in the northern song dynasty, August 15th was officially designated as the Mid-Autumn Festival, and there were seasonal foods such as "small cakes are like chewing the moon, and there are crisps and fillings in them". Meng Yuanlao's Tokyo Dream Record said: "On the Mid-Autumn Night, your family decorated the terrace, and the people competed for the restaurant to play with the moon"; Moreover, "the string is full of enthusiasm, and it is close to the residents. At night, it is like a cloud. Children in the room, even the night wedding drama; As for the night market, as for familiarity. " Wu Zimu's Dream of Liang Lu said: "On this occasion, the golden phoenix is refreshing, the jade dew is cool, the osmanthus fragrance is floating, and the silver toad is full of light. Prince Sun's son, a rich man with a huge room, never fails to climb a dangerous building, play with the moon on the porch, or open a wide pavilion, have a feast, and sing loudly with his harps and harps, so as to predict the joy of the evening. Even if it's a house with a mat, you can also board a small platform, arrange family dinners and gather around your children to reward the festival. Although the poor man in the mean lane knows how to drink in the agricultural market, he barely welcomes the joy and refuses to waste it. This night, the street sells and buys until the five drums, playing with tourists on the moon, and the mother-in-law is in the city, until it burns endlessly. " More interestingly, The Newly Edited Notes on Drunken Weng describes the custom of Yue Bai: "The children of Qingcheng family can reach twelve or thirteen by themselves without being rich or poor, and all of them are decorated with the eyes of adults, and they go upstairs or the atrium to burn incense in Yue Bai, each with its own direction; Men are willing to go to the toad hall early and climb the fairy laurel. ... women want to look like Chang' e and be as round as the bright moon. "
Moon-watching activities in the Ming and Qing Dynasties were very popular. "Its fruit cake must be round"; Every family should set up a "moonlight position" and "worship for the moon" in the direction of the moon. Lu Qihong's "Beijing's Year of China" contains: "On the Mid-Autumn Night, people have their own symbols of the Moon Palace, and the symbols are free from standing like people; Chen melon and fruit are in court, and the cake surface is painted with moon palace toad exemption; Men and women worship incense and burn it. " Tian Rucheng's "Notes on the West Lake Tour" says: "It's evening, and people have a feast to enjoy the moon, or take a boat with Baihu Lake to swim along the river. On top of Su Causeway, it is no different from daytime to join hands in singing "; "People invite each other with moon cakes and take the meaning of reunion". Fucha Dunchong's "Yanjing Year's Chronicle" said: "Mid-Autumn moon cakes are the first in Kyoto, and there is not enough food elsewhere. Moon cakes are everywhere. The big one is more than a foot, and the shape of the moon palace wax rabbit is painted on it. " "Every Mid-Autumn Festival, Zhumen, the mansion, presents moon cakes and fruits. By the full moon of May, Chen Guaguo was in court for the moon, and was sacrificed to edamame and Celosia cristata. It's the right time, when the colorful clouds are scattered at the beginning, and the children are noisy. It's really called a festive season. Only when the moon is offered, men don't worship. " At the same time, over the past 5 years, festivals such as burning incense, walking on the moon, setting sky lanterns, planting Mid-Autumn Festival, lighting tower lanterns, dancing fire dragons, dragging stones and selling male prostitute have been launched. Among them, the customs of enjoying the moon, eating moon cakes and having a reunion dinner have been passed down to today.
The Mid-Autumn Festival has a long history. Like other traditional festivals, it has developed slowly. Ancient emperors had a ritual system of offering sacrifices to the sun in spring and the moon in autumn. As early as the book Zhou Li, the word "Mid-Autumn Festival" was recorded. Later, aristocrats and scholars followed suit. During the Mid-Autumn Festival, people watched and worshipped the bright and round moon in the sky, placing 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 worshipping the moon, and the Mid-Autumn Festival became a fixed festival. Taizong Ji recorded "Mid-Autumn Festival on August 15th", which was popular in the Song Dynasty. By the Ming and Qing Dynasties, it was as famous as New Year's Day and became one of the major festivals in China.
The legend of Mid-Autumn Festival is very rich, and fairy tales such as the Goddess Chang'e flying to the moon, Wu Gang's felling of Guangxi and Jade Rabbit's smashing medicine are widely spread.
One of the Mid-Autumn Festival legends-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, and the crops died in the sun, and the people were miserable. A hero named Hou Yi had infinite strength. He sympathized with the suffering people, climbed to the top of Kunlun Mountain, took full advantage of his divine power, opened his bow, shot down more than nine suns in one breath, and ordered the last sun to rise and fall on time to benefit the people.
Hou Yi was respected and loved by the people. He married a beautiful and kind wife named Chang 'e. In addition to hunting, Hou Yi spent all his time with his wife, and people envied this beautiful and loving couple. Many people with lofty ideals came here to study as a teacher, and Peng Meng, who had ulterior motives, also mixed in. One day, Hou Yi went to Kunlun Mountain to visit friends and seek Tao. He happened to meet the Queen Mother who passed by and asked her for a pack of elixir. It is said that taking this medicine can instantly ascend to heaven and become immortal. However, Hou Yi could not bear to leave his wife, so he had to give the immortal medicine to Chang 'e for the time being. Chang 'e hid the medicine in the treasure box of the dresser, only to be seen by the villain Peng Meng. He wanted to steal the immortal medicine and become immortal himself. Three days later, Hou Yi led his followers out hunting, and Peng Meng, who had ulterior motives, pretended to be ill and stayed. Soon after Hou Yi led the crowd away, Peng Meng broke into the backyard of the inner house with a sword in his hand, threatening Chang 'e to hand over the elixir. Chang 'e knew that she was no match for Peng Meng. When she was in a crisis, she made a decisive decision, turned around and opened the treasure box, 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 to the sky. Because Chang 'e was concerned about her husband, she flew to the nearest moon and became a fairy. In the evening, when Hou Yi came home, the maids cried about what happened during the day. Hou Yi was both surprised and angry, and drew his sword to kill the villains. Peng Meng fled early. Hou Yi was so angry and heartbroken that he looked up at the night sky and called out the name of his beloved wife. At this time, he was surprised to find that today's moon was exceptionally bright and bright, and there was a swaying figure resembling Chang 'e. He chased after the moon desperately, but he chased three steps, the moon retreated three steps, he retreated three steps, and the moon advanced three steps, but he couldn't catch up with him 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 fruits, and pay a remote sacrifice to Chang 'e who was attached to him in the moon palace. After hearing the news that the Goddess Chang'e flying to the moon became an immortal, people set up incense tables under the moon to pray for good luck and peace to the kind Chang 'e. Since then, the custom of Yue Bai in Mid-Autumn Festival has spread among the people.
Legend No.2 of Mid-Autumn Festival-WU GANG's laurel
There is another legend about Mid-Autumn Festival: It is said that the laurel tree in front of the Guanghan Palace on the moon grows luxuriantly, with a height of more than 5 feet. There is a man who often cuts it down below, but every time he cuts it down, the cut place is closed 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, Han Dynasty, once followed the immortal to the heaven, but when he made a mistake, the immortal relegated him to the Moon Palace, and did this kind of futile drudgery every day to show his punishment. In Li Bai's poems, there is a record that "if you want to be in the middle of the moon, you will pay for the cold."
the third legend of the Mid-Autumn Festival-Zhu Yuanzhang and the 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 people in the Central Plains could not bear the cruel rule of the ruling class in the Yuan Dynasty and rebelled against the Yuan Dynasty. Zhu Yuanzhang joined forces with various resistance forces to prepare for the uprising. However, the officers and men of the court searched very closely and it was very difficult to pass on the news. Strategist Liu Bowen came up with a plan and ordered his subordinates to hide the note containing the "August 15th night uprising" into the cake, and then sent someone to send it to the uprising troops in various places separately to inform them to respond to the uprising on August 15th night. On the day of the uprising, all the rebels responded together, such as single spark can start a prairie fire.
Soon, Xu Da captured the capital of Yuan Dynasty, and the uprising was successful. When the news came, Zhu Yuanzhang was so happy that he quickly gave a message that all the soldiers would have fun with the people in the upcoming Mid-Autumn Festival, and he would give the "moon cakes" that were sent in secret when he started fighting that year as seasonal cakes to his ministers. Since then, the production of "moon cakes" has become more and more elaborate, with more varieties, such as discs, and has become a good gift. After the Mid-Autumn Festival, the custom of eating moon cakes spread among the people.
The 15th day of the eighth lunar month is the traditional Mid-Autumn Festival. This is the middle of autumn, so it is called Mid-Autumn Festival. In China's lunar calendar, a year is divided into four seasons, and each season is divided into three parts: Meng, Zhong and Ji, so Mid-Autumn Festival is also called Mid-Autumn Festival. The moon on August 15th is rounder and brighter than the full moons in other months, so it is also called "Moon Night" and "August Festival". On this night, people look up at the bright moon in the sky like jade, and naturally look forward to family reunion. Wanderers who are far away from home also take this opportunity to pin their thoughts on their hometown and relatives. Therefore, Mid-Autumn Festival is also called "Reunion Festival".
In ancient times, the Chinese people had the custom of "Evening in autumn and the moon in the evening". The evening moon is to worship the moon god. In the Zhou dynasty, every mid-autumn night was held to welcome the cold and offer sacrifices to the moon. Set up a big incense table, and put moon cakes, watermelons, apples, red dates, plums, grapes and other sacrifices, among which moon cakes and watermelons are absolutely indispensable. Watermelon has to 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 worships the moon in turn, and then the housewife cuts up the reunion moon cake. Cut the people in advance to calculate the number of people in the whole family, at home and in the field, all together, can not cut more or less, the size should be the same.
According to legend, the ugly women in ancient Qi had no salt. When they were young, they were devout to Yue Bai. When they grew up, they entered the palace with superior moral character, but they were not favored. Seeing the moon on August 15th, the son of heaven saw her in the moonlight and thought that she was beautiful and outstanding. Later, he made her the queen, from which the Mid-Autumn Festival Yue Bai came. In the middle of the moon, Chang 'e is famous for her beauty, so Yue Bai, a young girl, wishes to be "like Chang 'e, and her face is like a bright moon".
In the Tang Dynasty, it was quite popular to enjoy and play with the moon in the Mid-Autumn Festival. In the northern song dynasty. On the night of August 15th, people all over the city, rich and poor, old and young, put on adult clothes, burn incense and 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. In some places there are activities 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 Festival trees, lighting tower lanterns, putting sky lanterns, walking on the moon and dancing dragon.
Today, the custom of playing under the moon is far less popular than in the old days. However, feasting to enjoy the moon is still very popular. People drink wine in asking for the moon to celebrate a better life, or wish their relatives far away healthy and happy, and have a wonderful time with their families.
There are many customs and forms of Mid-Autumn Festival, but they all entrust people with infinite love for life and yearning for a better life.
Mid-Autumn Festival is also a time to honor parents! Don't forget to care more about mom and dad!
The 15th day of the eighth lunar month is the traditional Mid-Autumn Festival in China, and it is also the second largest traditional festival in China after the Spring Festival. August 15th is just in the middle of autumn, so it is called Mid-Autumn Festival. China's ancient calendar called August in the middle of autumn "Mid-Autumn", so the Mid-Autumn Festival is also called "Mid-Autumn Festival".
On the night of Mid-Autumn Festival, the moon is bright. The ancients regarded the full moon as a symbol of reunion, so it was also called "Reunion Festival". Throughout the ages, people often use "the full moon" and "the lack of the moon" to describe "joys and sorrows", and the wanderers who live in other places rely on the months to express their deep affection. Poems such as "lifting myself to look, I found that it was moonlight, sinking back again, I thought suddenly of home" by Li Bai, a poet in the Tang Dynasty, "he knows that the dews tonight will be frost, how much brighter the moonlight is at home!" by Du Fu, and "The spring breeze is green in Jiang Nanan, when will the bright moon shine on me" by Wang Anshi in the Song Dynasty are all timeless.
Mid-Autumn Festival is an ancient festival, and it is an important custom to sacrifice and enjoy the moon. The ancient emperors had a social system of offering sacrifices to the sun in spring and the moon in autumn, and the people also had the style of offering sacrifices to the moon in the Mid-Autumn Festival. Later, appreciating the moon was more important than offering sacrifices to the moon, and serious sacrifices turned into relaxed entertainment. The custom of enjoying the moon in the Mid-Autumn Festival flourished in the Tang Dynasty, and many poets wrote poems about the moon in their masterpieces. In the Song, Ming and Qing Dynasties, the court and folk activities of enjoying the moon in Yue Bai were even larger. Up to now, there are many historic sites in China, such as Yue Bai altar, Moon Pavilion and Moon Tower. The "Moon Altar" in Beijing was built during the Jiajing period of the Ming Dynasty for the royal sacrifice to the moon. Whenever the Mid-Autumn Moon rises, a case is set up in the open air, and mooncakes, pomegranates, dates and other fruits are offered on the console table. After Yue Bai, the whole family sits around the table, talks over dinner and enjoys the bright moon. Now, the activities of offering sacrifices to the moon in Yue Bai have been replaced by large-scale and colorful activities of enjoying the moon by the masses.
Eating moon cakes is another custom of festivals, which symbolizes reunion. The making of moon cakes has become more and more exquisite since the Tang Dynasty. Su Dongpo wrote in a poem: "Small cakes are like chewing the moon, with crispness and pulp in them", and Yang Guangfu in Qing Dynasty wrote: "Moon cakes are filled with peach meat, and ice cream is made of sugar cream". It seems that the moon cakes at that time were quite similar to those now.
According to historical records, the word "Mid-Autumn Festival" first appeared in Zhou Li. By the Wei and Jin Dynasties, there was a record of "telling Shangshu Town that cattle were confused, and mid-autumn evening and the left and right traveling incognito across the river". It was not until the early years of the Tang Dynasty that the Mid-Autumn Festival became a fixed festival. "Tang Shu? Taizong Ji recorded the Mid-Autumn Festival on August 15th. The prevalence of Mid-Autumn Festival began in the Song Dynasty, and by the Ming and Qing Dynasties, it was as famous as New Year's Day and became one of the major festivals in China. This is also the second largest traditional festival in China after the Spring Festival.
It is said in Notes on Visiting the West Lake: "The 15th of August is the Mid-Autumn Festival, and people send mooncakes as a token of reunion". "A Brief Introduction to the Scenery of Dijing" also said: "On the 15th of August, when the moon is sacrificed, the cakes will be round, the melons will be wrongly divided, and the petals will be carved like lotus flowers. ..... Those who are married and mothering will return to their husband's house in the future, which is called the Reunion Festival. On the night of Mid-Autumn Festival, there is a custom of "reunion" in most parts of our country, that is, a small cake symbolizing reunion and similar to moon cakes is branded, which contains sugar, sesame, osmanthus and vegetables, and the moon, osmanthus trees and rabbits are pressed outside. After the moon festival, the elders in the family will divide the cake into pieces according to the number of people, one for each person, and if someone is not at home, leave a copy for them to show family reunion.
During the Mid-Autumn Festival, there are few clouds and fog, and the moonlight is bright and bright. In addition to a series of activities such as enjoying the moon, offering sacrifices to the moon, eating moon cakes and wishing reunion, there are also activities such as dancing grass dragons and building pagodas in some places. In addition to moon cakes, all kinds of seasonal fresh fruits and dried fruits are also delicious food on Mid-Autumn Festival.
Another explanation for the origin of Mid-Autumn Festival is that the 15th day of the eighth lunar month happens to be the time when rice is ripe, and all families worship the land god. The Mid-Autumn Festival may be the legacy of the Autumn Newspaper.
Mid-Autumn Festival Food Custom
In ancient times, the court was the most elegant feast custom of the Han nationality. For example, eating crabs was popular in the court in the Ming Dynasty. After the crabs were steamed with cattails, everyone sat around and tasted them, accompanied by wine and vinegar. Drink Su Ye Tang after eating and wash your hands with it. The banquet table area is full of flowers, pomegranates and other fashionable things, and the mythical dramas of the Mid-Autumn Festival are performed. In the Qing Palace, a screen was placed eastward in a certain courtyard, and cockscomb flowers, soybean technology, taro, peanuts, radishes and fresh lotus roots were put on both sides of the screen. There is a square table in front of the screen, with an extra-large moon cake on it, surrounded by cakes and fruits. After the moon festival, the moon cake was cut into several pieces according to the royal population, and each person symbolically tasted it, which was called "Eating Reunion Cake". The size of the moon cakes in Qing Palace is unimaginable. For example, a moon cake presented by the last emperor Puyi to Shao Ying, the minister in charge of internal affairs, is "about two feet in diameter and weighs about twenty pounds".
More than 2 ethnic minorities in China also celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival, but the festivals and customs are different. Zhuang people are used to using rice cakes and Yue Bai on bamboo rafts in the river, and girls put lanterns on the water to measure their happiness all their lives, and sing the beautiful folk song "Please Moon Gu". Korean people use wooden poles and pine branches to set up a "moon-watching frame". First, the elderly are invited to explore the moon on the frame, then the moon-watching frame is lit, the long drum is played, and the cave is played, and they dance together in the "Farmhouse Dance". On the "Tiger Day" before the festival, the Gelao people slaughtered a bull in the whole village, leaving the heart of the bull for the mid-autumn night to worship the ancestors.