Introduction: As soon as the autumnal equinox arrives, everyone’s circle of friends suddenly becomes lively. What to talk about the autumnal equinox, the autumnal equinox health methods, the autumnal equinox customs, etc. have become topics of discussion, but the most basic questions Do you understand? Do you know what the autumnal equinox means and what the meaning of the autumnal equinox solar term is? Friends who don’t know yet can come and take a look at my detailed introduction.

What does the autumnal equinox mean?

The meaning of the autumnal equinox: one of the twenty-four solar terms in the lunar calendar, which means the official entry of autumn.

The ancient Chinese book "Spring and Autumn Dew: The Entrance and Exit of Yin and Yang (Part 1 and 2)" says: "At the autumnal equinox, yin and yang are half in phase, so day and night are even and the cold and heat are equal." The "fen" of the autumnal equinox means "half" . The meaning of "Autumn Equinox" is based on the season division method in ancient my country with the beginning of spring, beginning of summer, beginning of autumn and beginning of winter as the beginning of the four seasons. The autumnal equinox days occupy the 90 days of autumn and divide the autumn equally.

The meaning of the autumnal equinox is "The Collection of the Seventy-Two Hours of the Moon Order": "In mid-August...the explanation is the vernal equinox." "fen" means the equinox of day and night, which is the same as the spring equinox. On this day, the sun shines directly on the earth's equator, and day and night are equal. Since then, the position of direct sunlight has moved further south, the days have become shorter and the nights have become longer in the northern hemisphere, and the temperature has dropped, which has universal significance across the country.

After the autumnal equinox, the days become shorter and the nights become longer in the Northern Hemisphere, while the days become longer and the nights become shorter in the Southern Hemisphere.

The days get longer and longer from the winter solstice, but the days get longer than the nights from the spring equinox. The days get shorter and shorter from the summer solstice, but the days get shorter than the nights only from the autumnal equinox.

What is the meaning of the autumnal equinox?

The autumnal equinox (autumnal equinox) is the sixteenth of the twenty-four solar terms in the lunar calendar. The time is generally every year. September 22nd~24th. The climate in the south begins with autumn from this solar term. First, the sun reaches 180 degrees of ecliptic longitude on this day and shines directly on the earth's equator. Therefore, in most areas of the earth, day and night are equally divided into 24 hours each, with 12 hours each. Near the North Pole (90° north latitude) and the South Pole (90° south latitude), you can observe the special phenomenon of "the sun circles the horizon all day long" on this day.

After the autumnal equinox, the days are shorter and the nights are longer in various places in the northern hemisphere (the day is shorter than the night in a day), and the days are longer and the nights are longer in the southern hemisphere (the day is longer than the night in the day). After the autumnal equinox, the range of polar night near the North Pole becomes larger and the range of polar day near the South Pole becomes larger. According to the ancient Chinese season division method with the beginning of spring, summer, autumn and winter as the beginning of the four seasons, the autumnal equinox is located among the 90 days of autumn, dividing autumn equally.

During the autumnal equinox, not only the north, but also most areas in the south have begun to enter autumn, and the summer heat quickly subsides. The so-called "yin and yang are half in phase" means that during the autumnal equinox, the qi of heaven and earth are in harmony with each other. Compared with the lush summer, when flowers and trees wither, grass withers and leaves fall, people's emotions are also prone to feelings of desolation and depression. The most typical representative of this "autumn depression" mentality is Song Yu's "Sad Autumn is the Qi Ye" of the Warring States Period.

What are the traditional customs during the Autumn Equinox?

1. Autumn Moon Sacrifice

The Autumnal Equinox was once a traditional "Moon Sacrifice Festival". There is a saying in ancient times that "spring offers sacrifices to the sun and autumn offers sacrifices to the moon." The current Mid-Autumn Festival comes from the traditional "Moon Festival". According to research, the "Moon Sacrifice Festival" was originally scheduled on the "Autumnal Equinox", which was the best time to appreciate the moon.

However, since this day falls on a different day in the eighth lunar month every year, there may not always be a full moon. It would be very disgraceful to worship the moon without the moon, so later the "Moon Sacrifice Festival" was moved from the "Autumnal Equinox" to the Mid-Autumn Festival.

The ancestors believed that the sun belongs to the essence of yang and the moon belongs to the essence of yin. "Heaven and earth are supreme, so they use it to worship the two solstices. As early as the Zhou Dynasty, ancient emperors worshiped the sun at the vernal equinox and the summer solstice." The custom of worshiping the earth, the moon at the autumnal equinox, and the sky at the winter solstice.

2. Eating autumn vegetables

In the Lingnan area, there is an unforgettable custom called "eating autumn vegetables at the autumnal equinox." "Qiucai" is a kind of wild amaranth, which the locals call "Qiubi Artemisia". On the day of the autumnal equinox, the whole village goes to pick autumn vegetables.

The harvested autumn vegetables are usually boiled in soup with fish fillets at home, which is called "autumn soup". There is a jingle that goes: "Autumn soup fills the internal organs and cleanses the liver and intestines. The whole family, old and young, is safe and healthy." Since autumn, people pray for peace in their homes and health.

Wild amaranth contains a variety of nutrients. In fact, the so-called "autumn soup" in Lingnan custom is consistent with the autumn nourishment advocated by traditional Chinese medicine, but the Lingnan custom is more typical and has a bit of a local flavor.

3. Sending autumn cows

In ancient times, during the autumnal equinox, there would be pictures of sending autumn cows from house to house. Although the words come out casually, each sentence has a nice rhyme to it. It is commonly known as "Shuo Qiu", and people who talk about Autumn are called "Qiu Guan". The ancients attached great importance to the autumnal equinox, and thus formed many customs that have been passed down.

The "Autumn Cow Picture" is a red or yellow paper printed with the lunar solar terms throughout the year, and then printed with farmers plowing the fields. The people who sent the pictures were all folk singers who were good at talking, mainly talking about autumn plowing and auspicious words. Every time they came to a house, they would immediately fall in love with each other. They would say whatever they saw until the owner was happy and gave him money.

On this day, after the host opens the door, the artists will say some auspicious words to congratulate the harvest, and sometimes improvise based on the scene at that time, in order to please the host and get rewards.

4. Sticky Sparrow Mouth

On the day of the Autumn Equinox, farmers have a holiday according to custom. Every family has to eat glutinous rice balls, and they also have to eat more than ten or two glutinous rice balls without fillings. Thirty pieces are cooked, cut with thin bamboo forks and placed on the ridge of the outdoor field. They are called sticky sparrows' mouths to prevent sparrows from destroying the crops.

Of course, hoping to glue the sparrow’s mouth with glutinous rice balls is just the beautiful imagination and wish of farmers. However, this also illustrates a truth, that is, glutinous rice balls are relatively sticky, difficult to digest, and should not be eaten in large quantities. .

5. Flying a kite

The autumnal equinox is the sixteenth solar term. The climate in the south begins with autumn at this solar term. This is the The crisp autumn air has always been a good time to fly kites, and the autumnal equinox is also a good time for children to fly kites.

Especially on the autumnal equinox. Even adults get involved. The types of kites include king kites, silver carp kites, narrow moth kites, thunder bug kites, and moonlight kites. The big ones are two meters high, and the small ones are two or three feet high.

In autumn, kite flying is definitely a good choice. There are kites for sale in the market. Most of them are small and suitable for children to play. But most of them are made by themselves and are larger. When flying, they have to compete with each other to see which one can fly high.

6. Egg Standing

On the day of the autumnal equinox every year, tens of millions of people around the world play the "Egg Standing" game, choosing a smooth, well-proportioned, fresh-born egg. The fresh eggs that were laid four or five days ago were carefully raised up.

The Autumnal Equinox is the best time to play the egg-standing game, so there is a saying that "when the Autumnal Equinox arrives, the eggs will be pretty." The erect eggs are very beautiful. Although there are many losers, there are also many winners.

According to ancient legend, it is easiest to stand eggs on the autumnal equinox. Astronomers said that according to historical records, the tradition of setting eggs at the autumnal equinox originated in China 4,000 years ago to celebrate the coming of autumn. Dear readers, what do you think?