Traditional foods and their meanings of the Dragon Boat Festival
1 , Zongzi Eating Zongzi during the Dragon Boat Festival should be a traditional custom of people across the country. Zongzi is also called "corner millet" and "tube rice dumpling". It has a long history and has many variations. On the morning of the Dragon Boat Festival, every family eats rice dumplings to commemorate Qu Yuan. They usually wrap the rice dumplings the day before, cook them at night, and eat them in the morning. During the Dragon Boat Festival, married daughters have to go back to their parents’ homes to visit relatives and give Dragon Boat Festival gifts, of which rice dumplings are indispensable. It is said that eating Zongzi has two meanings: one is because the pronunciation of "Zong" and "Zhong" are close, which means "getting a good reputation", and the other is because of remembering the ancestors (respecting the ancestors).
2. Sesame and mung bean cakes. Since the Dragon Boat Festival is the most yang season of the year, the temperature is getting higher and higher. At this time, people's mood swings are relatively large, and they are prone to irritability and worry, especially Something was needed to alleviate the situation. Mung bean cake can greatly alleviate the negative effects caused by excess yang energy and high temperature, and can effectively resolve irritability and anxiety. The mung bean cake has a delicate and smooth taste. The sesame seeds are blooming higher and higher, and the sesame cake is sweet and delicious. The word "cake" has the same pronunciation as "gao", which means being positive and prosperous. Together with the rice dumplings on the Dragon Boat Festival, it also means high school.
3. Salted eggs We must eat salted eggs and preserved eggs during the Dragon Boat Festival. When I was very young, I saw adults weaving colorful woolen yarns into colorful mesh bags and filling them with salted duck eggs and preserved eggs. Preserved eggs are hung around children's necks to wish them good luck and good health. It is rare to see it in cities now, but it is still common in our hometown. Children listen to their elders and hang the mesh bags all day long without taking them off.
Dragon Boat Festival customs
1. Dragon boat water immersion. Dragon boat water immersion takes place from Xiaoman to the summer solstice. In traditional Chinese culture, rain and dragons are closely related. The dragon is not only an auspicious object, but also the master of harmony, wind and rain. The dragon flies in the sky and moves clouds and spreads rain. In terms of natural celestial phenomena, midsummer is the time when Canglong Qisu ascends to the middle sky in the south. In the line of "Qian Gua" of "Book of Changes" it is said: "The flying dragon is in the sky." Around the midsummer Dragon Boat Festival, the warm and humid airflow in southern my country is active, and the cold air moving from the north to the south meets in South China, often causing continuous and large-scale heavy precipitation. When the heavy rainfall during the Dragon Boat Festival comes, the water level of the river rises rapidly, providing good site conditions for dragon boat racing. Soaking the dragon boat in water is a traditional custom popular in South China, because the water of the dragon boat means good luck. Dragon boat water and the water the dragon boat slides on are considered to be "good luck water". According to traditional saying, soaking in the water of the dragon boat means good luck and everything goes well.
2. Wearing damselflies. The headdress worn by women during the Dragon Boat Festival in the old days was mostly seen in Jiangnan. In some areas, they are also called Jianren. It is said that this thing originated from the ancient Bu Yao, and it is said that it is a different form of Ai people. "Qing Jia Lu" quotes "Relics of the Tang and Song Dynasties" as saying: "Whether the river is north or south, the five-day hairpin head colorful victory system is extremely ingenious...Added flags, banners, treasure canopy, hydrangeas and tassels, bells and bells in hundreds of shapes, Or string them together, and they are called damselflies, which are incomparable. ”
3. Pasting the noon hour talisman In the old days, there was a custom of affixing the "noon hour talisman" in some places in Guangdong. After lunch, every family puts up a "noon time talisman". The talisman uses a strip of yellow paper about an inch wide and nearly a foot long, with the words "If written at noon on May 5th, all snakes, insects, rats and ants will be eliminated" written in cinnabar. Hang calamus, phoenix tail, mugwort leaves, etc. on the gate, tie a bunch of garlic, and apply cinnabar to ward off evil spirits. Some people also paste small couplets written on yellow paper on their doors: "The AI ??flag welcomes a hundred blessings, and the Pu sword kills thousands of evil spirits."
4. Dragon boat racing has a long history, and is popular among many people. Group paddling competition. The dragon boat race is divided into several sections, such as inviting the dragon, worshiping the dragon god, swimming the dragon and collecting the dragon. Before the dragon boat race, a grand sacrificial ceremony is usually held. First, the dragons and gods must be invited. Before the Dragon Boat Festival, you should choose an auspicious day to get out of the water. After worshiping the gods, install the dragon head and tail, and then prepare for the race. People from Fujian and Taiwan go to Mazu Temple to worship. In the past, people worshiped the dragon god in a very solemn atmosphere, praying for blessings, good weather, getting rid of evil spirits, warding off disasters, and everything goes as they wish. In Zigui, Qu Yuan's hometown in Hubei, there is also a ritual of dragon boat rowing to worship Qu Yuan.
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