasty and became popular in the Ming Dynasty. By the Qing Dynasty, the ideological and artistic quality of Spring Festival couplets had been greatly improved. Liang Zhangju’s Spring Festival Couplets monograph "Cong Hua on the Threshold Couplets" explains the origin of the couplets and the characteristics of various works. All discussed.
There are many types of Spring Festival couplets. According to the place of use, they can be divided into door centers, frame pairs, horizontal drapes, spring strips, bucket squares, etc. The "door center" is affixed to the upper center of the door panel; the "frame pair" is affixed to the left and right door frames; the "horizontal stripe" is affixed to the crossbar of the door; the "spring strips" are affixed to the corresponding places according to different contents; "Dojin" is also called "door leaf", which is square and diamond-shaped, and is often attached to furniture and screen walls.
3. Paste window grilles and paste the word "福" upside down
In the folk, people also like to paste various paper-cuts - window grilles on the windows. Window grilles not only enhance the festive atmosphere, but also integrate decoration, appreciation and practicality. Paper-cutting is a very popular folk art in my country and has been loved by people for thousands of years. Because it is mostly pasted on windows, it is also called "window flower". With its unique summary and exaggeration techniques, window grilles vividly express auspicious symbols and good wishes, decorating the festival with prosperity and splendor.
At the same time as pasting Spring Festival couplets, some families have to paste large and small "福" characters on their doors, walls, and lintels. Posting the word "福" during the Spring Festival is a long-standing folk custom in my country. The word "福" refers to blessing and luck, expressing people's yearning for a happy life and their wishes for a better future. In order to more fully reflect this yearning and wish, some people simply paste the word "福" upside down to express "happiness has arrived" and "blessing has arrived". Folks also use the word "Fu" to make various patterns with detailed drawings, such as longevity star, birthday peach, carp jumping over the dragon gate, good harvest, dragon and phoenix showing auspiciousness, etc.
4. New Year pictures
It is also common in urban and rural areas to hang New Year pictures during the Spring Festival. The thick black and colorful New Year pictures add a prosperous and joyful festive atmosphere to thousands of households. New Year pictures are an ancient folk art in my country, reflecting the people's simple customs and beliefs and reposing their hopes for the future. New Year pictures, like Spring Festival couplets, originated from the "door god". With the rise of woodblock printing, the content of New Year paintings is no longer limited to monotonous themes such as door gods, but has become rich and colorful. In some New Year painting workshops, "Three Stars of Fortune, Luxury and Longevity", "Blessings from Heavenly Officials", "Five Grain" Classic color New Year pictures such as "Prosperous Harvest", "Prosperity of Six Livestocks", "Welcoming Spring and Receiving Good Luck" can satisfy people's good wishes of celebrating the good year. There are three important producing areas of New Year paintings in our country: Taohuawu in Suzhou, Yangliuqing in Tianjin and Weifang in Shandong. They have formed three major schools of Chinese New Year paintings, each with its own characteristics.
The earliest New Year paintings collected in our country today are the woodcut New Year paintings of the Southern Song Dynasty called "Slimming with the Dynasty and the Beauty of the Country", which depict four ancient beauties: Wang Zhaojun, Zhao Feiyan, Ban Ji and Luzhu. The most widely circulated among the people is a New Year painting of "Mouse Marriage". It depicts an interesting scene of a mouse marrying a bride according to human customs. In the early years of the Republic of China, Shanghai Zheng Mantuo combined the calendar with New Year pictures. This is a new form of New Year pictures. This two-in-one New Year picture later developed into a wall calendar, which is now popular all over the country.
5. Keeping the year old on New Year’s Eve is one of the most important annual customs. The custom of keeping the year old has been around for a long time. The earliest record can be found in the "Fengtu Zhi" of Zhouchu in the Western Jin Dynasty: On New Year's Eve, each person greets each other with gifts, which is called "giving the new year"; "Dividing the year old"; everyone stays up all night waiting for dawn, which is called "keeping the year old".
“One night is two years old, five o’clock is divided into two days.” On New Year’s Eve, the whole family gets together, has New Year’s Eve dinner, lights candles or oil lamps, sits around the fire and chats, waiting to bid farewell to the old year and welcome the new year. At this time, the all-night vigil symbolizes driving away all evil plagues and looking forward to good luck in the new year. This custom gradually became popular. In the early Tang Dynasty, Li Shimin, Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, wrote a poem about "keeping the year old": "The cold leaves the winter snow, and the warmth brings the spring breeze." To this day, people are still used to staying up late on New Year's Eve to welcome the new year.
In ancient times, staying up late had two meanings: older people staying up late meant "saying goodbye to the old year", which meant cherishing time; young people staying up late meant to prolong the life of their parents. Since the Han Dynasty, the transition time between the new and the old year has generally been at midnight.
6. Firecrackers
There is a saying among Chinese people that "firecrackers open the door". That is to say, when the New Year arrives, the first thing every household does when they open the door is to set off firecrackers to ward off the old and welcome the new with the beeping sound of firecrackers. Firecrackers are a specialty of China, also known as "firecrackers", "firecrackers" and "firecrackers". It originated very early and has a history of more than 2,000 years. Setting off firecrackers can create a festive and lively atmosphere. It is a festive entertainment activity that can bring people joy and good luck. With the passage of time, the application of firecrackers has become more and more widespread, and the varieties and colors have become more and more numerous. During major festivals and happy events, as well as weddings, house construction, openings, etc., firecrackers must be set off to celebrate and for good luck. Now, Liuyang in Hunan, Foshan and Dongyao in Guangdong, Yichun and Pingxiang in Jiangxi, and Wenzhou in Zhejiang are famous hometowns of fireworks in my country. The firecrackers they produce are of various colors and high quality, and are not only sold well across the country, but also exported to the world.
7. New Year greetings
On the first day of the New Year, people get up early, put on their most beautiful clothes, dress neatly, go out to visit relatives and friends, and pay New Year greetings to each other. I wish you good luck in the coming year. There are many ways to pay New Year's greetings. Some are led by the head of the same clan and several people go from house to house to pay New Year's greetings. Some are colleagues inviting a few people to pay New Year's greetings. There are also people who gather together to congratulate each other, which is called "group worship". Since it was time-consuming and laborious to visit someone's home to pay New Year's greetings, some upper-class figures and scholar-bureaucrats later used various stickers to congratulate each other, thus developing the later "New Year's greeting cards."
When paying New Year greetings during the Spring Festival, the younger generation should first pay New Year greetings to the elders, wishing the elders longevity and health. The elders can distribute the New Year's money prepared in advance to the younger generation. It is said that the New Year's money can suppress evil spirits, because "year" and "evil" are related to each other. "Homophonous" means that if the younger generation gets the lucky money, they can spend their first year in peace. There are two types of New Year's money. One is made of colorful ropes threaded into a dragon shape and placed at the foot of the bed. This record is found in "Yanjing Years' Notes"; the other is the most common, which is given by parents wrapped in red paper. Children's money. New Year's money can be given to the younger generation in public after paying New Year's greetings, or parents can secretly put it under the child's pillow when the child is asleep on New Year's Eve. Nowadays, the custom of elders distributing lucky money to younger generations is still popular.
8. Food customs during the Spring Festival
In ancient agricultural societies, from about the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month onwards, housewives would be busy preparing food for the New Year. Because pickling cured meat takes a long time, it must be prepared as early as possible. Many provinces in my country have the custom of pickling cured meat, among which Guangdong Province’s cured meat is the most famous.
Steamed rice cake. Rice cake has become a must-have seasonal food for almost every household because of its homophonic pronunciation of "year high" and its varied tastes. The styles of rice cakes include square yellow and white rice cakes, which symbolize gold and silver and convey the meaning of getting rich in the new year.
The taste of rice cakes varies from place to place. Beijingers like to eat red date rice cakes, mince rice cakes and white rice cakes made from glutinous rice or yellow rice. People in Hebei like to add jujube, red beans, mung beans, etc. to rice cakes and steam them together. In northern Shanxi and Inner Mongolia and other places, it is customary to eat fried rice cakes made with yellow rice flour during the Chinese New Year. Some are also filled with bean paste, date paste and other fillings. Shandong people steam rice cakes with yellow rice and red dates. Northern rice cakes are mainly sweet and can be steamed or fried. Some people even eat them dipped in sugar. The rice cakes in the south are both sweet and salty. For example, the rice cakes in Suzhou and Ningbo are made from japonica rice and have a light taste. In addition to steaming and frying, it can also be sliced ??and fried or cooked in soup. The sweet rice cake is made from glutinous rice flour with ingredients such as sugar, lard, rose, osmanthus, mint, and sujung. It is finely made and can be steamed directly or dipped in egg white and deep-fried.
The night before the actual Chinese New Year is called Reunion Eve. People who have traveled far away from home have to rush home thousands of miles away. The whole family will sit together to make dumplings for the New Year. The dumplings are made by mixing the dough first. Make dumpling skins, and then use the skins to wrap the fillings. The content of the fillings is varied, including various meats, eggs, seafood, seasonal vegetables, etc. Eat it with soy sauce of vinegar, minced garlic and sesame oil as condiments. There are also ways to eat fried dumplings and baked dumplings (pot stickers). Because the word "和" in noodles means "合"; the characters "dumpling" and "Jiao" in dumplings are homophones, and "合" and "Jiao" also mean getting together, so dumplings are used to symbolize reunion and joy; and they are also used to symbolize reunion. The meaning of Jiaozi is very auspicious; in addition, because dumplings resemble ingots in shape, eating dumplings during the Chinese New Year also has the auspicious meaning of "bringing in wealth and treasure". The whole family gathers together to make dumplings, talk about the New Year, and have fun.
—Poems of the Spring Festival—
1. "Tian Jia Yuan Day" (Tang Dynasty) Meng Haoran
Last night we fought back to the north, today we are rising east;
I am already strong at this age, but I still worry about the peasants even though I have no salary.
The father plows the fields, and the shepherd boy follows the hoe;
The Tian family is responsible for the climate, and the mother-in-law said that this year will be good.
2. "Selling Demented Poems" (Tang Dynasty) Fan Chengda
People don't sleep in the late hours of New Year's Eve, and they are tired of being dull and waiting for the new year;
Children Calling to go down the long street, there is a cloud of dementia calling people to sell.
3. "New Year's Eve" (Tang Dynasty) Laihu
The matter of concern has become empty, and I miss you for thousands of miles in one night.
I am so sad that the sound of the chicken at dawn has stopped, and I will be haggard in the spring breeze.
4. "Yuan Ri" (Song Dynasty) Wang Anshi
The sound of firecrackers marks the end of the year, and the spring breeze brings warmth to Tusu;
Thousands of households are full of pupils. Every day, new peaches are always replaced by old talismans.
5. "Yuan Day Yu Lou Chun" (Song Dynasty) Mao Pang
One year the lotus drips all the water, and the Bijing slaughters the Su and freezes the wine.
The cold weather in the early morning is still deceiving, but the willow trees in spring arrive first.
The beautiful woman urges you to live a long life, and the cypress leaves and pepper flowers bloom on your green sleeves.
In the depths of Zuixiang, we rarely know each other, and we only have old friends with Dongjun.
6. "New Year's Eve" (Southern Song Dynasty) Wen Tianxiang
The world is empty, and the years are passing by;
The end of the road is turbulent and rainy, and the poor side is full of snow and frost.
Life is about to end with the years, and the body is forgotten;
There is no more to kill Su Meng, and the night is still young.
7. "New Year's Greetings" (Ming Dynasty) Wen Zhengming
I don't ask for a meeting, but for a visit, and the house is filled with famous papers.
I also throw in a few pieces of paper with others. The world is too simple but not too empty.
8. "Ji You Xin Zheng" (Ming Dynasty) Ye Yong
The wind and frost in the heaven and earth are gone, and the weather in the universe is harmonious;
New years are added to the calendar, and spring is full of old ones. Mountains and rivers.
The plum blossoms and willows are graceful and beautiful, and the pine trees are very old;
Tu Su becomes drunk and laughs happily in the white cloud nest.
9. "Guiji Occasionally Comes on New Year's Eve" (Qing Dynasty) Huang Jingren
The laughter of thousands of families is late, and the worries are hidden from the outside,
The city bridge is quietly established People don't know, one star looks like the moon for a long time.
10. "Fengcheng New Year's Speech" (Qing Dynasty) Zha Shenxing
Skillfully cut flags to win the test of Silla, paint colors and gold to make moths;
From then on, I have no time for scissors for a month, and there are many needlework in my boudoir.
11. "Jiawu New Year's Day" (Qing Dynasty) Kong Shangren
Xiao Shu's white hair was not full, and he could not sleep by the fire.
Cut the candles to dry up the late-night wine, and spend all your money to buy spring money.
Listening to the burning of firecrackers brings out the childlike innocence, while watching the peach charms change makes me feel happy.
The drums and horns add plum blossoms, and we celebrate the New Year with joy at the fifth watch.
12. "New Year's Day Occupying Liu Yazi's Charming Rhyme" Dong Biwu
*** celebrates the New Year with laughter, and the ladies of Hongyan give plum blossoms;
Toast They served Tusu wine to each other and drank Victory tea separately.
Only loyalty can serve the country, and there is no paradise for home;
Welcome to the festival with the capital singing and dancing, and look at the gorgeous scenery of Yan'an from a distance.
13. "Visiting the flower market during the Spring Festival" by Lin Boqu
We met on the street to see the flower market, but we leaned against the arcade like a gallery; This bucket is fragrant.
The lights are on all night long, and people are singing, and the songs are ecstatic.
This is the year when the scenery is beautiful and the colors are red and purple, heralding spring.
Among the traditional folk festivals in our country, the Spring Festival is the one that attracts the most attention. In the twelfth lunar month, the weather is cold, farm work is less busy, and people have more time. Therefore, the celebration activities during the Spring Festival are more colorful than other festivals, and these activities have particularly strong festival characteristics.
In the past, in the vast urban and rural towns, there were people selling New Year pictures, selling hanging money and window grilles, selling lamps and firecrackers, selling facial makeup and Spring Festival couplets... everything was red and green, and the New Year goods stalls were one after another. It was joyful and full of festive atmosphere.
On the 30th day of the twelfth lunar month, when the hour hand moved past midnight (midnight), the sound of firecrackers immediately rang out, ushering in the first morning of the New Year.
The Spring Festival was called "New Year's Day" in ancient times. "Yuan" means the beginning, "Dan" means morning, and "New Year's Day" means the first morning of the year. "Erya", the annotation of "year" is: "Xia means Sui, Shang means Si, Zhou means Nian." Since the Yin and Shang Dynasties, the full and waning moon has been regarded as one month, the first day of the lunar month is called Shuo, and the fifteenth day is called Wang. . The beginning of each year is counted from the day and night of the first lunar month, which is called "New Year's Day" or "Yuan's Day". By the time of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, Sima Qian created the "Taichu Calendar" due to his increasingly rich experience in "observing images and telling time", which determined that the first month of the first lunar month was the beginning of the year and the first day of the first lunar month was the new year. Since then, the custom of the Lunar New Year has been passed down.
According to the "Book of Songs", every Lunar New Year, farmers drink "spring wine" to wish "a new year", have fun and celebrate the year's harvest. In the Jin Dynasty, the program of setting off firecrackers was added, that is, setting off piles of fire and burning bamboos in the fire, making the sound of crackling firecrackers, adding to the festive atmosphere. In the Qing Dynasty, firecrackers were set off, lanterns were decorated, and the activities to see off the old and welcome the new became even more lively. Pan Rongsheng in the Qing Dynasty recorded in "Historical Records of the Imperial Capital": "On New Year's Eve, at the first midnight of the night, the torches outside the door compete with each other, and the jade boxes jingle. ... The sound of firecrackers is like waves and thunder, all over the court and the countryside. All night long.”
In different historical periods in ancient my country, the Spring Festival has different meanings. In the Han Dynasty, people designated the "beginning of spring" day among the twenty-four solar terms as the Spring Festival. During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, people called the entire spring the Spring Festival.
In 1911, the Revolution of 1911 overthrew the rule of the Qing Dynasty. In order to "follow the summer calendar, so it follows the agricultural season, and follow the Western calendar, so it is convenient for statistics," representatives of the provincial governors held a meeting in Nanjing and decided to use the Gregorian calendar. In this way, the first month of the lunar calendar must be regarded as the Spring Festival. So far, people still use the customary name of Spring Festival.
There are many beautiful legends circulating about the Spring Festival. Although these legends are not based on evidence, they add a mythical color to the origin of the Spring Festival.
The Spring Festival symbolizes unity and prosperity, and entrusts hope for the new year.