The ninth day of the ninth month of the lunar calendar is the traditional Chinese festival of Chung Yeung. It is also known as "Denggao Festival", "Chrysanthemum Festival", "Cornus Festival" or "Daughter's Festival". On the "Chongyang" origin, generally believe that the "I Ching" "to Yang lines for nine", "nine" for the largest number of Yang, September 9, the sun and the moon and Yang, the two nine heavy, it is called "Chongyang", also known as "heavy nine".

The ancients often "on the Si" and "Chongyang". That is, "March 3" and "September 9" as the corresponding spring and autumn festivals, on the Si, "trekking" spring tours, Chongyang "resignation of the green "Autumn tour, according to legend, from a very early start this festival. Chongyang Festival as a holiday, generally believed to have originated in the Eastern Han Dynasty "Huanjing refuge" legend. Southern Liang Wu Jun "renewed Qi Harmony - nine days to ascend" recorded: "Ru Nan Huan Jing with Fei Changfang traveled to study tired Chung Yeung cake year, Changfang said: 'September 9, your home when there is a disaster, it is appropriate to go, so that the family members to do the Jiang bag, full of Cornus officinalis to tie the arm, ascent, drink chrysanthemum wine, this disaster can be removed.' Jing, as he said, the family climbed the mountain. Evening return, see chickens, dogs, cows and sheep, a violent death. Changfang heard the day: 'This can be replaced.' Today, the world nine days to climb the mountain and drink wine, women with cornelian cherry bladder, cover began here." Since then, it has become a custom for people to climb the mountain on the ninth day of the ninth month to avoid epidemics.

From the calendar, September is also known as Xuan Yue, Chrysanthemum month, Xuan that is black, September Yin Qi invasion of cold, grass and trees yellow fall, chrysanthemums proud of frost. That month there are two festivals "cold dew", "frost", the weather from cool to cold, people such as contact with the night mist or morning dew, chilly refreshing, it is called "cold dew"; after the cold dew, the weather is colder, the dew began to form a thin frost, so it is called "frost". The alternation of heat and cold in nature, the human immune system needs to be adapted to it, or else prone to disease. Farmer's proverb says, "Chrysanthemum without rain a winter clear", therefore, in the Chrysanthemum Festival this day, people take colorful forms of activities, including climbing high and far away, eat Chrysanthemum cake, viewing chrysanthemums, chrysanthemum wine, all over the dogwood, and so on, to be celebrated. It not only contains a good wish of our ancestors for life, i.e. to eliminate disasters and avoid calamities, and to live a long and healthy life, but also is an accumulation of life experiences passed down from generation to generation. As we all know, the high and refreshing autumn weather is better than the spring weather. Climbing up to a high altitude and looking into the distance is a very good way of exercise, and at the same time, chrysanthemum can be used in medicine to clear the liver and improve the eyesight, cure dizziness, and lower the blood pressure. Cornus can repel mosquitoes and kill insects, and the medicine can cure vomiting and diarrhea.

The Chrysanthemum Festival is the centerpiece of the Chrysanthemum Festival. Its original significance lies in escaping from calamities. At the same time, different from the mountains, in the concept of the original inhabitants of the magical place, climbed high, away from the world, means close to the gods, it is easy to get blessed. Therefore, the Chongyang Festival is also called the "Festival of Ascending Heights". During the Three Kingdoms period, Cao Pi, the Emperor of Wei Dynasty, in "Nine Days and Zhong Yao Book", has clearly written about the drinking feast of Chung Yeung: "The years go by and the months come and go, and suddenly it is the ninth day of the ninth month. Nine is the number of yang, and the sun and the moon should be in the same place. The common people honored its name and thought that it was suitable for a long time, so they used it to enjoy the banquet." Sun Simiao "Qian Jin Fang Monthly Order" also said: "Chongyang Day, must be dishes and wine to climb the high and distant, for the time of the feast of the tour to enjoy, in order to smooth the autumn Zhi. Wine must pick cornelian cherry, chrysanthemum to pan, that is, drunk and return." In ancient times, worship of the gods more high, fall to the countryside a tour, also more high. Climbing high, not only can pray for blessings to avoid disaster, but also entertainment and fitness, physical and mental pleasure.

All over the world, there is also the custom of eating "Chongyang cake". Chrysanthemum cake, also known as flower cake, chrysanthemum cake, five-color cake, the system is not fixed, more random. September eating cake custom originated very early, the Han Dynasty called "bait", "Peng bait". Shuowen Jiezi: "Bait, powder cake." Bait raw material is rice flour, rice flour and corn flour and two kinds of rice flour, corn has a viscous, the two and together, combined steam that is bait. Millet for the first of the five grains, in ancient times is the hospitality and rituals of the good, ripe in September, is the seasonal food. There is also an account of "eating pong bait to pull out the evil spirits" in "Miscellaneous Records of the Western Capital". After the Six Dynasties, renamed "cake", because the "cake" and "high" resonance, symbolizing upward, progress, high rise. Tang and Song Dynasty Festival cake is quite popular, Tang said "Ma Ge cake", Song has been accustomed to call "Chongyang cake". Wu Zimu in the "Dream Liang Records" recorded: "this day, the people store, to sugar steamed cake, on the pork and duck for the silk cluster Ding, inserted a small colorful flag cluster, the name is 'Chongyang cake'." Lv Yuanming, "Miscellaneous Records of the Times and Years" recorded in the Song Dynasty folk custom: "in September 9, when the sky is bright, to piece of cake on the children's forehead, the mouth read the words, wishing that 'I wish the children a hundred things are high', as three voices." This is the intention of the ancients in September cake. The cake should be made into nine layers, like the shape of the pagoda, the top do two small sheep, in line with the meaning of Chongyang (sheep). Some also inserted a small red flag on the cake, and light candles. This is probably a small red flag instead of cornelian cherry, with "light", "eat cake" instead of "high" meaning. Because the cake surface has a variety of decorations, after the Ming and Qing Dynasties and more known as "flower cake". Today's Chongyang cake, there is still no fixed varieties, all over the Chongyang Festival to eat the fluffy cakes are called Chongyang cake.

The Chrysanthemum Festival also has the custom of drinking chrysanthemum wine, enjoying chrysanthemums and hairpin chrysanthemums. September is the time when chrysanthemums are proud of the frost, and Huang Chao wrote a poem that reads, "When autumn comes on September 8, I will kill all the flowers after they bloom." The chrysanthemum flower, which defies the wind and frost, has become a symbol of high quality and purity. It is rumored that the Chrysanthemum Appreciation and Chrysanthemum Wine Drinking in Chrysanthemum Festival originated from Tao Yuanming, a great poet in Jin Dynasty. Chrysanthemum is one of the Four Gentlemen among the flowers favored by ancient Chinese literati. Tao Yuanming loved chrysanthemums for their seclusion and purity, and often used chrysanthemums to show his ambition: "Picking chrysanthemums under the East Fence, and seeing the South Mountain in a leisurely manner." He said in the preface to the poem "Nine Days of Idleness": "I live in idleness, and love the name of the ninth day of the year. Autumn chrysanthemums fill the garden, and hold the mash by and by, the empty service of the Jiu Hua, send your feelings in words." He loved to drink wine and enjoy chrysanthemums on Chongyang Day. Later generations followed suit and it became a custom. Jin Dynasty chrysanthemum wine system is: "pick chrysanthemum stems and leaves, mixed broomcorn millet brewing, to the second eight Immortals to celebrate the birthday picture year September to be cooked, with the." Ming dynasty chrysanthemum wine is used "chrysanthemum flowers decoction, with the song, rice wine. Or add rhubarb, angelica and other medicines." Li Shizhen, the sage of the Ming Dynasty, said that chrysanthemum wine had the curative effect of "curing head wind, brightening ears and eyes, removing impotence and paralysis, and eliminating all kinds of diseases". People also wear chrysanthemums on their heads. Tang Du Mu's poem "Ascending Mount Qishan on the Ninth Day" reads, "It is hard to meet people in the world who open their mouths and smile, and chrysanthemums must be inserted all over one's head to return to the world." During the Qing Dynasty, Beijing's Chrysanthemum Festival custom was to stick chrysanthemum branches and leaves on doors and windows to "lift the evil spirits and invoke good fortune." Mao Zedong in the war-torn revolutionary era, coinciding with the Chrysanthemum Festival, still not lack of chrysanthemum appreciation of the elegance of the lyrics "Cai Sang Zi - Chrysanthemum": "Life is easy to God is difficult to grow old, years and years of the Chrysanthemum Festival, and now the Chrysanthemum Festival, the yellow flowers of the battlefield is particularly fragrant. Once a year the autumn wind is strong, not like the spring light, better than the spring light, lonesome river sky ten thousand miles of frost."

Inserting cornelian cherry is also one of the important forms of celebration of the Chongyang Festival. The Tang Dynasty poet Wang Wei's poem "Remembering Shandong Brothers on September 9" reads, "Being alone in a foreign land is a foreign guest, and I miss my relatives twice as much at festivals. Remote knowledge of the brothers climbed high, all inserted Cornus officinalis less a person." Cornus officinalis, also known as "Yue Pepper" or "Ai Zi", is a small evergreen tree, the trunk can grow to more than ten feet high, the leaves are pinnately compound, green and white flowers in early summer, the fruit looks like a pepper; ripe in the fall. The fruit is yellow when it is young, and becomes purplish red when it is ripe. The Compendium of Materia Medica says that it has a pungent and aromatic odor, is warm and hot in nature, and can cure cold and expel poison. The Book of Miscellaneous Five Elements says that planting "three roots of white poplar and cornelian cherry next to the house will increase longevity and get rid of harm." "Hang dogwood in the house, and the ghosts do not enter." Ancient people believed that in the day of the dogwood can be inserted to drive away the wind to avoid the evil, the method is inserted in the head, or wear dogwood bag.

The Chongyang Festival is still married daughters return to their parents' homes, so the Chongyang Festival is also known as the "Daughter's Day". Proverbs have "September 9, move back to the daughter rest hand". The Ming Dynasty Liu Dong "Imperial Capital Scenery": "(September) 9, the parents' home must welcome the daughter to return to the Ning, eat flower cake." Returning to the Ning is married women return to their parents, flower cake is mixed with dried fruits, inserted with decorative flags of the Chongyang cake. Qing dynasty qianlong Pan Rong ah "imperial capital years and times record wins" also recorded: "the capital city of heavy sun festival flower cake is very prosperous ...... city people scramble to buy, for the family hall, feed friends and relatives ...... have female family, feed the wine gift, homing parents, and for the daughter of the festival cloud. "

Additionally, the double nine and "long life, health and longevity" of the meaning of the Chongyang also has a festival of life, respect for the elderly festival of the saying. 1989, China's annual September 9 of the lunar calendar as the "Festival of the Elderly". National institutions, groups, streets, villages and towns, often at this time will be held in various forms of celebration of commemorative activities, the organization of the elderly autumn tour to enjoy the scenery, or the water to play, or mountaineering fitness, "old as we are old and the old man," in the whole society to advocate respect for the elderly, the love of the elderly, old age of the good customs and traditions; a lot of families will also help the elderly elders to the countryside Many families will also help their elderly elders to the countryside activities, or specially prepared for the elderly some delicious food, to accompany them to spend their holidays, to express their filial piety and gratitude to the old people.