The beginning of spring is the first of the twenty-four solar terms in the lunar calendar. The beginning of spring is defined astronomically, when the sun reaches 315 degrees longitude. The Beginning of Spring is one of the important traditional festivals among the Han people. Below are some traditional customs at the beginning of spring carefully recommended by the editor. I hope they will be helpful to you.

Traditional food customs 1. Spring cakes

At the beginning of spring, people eat reeds, spring cakes and lettuce, which is called "vegetable plate". ?It can be seen that people in the Tang Dynasty had already begun to try spring dishes and eat spring cakes. The so-called spring cake, also called lotus leaf cake, is actually a kind of hot noodle pancake - use two small pieces of water, grease the middle with oil, roll it into a pancake, and peel it into two pieces after it is cooked. Spring pancakes are used to wrap vegetables, including cooked and stir-fried vegetables.

2. Spring Plate

Spring Plate is also called "Five Spicy Plate", which is a plate of finely chopped lettuce with five kinds of spiciness. "Compendium of Materia Medica" says: "Five pungent vegetables" are a mixture of onions, garlic, leeks, Polygonum, mustard and pungent and tender vegetables that are eaten on New Year's Day and the beginning of spring to welcome the new year. ?This custom spread to the Tang, Song, Jin and Yuan Dynasties. For example, Yelu Chucai of the Yuan Dynasty wrote a poem called "Making a Poor Spring Plate in the Station on the Beginning of Spring", which mentioned using lotus root, peas, green onions, wormwood, leeks and vermicelli to make a spring plate.

In the Ningjin area, onions, garlic, peppers, ginger and mustard are cut into pieces and cooked, which is called the five-spice dish. It can be eaten with wine or as a gift to each other. Some also give green leeks and yellow mandarin oranges.

3. Spring rolls

In addition to spring cakes, spring rolls are also a festive delicacy often eaten by people on the Beginning of Spring. Spring rolls evolved from the ancient custom of eating spring dishes on the first day of spring. There was a kind of "rolled pancake" in the Song Dynasty, which was a transitional type between spring pancakes and spring rolls. In the Yuan Dynasty's "Complete Collection of Household Necessities", there is a record of rolling spring pancakes wrapped in fillings and deep-fried before being eaten. By the Qing Dynasty, the name spring rolls had appeared.

Spring rolls are made by wrapping the filling in a thin round dough roll, growing it into a strip, and then frying it in oil until golden brown and floating. The filling can be meat or vegetarian, salty or sweet.

4. Radish

According to the book "Four People's Monthly Orders" by Cui Li of the Han Dynasty, my country has long had a dietary custom of "eating lettuce at the beginning of spring" to mean welcoming the new year. , and after the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the so-called "biting spring" mainly refers to eating radish on the first day of spring. For example, Liu Ruoyu in the Ming Dynasty recorded in "Zui Zhong Zhi? Good Diet and Shang Ji Lue": "When the next day is the first day of spring, everyone, regardless of rank, chews radish." The name of radish is called "biting spring". Fucha Dunchong of the Qing Dynasty also recorded in "Yanjing Sui Shi Ji": "Spring is the beginning of spring. On this day, rich families eat more spring cakes, and women buy more radishes and eat them, saying "biting spring", which means they can relieve spring sleepiness. ?

Nowadays, the custom of eating spring cakes and spring dishes is rare. People usually eat dumplings and noodles, which is called "Spring Festival Dumplings and Spring Noodles". There are many customs on the Beginning of Spring. In northern Shandong and western Shandong, on the first day of spring, mothers will sew small toys such as "spring roosters" and "spring dolls" out of colorful rags and give them to their children as holiday gifts. In places such as Tengzhou and Huimin, all children who have not been vaccinated against cowpox will have a bunch of soybeans in their mouths in the spring. How many grains will be held in their mouths according to their age, which means that the chicken eats beans, which can eat smallpox, measles and other diseases.

Welcoming the Spring Customs at the Beginning of Spring

Welcoming the Spring is an important activity at the Beginning of Spring. Preparations must be made in advance and a rehearsal must be carried out, commonly known as spring performance.

Welcome to Spring is held on the day before the beginning of spring, with the purpose of bringing back spring and the God of Jumang. A spring officer is set up to welcome the spring, and this position is filled by beggars or prostitutes, who will foretell the beginning of spring. In the past, there were pictures of the God of Light and the Spring Ox in the imperial calendar every year. In the "Dianshizhai Pictorial" in the late Qing Dynasty, there were pictures of "turtle beetles announcing spring" and "bronze drums driving away epidemics", which were all important activities of the Beginning of Spring Festival at that time.

Sacrificing ancestors

In many areas, ancestors are worshiped at the beginning of spring. For example, "Xin'an County Chronicle" of Guangdong states: "People think that there is something going on at the ancestral temple on this day."

The food offered to ancestors at the beginning of spring is also special. Henan's "Ruyang County Chronicle" records: "A spring banquet is held, spring cakes are eaten, and divination and pears are recommended." ?

The Linying County Chronicle refers to the Beginning of Spring Sacrifice as "Yao Chun".

Zhaochun

At the beginning of spring, there are also their own foods, mainly spring cakes, radishes, five-spice dishes, etc. Spring rolls are popular in the south, and there are many selling spring rolls in the streets. hawker. There are two points worth noting here: first, in the past, it was thought that biting the spring meant eating radishes, but in fact it also included eating spring pancakes; second, the so-called begging for spring means welcoming the spring. Why eat radish? A common saying is that it can relieve spring sleepiness. In fact, bite spring is not limited to this. In addition to relieving difficulties, it is mainly used for ventilation and keeping people young and immortal. The five-spicy dish is composed of five kinds of spicy food, which are mixed with onions, garlic, peppers, ginger, mustard, etc., and are used as condiments for meals.

After the beginning of spring, people like to go out for spring outings in the days when spring flowers are blooming. It is commonly known as going out of the city to explore spring and go out for spring outings. This is also the main form of spring outings.

Jumang God

Jumang is the god of spring, the god of vegetation and life. The image of Jumang is that of a human with a bird's body, enforcing rules and taking charge of spring affairs. In the Zhou Dynasty, the east hall was set up to welcome the spring, which shows that worshiping Jumang has a long history. "Kingto Customs" written by Rang Lian of the Qing Dynasty said: "On the day before the ceremony of the beginning of spring, the God of the Spring-Welcoming Ox and Mangos entered the government office and set up two reed tents, one facing south, one in the east and one in the west. The images are colorful, all arranged with thousands of branches, allowing men and women to look at them. At the beginning of spring, the soldiers will burn them, so it is called "Dachun". ?Then, people take the pieces of the Spring Ox home and regard them as auspicious.

Bian Chun Niu

Bi Chun Niu, also known as Whin Chun Niu, originated earlier and has been preserved since then, but it was changed to spring and became popular in the Tang and Song dynasties, especially during the reign of Emperor Renzong of the Song Dynasty. After the promulgation of the Tu Niu Jing, the custom of whipping the Tu Niu spread more widely and became an important part of folk culture. The significance of whipping the spring ox is not limited to sending cold air and promoting spring plowing, but also has certain witchcraft significance. Folks in Shandong want to smash the cow's head to pieces, and people compete for the spring cow's soil. This is called spring grabbing, and it is good luck to grab the cow's head. When shaping a spring cow, grains are often stuffed into the belly. When the cow is beaten, the grains flow out. People laugh and pick up the grains and put them back into their barns, which indicates that the barns are full of grain. There are also tea-picking activities to worship spring cows, and turtle beetle heralding spring activities are also held in Hubei. Nowadays, in some rural areas there is still the custom of "whipping the spring ox".

Hidden Spring

In traditional folklore, people should hide from spring on the day of the Beginning of Spring. Because the climate begins to change at the beginning of spring, the new aura will have an adverse impact on some people, and even worse, will affect the luck of the year, so the custom of avoiding spring emerged. Among the people, different places have different customs and taboos, which also extend to various methods and customs of hiding from spring. According to the traditional customs, there should be no quarrels on the day of the Beginning of Spring. We must welcome this day in harmony and calmly. According to some local customs, it is not advisable to move, visit seriously ill patients, or attend funerals on this day to avoid causing bad luck and affecting the luck of the whole year.

The most suitable food for health is shepherd's purse

Among the wild vegetables in spring, shepherd's purse is definitely a dazzling star. Its young seedlings are picked in early spring and eaten as wild vegetables, which are fragrant and delicious. The nutritional value of shepherd's purse is also very high, especially the high content of vitamin C, carotenoids and various minerals. Traditional medicine believes that shepherd's purse also has the effect of assisting in the treatment of dysentery, enteritis, colds, etc.

Honey

The sweet honey water is called "the first water of spring". Traditional Chinese medicine believes that honey is sweet in taste and enters the spleen and stomach meridians. It can replenish qi, moisturize the intestines and relieve constipation. Because honey contains a variety of minerals and vitamins, and has the function of moistening the lungs and detoxifying, it can enhance human immunity and is the best food in spring. Ideal tonic. Therefore, in spring, if you can drink 1 to 2 spoons of honey every day, take it with a cup of warm water or add milk, it will have a nourishing effect on the body.

Chives

Chives are also called "Qiyangcao". They are warm in nature and have the effect of tonifying the kidneys and yang. The climate in spring varies between warm and cold. It is recommended that people eat more spring leeks in spring to dispel yin and cold. Moreover, the liver qi of the human body is relatively strong in spring, which affects the digestion and absorption functions of the spleen and stomach. Eating more spring leeks can enhance spleen and stomach qi and benefit liver function.

Spinach

Among the many vegetables, spinach is suitable for nourishing and protecting the liver. Spinach is a seasonal vegetable in spring, which has the functions of nourishing yin and moisturizing, soothing the liver and nourishing blood. Extremely common and therefore ordinary, spinach is just one of the most common vegetables. There are many ways to eat spinach as an ordinary food, and cooking porridge is an ordinary way. Spinach can be used to cook porridge in spring.

Onion, ginger, garlic

Spring has windy, cold, and humid climate characteristics, so it is advisable to eat some pungent and warm food in your diet. Traditional Chinese medicine recommends eating a little onion, ginger, and garlic. They are not only good seasonings, but also have important medicinal value. They can increase appetite, help generate yang, and also have the effect of sterilizing and preventing diseases. In spring, onions and garlic are the most nutritious, tender, fragrant and delicious time of the year. Eating them at this time can prevent the most common respiratory infections in spring.

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