New Year's festive timetable-Guangzhou people are very lively in the New Year.
Guangzhou has entered New Year's Day from the 23rd of the twelfth lunar month, and there are strict arrangements for daily activities. That is, twenty-three thanks for cooking, twenty-four fried, twenty-five steamed cakes, twenty-six sweeps, twenty-seven washes (in Cantonese, that is, things), twenty-eight packets of zongzi, twenty-nine couplets, and thirty-year Communist Youth League. This is the arrangement before the festival.
Xie Zao: On the 23rd night of the twelfth lunar month, I will send Master Zao to heaven, calling him "Xie Zao", "Send Zao" or "Sacrifice Zao". Tributes to the stove include: a bowl of rice, two pieces of sugar, a gift, a bowl of water, a gift of roast pork, some sugar cane, oranges, paper money and so on. Speaking of tributes, I think of a sentence my grandmother said when I was a child: "Eat oranges in winter, eat oranges in the New Year, thank you for cooking oranges". It probably means that oranges should be used to worship the solstice in winter, oranges should be used in China New Year, and oranges should be used to thank the stove. And write a "kitchen gentleman's book", the main idea is to apologize to the kitchen gentleman and ask him to put in a good word in heaven and keep peace in the lower world.
From the day of Xie Zao, people began to enter the year, and people were busy. I don't think many people know this custom now. "Yuedong Notes" says: "The custom in Guangzhou is to burn glutinous rice at the end of the year, which is called soaking bones, thinking that there is stuffing in the fried jiaozi; Pile-fried, round glutinous rice flour into oil effect, first sacrifice to relatives and friends, and then put the flowers in the oil fried with glutinous rice plate, called ten flowers; It is fried with white sugar and sand mixed with powder in lard. It is called sand. " Things to be fried will probably include artillery valleys, fried piles and so on.
Twenty-five steamed cakes: In addition to steamed rice cakes, Guangzhou also likes to make radish cakes, London cakes, diamond cakes, nine-layer cakes, etc., which means "Spring Festival is rising step by step". Clean the house so as to greet the Spring Festival cleanly. There is also a "Spring Festival dust-sweeping song": the 23rd of the twelfth lunar month, drying clothes; On the 24th of the twelfth lunar month, clean the edge of the house; On the 25 th day of the twelfth lunar month, sweep the house for dust removal; On the 26th day of the twelfth lunar month, clean the barn; On the 27 th of the twelfth lunar month, the inside and outside are washed into one; On the 28th of the twelfth lunar month, clean the furniture; On the 29th day of the twelfth lunar month, all the dirty things are removed.
As for 28 packets of zongzi, I have never heard of it. I asked the old people at home, and they all said that there is no such custom in Guangzhou now, and they didn't know it before. Later, after reading some information, western Guangdong still retains this custom. Our family will buy squid, Nostoc flagelliforme, mushrooms, dried shrimps, vermicelli and other new year's goods on the 28th. Posting Spring Festival couplets includes posting door pairs, banners and monologues. In a few words, it says "God bless the people", "Happy New Year", "All the best", "Safe entry and exit" and "Congratulations on getting rich". These monologues should be posted according to God. Thirty years? Raise chickens and kill ducks, worship heaven and earth, ancestors, meet the god of wealth, etc. On this day, housewives will be very busy. In the evening, the whole family will have a reunion dinner, and then they will officially enter the new year.
There is also a traditional custom here, which Guangzhou people call "opening the door". On New Year's Eve, he kept vigil until late at night to welcome the guests. When it was time to make friends, he opened the door and said "Open the door", or posted the words "Open the door" with a red background and bronzed, and fired a gun. At this time, every household lit firecrackers. In order to "grab the gun head", some people hold it for a few minutes and burn it. Others heard the sound, and the firecrackers exploded for a while, which was deafening and lasted for several hours. It gradually quieted down after two or three o'clock. At four o'clock, firecrackers sounded again and didn't stop until dawn. Open the door and go out, every household, streets and alleys are pasted with a layer of red paper of firecrackers, which adds a lot of festive atmosphere. But now in Guangzhou, there is no such New Year's habit on New Year's Eve, because it is forbidden to set off firecrackers. Although some people who are not afraid of death will still "open the door", the excitement is really not as good as it used to be. Without this activity, I always feel that the atmosphere is not so strong now as compared with when I was a child.
Not only is it a "good start", but now there are not many people in Guangzhou who keep these pre-holiday customs. Take my family as an example. Personally, I think that compared with other families, the custom of Spring Festival in our family is relatively complete. Twenty-three thanks for cooking, twenty-seven washes, twenty-nine spring festival couplets, and the 30-year reunion dinner continues. My mother will still steam some cakes when she is free at the end of the year. But now most families in Guangzhou are afraid of trouble, or have no time, so they have bought cakes, 30% of the reunion dinner is no longer eaten at home, and most people go to some restaurants for the New Year.
The lunar new year begins on the first day of the first month; There is also a fixed custom every day: "on the first day, one person worships God, on the second day, he is poor, and on the fourth day, four people beg." The fifth and sixth days are the same year. On the seventh day, they went to spring, and on the eighth day, they didn't come back. On the ninth day, they were empty. On the tenth day, they went to welcome the spring. Eleven children came back. Twelve people put up the lantern shed, thirteen people turned on the lights, fourteen people turned on the lights, and fifteen people prayed for the lights. The activities of the Spring Festival didn't end until the Lantern Festival.
The first day of the lunar new year. It is said that a former Cantonese would go for an outing on the morning of the first day of junior high school. Some walk around the village, some walk around the countryside, and some walk around the house. This is called "going out", commonly known as "taking the Universiade". I hope that good things will come often in the new year and everything will win. The second day of the first month is called "opening the year". On this day, people will bring gifts, such as three kinds of animals and Zan fried dumplings, and take their children and daughters to visit relatives and friends. Take my family's situation as an example. In the morning, my mother will kill a chicken to worship her ancestors, and then start cooking New Year's Eve (the second day of the first month is the "first tooth" of the year, and eat "New Year's Eve"). After dinner, I took everything back to my grandmother's house and began to pay New Year's greetings. When leaving, grandma or grandpa will give lettuce, celery and onions tied with red paper as gifts to mom. The whole family is full of energy, the adults are diligent and the children are smart. People visit the flower field every day-the seventh day of the first month is People's Day, and Guangzhou people visit the flower field every day.
During the Spring Festival, Guangzhou people have many taboos and habits: according to the old custom of "being old and broad", you can't wash your hair on New Year's Day, so as not to wash away your wealth; The second day of the lunar new year is the beginning of the new year. From the New Year's Eve, we can't eat meat until today. It's a red mouth on the third day of New Year's Eve, so don't pay New Year's greetings, it's easy to get into trouble; There are countless details about the lathe worker's birthday, Everyone's Day and so on. Also, you can't buy shoes during the Spring Festival, because the Cantonese pronunciation of "shoes" is the same as "alas"; Buying books is even worse. The pronunciation of the book is the same as "lose", and it is even more taboo to be afraid of "lose, lose" all year round. At major festivals, wedding banquets and birthday banquets, I am used to saying auspicious words instead of discouraging words. If someone accidentally breaks a plate, they will say "Peace through the years" or "Flowers bloom everywhere and prosper".
During the Spring Festival, when relatives and friends meet, they always say mannitol and wish each other well. For example, congratulations on making a fortune, the spirit of dragon and horse, and everything wins. During the China New Year, elders will give their children some money, which is called "profit" and means good luck. In addition to chicken, stores must also have barbecue (meaning braised and strong), fish (more than one year), seaweed oyster sauce (a good market for getting rich), vermicelli (continuous cotton), yuba and sweet bamboo (rich and sweet). Even in the past, women had to choose an auspicious day to wash their hair. They can't wash their hair on the first and fifteenth day of the first month, which is said to be blasphemous. However, with the popularization of science and the progress of the times, some superstitious customs have gradually disappeared and replaced by new social fashions.
Crossing the Flower Street for the New Year is a lingering Millennium complex in the hearts of Guangzhou people.
"People in Guangzhou don't like flowers picked from broken branches. They are used to potted plants in their roots and transporting them in pots. Many flowers are tall and dense, covering the top of the truck cab. From a distance, I saw groups of flowers flying in the sky, which was amazing. These flowers will rush into every household, and people will pour wine and bless them among the flowers. I think, compared with other parts of the country, Guangzhou people have more right to say: Spring Festival is coming! "
"I think most mainlanders spend the Spring Festival decorated with red paper and firecrackers, where spring and auspiciousness are artificially laid. Only in Guangzhou, it is difficult to transport floats for a season and introduce real spring life into the home, so the celebration is the most honest and thorough. "
The above two paragraphs are Yu Xiansheng's words in "Cultural Journey" and "Tales of Five Cities". Indeed, the Spring Festival in Guangzhou is made of flowers. People in Guangzhou don't eat jiaozi in New Year, but they go shopping in Flower Street in New Year.
The traditional winter jasmine market in Guangzhou starts from the 28th of the twelfth lunar month (the 27th of the first month) and lasts for three days. The third day was postponed until the early morning of the first day of the New Year. Generally, one week before New Year's Eve, cars and horses have been banned from these flower streets, and relevant departments have begun to set up flower stands and booths for flower farmers. Flower Street stretches into several long corridors. A few days ago, some big branches of flowers and trees began to arrive, and the lunar calendar1February 28 officially opened. At that time, Shilihua Street was decorated with lanterns, and cheerful Cantonese music was played on the speakers. People watch flowers, buy flowers, and "sell flowers lazily". People are constantly flowing, day and night, and flower farmers eat and live in the flower market. New Year's Eve. The flower market is in full swing. It was a sea of people, packed with people. There are often famous calligraphers in the central flower market, which is quite lively. It was not until two o'clock in the middle of the night that people slowly dispersed, and the flower farmers also auctioned the remaining flowers at a reduced price, and there was no surplus. People who visit the flower street often find good bargains at this time. Therefore, everyone is very happy and happily welcomes the dawn of the new year.
"Chunxiang Street is ten miles away, and laughter enters the colorful gate. It is suspected that the laying hen is collecting honey, and it becomes a million flower watchers. " Flower Street in Guangzhou is not an ordinary man-made landscape, nor a man-made "city card", nor is it an image project of the government. Guangzhou Flower Street is a huge flower market. It is an indispensable program for Guangzhou people to celebrate the New Year and an important part of Guangzhou people's traditional culture. It can be said that, like the habit of drinking morning tea, shopping in the flower street in New Year is a unique cultural phenomenon of Guangzhou people, and it is also an important feature that distinguishes Guangzhou people from other China people.
Guangzhou people must buy a pot of kumquat, a pot of daffodils, or a peach blossom for the Spring Festival. Why is peach blossom a tree, not a tree? Yes, Guangzhou people bought a whole peach tree and went home. Peach blossoms are to Guangzhou people what Christmas trees are to westerners. People in Guangzhou have a soft spot for flowers. Whether they are elegant people or vulgar people, they must buy peach blossoms and other old ones during the New Year, and then match them with all kinds of flowers.
"Yangcheng World is a flower, and it takes more time to buy flowers. On New Year's Eve, the desk is dedicated, and the fragrant wind warms others. " It is said that the flower market in Guangzhou sprouted in the Tang Dynasty, formed in the Ming and Qing Dynasties and lasted for a long time. Why do Guangzhou people have a soft spot for flowers? Not because people in Guangzhou are elegant people who know how to appreciate flowers, but because flowers can represent countless good intentions. Nothing in this world can express the best wishes in the world like flowers. China people need to express their wishes during the Spring Festival. They need to go to the old and welcome the new. I hope it will get better every year. Cantonese people are particularly superstitious, so we must do the "Italian head" thing incisively and vividly in the new year. Flowers symbolize prosperity and good luck, which perfectly matches the mentality and needs of Guangzhou people. Besides buying flowers, Flower Street has also become a symbol of Guangzhou people's hope for "good luck" in the new year. A trip to Flower Street can bring you good luck. Bad things get better and good things get better, so Flower Street is suitable for anyone, whether it is a family, a couple or a group of bachelors who want to find a partner in the coming year. Flower Street is a sea full of joy and celebration. In a year, it is the most relaxing time for Guangzhou people to walk in the street.
The most traditional holiday food symbolizes Guangzhou people's expectations for the New Year:
Food is the most important thing for the people, especially the Guangzhou people who can eat and eat the most. Chinese New Year's food is the most important, and the variety is very rich. Popcorn, fried dumplings, oil angle, scattered eggs, taro shrimp and rice cakes are the most traditional Spring Festival foods in Guangzhou.
As the saying goes, "everyone has my own night to blow up piles." Bombing is a must for every family. The stuffing of the fried pile is a mixture of glutinous rice and sugar gum. Stir-fry glutinous rice until it bursts, and shell it. Fried dumpling skin is made of glutinous rice flour, which is very thin and covered with sesame seeds. The whole fried pile is fried in boiling oil until golden brown. Not so particular now. Some people make fried piles, while others don't put stuffing. There is also oil angle, which has soft corners, crisp corners and crisp corners. When I was a child, when the Chinese New Year was coming, my grandmother and mother took me to be a "oil angle". Although I didn't like it very much and didn't do it well, it was also a pleasure to make "oil angle" with my family. Then there are fried foods, such as doughnuts, winter fruits, scattered eggs and taro shrimp. The "sugar ring" is made of glutinous rice flour, pressed into a wooden mold and "batch" one by one, fried into golden yellow, crisp and delicious, usually sweet and salty. "Winter Fruit" is made of glutinous rice flour in strips or sheets and fried. "Taro Shrimp" is made of betel nut and taro. The betel nut and taro are shredded, mixed with rice flour slurry and poured into an oil pan. It tastes crisp and delicious. "Egg powder" is a mixture of flour, lard and eggs. Add sugar to the sweet powder, stir-fry and glue it with sugar; Salty with southern milk and salt powder, crisp and delicious.
There are also essential melon seeds for the Spring Festival, including red melon seeds and black melon seeds, as well as "modern" melon seeds (sunflower seeds). China candy includes sugar lotus root, sugar lotus seed, sugar water chestnut, sugar wax gourd, sugar orange cake, sugar coconut horn and sugar coconut slices.
Pastries include rice cakes, radish cakes, taro cakes, water chestnut cakes, nine-layer cakes and muffins. This means a better life during the Spring Festival. The rice cake is also called "big cage cake", which is named because the container for the rice cake can be a bamboo cage with a large opening. Rich people make a rice cake with dozens of kilograms of rice, and red dates and cypress branches are inserted on the golden cake surface, which means good luck. The Cantonese dialect of radish is called "Caitou", which is the homonym of "vegetable" and "wealth". Eating radish cake in the New Year means making money and treasure. Water chestnut cake is made of water chestnut, which is called "water chestnut" in Cantonese dialect. Eating water chestnut cake in the New Year can clear away heat and eliminate stagnation. Its effect of regulating appetite has been proved by practice, and it also has the meaning of "non-stop" and self-improvement.
I have to mention the dishes on the table of Guangzhou people. There are many kinds of New Year's dishes in Guangdong, which are auspicious. Ordinary dishes are also given beautiful names, which makes people enjoy them. For example, the hands of Nostoc flagelliforme and oyster sauce are called "making a fortune", while the fried pork tongue with sauerkraut (called Julie in Guangzhou) is called "win-win", the fried fresh lily is called "a hundred years of harmony", the mushroom with vegetable gall is called "money everywhere" and the fish-slippery tofu pot is called "peace for all ages". There are also a variety of chicken products, such as "Feng Dan Chao Yang", "Hundred birds Chao Feng" and "Dragon and Phoenix auspicious". Chicken is an essential part of China's New Year dishes. As the saying goes, "Don't eat chicken or meat" not only symbolizes chastity in marriage, but also means prosperity in the New Year. At the lunch on the first day of the Lunar New Year, you must also eat vegetarian dishes blindly, commonly known as "Luohanzhai", which is made of pickles, fungus, vermicelli and shrimp. Some people also steam bacon, but you should eat "Zhai" before lifting chopsticks.
Finally, I want to talk about some Spring Festival activities, such as lion dance, dragon dance, kicking the ball and setting off fireworks.
Lions in Guangdong are different from lions in other provinces. They are called "Awakening Lions". It has Guangdong characteristics in production and dance. Guangdong lion dance originated in Foshan. According to legend, in the early Ming Dynasty, a one-horned monster appeared in Foshan, with wide eyes and the sound of "Year, Year" from time to time. As long as monsters appear, the old people will suffer great pain, either livestock will suffer or crops will collapse. Later, everyone thought of a way to weave some lion head models with bamboo sticks, paint them in mottled colors and ambush them in rural villages. Once the monster appears, the golden drum will ring and dance to scare the monster away. Therefore, people think that lions have evil spirits and auspicious omen. In the future, during the Spring Festival, every township and village will use lion dance to eliminate disasters and predict good luck. This is the story about the origin of lion dance. During the Spring Festival, in addition to performing in the square, the lion dance team also danced along the street and went door to door to pay tribute to the lion to show that the lion is awake and lucky. The host offered a reward at the door, wrapped red flowers and hung green flowers for Swiss lions to pick, which was called "picking green flowers". Take this activity to hope that the lion can bring good luck home. Followed by dragon dance, Guangdong dragon dance, various names, different dragon dances, entrusted with people's different ideals and wishes. The Spring Festival is a festive day, and most dancers are enthusiastic colored dragons, golden dragons and gauze skirts. They dance dragons during the day and play dragon lanterns at night. As for playing football, it was a traditional culture a long time ago, but now it seems that not many people can do it. On the first day of New Year's Day every year, Guangzhou will set off large fireworks beside the Pearl River. That night, the roads along the river and other places were crowded with people and very lively.
Guangzhou's New Year is lively and rich, which makes people feel deeply. How strong is the local traditional culture in Guangzhou.
However, the long river of history passes quickly, and people's thoughts are easily moved by new things, especially Guangzhou, which is one of the cities with the largest foreign population, and the change of social customs is also an indisputable reality. Now that life is good, everyone's ideas have changed, and the activities of the Spring Festival are different. However, the historical and cultural forms and traditional customs of cities are important wealth of human culture.
As big as a nation's cultural form, as small as a city's New Year custom, this. Everything needs to be built and maintained by the people. As one of the symbols of folk culture, the Chinese New Year custom in Guangzhou represents the profound historical and cultural resources of a city. The power of culture must be recognized by people. After recognition, we should consciously maintain and consolidate it.