Custom activities of the Heavy Snow Festival

Custom activities of the Heavy Snow Festival. Heavy Snow is the 21st solar term among the 24 solar terms of the lunar calendar, and it is also the third solar term in winter. So you know that Heavy Snow What are the customs and activities of the solar term? Let me take a look at the customs and activities of the snowy festival. Custom activities during the heavy snow festival 1

Ice sculptures in the Northeast

During the heavy snow festival, ice sculptures in the Northeast have become a beautiful landscape. Smart Harbin people make full use of local resources to turn ice sculptures into a Art is presented to everyone, and they also hold an ice and snow festival to attract tourists from all over the world, which has become a major feature of Harbin. In addition to being held locally, ice sculpture exhibitions are also held in other countries, and are loved and welcomed by local people wherever they go.

Northern Skating

Skating is ice skating. It is one of the winter games and was called ice opera in ancient times. In the north it is severely cold and the rivers are frozen solid, so ice skating is the most popular. Men and women often wear skates, push their feet on the ice, use sticks as if they are using fences, and their movements are as light as flying. Most people who are good at skating do not need a stick, and those with superb skills can do all kinds of tricks. In some places, water is poured into icebergs, which are three to four feet high and crystal smooth. People wear leather belts and leather shoes and stand upright from the top of the mountain. The one who reaches the ground without falling down is the winner. This game is called slippery tart.

The Miter Festival during heavy snow season

The Miter Festival, a traditional festival of the Ewenki and Oroqen people, is popular among the Chenbarhu people in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

"Miter" is the phonetic literal translation of Oroqen. It is held every year on the 10th day of the 11th lunar month. Local people believe that this day is the turning point of climate cooling, so they celebrate this day to express their importance. They live in the Greater Khingan Mountains, where winters are very cold and grazing and hunting are extremely difficult, so they must make all preparations for overwintering. On this day, people who have flocks of sheep should return their breeding sheep to their flocks, sell some large livestock, and slaughter the cattle and sheep that will be eaten in winter and spring and store them to ensure that there is enough frozen meat and grain for winter.

Folk "Night Work"

Heavy snow makes the days short and the nights long. Therefore, in ancient times, various handicraft workshops and household crafts started working at night, commonly known as "night work". The handmade textile industry, embroidery industry, and dyeing workshops have to eat night meals late at night, so there are "night cooking" and "Ye Xiao". In order to meet this demand, various food stalls also opened night markets one after another, which did not end until the fifth watch, and the business was booming.

Farming customs in the north and south

There is little field management in the north. If the snow does not fall in time, people will occasionally pour frozen water once or twice when the weather gets slightly warmer to improve the wheat quality. Overwintering ability. Or repair poultry houses, livestock pen walls, etc. to help poultry and livestock survive the winter safely. As the saying goes, "It's a drought year when there's heavy snow, so don't waste time building ponds and building warehouses." At this time, work such as building waterways, accumulating manure, building warehouses, and warehousing grains in winter should be stepped up. The women gathered in small groups to do needlework. Craftsmen focus their main efforts on crafts, such as printing New Year pictures, grinding tofu, weaving baskets, basket weaving, etc. to earn money to support their families.

The southern region is still strengthening field management of wheat, rapeseed and other crops, hoeing and loosening the soil, increasing temperature and moisture, clearing ditches and drainage, applying wax fertilizer, and doing a good job in preventing frost and cold of the crops. Fruit farmers prune fruit trees and strengthen overwintering management of fruit trees. The southern region has also begun to pay attention to the winter warmth of livestock.

The origin of the "Daxue" solar term

"Daxue" is the last solar term before the winter solstice, usually on December 7 every year (there are also 6 in some years) day or 8th). When the sun's ecliptic longitude reaches 255 degrees, it is "heavy snow", one of the twenty-four solar terms. The ancients once said: "The big one is prosperous, and the snow is prosperous at this point." During this period, snow often falls heavily and over a wide area, hence the name heavy snow. "The Collection of the Seventy-Two Hours of the Moon Order" says: "The snow is now in full swing."

In ancient times, heavy snowfall was divided into three periods: "The first period is when cuckoos and gulls do not cry; the second period is when tigers begin to cross; the third period is when tigers begin to cross; Wait for the Li to come out. "This means that the weather is cold at this time, and the cold-horned birds no longer chirp; because this is the period when the Yin energy is at its peak, and as the saying goes, the Yang energy has sprouted, so the tiger Courtship behavior begins; "Li Ting" is a kind of orchid, which also feels the germination of Yang energy and sprouts new leaves.

Every year on December 7th or 8th, when the sun's ecliptic longitude reaches 255 degrees, it is one of the twenty-four solar terms, "Heavy Snow".

Heavy snow, as the name suggests, means heavy snowfall. The ancients said: "The big one is prosperous, and the snow is prosperous at this point." During this period, the snow often falls heavily and covers a wide area, hence the name heavy snow.

At this time, the minimum temperature in most areas of our country has dropped to 0℃ or below. Often in areas where warm and cold air meet at the front of strong cold air, heavy snowfall or even blizzards will occur. It can be seen that the heavy snow solar term refers to the starting time and snow amount of heavy snow during this period. It is the same solar term as light snow, rain, Guyu and other solar terms, which directly reflects precipitation.

In ancient my country, heavy snowfall was divided into three periods: "In the first period, cuckoos and gulls do not cry; in the second period, tigers begin to make love; in the third period, litchis come out." This means that due to the cold weather at this time, the birds are also calling in the cold. No longer howling; because this is the period when Yin Qi is at its peak, as the saying goes, it peaks and then declines, and Yang Qi has sprouted, so the tiger begins to engage in courtship behavior; "Li Ting" is a kind of orchid, and it also feels Yang Qi The germination sprouts.

People often say, "Auspicious snow heralds a good year." Snow covers the ground in severe winter, which can keep the temperature on the ground and around crops from falling too low due to cold waves, creating a good overwintering environment for winter crops. When the snow melts, it increases soil moisture content, which is needed for crop growth in the spring. In addition, the nitrogen content in snowwater is five times that of ordinary rainwater, and it also has a certain fertilizing effect. Therefore, there is a farmer's proverb: "This year, you will be covered with a three-layer wheat quilt, and next year you will sleep with a steamed bun on your pillow."

During the heavy snow season, except for the winter-free areas of South China and southern Yunnan, the vast land of our country is covered with winter attire. The average temperature in the Northeast and Northwest regions has dropped to -10°C, and the temperature in the Yellow River Basin and North China has also stabilized below 0°C. In years with normal climate, snow has appeared in the Yellow River Basin and areas to the north, and winter wheat has stopped growing. After the heavy snowfall, the south of the Yangtze River enters the midwinter season. The temperature drops significantly in various places, and freezing phenomena often occur. "After the heavy snowfall in the winter solstice, the water in the basket does not leak" is a true portrayal of this time. However, this is not always the case in some years. The temperature is higher and there is no freezing phenomenon. , often causing heavy rain in the later period.

During the heavy snow season, people should pay attention to the meteorological station's forecast of strong cold air and low temperatures, and pay attention to keeping warm and cold. Effective measures must be taken for overwintering crops to prevent freezing damage. Pay attention to keeping livestock protected from freezing and warm.

What are the weather characteristics of heavy snow

Basic characteristics

The most common solar terms of heavy snow are cooling, raining or snowing . According to statistics, the month with the most strong cold air in my country is November of the lunar calendar. After the strong cold air passes, the average temperature in December in most parts of the north is between -20°C and -5°C, and rainfall or frost may also occur in the south. Strong cold air can often bring rain or snow.

Heavy snow (blizzard)

Strong cold air can often cause large-scale snowfall or local blizzard, but the amount of snow is not the largest in the year. For example, in the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River in northern my country and its surrounding areas, the heaviest snowfall occurs in the spring rainy season in late February. The reason is similar to "light snow is heavier than heavy snow", that is, late February has passed the coldest period of the year. In the early spring weather, the warm air in the south becomes active and the water vapor becomes abundant. At this time, the cold air in the north is still strong and confronts each other. The warm air flow rises strongly and persistently on the back of the denser cold air flow, and heavy snow may fall.

Freezing rain (rainstorm)

When strong cold air reaches the south, especially Guizhou, Hunan, Hubei and other places

freezing rain is prone to occur. Freezing rain is snowflakes that fall from the cold layer at high altitudes. When they reach the middle layer, they sometimes melt into rain. When they reach the cold layer at low altitudes, they turn into supercooled water that is still raindrops even though the temperature is lower than 0°C. Supercooled water droplets fall from the sky. When they reach the ground and hit any object on the ground, they freeze immediately, forming freezing rain. When freezing rain occurs, an uneven ice shell appears on the ground and objects, which will have a great impact on transportation, electricity, and communications, and may also cause damage to fruit trees. According to statistics in the book "Climate of the Middle and Lower Yangtze River", in December every year, when the temperature in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River is -3 to 0°C, freezing rain is prone to occur, and the probability of freezing rain accounts for 76%.

Rime

According to statistics, generally from November to February of the following year, rime appears successively in the northwest, northeast and most of the Yangtze River Basin, and is more common in mountainous areas with high humidity. See. Rime is the milky white ice crystal deposits on objects when water vapor in the air directly condenses or supercooled fog droplets freeze directly at low temperatures.

Places with a lot of rime days in winter in my country include: Heilongjiang, Jilin, northern Xinjiang, and northern Shaanxi. Rime is a natural beauty that is generally appreciated by people, but it sometimes becomes a natural disaster. In severe cases, it can break down power lines and trees, affecting transportation, power supply, and communications.

Smog

In December, in Jiangnan, which has just entered winter, when the temperature is relatively low in the morning, or after rain or snow, the humidity near the ground is high, and fog may occur. A thick foggy area. The haze weather in northern cities will also affect us.

Lingxun

In winter, the Baotou River section in Inner Mongolia freezes and blocks the river. However, the Lanzhou River in the south is not blocked. The river flows to the blocked river section. Due to the ice on the blocked river section, The layers and dams block the river water coming down from the upstream, forcing the water level to rise, which easily causes the disaster of overflowing the river banks in the Baotou River section. If the strong cold air comes late, it is easy to cause stray disasters in December. Custom activities during the heavy snow festival 2

Customs of the heavy snow festival

Cured meat

There is a saying in old Nanjing, which is "pickled vegetables in light snow, marinated meat in heavy snow". When the heavy snow comes, every household is busy making "salty goods". Add large salt, star anise, cinnamon, Sichuan peppercorns, white sugar, etc. into a pan and stir-fry until cooked. After the fried Sichuan peppercorns and salt are cool, apply them on the inside and outside of fish, meat and poultry, and rub them repeatedly until the color of the meat changes from fresh to dark, and liquid seeps out from the surface. When it comes out, put the meat and the remaining salt into the jar, press it with stones, and put it in a cool and backlit place. Take it out after half a month, put the marinated marinade into the pot, add water to boil, skim off the foam, and put it in the jar. Put the dried poultry meat in the vat, put it layer by layer in the vat, pour in salt brine, and press it with big stones. After ten days, take it out and hang it under the eaves of the sunny house to dry in the sun to welcome the New Year.

Watching the Fenghe River

"Light snow blocks the land, heavy snow blocks the river". There is a natural landscape of "thousands of miles of ice and thousands of miles of snow" in the north, and there are also "snowflakes" in the south. "Flying, silvery sky" is a charming picture. During the heavy snow season, the ice in the river is frozen, and people can skate and play as much as they want.

Tonic

Heavy snow is a good time to "tonic". It is known as "Tortifying in winter and killing tigers in spring". Winter supplements can improve the body's immune function, promote metabolism, and improve the symptoms of chills. Winter tonic can also regulate the metabolism of substances in the body, so that the energy converted from nutrients can be stored in the body to the maximum extent, which helps to promote the growth of yang energy in the body. As the saying goes, "three nines nourish one winter, and there will be no pain in the coming year." At this time, it is appropriate to warm the body to supplement yang, nourish kidneys and bones, nourish yin and replenish essence. Winter food supplements should provide foods rich in protein, vitamins and easy to digest. Before and after the heavy snow solar term, citrus fruits are on the market in large quantities, such as Nanfeng tangerines, Guanxi grapefruits, navel oranges and snow oranges, which are all popular fruits. Eating some appropriately can prevent and treat rhinitis, eliminate phlegm and relieve cough. When there is heavy snow, the days are shorter and the nights are longer in various places in the northern hemisphere. Therefore, there are farmers' proverbs such as "heavy snow and light snow, cooking does not stop", which is used to describe that the days are so short that peasant women almost have to cook three meals in a row. You can often drink ginger and jujube soup to fight cold; eat oranges and use peppermint oil to prevent rhinitis, eliminate phlegm and relieve cough. Custom activities during the heavy snow festival 3

Traditional folk activities during the heavy snow festival

Enjoying the snow scenery

During the heavy snow season, people enjoy the snow scenery in the ice and snow. Volume 3 of Zhou Mi's "Old Wulin Stories" of the Southern Song Dynasty says: "In the forbidden area, you can enjoy the snow, mostly in Mingyuan Tower, and in the back garden there are large and small snow lions, and they are decorated with golden bells and colorful strands, and they are also made into snowflakes, snow lanterns, snow mountains, etc., and dripping The cakes are made of flowers and other events, and they are put in golden basins for viewing. "This vivid text describes the scene of the royal family and nobles in Hangzhou making snowmen and snow mountains in heavy snow. When the sky clears after the snow, the mountains and rivers look like beautiful buildings and jade buildings. It is interesting to look into the distance.

Watching the Fenghe River

The land is blocked by light snow, and the river is blocked by heavy snow. During the heavy snow season, the ice in the river freezes, and people enjoy skating and playing. Of course, they also enjoy the scenery of Fenghe River on the shore.

Night work

During the heavy snow season, the days are short and the nights are long. In ancient times, various handicraft workshops and household crafts started working at night, commonly known as "night work". The handmade textile industry, embroidery industry, and dyeing workshops require night meals late at night, so there are "night cooking" and "late night snacks." In order to meet this demand, various food stalls also opened night markets one after another, which did not end until the fifth watch, and the business was booming.

Pickled meat in the heavy snow

"Pickled vegetables in the light snow, marinated meat in the heavy snow" and "Before the New Year, fatten the eaves first" refer to the custom of the heavy snow solar term, that is, cured meat. When the snow comes, every household is busy pickling "salty goods". Whether it is poultry or fish, people use traditional methods to process it into fragrant delicacies to welcome the upcoming New Year. The custom of marinating meat in heavy snow has a long history, which is the same as the origin of firecrackers and is related to the New Year. "Nian" is a ferocious monster with sharp horns that comes out to hurt people every New Year's Eve. In order to avoid harm, people stay at home at the end of the year, pickling and storing meat, and fresh vegetables are preserved by air-drying.

Heavy snow supplements

"Take supplements in winter, and hunt tigers in spring." Since ancient times, there has been a custom of heavy snow supplements, which can improve human immunity, promote metabolism, and improve chills.

Folk stories about the heavy snow season

Hanhao Bird

Legend has it that there is a small bird called Hanhao Bird. This kind of bird is different. It has four legs and two bare fleshy wings. It cannot fly like ordinary birds. In summer, the Hanhao bird's body is covered with gorgeous feathers, and it looks very beautiful. Hanhaoniao was extremely proud. He felt that he was the most beautiful bird in the world. Not even the Phoenix could compare with him. So it shook its feathers all day long, walked around, and sang proudly: "The Phoenix is ??not as good as me! The Phoenix is ??not as good as me!"

Summer has passed, autumn has arrived, and the birds are all busy. As soon as it opens, some of them began to fly to the south together, preparing to spend the warm winter there; some stayed and worked hard all day long, accumulating food, repairing nests, and making preparations for the winter. Only the cold horn bird, which neither has the ability to fly to the south nor wants to work hard, still wanders around all day long, still showing off its beautiful feathers everywhere.

Winter has finally come, the weather is extremely cold, and the birds have returned to their warm nests. At this time, all the beautiful feathers on the cold horn bird have fallen off. At night, it hid in the crevices of the rocks, shivering with cold, and kept shouting: "It's so cold, it's so cold, wait until daybreak to build a nest!" After daybreak, the sun came out, and the warmth As soon as the sunshine shines, the cold trumpet bird forgets the coldness of the night, so it keeps singing: "I'm getting by! It's warm under the sun!"

The cold trumpet bird just hangs out day by day, Day by day, I haven't been able to build a nest for myself. During the heavy snow season, the north wind howls and the sun loses its usual warmth. The cold horn bird could not survive the cold and heavy snow, and finally froze to death in the crevices of the rocks.

Cheng Men Lixue

Yang Shi, whose courtesy name is Zhongli, is from Jiannan Jiangle. When he was young, he was extremely smart and good at writing articles. When I got a little older, I concentrated on studying classics and history books. In the ninth year of Xining in the Song Dynasty, he passed the Jinshi title. At that time, Cheng Hao and his younger brother Cheng Yi from Henan taught the academic essence of Confucius and Mencius (i.e. Neo-Confucianism) during the Xining and Yuanfeng years. Scholars from Luoyang, Henan and other places went to worship them as their teachers. When Yang Shi was transferred to be an official, he did not go there. In Yingchang, he worshiped Cheng Hao as his teacher according to the ceremony of apprenticeship. The teacher and student got along very well. When Yang Shi came home, Cheng Hao watched him off and said, "My doctrine will spread to the south." Four years later, Cheng Hao passed away. When Yang Shi heard about it, he set up a memorial ceremony for Cheng Hao in his bedroom. , and people who use letters to obituary their classmates. After Cheng Hao died, he went to Luoyang to visit Cheng Yi. Yang Shi was about forty years old at this time. One day I visited Cheng Yi. Cheng Yi was sitting with his eyes closed. Yang Shi and his classmate You Zuo stood outside the door and did not leave. When Cheng Yi woke up, the snow outside the door was already more than a foot deep. . His virtue and prestige are getting higher and higher day by day, and people from all over the world travel thousands of miles to meet him. His nickname is Mr. Guishan.

Daxue delicacies

Drinking sweet potato porridge

Daxue is the 21st of the twenty-four solar terms. Time It is December 7th or 8th every year in the Gregorian calendar. After the heavy snow, the temperature gradually became colder. People paid great attention to keeping warm inside and outside the house, and put on winter clothes one after another to prevent cold and frostbite. There is a saying among the people in Northern Shandong that "Lukqi is at home and only drinks red sticky porridge", which means that when the weather is cold, he no longer visits the house and only drinks warm sweet potato porridge at home to survive. Sweet potato porridge is sweet and delicious, strengthens the spleen and stomach, and is also a good weight loss food.

Eating radish dumplings

Radish dumplings made from radish have been popular in the south of the old city for many years. At that time, radish dumplings made from radish were sold in vegetable markets or on the streets. This was a unique and delicious snack. People in the south of the old city have the habit of having snacks in the afternoon. They sit around in front of the stall. The stall owner scoops out a few dumplings from the boiling water and puts them in a bowl, and sprinkles some garlic. It is really fragrant and delicious. Although there are many kinds of snacks and fast food nowadays, the charm of Jinling snacks is still there, and the radish dumplings with the authentic local flavor will definitely exude the intoxicating fragrance again.

Duitang'er

"Tang'er customers, take your time, and Xiaoxi'er will follow a large group." Whenever there is a "heavy snow" before and after the solar term, a kind of "Tang'er" will appear on the streets of Wenzhou. The scene of "making sweets". Caramel workshops in various places provide the full-size caramel made to small vendors who specialize in carrying burdens and walk around the streets, commonly known as "candy customers".

The "Tanger Guest" banged the sugar knife and shouted to sell sweets. Children are often attracted, and parents exchange copper scraps, coins, copper plates and other items at home for candy with "sugar customers". Since eating malt candies in winter has the benefit of nourishing the body, this "sweetening" business has also developed into a business method.

Mutton

"Take supplements in winter and kill tigers in spring." The heavy snow reminds people to start taking supplements. The function of supplements is to improve the body's immune function, promote metabolism, and reduce chills. Improved and healthy winter. Old Nanjing Daxue Tonic likes to eat mutton, which can repel cold and nourish, replenish qi and deficiency, promote blood circulation, and enhance the ability to resist cold. Mutton can also increase digestive enzymes and help digestion. Experts suggest that eating mutton tonic in winter can be "mixed" with yam, wolfberry, etc. to make it more nutritious.

As for the northern people, it is already quite cold at this time. For example, there is a proverb in the Baotou area that "light snow kills pigs, heavy snow kills sheep." When the heavy snow comes, it is the time to kill pigs to prepare New Year's goods. At this time, no matter whose family slaughters the livestock, relatives and friends will come to help, and the host will prepare food, wine, and side dishes for the banquet. Therefore, the light snow and heavy snow seasons are the time for family members and friends to reminisce and bond.

Dog meat

As the saying goes, "dog meat is sold on a sheep's head." In fact, we Wenzhou people have always said that "winter fragrant meat warms the stomach", and this fragrant meat is dog meat. The cold winter is the best time to eat dog meat for nourishment. There is a record in "Ming Dynasty Materia Medica" that "yellow dogs are greatly beneficial to people, and the remaining color is slightly nourishing". It is said that children who are weak and drown in bed can recover after eating dog meat once or twice. In the past, many families in Wenzhou gave dog meat to each other as a good supplement for pregnant women.