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 in poverty. A hero named Hou Yi was of 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 for the benefit of the people.

Hou Yi was respected and loved by the people, and 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 immediately 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 Mid-Autumn Festival has spread.

Second, the history

The origin of Mid-Autumn Festival is related to agricultural production. Autumn is the harvest season. The word "autumn" is interpreted as "autumn when the crops are ripe". Mid-Autumn Festival in August, crops and various fruits are maturing one after another. In order to celebrate the harvest and express their joy, farmers take "Mid-Autumn Festival" as a festival.

"Mid-Autumn Festival" means the middle of autumn. The August of the lunar calendar is a month in the middle of autumn, and the 15th is a day in the middle of this month. Therefore, the Mid-Autumn Festival may be a custom inherited from the ancient autumn newspaper.

Third, customs

1, sacrifice to the moon

In ancient times, our people had the custom of "autumn dusk and evening moon". 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. The 15th day of the eighth lunar month is the traditional Mid-Autumn Festival in China. Apart from being similar to the Mid-Autumn Festival of the Han nationality, there are also a series of activities with strong national characteristics, such as the Moon Festival of the Zhuang nationality, so it is also called "Moon Festival".

2. Eat moon cakes

Moon cakes are one of the traditional Chinese cakes with a long reputation, and they are eaten during the Mid-Autumn Festival. Moon cakes are round and round, and they are shared by the whole family, symbolizing reunion and harmony. Ancient moon cakes were eaten as sacrifices in the Mid-Autumn Festival. It is said that the custom of eating moon cakes in Mid-Autumn Festival began in the Tang Dynasty. It was popular in the court in the Northern Song Dynasty and later spread to the people. At that time, it was commonly known as "small cake" and "moon group".

In the Ming Dynasty, it became a common dietary custom of the whole people. Mooncakes are integrated with local food customs, and they have developed into Cantonese, Beijing, Suzhou, Chaozhou and Yunnan mooncakes, which are loved by people all over China.

Extended data:

Mid-Autumn Festival holiday:

Since 2008, the Mid-Autumn Festival has been listed as a legal holiday in Chinese mainland. If the day coincides with Saturday and Sunday, it will be given a day off next Monday. ?

In Taiwan Province, the Mid-Autumn Festival has one day off. If it overlaps with Saturday and Sunday, it will not be supplemented. However, if it is only one working day away from the weekly holiday, the working day will be changed to a holiday, and another Saturday will be chosen to make up the lessons.

The Mid-Autumn Festival public holiday in Hong Kong is scheduled for August 16th of the lunar calendar (the day after the Mid-Autumn Festival). If it falls on Sunday, it will take a day off on Monday; If it happens on Saturday, there is no compensatory leave.

South Korea listed the Mid-Autumn Festival as a legal holiday, with a three-day holiday.

Baidu Encyclopedia-Mid-Autumn Festival

Baidu Encyclopedia-Sacrificing the Moon