In ancient China, there was a custom of "autumn and dusk". The moon at night is to worship the moon god. In the Zhou Dynasty, every Mid-Autumn Festival night, activities to welcome the cold and offer sacrifices to the moon were held. Put a big incense table, with offerings such as moon cakes, watermelons, apples, red dates, plums and grapes, among which moon cakes and watermelons are absolutely indispensable. Watermelon must be cut into lotus shapes. Under the moon, put the moon statue in the direction of the moon, and the red candle burns high. The whole family takes turns in Yue Bai, and then the housewife cuts the reunion moon cakes. If people are laid off in advance, the number of people in the whole family will be counted, including those at home and those from other places. You can't lay off more or less, but the size should be the same.
According to legend, the ugly women in ancient Qi had no salt. When she was young, she was very devout to Yue Bai. When she grew up, she entered the palace with superior moral character, but she was not loved. Seeing the moon on August 15th, the son of heaven saw her in the moonlight and thought she was beautiful and outstanding. Later, he made her queen, and Yue Bai came from the Mid-Autumn Festival. In the middle of the moon, Chang 'e is famous for its beauty, so Yue Bai, a young girl, wants to be "like Chang 'e and have a bright moon".
In the Tang Dynasty, it was quite popular to enjoy and play with the moon in the Mid-Autumn Festival. During the Northern Song Dynasty. On the evening of August 15, people in the whole city, rich and poor, old and young, put on adult clothes and burned incense to express their wishes to Yue Bai and pray for the blessing of the moon god. In the Southern Song Dynasty, people gave mooncakes to each other, which meant reunion. There are activities in some places, such as dancing grass dragons and building pagodas. Since the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the custom of Mid-Autumn Festival has become more popular. Many places have formed special customs such as burning incense, planting Mid-Autumn trees, lighting tower lanterns, putting sky lanterns, walking on the moon and dancing dragons.
Nowadays, the custom of playing under the moon is far less popular than in the old days. However, feasting and enjoying the moon are still very popular. People drink alcohol in the middle of the moon to celebrate a better life, or wish their distant relatives health and happiness and spend a good time with their families.
There are many customs and forms of Mid-Autumn Festival, but all of them are entrusted with people's infinite love for life and yearning for a better life.
Mid-Autumn Festival has a long history. Like other traditional festivals, it develops slowly. The ancient emperors had a system of offering sacrifices to the sun in spring and the moon in autumn. As early as in Zhou Li, the word "Mid-Autumn Festival" was recorded. Later, aristocratic scholars followed suit. During the Mid-Autumn Festival, they watch and worship the bright and round moon in the sky to express their feelings. This custom spread to the people and formed a traditional activity. Until the Tang Dynasty, people paid more attention to this custom of offering sacrifices to the moon, and the Mid-Autumn Festival became a fixed festival. Emperor Taizong recorded the Mid-Autumn Festival on August 15, which was very popular in the Song Dynasty.
The legend of Mid-Autumn Festival is very rich, and fairy tales such as the Goddess Chang'e flying to the moon, Wu Gang cutting Guangxi and Jade Rabbit smashing medicine are widely circulated.
One of the legends of Mid-Autumn Festival-the Goddess Chang'e flying to the moon
According to legend, in ancient times, there were ten days in the sky at the same time, the crops died in the sun and the people were poor. A hero named Hou Yi has infinite power. He sympathized with the suffering people, climbed to the top of Kunlun Mountain, made full use of his divine power, drew his bow, shot down more than nine suns in one breath, and ordered the last one to rise and fall on time for the benefit of the people.
Hou Yi was respected and loved by the people. He married a beautiful and kind wife named Chang 'e. Besides hunting, Hou Yi spends all his time with his wife, and people envy this beautiful and loving couple.
Many people with lofty ideals came here to study as teachers, and Meng Peng with ulterior motives joined in.
One day, Hou Yi went to Kunlun Mountain to visit friends and seek truth. He happened to meet the Queen Mother passing by and asked her for a bag of elixir. It is said that taking this medicine can instantly ascend to heaven and become immortal. However, Hou Yi was reluctant to leave his wife, so he had to temporarily give the elixir to Chang 'e. Chang 'e hid the medicine in the dresser's treasure chest, but the villain Meng Peng saw it. He wants to steal the elixir to make himself immortal.
Three days later, Hou Yi led his entourage out hunting, while Meng Peng with ulterior motives pretended to be ill. Shortly after Hou Yi led the crowd to leave, Meng Peng broke into the backyard of the back room with a sword in his hand, threatening Chang 'e to hand over the elixir. Chang 'e knew that she was no match for Meng Peng. In times of crisis, she made a decisive decision, turned around and opened the treasure chest, took out the elixir and swallowed it in one gulp. Chang 'e swallowed the medicine and immediately floated off the ground, rushed out of the window and flew into the sky. Because Chang 'e was worried about her husband, she flew to the nearest moon and became a fairy.
In the evening, when Hou Yi came home, the maids cried and told what happened during the day. Hou Yi was surprised and angry, and drew his sword to kill the villain. Meng Peng escaped early. Angry and heartbroken, Hou Yi looked up at the night sky and shouted the name of his beloved wife. At this time, he was surprised to find that today's moon is exceptionally bright and bright. There is a swaying figure resembling Chang 'e. He chased the moon desperately, but he chased it three times, the moon retreated three times, he retreated three times, and the moon advanced three times. He couldn't catch up anyway.
Hou Yi had no choice but to miss his wife, so he had to send someone to Chang 'e's favorite back garden, put on a table sweetmeats, put on her favorite honey and fresh fruit, and offer a sacrifice to Chang 'e who was attached to him at the Moon Palace. After hearing the news that the Goddess Chang'e flying to the moon became an immortal, people made an incense table under the moon and prayed for good luck and peace to the kind Chang 'e.
Since then, the custom of Mid-Autumn Festival in Yue Bai has spread among the people.
WU GANG, the second legend of Mid-Autumn Festival, won the laurel.
There is also a legend about the Mid-Autumn Festival: It is said that osmanthus trees in front of Guanghan Palace on the moon are flourishing, reaching more than 500 feet. There is a man who often cuts down, but every time he finishes cutting, the cut place closes immediately. For thousands of years, this laurel tree can never be cut down. It is said that this tree-chopping man named WU GANG, a native of Xihe in Han Dynasty, once went to heaven with the immortal, but when he made a mistake, the immortal banished him to the Moon Palace and did this kind of hard work in vain every day as a punishment. In Li Bai's poems, there is a record that "if you want to be in the middle of the month, you will pay for the cold."
Legend of Mid-Autumn Festival III —— Zhu Yuanzhang and Moon Cake Uprising
It is said that eating moon cakes in the Mid-Autumn Festival began in the Yuan Dynasty. At that time, the broad masses of the people in the Central Plains could not bear the cruel rule of the ruling class in the Yuan Dynasty and rose up against the Yuan Dynasty. Zhu Yuanzhang joined forces with various resistance forces to prepare for the uprising. However, the officers and men of the imperial court searched very closely and it was very difficult to pass on the news. Liu Bowen, a military strategist, came up with a plan and ordered his men to hide a note with the words "Uprising on the 15th of August" in the cake, and then sent people to the uprising troops in different places to inform them to respond to the uprising on the 15th of August. On the day of the uprising, all the rebels responded together, such as a single spark can start a prairie fire.
Soon, Xu Da captured the Yuan Dynasty and the uprising was successful. When the news came, Zhu Yuanzhang was so happy that he quickly sent a message saying that all the soldiers should have fun with the people in the upcoming Mid-Autumn Festival and give the "moon cakes" secretly sent at the time of the war as seasonal cakes to the ministers. Since then, the production of "moon cakes" has become more and more elaborate, and there are more and more varieties, such as dishes, which have also become good gifts. After the Mid-Autumn Festival, the custom of eating moon cakes spread among the people.
During the Mid-Autumn Festival, people's main activities are enjoying the moon and eating moon cakes.
Appreciate the bright full moon
Mid-Autumn Festival, China has the custom of enjoying the moon since ancient times. There is a record of "autumn twilight and the moon" in the Book of Rites, that is, worshipping the moon god. In the Zhou Dynasty, every Mid-Autumn Festival night, activities to welcome the cold and offer sacrifices to the moon were held. Put a big incense table with seasonal fruits such as moon cakes, watermelons, apples, plums and grapes, among which moon cakes and watermelons are absolutely indispensable. Watermelon must be cut into lotus shapes.
In the Tang Dynasty, it was quite popular to enjoy and play with the moon in the Mid-Autumn Festival. In the Song Dynasty, the Mid-Autumn Festival was more popular to enjoy the moon. According to "Dream of Tokyo", "On the Mid-Autumn Festival night, your family is dressing up and the people are fighting for the restaurant to play the moon". On this day, all shops and restaurants in Beijing have to redecorate their facades, tie silk on archways and sell fresh fruits and refined food. The night market is very lively. Many people visit The Upper Terrace, and some wealthy families enjoy the moon in their pavilions and arrange food or family dinners to reunite their children.
After the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the custom of enjoying the moon in the Mid-Autumn Festival remains the same. Many places have formed special customs such as burning incense, planting Mid-Autumn trees, lighting tower lanterns, putting sky lanterns, walking on the moon and dancing dragons.
Eat moon cakes
People in urban and rural areas of China have the custom of eating moon cakes on Mid-Autumn Festival. As the saying goes, "August 15th is full, and Mid-Autumn moon cakes are sweet and fragrant". Moon cakes were originally used to worship the moon god. The word "moon cake" first appeared in Liang Lumeng written by Wu in the Southern Song Dynasty. At that time, it was just a cake-shaped food like Ling Hua cake. Later, people gradually combined the Mid-Autumn Festival with tasting moon cakes, which symbolized family reunion.
Mooncakes were originally made at home, and the practice of mooncakes was recorded in Yuan Mei's Menu with the Garden in the Qing Dynasty. In modern times, there are workshops specializing in making moon cakes, and the production of moon cakes is becoming more and more elaborate, with exquisite fillings and beautiful appearance. There are also various exquisite patterns printed on the outside of moon cakes, such as "the Goddess Chang'e flying to the moon", "jathyapple on the Milky Way" and "Three Tanyin Moon". It has become the wish of people all over the world to show people's reunion with a full moon, to show people's eternal life with a round moon cake, to pin their thoughts on their relatives in their hometown and to pray for a bumper harvest and happiness. Moon cakes are also used as gifts to send to relatives and friends and to connect feelings.
Other Mid-Autumn Festival customs
China has a vast territory, a large population and different customs. The Mid-Autumn Festival is celebrated in a variety of ways, with strong local characteristics.
In Pucheng, Fujian, women have to cross nanpu bridge to live longer during the Mid-Autumn Festival. In Jianning, hanging lanterns on Mid-Autumn Festival night is a good omen to ask the Moon Palace for children. People in Shanghang County celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival, and most of their children are invited to visit their parents when they are in Yue Bai. When Longyan people eat moon cakes, their parents will dig out round cakes with a diameter of two or three inches in the middle for their elders to eat, which means that they can't tell the secret to the younger generation. This custom stems from the legend that moon cakes contain the message of anti-meta-killing. Before the Mid-Autumn Festival in Kinmen, Yue Bai should worship God.
There is a custom of Mid-Autumn Festival Yue Bai in Chaoshan, Guangdong, which is mainly aimed at women and children. As the saying goes, "men are dissatisfied with the moon, and women don't sacrifice stoves." At night, when the bright moon rises, women set up a box in the yard and balcony to pray. Silver candles burned high, cigarettes filled the air, and the table was filled with good fruits and cakes as sacrifices. There is also the custom of eating taro in the Mid-Autumn Festival. There is a saying in Chaoshan: "River to mouth, taro to eat." August is the harvest season of taro, and farmers are used to using taro to worship their ancestors. Of course, this has something to do with farming, but there is also a popular folk legend: 1279, Mongolian nobles destroyed the Southern Song Dynasty, established the Yuan Dynasty, and brutally ruled the Han people. Mafa defended Chaozhou against the Yuan Dynasty. After the city was broken, the people were slaughtered. In order not to forget the suffering of Hu people's rule, later generations used taro as a homonym with "Hu tou", which looked like a human head, in order to pay homage to their ancestors and pass it on from generation to generation, and it still exists today.
Burning towers on the night of Mid-Autumn Festival is also very popular in some places. The height of the tower varies from 1-3 meters, mostly made of broken tiles. The tower is also made of bricks, accounting for about 1/4 of the tower height, and then stacked with tiles, leaving a tower mouth at the top for fuel transportation. On the night of Mid-Autumn Festival, it will be lit and burned. The fuel is wood, bamboo, chaff, etc. When the fire is booming, rosin powder will be poured to cheer, which is very spectacular. There are also folk rules for burning stupas. Whoever burns the stupa to the whole house wins, and those who fail or collapse in the burning process lose. The winner will be presented with colorful flags, bonuses or prizes by the host. It is said that burning towers is also the origin of Han people's resistance to cruel rulers and Mid-Autumn Uprising at the end of Yuan Dynasty.
During the Mid-Autumn Festival, the folk customs in Jiangnan are also varied. Nanjing people love to eat moon cakes on Mid-Autumn Festival, so they must eat osmanthus duck, a famous Jinling dish. "Sweet-scented osmanthus duck" should be listed in Gui Xiang. It is fat but not greasy and delicious. After drinking, you must eat a small piece of sugar taro and pour cinnamon pulp on it. Beauty speaks for itself. "Guijiang" was named after Qu Yuan's Songs of the South, Little Commandments and Drinking Guijiang to Help the North Close its doors. Cinnamon pulp is a kind of sweet-scented osmanthus, which is picked around the Mid-Autumn Festival and pickled with sugar and sour plum. Jiangnan women are good at turning poems and songs into delicacies on the table. People in Nanjing enjoy the moon with their families, which is called "celebrating reunion", the group sitting and drinking is called "full moon", and the market trip is called "walking on the moon".
At the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, there were Moon Tower and Moon Bridge in Nanjing. In the Qing Dynasty, there was a moon-watching building under Lion Mountain, all of which were for people to enjoy the moon, and most people played the Moon Bridge. When the bright moon is high, people go to the Moon Tower to play the Moon Bridge, so as to enjoy watching the Jade Rabbit. "Xiyue Bridge" is located in the Confucius Temple on Qinhuai River, next to the mansion of Ma Xianglan, a famous prostitute. On this night, the literati gathered on the bridge to play the flute, sing songs and reminisce about Niuzhu playing with the moon and writing poems for the moon, so it was called playing with the moon bridge. After the death of the Ming Dynasty, it gradually declined. Later generations have a poem saying: "The romantic Southern Song Dynasty has been exhausted, leaving the west wind to be a long Banqiao, but remember to take the Yuren Bridge and teach the flute under the moon." Longbanqiao, the original Moon Bridge. In recent years, the Confucius Temple in Nanjing has been renovated, some pavilions and pavilions in the Ming and Qing Dynasties have been restored, and the rivers have been dredged. Until the Mid-Autumn Festival, you can enjoy playing with the moon together.
In Wuxi County, Jiangsu Province, incense is burned on Mid-Autumn Festival night. There are silks around the incense barrel, which depicts the scenery in the Moon Palace. There are incense sticks made of thread Kaori with paper kuixing and colorful flags on them. Shanghainese Mid-Autumn Festival Banquet with Sweet-scented osmanthus honey wine.
On the night of Mid-Autumn Festival in Ji 'an County, Jiangxi Province, every village burns crocks with straw. When the crock is red, put the vinegar in it. At this time, the whole village will smell a fragrance. During the Mid-Autumn Festival in Xincheng County, grass lanterns are hung from the evening of August 1 1 to August 17.
Children build a hollow pagoda with bricks during the Mid-Autumn Festival in Wuyuan County, Anhui Province. Curtains, plaques and other decorations are hung on the tower, and a table is placed in front of the tower, displaying various utensils to worship the "tower god". At night, lights and candles are lit inside and out. Children in Jixi Mid-Autumn Festival play Mid-Autumn firecrackers. Mid-Autumn Festival firecrackers are braided with straw, picked up and smashed stones after soaking, making a loud noise, which is a custom in Youlong. A fire dragon is a dragon made of grass with incense in it. When you visit the dragon, there are gongs and drums teams. They tour the village before being sent to the river.
In Sichuan province, in addition to eating moon cakes on Mid-Autumn Festival, people also eat cakes, ducks, sesame cakes and honey cakes. In some places, orange lanterns are also lit and hung at the door to celebrate. There are also children who burn incense on grapefruit and dance along the street, which is called "dancing meteor ball" Jiading County's Mid-Autumn Festival is called "Guanyin Club" for offering sacrifices to land gods and performing zaju, vocal music and cultural relics.
In the north, farmers in Qingyun County, Shandong Province offered sacrifices to the god of land valley on August 15, which is called "Young Miao Society". Zhucheng, Linyi, Jimo and other places have to pay homage to their ancestors in addition to the moon. Landlords in guanxian, Laiyang, Guangrao and Postal City also entertain their tenants in the Mid-Autumn Festival. Jimo Mid-Autumn Festival eats a kind of holiday food called "Wheat Arrow". Banquet for son-in-law at Mid-Autumn Festival in Lu 'an, Shanxi. Datong county calls moon cakes reunion cakes, and it is a custom to keep vigil on Mid-Autumn Festival night.
Wanquan County, Hebei Province called the Mid-Autumn Festival "Little New Year's Day", and there were pictures of Xing Jun and Guan Di reading the Spring and Autumn Festival at night on moonlight paper. Hejian county people think that the rain in Mid-Autumn Festival is bitter rain. If it rains in the Mid-Autumn Festival, the local people think that vegetables must be terrible.
On the Mid-Autumn Festival night in Xixiang County, Shaanxi Province, men row boats and climb cliffs, while women set up banquets. No matter rich or poor, people should eat watermelons. On Mid-Autumn Festival, drummers blow drums along the door to ask for money. In Luochuan county, parents lead students to bring gifts to their husbands, and there are more lunches than school dinners.
Some places have also formed many special Mid-Autumn Festival customs. In addition to enjoying the moon, offering sacrifices to the moon and eating moon cakes, there are dragon dances in Hong Kong, piling towers in Anhui, Mid-Autumn Festival in Guangzhou, burning towers in Jinjiang, moon-watching in Shihu, Suzhou, moon-dancing in Dai and Miao, moon-stealing dishes by Dong and dancing in Gaoshan.
Mid-Autumn Festival
(Tang) Lipu
When the mirror rises in the sky, the clouds are silent;
A full round, accompanied by Wan Liyun;
The sly rabbit falls the string, and the demon frog rests in front of him;
Lingcha plans to go hand in hand until the Milky Way is completely clear.
Play with the moon on August 15th.
(Tang) Liu Yuxi
Tonight the sky will wash the world again.
Go to Qiu Lai in summer.
The stars are shining and the breeze is bright.
What can change the human world is Yujing in You Ran.
Prelude to Water Melody
(Song) Su Dongpo
Chen Bing Mid-Autumn Festival, happy drinking. Drunk, writing this article, pregnant.
When did the moon begin to appear? I take my glass from a distance.
I don't know about palaces in the sky. What year is tonight?
I want to go home by wind, but I'm afraid of Qionglou Yuyu.
It's too cold up there! Dance and enjoy the shadow of the moon, which is in the world.
The moon turned into a scarlet pavilion, hanging low on the carved window, shining on the sleepy self.
The moon should not have any resentment against people. Why is it round when people are gone?
People are sad and happy, and they are separated and reunited. The moon has yin and yang, and there are gains and losses. Nothing is perfect, even in the past.
I hope people will live for a long time and have a good scenery thousands of miles away.
Festival moon
(Song) Su Shi
The twilight clouds are cold, and the silver-haired people silently turn to the tracts.
If you don't meet a good night in this life, where will you see the bright moon next year?
Taichangyin
(Song) Xin Qiji
A round of autumn shadows turned to golden waves, and the flying mirror was re-ground.
Ask Heng E about wine: What should I do if I am cheated by white hair!
Riding the wind, Wan Li is in the sky,
Overlooking the mountains and rivers Go dancing in Guangxi. Human nature is clearer.
Taiwan Province folk songs:
Reflections on Mid-Autumn Festival Tourism
Look at the geese in a lonely shadow, and miss the mink in a thousand miles; The autumn in my hometown recalls the bright moon, and the night terrors in foreign countries.
My hand hasn't climbed over osmanthus, so it's still a banana; Climb the stairs to make a sad contribution and look at the western sky and the sea.
Homesickness on a moonlit night
The stars are thin and the moon is cold, and the milky way is quiet;
Where is Wan Li's Shanjia? I have a lot of worries when I come at night.
suffer
Late at night, the bright moon hangs high in the sky, silently; Sleepy eyes,
As if in a dream; Living everywhere is restless, and my hometown is in my heart;
Suffering is like burning the heart of a king.