According to Lu's Spring and Autumn Annals, as early as the Yao and Shun era, China had the custom of sweeping dust during the Spring Festival. Because "dust" and "Chen" are homophonic, sweeping dust in the Spring Festival has a new meaning, meaning "getting rid of the old and not being new", hoping to sweep all bad luck out of the house.
Second, paste couplets, blessings and door gods.
On the afternoon of the day before the Spring Festival, children will paste couplets on the door with paste and brushes, and then let the adults below see if they are pasted correctly. Some of them are pasted on the crosshead of the lintel with couplets on the left and right sides of the lintel. Others put blessings on doors, walls and lintels to express people's yearning for a happy life. Others will stick pictures of door gods on the door panels, praying for a safe year and adding festive atmosphere.
Third, offering sacrifices to ancestors and gods.
Sacrificing to God during the Spring Festival is a custom all over China. The customs of offering sacrifices to gods are similar all over the country, but the purpose is basically the same. They all pray for good weather, good harvests and good luck in the coming year.
Sacrificing ancestors is generally after offering sacrifices to gods, and customs vary from place to place. In our hometown, every day before lunch, every household sends a representative to the ancestral temple with food and offerings, and the ancestral temple will not close until the fifteenth day of the first month.
Four, eat jiaozi, eat jiaozi, eat rice cakes.
In most parts of the north, it is a custom to eat jiaozi in the morning during the Spring Festival, and a coin is often put in the jiaozi. Whoever eats a coin will be said to be the happiest person in the family that year. In Huai 'an, Jiangsu, there is a custom of eating jiaozi in the morning. In Kaifeng City, Henan Province, people will eat jiaozi during the Spring Festival. There is also the habit of eating rice cakes in the New Year, and the taste of rice cakes varies from place to place.
Five, shou sui, give lucky money.
Keeping New Year's Eve is also one of the most important activities in the Spring Festival. Neighbors and friends get together, or family get together, some play cards, some watch the Spring Festival party, and everyone stays up all day, waiting for dawn to welcome the arrival of the New Year.
Lucky money is the favorite custom of children and the younger generation. After the New Year's Eve dinner, the elders will give coins to the younger generation respectively, and wear copper coins in strings on the children's chests with red lines, saying that they can suppress evil spirits and drive away ghosts. This custom has been popular since the Han Dynasty. Of course, there are no copper coins now, and they are usually cash in red packages.
Step 6 set off firecrackers
When the Spring Festival comes, the first thing for every household to open the door is to set off firecrackers to bid farewell to the old year and greet the new year with firecrackers to show good luck. Of course, fireworks and firecrackers are forbidden in many places now, but we still have to abide by state regulations and put safety first.
Seven, New Year greetings
Paying New Year greetings is one of the most important activities and customs in the Spring Festival. On the morning of New Year, adults and children wear new clothes and hats, visit relatives and friends, say hello to each other and wish good luck in the New Year. Generally speaking, New Year greetings begin at home. After the younger generation pays New Year greetings to their elders, when they meet outside, people are greeted with smiles.
Eight, visit the temple fair
During the Spring Festival, there are usually temple fairs in rural areas. The early temple fair was just a grand ritual activity, but with the development of economy and people's demand, the temple fair gradually increased market trading activities and some colorful entertainment activities while maintaining the ritual activities.
Nine, dragon and lion dances
Dragons are legendary auspicious animals. It is said that you can summon the wind and rain in the sky, and you can also pray for the elimination of disasters on earth. As early as the Han Dynasty, there were dragon dances for rain. Besides dragon dancing, there is also lion dancing, which is also a common custom during the Spring Festival. In our north, it is also called lion beating. I used to see it when I was a child, but now it is rare.
Ten, walking on stilts
Walking on stilts is also an entertainment activity during the Spring Festival. It has a long history. Liezi Fu Shuo recorded: "The people who had orchids in the Song Dynasty ... were twice as long as their limbs, and the limbs belonged to their tibia and were connected with it." Walking on stilts is also called "stilts" and "walking on stilts". The performers tied wooden stilts two or three feet high to their feet and performed all kinds of weird and funny actions. When I was a child, this activity was held in every village, but later it became less and less.