Brother Yi, let me tell you what the annual calendar is! ! !
People in western Guangdong celebrate the New Year according to their rules. Therefore, whenever China is busy preparing for the New Year, people in western Guangdong who still retain the custom of annual rituals will get busy with their respective annual rituals shortly after the New Year. The significance of the Spring Festival is not important in most rural areas. However, with the development of the times, more and more people in urban areas have gradually transformed the Spring Festival into the most important traditional festival of the year. However, in rural areas, what people like to talk about most is Nian Li. Doing "Nian Li", exploring "Nian Li", and eating "Nian Li" are constant activities for rural people, and many children are also looking forward to Nian Li. Nianli is the most familiar festival to Mao people. It is said that during the Cultural Revolution, due to political reasons and superstitious activities such as "Wandering Gods" were interspersed in Nianli, it was discontinued for a period of time. However, with the turbulent past and the opening of people's ideas, Nianli, a festival with unique characteristics in western Guangdong, has become popular again. There have also been many changes to the traditional annual calendar: superstitious activities have been relatively reduced, and more emphasis has been placed on emotional connections between relatives and friends.
It can be said that the annual festival has become a year-end carnival for Western Guangdong people. It is a festival to celebrate the hard work and harvest of the year and to connect with each other. The general process of the annual example. People in western Guangdong often say "watching the Nianli" and "eating the Nianli". Now in cities in western Guangdong, the general Nianli is mainly about eating. More customs are still retained in rural areas, so you need to understand the authentic ones. The Taoist tradition still needs to go deep into the countryside.
Nianli can also be called New Year's Eve, but it is different from New Year's Eve. Maoming, Huazhou, Gaozhou, Dianbai County, Xinyi and the adjacent Zhanjiang and Wuchuan areas, and Liujing, Qingwan, Shiwo, Baima, Dalun and Fu in southern Guangxi Beiliu, which are culturally connected and have the same language as western Guangdong. Townships such as Xin, Pingzheng and other towns also hold annual festivals every year. The time for holding annual festivals in different places is different. They are concentrated in the first month and February of the lunar calendar after the Spring Festival. The other "autumn" annual festivals (on the day after the autumn harvest) It is held every month, mostly from March to November of the lunar calendar. Annual festivals usually take one day in a village, and a few take two or three days. There are also several nearby villages whose annual festivals all fall on the same day. Most of the annual rituals in rural areas are centered on the Tutu Temple, and are held together in several surrounding villages. A few places also hold annual meetings twice a year.
Looking back at the history of "Nianli", it is actually an expanded festival that combines the Lantern Festival, temple fairs, and the anniversary of the migration and settlement of ancestors in Maoming and other places in western Guangdong. It is understood that the "annual regulations" have been recorded in local local annals during the Ming and Qing dynasties. They were relatively popular from the early years of the Republic of China to the early years of liberation. Later, they were interrupted for a time and gradually recovered since the 1980s. At present, Maoming and its cities and counties are under its jurisdiction. In most villages (districts), "annual rituals" are popular, and they are quite grand and lively. There is a saying in Maoming, western Guangdong, that during the annual "Nianli" period, people who work and live outside do not need to go home during the New Year, but they will definitely come back for reunions during the "Nianli" period. We speak the same language, the local accents and sentiments blend together, and the atmosphere is warm, which really brings a special enjoyment to people from my hometown who are away from home all year round and rarely see each other.
The annual rituals are usually held in rural areas. On the day of the annual rituals, most people who go out will return to their original villages to do the annual rituals. The annual rituals usually last for three days, and the first day is called "starting the annual rituals" , the second day is called "Zheng Nian Li", and the last day is called "Nian Li Tail".
Starting the New Year Festival
Before the start of the New Year Festival, every household has prepared chicken, pork, and fish to make a set of "three animals" for the Bodhisattva to enjoy, which is called "distribution". "Jiao". It is the most traditional program in the "Nianli" and was regarded as the highlight of the "Nianli" in the past. The so-called Jiao ceremony is that each household selects the fattest capon at home, removes the feathers and internal organs, and soaks the chicken until golden brown. It is placed squarely on a tray, with the head of the chicken slightly bent upward, and a knife of overcooked pork and pork is added to the side. A fish, commonly known as the "three animals", is the main offering for the ritual ceremony, along with candies, three teas and five wines, and incense candles, and is offered on the Eight Immortals table. Jiao-making activities are mostly arranged at night. This is a continuing habit. Usually on the night of the first lunar month, every household gathers in one place to worship the gods together, followed by a big fireworks display.
On the morning of Zhengnianli, the Bodhisattva goes out to patrol the gates, which is very lively. If the village is very large, the Bodhisattva will patrol the gate from morning to night in order to complete the task. There will be many other programs on this day, such as puppet shows, lion dances, theater performances, fireworks, etc. On this day
Annual rituals have become a kind of culture
The host will also invite many friends to have fun and drink, making it very lively.
After eating the Nian Li, there is an entertainment program "Looking at the Nian Li", also known as watching the big show. Traditionally, the biggest purpose of annual rituals is to worship the gods. All kinds of folk art performances do their best to perform for the gods, so as to please the gods and pray for good weather and good harvests in the coming year. Nowadays, annual rituals are mostly done to celebrate the improvement of living standards, wish for long-lasting good days, and show the joy of urban and rural areas and the harmony of society. During the "annual season" in recent years, nearly a hundred Cantonese opera troupes in Guangdong and Guangxi have been active in performing in villages in western Guangdong. In addition, unique local cultural and artistic performance forms - Huazhou's "Flower Jumping Pagoda" and Gaozhou's puppet show, etc. are all out, taking turns to perform in various towns; some big-name stars in the art world will also come to this place to add to the fun.
In the western Guangdong region, traditional Cantonese opera is still a favorite cultural program among farmers. Especially every year, sometimes two or three operas are performed in a village together. Farmers watch operas more than urbanites watch pop star concerts. lively. Villagers perform "annual rituals". In addition to retaining some traditional programs, Cantonese opera is an indispensable program. Every year, every village and town sets up a stage with lanterns and colorful decorations, and various Cantonese opera troupes are active in performing in various towns and villages. Some towns and villages also invite provincial-level first-class theater troupes to perform every year, and even some "big bosses" are specially invited to join in the fun. The drums and music were loud on the stage, the actors sang with great emotion, and the audience was mesmerized and lingered on.
In addition to Cantonese opera, there is also puppet show, commonly known as "Ghost Opera", which is the most popular folk art in Maoming area, especially in the vast rural areas. The newly compiled "Maoming City Chronicle" section "Culture? Folk Art? Folk Opera" records this: "Puppet shows in Maoming area can be divided into stick puppet shows, bag puppet shows and string puppet shows according to the shape of the puppets and operating techniques. Puppet show. Stick-head puppet show, commonly known as "Ghost Show", was introduced to Huazhou in the Yuan Dynasty in the third year of Yuanjia (426), and spread to Maoming, Xinyi, Dianbai and other places. It can be seen that puppet show has been circulating in Maoming area for more than a thousand years.
The end of the year
On the morning of the third day of the year, the paper boats are burned, the Bodhisattva returns to the temple, and the year ends.
For this special festival in my hometown, I promote it in the following ways.