Every July 15 of the lunar calendar is also called Ghost Festival or Magnolia Festival, which is a big festival to worship ghosts and gods. As for the origin of Ghost Festival, according to legend, the mother of Tibetan Bodhisattva died, went to the underworld and was imprisoned in a cell. She is a filial daughter and can't bear to see her mother suffer. On July 15, she was forced to guard her cell. Those ghosts who run back to their hometown ask for money from home, let them go back to life and get through their joints, hoping to support their lives as soon as possible. Later, people designated this day as the Mid-Autumn Festival.
2. Legend of Mid-Autumn Festival
1. Manglietia saved her mother.
The layman's name in Manglietia is Rob, and Mrs. Qing Ti, a widowed mother, is stingy and good at killing people. However, Rob is very kind. He always does good deeds and respects the three treasures. One day, when he was going out to do business, he told his mother that he would divide the family money into three parts, one for himself, one for his mother and one for charity at home. Unexpectedly, since Rob left home, Mrs. Qingti has killed chickens and geese every day. As soon as the monk came to the door, he ordered his servant to beat him out with a stick, and even let the dog chase the beggar.
Because of her evil deeds, she was punished for falling into nasal hell after her death and suffering day and night. Rob was very sad after his mother died. He thought that becoming a monk could repay his mother's kindness, so he became famous by worshipping Buddha as a teacher. A few years later, I became the first magical power, surpassing Lohan. Mu Lian wanted to know where his parents were born after their death, but he found his mother in a nose hell. In order to save his mother, he went to hell himself and saw the scene of hell:
Among them, people who suffer will die every day. Or sword tree, or iron plow tongue, or copper juice pouring mouth, or hot iron fire pill swallowing. Still holding a copper pillar, the body is rotten. Every day when the cow head is late, the jailer will come and handcuff it. Boiling iron pot soup is painful.
After Mulian turned to Tathagata for help, he had to rescue his mother from hell and reincarnate as a dog in the city. Forty-nine days after Mulian laid the Dojo, his mother was able to ascend to heaven.
Burning paper money
It is said that after Cai Lun invented papermaking in the Eastern Han Dynasty, his business was booming and he earned a lot of money. Brother Cai Mo and sister-in-law Hui Niang are envious. Huiniang wants Cai Mo to learn papermaking from Cai Lun. But Cai Mo's perseverance was not enough, and he hastily opened his own paper shop before he got home. As a result, the quality of the paper made is very poor, and no one cares, so the couple are worried about a room full of paper.
Finally, Huiniang came up with a clever plan, attached it to Cai Mo's ear and taught it again.
That night, the neighbor suddenly heard the voice of crying from Cai Mo's house. Everyone rushed over to ask, only to know that Huiniang died suddenly last night. The next morning, Cai Mo cried her eyes out in front of Hui Niang's coffin in front of her neighbors. Burning paper in tears. Burning and burning, I suddenly heard something in the coffin. After a while, I heard Huiniang's voice calling inside: "Open the door, open the door quickly, I'm back". Everyone was stunned and finally got up the courage to open the coffin. Huiniang jumped out and told her neighbors that she had gone to the underworld after her death, and the king of hell made her suffer. Because Cai Mo burned a lot of paper money for her, all the children scrambled to push her. She gave Yan the money again and Yan asked her to come back.
Cai Mo deliberately asked, "I didn't send you money?" Huiniang pointed to the burning fire and said, "That's money! The underworld is made of paper. " Hearing this, Cai Mo immediately went to hold two bundles of paper to burn, saying it was for the underworld. My parents suffered less. Neighbors saw this and found that paper money was so useful, so everyone paid for paper made by Cai Mo. A few days after the news spread, all the newspapers of Cai Mohist School were sold out.
As Huiniang returns to Yang on the 15th day of the seventh lunar month, people will burn incense and paper for their ancestors on this day. This custom has been passed down to this day.
3. Sheep Festival
The fifteenth day of the seventh lunar month is also called "Sheep Festival". Xu Shen said in Shuo Wen Jie Zi: "Sheep are auspicious." In Oracle Bone Inscriptions's Oracle Bone Inscriptions, it's also called "sheep lead good luck". It can be seen that in ancient times, sheep always represented auspiciousness.
In the rural areas of old Beijing and North China, it is popular for old men to send live sheep to their little nephews on July 15th. Legend has it that this custom is related to the legend that agarwood splits the mountain to save mother. After chopping the mountain to save his mother, agarwood wanted to kill Uncle Jiro who abused his mother. In order to rebuild the friendship between brother and sister and uncle and nephew, Jiro gives a pair of live sheep to Aquilaria every July 15. It is said that this is a homonym for taking the surname of Erlang and Aquilaria's mother "Yang" to reunite the two families. From then on, the folk left the custom of sending live sheep to my uncle, and later it gradually evolved into sending a sheep to the other side.
Three. The custom of Mid-Autumn festival
1. discharge tube
River lanterns are also called "lotus lanterns". Generally, lights or candles are placed on the base, and they are placed in rivers, lakes and seas during the Mid-Autumn Festival, allowing them to float. The function of river lanterns is to drown ghosts and other ghosts in Purdue water. Setting off river lanterns, especially in the Yellow River, is very spectacular. Hequ County in the northwest of Shanxi Province is near the Yellow River. The river is wide and the water is mild. On the evening of July 15, the whole city gathered in the square in front of the stage on the bank of the Yellow River to watch the river lanterns. Colored lights drift with the water, and children always pay attention to how far their lights can drift. The old woman kept mumbling and praying. Today's river lantern has become a joyful activity. According to the etiquette of Buddhist bonsai, the river lantern is just one of the small programs, which doesn't seem so important. In the folk activities of Mid-Autumn Festival, it is more important to put on lights.
2. ancestor worship
The festival of ancestor worship is on the fifteenth day of July in the lunar calendar, so it is called "July and a half" for short. At that time, the midsummer was over and the autumn coolness had just begun. Folk believe that ancestors will return home to visit their children and grandchildren at this time, so they need to worship their ancestors. Worship ceremonies are usually held in the evening before the end of July, and are not limited to a specific day. You should worship your ancestors on normal days, and generally don't move their tablets. At the time of ancestor worship in July and a half, the ancestral tablets should be invited out one by one, respectfully placed on the dedicated altar, and then incense should be burned in front of each ancestor's tablet three times a day until July 30. If there is a portrait of your ancestors, please come out and hang it. When worshipping, kowtow to each ancestor in the order of seniority and seniority, pray silently, report to the ancestors and ask others to check their words and deeds this year first, so as to protect their peace and happiness.
3. Sacrifice land and crops
On July 15th, offering sacrifices to land and crops is still a folk custom. Scatter sacrifices in the fields. After burning the paper, wrap it on the ears of crops with cut five-color paper. Legend has it that autumn can avoid hail and get a bumper harvest. At the same time, some places have to go to Houtu Temple to offer sacrifices. Hemp and valley are hung at the gate of Dingxiang county folk custom.
4. Dough modeling
Before May 15th, folk women were popular in dough making activities, especially in northern Shaanxi. A steamed stuffed bun shop, neighbors came to help. First of all, according to the actual number of families (including married daughters, sons-in-law, grandchildren, other sons, daughters-in-law, grandchildren, etc. ), give everyone a big bag first. The steamed stuffed bun for the younger generation should be kneaded into a flat shape, which is called a noodle sheep. I hope that the younger generation will not forget the kindness of their parents. The steamed stuffed bun for the older generation should be made into the shape of a noodle, which means that children and grandchildren are full of happiness and longevity; Steamed buns for peers should be shaped like fish, called noodle fish, which means more than one year. It's not so strict now. It's entirely based on the owner. There are buns of various shapes, including sheep, tigers, cows, fish, rabbits and people. After each animal's steamed bread is kneaded, there will be many steamed bread in the shape of melon, fruit, peach, plum, lotus, chrysanthemum and plum, which are decorated with flowers, birds, butterflies, dragonflies and squirrels. Smaller than before, as a gift for visiting relatives and friends. These dough sculptures look lifelike after being steamed and colored in five colors, and each piece is an excellent handicraft. Watching dough figurines on July 15 has become a program for peasant women to show off their dexterity.