Hunan people believe that the Spring Festival is the most important traditional festival, commonly known as the New Year, and it lasts the longest. That is, from the 24th day of the twelfth lunar month of the previous year to the Lantern Festival on the 15th day of the first lunar month of the next year.
Let’s start with the 24th day of the previous year. The 24th day of the twelfth lunar month is commonly known as “Celebrating the Small New Year”, also called “Children’s Celebrating the New Year”. On this day, financially well-off families will also give their children gifts other than New Year's money. No wonder "Xi Yaozi" is looking forward to the New Year. According to legend, on this day, the Stove Lord, who is the "eyes and ears in heaven and the master of fireworks on earth", will return to heaven to report on his duties, and is called to resign. kitchen. In order for him to "speak good things from heaven and bring good luck to the earth" and "don't have to talk nonsense, and speak good words to the Jade Emperor", on the 24th night, the housewives would light candles around the stove to offer sacrifices to the stove to "send him off". People do a lot of cleaning on the day before the Chinese New Year, which is called "dusting up". This kind of cleaning is usually not done much, but when it comes to the Chinese New Year, the room must be cleaned thoroughly, which is called "beating the dust" in Hunan dialect. "Dust-fighting" now doesn't just mean cleaning cobwebs, wall tops or roof dust, but has become a synonym for cleaning and hygiene. In the past, firewood was burned in rural areas, and the roofs were covered with a dark layer of dust. With the improvement of living standards, families now rarely have firewood burning in rural or urban areas, but cleaning is still a must. of.
The last day of the lunar year is New Year's Eve, or New Year's Eve. Every household cuts ribbons and pastes Spring Festival couplets, and the whole family gets together to have a drink. There are plenty of dishes left over, which is called a reunion dinner. The time for eating is not fixed. It can be from 12 am to 8 pm. During this time, you will hear the sound of firecrackers everywhere, indicating which family has started to have the family reunion dinner. Let’s talk about firecrackers here. Well, setting off firecrackers during the Spring Festival is an ancient folk custom with a history of more than 1,000 years. In the old days, setting off whips had two meanings. One was to drive away ghosts and welcome gods and pray for a good harvest; the other was to increase the joyful atmosphere of the festival. Now it’s more about adding to the festive atmosphere. However, many cities now ban whipping, which has weakened the atmosphere of the Chinese New Year. However, many places in Hunan have never banned whipping during the Chinese New Year. As we all know, Liuyang firecrackers are one of the specialties of Hunan, famous throughout the country and well-known at home and abroad. At the founding ceremony of New China, Liuyang firecrackers were set off. (Haha, sell some ads) For this reason, during the Chinese New Year in Hunan, the city is filled with loud noises and smoke. There are also many things to pay attention to when setting off firecrackers. Firecrackers are set off at different times and have different meanings. On the night of New Year's Eve, firecrackers are set off three times: one is set off during the New Year's Eve dinner, which means to tell people that it is time to have the New Year's Eve dinner; the other is set off when the New Year's bell rings, which means to bid farewell to the old and welcome the new; Opening the door in the morning means ushering in a new and beautiful year. The size and time of setting off firecrackers are determined by each family, but one thing is that the setting off of firecrackers cannot be interrupted. If there is an interruption, something bad may happen in the coming year. This is something no one wants to see, so people set off firecrackers. When setting off firecrackers, be particularly careful and try to avoid interruptions.
To be honest, Hunan people will definitely eat chicken, meat, fish, pork knuckles, etc. on New Year’s Eve, and it must be big fish and meat. The chicken should be stewed whole, and the rooster should be chosen. After stewing, put the chicken head upright; after the fish is steamed, sprinkle red pepper on it, and do not finish the fish on the 30th night, save it until Eating it on the first day of the lunar month symbolizes abundance and good harvests every year. Of course, chili peppers represent prosperity. Pig elbow is called "Tuannian elbow". In some homes, chicken claws appear on the dining table, which are called "money-grabbing claws", which means that they will attract wealth next year. There will be green vegetables in the vegetables, which means that the whole family will have a harmonious new year and a prosperous career. Generally, the longer the New Year meal is, the better. I don’t remember the specific meaning. There are many taboos on this day. Grandma always told us not to talk nonsense, such as "dead", "rotten", "broken" and other unlucky words. If we let it slip, the adults would immediately explain: "Children" There are no taboos in what he says." If you accidentally break something, say "send it away"; if the wine glass falls over, say "wine spilled on the ground". Avoid any unlucky things caused by this. There are also these taboos in the first grade of junior high school. After dinner, everyone will start to clean up again and prepare for the evening watch or go out for a walk. After dinner, there is a twig burning in the stove of every house in the countryside. Men, women and children gather around the stove to talk. As for the city, naturally people gather around the electric oven. Why must they surround something like this? Because—— It’s very cold during the Chinese New Year in Hunan! The whole family played chess, cards, and watched the Spring Festival Gala on CCTV. The elders gave the children New Year's money, and the whole family ate, sat, and waited for the arrival of the New Year. When the New Year's bell rings, firecrackers blast off in the streets and alleys, fireworks are everywhere, deafening, and there is a strong atmosphere of saying goodbye to the old and welcoming the new. Children go to neighboring houses in groups holding lanterns and say: "Please bid farewell to the New Year" when they enter the door. Every family went out to greet them happily, bringing out snacks such as snacks and candies, filling the children's pockets. Some children returned home and after unloading their pockets, they quickly joined the New Year's Eve party. One or two porcelain jars of delicacies, as the saying goes: "Children look forward to the New Year." "Maybe it's for this reason.
It's the first day of the new year. I wake up in the morning and set off firecrackers, and after eating some snacks, I have to prepare the rice wine made the day before, also called sweet wine, which is Sichuanese You should say "NAO (I can't type this word) bad".
It's extremely delicious, sweet, and has a bit of a wine aroma. If you drink too much, it will really make you drunk for those who are not good at drinking. There are many folk customs and taboos on New Year's Day. On New Year's Eve, some people stick red paper with the word "wealth" on the joints of the door, and stick auspicious words such as "open the door with good luck" and "bring me wealth" on prominent places. Open the door and make money. Piling a lot of firewood at Jieji and Chaiwan will bring more wealth. On the first day of the new year, the rubbish is not taken out and the floor is not swept. When sweeping is necessary, the broom is swept towards Chai Wan instead of outwards. Some places do not go out to pay New Year greetings on the first day of the Lunar New Year and stay at home, but some places pay special attention to "the first day of the Lunar New Year, the second day of the Lunar New Year, and the third and fourth days of the Lunar New Year to pay homage to the neighbors." This common saying talks about the son bringing his wife and children to the New Year. My own parents pay New Year greetings; and on the second day of the Lunar New Year, the family goes back to their parents’ home to pay New Year greetings to their father-in-law and mother-in-law: On the third and fourth days of the Lunar New Year, neighbors greet each other. As the saying goes, "a close neighbor is worse than a distant relative." Hunan people attach great importance to etiquette and often treat others with kindness. In the past few days, neighbors have been walking out of their homes to wish each other "a lively new year." I have forgotten what our family is like. It seems that we have been in both situations. It is particularly noteworthy that no New Year greetings are held on the fifth day of the Lunar New Year. People call New Year greetings on the fifth day of the Lunar New Year "Worship the Fifth Middle School" (the word "中" is the transliteration). On this day, the married daughter returns to her natal family, and her natal family's economy is poor this year. will prosper. It would not be a happy thing if a married daughter returns to her parents' home or goes to someone else's home as a guest to pay New Year's greetings. Another taboo is that when paying New Year greetings, you have to check whether the person you want to worship has gotten up. If the person has not yet gotten up, you are not allowed to go to bed to pay New Year greetings. The older generation believes that worshiping the dead means worshiping at the bedside, which is a taboo.
The sixth day of the lunar month means good fortune. Many businesses will also choose to open their doors on this day. Some people who work in other places will also choose this day to leave home and go out to work. The folk proverb: "Three or six" Nine, go out." Therefore, the flow of people in civil aviation, railways, highways and other transportation systems will increase greatly in these days. On the seventh day of the seventh lunar month and the eighth day of the lunar month, Hunan people pay attention to the "seven don't go (pronounced "ke", pronunciation in hometown dialect), eight don't return" meaning don't go out on the seventh day of the lunar month and don't go home on the eighth day of the lunar month. On the eighth day of the Lunar New Year, "eight" means "fa". Factories go to work, businesses open, and all activities return to normal. From now on, when acquaintances meet, they say to each other, "Please wish me a happy new year!" By the 15th, people usually don't mention wishing them a happy new year.
The fifteenth day of the first lunar month was called the Shangyuan Festival in ancient times, also known as the Lantern Festival. There is a saying: "Fire on the Thirty Nights, lights on the Lantern Festival Night." Lantern Festival lanterns are mostly made of various kinds of lanterns made of paper and bamboo strips. Some are hung on the top of the door and on the eaves, and some are carried in the hand for parade. On this day, every family lights candles on the stove and in the corner of the house, and cooks Lantern Festival balls. It becomes very lively at night. Both adults and children will hold lanterns and go to the streets to attend temple fairs, sing operas, perform lion and dragon dances, ride bamboo horses and other cultural activities to welcome the Spring Festival, as well as guess lantern riddles and so on. They usually stay noisy all night long, hence the name Lantern Festival. Among them, the dragon lantern dance is the most common. There are the most dragon dance teams in the countryside. Folks believe that playing the dragon can ensure good luck. Therefore, wherever the "dragon" goes, drums and music are blaring, firecrackers are endless, and everyone will often give a red envelope. . Moreover, married women without children often let the "dragon" circle around them, or let the "dragon" gather in a circle on the bed, with a child riding on it, which is called Qilin to give birth to the child. In addition to paying New Year greetings, watching dragon lanterns and setting off firecrackers, Hunan people also sing flower drum operas. As for eating Lantern Festival on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, it is probably the same across the country, so I won’t go into details.
The above are some of the customs of Hunan people during the Spring Festival.