The first day of the first month is the first day of the summer calendar (lunar calendar and lunar calendar), commonly known as "Chinese New Year". Customs include opening firecrackers, greeting the New Year, occupying the New Year, putting up pictures of chickens, and gathering wealth.
The Spring Festival is commonly known as "New Year's Day", formerly known as "New Year's Day". Du Taiqing of the Sui Dynasty said in "The Five Candles Collection": "The first month is the end of the month, and the first day is the Yuan Day, which is also a cloud that is in the right direction and a cloud that is in the new moon." The original meaning of "yuan" is "head", and later it is extended to "start". Because this day is the first day of a year, the first day of spring and the first day of the first month, it is called "three yuan". Because this day is still the year-old dynasty, the moon dynasty and the day dynasty, it is also called the "three dynasties"; Because it is the first Shuori, it is also called "Yuanshuo". On the first day of the first month, there are other nicknames such as Shangri, Zhengchao, Sanshuo and Sanshi, which means that the first day of the first month is the beginning of the year, month and day.
1. Opening firecrackers
On the morning of the Spring Festival, when the doors are open, firecrackers are set off first, which is called "opening firecrackers". After the sound of firecrackers, the ground is full of broken red, which is called "full house red" At this time, the streets are full of anger and joy.
2. Happy New Year
An important activity in the Spring Festival is to congratulate new friends and neighbors on the Spring Festival, formerly known as Happy New Year. The wind of the Han people's New Year greetings has existed in the Han Dynasty. It was very popular after the Tang and Song Dynasties, and some people who don't have to go in person can use famous cards to congratulate them. It was called "thorn" in the Eastern Han Dynasty, so the business card was also called "famous thorn". After the Ming Dynasty, many people put up a red paper bag at the door to collect famous cards, called "door book".
3. occupy the old age
In the old days, the people occupied this year with the sunny weather in the first few days of the new government. Its theory began in Dong Fangshuo's "Year of the Year", which means that eight days after the year, one day is chicken day, two days is dog, three days is pig, four days is sheep, five days is cow, six days is horse, seven days is great man and eight days is valley. If the day is sunny, the things that belong to it will breed, and if it is cloudy, the day that belongs to it will not last. Later generations follow their habits and think that the weather is clear, there is no wind or snow for good luck from the first day to the tenth day. Future generations have developed from occupying the age to a series of sacrifices and celebrations. There is a custom of not killing chickens on the first day, dogs on the second day, pigs on the third day ... and no execution on the seventh day.
4. Painting chickens
In ancient times, chickens were painted on doors and windows to drive away ghosts and evil spirits. In the book "Xuan Zhong Ji" written by Jin Dynasty, the pheasant on Dushuo Mountain mentioned above was mentioned, saying that when it was just rising and the first sunlight shone on this big tree, the pheasant crowed. As soon as it crows, the chickens all over the world crow with it. Therefore, the chicken cut during the Spring Festival is actually a symbol of the pheasant. However, in ancient mythology, there is also a saying that chicken is a deformed bird. It is said that during Emperor Yao's reign, friends from the other side paid tribute to a bird that can ward off evil spirits. Everyone welcomed the arrival of the bird, but the tribute envoy didn't come every year, so people carved a wooden bird, cast it in bronze and put it on the portal, or painted it on the doors and windows to scare off monsters and make them afraid to come again. Because the bird looks like a chicken, it will be gradually changed to painting a chicken or cutting window flowers and sticking them on the doors and windows, which will become the source of paper-cutting art in later generations. In ancient China, chickens were paid special attention to, and they were called "birds with five virtues". "Biography of Han Poetry" said that it has a crown on its head and is a literary virtue; There is a distance behind the foot to fight, which is a martial virtue; It is brave for the enemy to dare to fight before; It is benevolence to have food to greet the same kind; It is faith to keep vigil and dawn. Therefore, people not only cut chickens during the Chinese New Year, but also set the first day of the New Year as Chicken Day.
5. Gathering wealth
It is said that the first day of the first month is broom's birthday, so you can't use a broom on this day, otherwise it will sweep away luck and ruin money, and attract a "broom star", which will lead to bad luck. If you have to sweep the floor, you must sweep it from the outside to the inside. On this day, you can't throw water on the garbage, for fear of breaking the money. Today, there is still a custom in many places to clean up the New Year's Eve. On the first day of the New Year, there is no broom, no garbage, and a big bucket is prepared to hold waste water, so that it is not splashed outside that day.