The origin and legend of Xiao Man

The origin of Xiao Man

twenty-four solar term: "In mid-April, the small man was full of things." At this time, the seeds of summer crops such as wheat in the northern part of the country have begun to be full, but they are not yet mature, which is about the late stage of milk ripening, so it is called Xiaoman. Agricultural proverbs in southern China give Xiaoman a new meaning: "Xiaoman is dissatisfied and breaks the ridge"; "Small full of dissatisfaction, regardless of the mango." The term "full" is used to describe the surplus and shortage of rain, and it is pointed out that if there is not enough water in the field when it is full, the ridge may be cracked, and even rice cannot be planted when it is planted.

Xiaoman is one of the 24 solar terms and the second solar term in summer. Every year from May 2th to 22nd, when the sun reaches 6 degrees of the longitude of the Yellow River, it is considered as a little full. Little full refers to that the seeds of summer crops begin to fill fully, but they are not yet mature, just a little full, but not yet full.

2. The Xiaoman solar term is the prelude to harvest, and the prelude of summer harvest, summer sowing, Xiaguan, and Three Summers' Busy Day is opened, which is another busy season for farmers in a year. During this period, it is necessary to pay attention to the attack of "dry and hot wind" at all times, otherwise the annual harvest will be threatened.

The Legend of Xiaoman

Once upon a time, there was a family with only two people, father and daughter. The daughter is not only beautiful, but also very clever. On this day, my father had something to do to go far away, leaving his daughter and a white horse. This horse is very strong, and it runs thousands of miles every day, as fast as the wind. What's even more strange is that this horse is very familiar with human nature, and it understands human words. Everyone says this is a "god horse".

When the father went out, he told his daughter to feed and take good care of the horse, and he would come back soon. After my father left, this horse was the only one left at home to accompany my daughter. Whenever she feels lonely, she talks to the horse. Although the horse can't speak, it will nod and flick its tail to show its affectionate appearance. As the days passed, my father never came back. My daughter misses her father very much and is more worried about what will happen to her father when he is having an affair.

One day, she said to the horse half seriously and half jokingly, "Horse, do you understand me? If you can get my father back, I will marry you as my wife. " Unexpectedly, as soon as the girl's voice fell, the horse ran away and disappeared. It turned out that my father was sick in the distance and was worried about how to get back, but suddenly he found his own horse running, and he was very surprised. My father got on his horse and rode home because he was so anxious about his daughter that he didn't think much.

when I got home, I was very happy when my long-lost father and daughter got together. Father felt that the horse had made great contributions, so he specially added grass and feed it carefully. But to my father's surprise, he was fed a lot of fine grass and fodder, but the horse refused to eat a bite. Whenever I see my daughter coming in and out, this horse will not only lead its neck to sing, but also jump, making a sound of joy or anger. The father secretly asked his daughter what was going on. So the daughter told her father what she had said to the horse.

after hearing this, the father felt very uneasy, pondered for a while, and then whispered to his daughter, "Remember, this matter must not be made public. What would it be like if people knew that I married my daughter to a horse? Don't leave the house for a while, and don't go to the horse. " The next day, my father put a crossbow around the stable and shot the horse while it was unguarded. Then, he peeled off the horse skin and hung it on a big stone in the yard.

One day, my daughter was playing in the yard with her female companion next door. She was very upset when she saw the horse skin drying on the stone. She reached out and touched the mane on the horse skin. At this time, the accident happened. The horse skin suddenly opened and swept her away like a gust of wind. The female companions on the side were frightened and hurried to tell her father. When my father arrived, my daughter and the horse skin basking on the stone had already disappeared without a trace and disappeared.

It turns out that Shenma skin swept away the lovely girl and flew straight to the southwest. In the far southwest, there is a place called Dahu, which is a lonely wilderness with mulberry trees all over the mountains. But when she got there, the girl in horse skin lost her original shape and became a silkworm with the shape of a horse's head and climbing on a tree. She eats nothing but mulberry leaves. Later, she became the owner of this mulberry forest, and the emperor named her the silkworm god.

In the face of this encounter, the girl has unspeakable sufferings. She misses her hometown day and night, and misses her father and female companion. Whenever this time, she will constantly spit out filaments from her mouth, pinning her endless thoughts. Every spring, you can see a beautiful young woman kneeling on the branches of mulberry trees, constantly spitting out white and bright filaments. People affectionately call her Silkworm God Girl.

the custom of solar terms in xiaoman

bitter dishes deal with heat

Zhou Shu says: bitter dishes show on the day of xiaoman. As one of the earliest edible wild vegetables, Sophora alopecuroides is spread all over the country. Although it has different names in different places, its nutritional composition and medicinal value are the same.

"Sacrifice to the Three Gods" and pray for blessings

Xiaoman has the saying of "moving three cars", which refer to water wheel, ox cart and silk cart.

"offering sacrifices to the three gods" means offering sacrifices to the gods who are in charge of these three cars in the small full season, praying for their blessing, good weather and a good harvest.

Celebrate the birthday of the silkworm god

According to legend, Xiaoman is the birthday of the silkworm god. Therefore, on Xiaoman's day, people who raise silkworms want to celebrate the birthday of the silkworm god.

In the early summer of Xiaoman season, cocoons are formed and silk reeling is waiting to be picked. In order to have a good harvest and express gratitude to the silkworm god, silkworm farmers will hold a grand ceremony to celebrate his birthday.

Harvesting

Black pomfret can be caught in the sea area near Changhua, Taiwan Province, and flying fish can be caught in Su 'ao in the northeast and southern waters. Bananas in Qishan, Meinong and other places in Kaohsiung County have entered a rich period. Taiwan Province is a famous banana producing area, and many bananas are exported to all parts of the world every year.