When is a good time to post Spring Festival couplets?

Twenty-nine or thirty of the twelfth lunar month.

At the beginning of the new year, the first thing is to paste the door gods and couplets. On New Year's Eve (or 29th), every household goes to the streets to buy Spring Festival couplets, and those who are interested also spread paper and splash ink in the spring to decorate the portal. Spring Festival couplets are also called door couplets, spring stickers, couplets, couplets and peach symbols. It depicts the background of the times and expresses good wishes with neat, dual, concise and exquisite words, which is a unique literary form in China. The real popularity of Spring Festival couplets began in the Ming Dynasty, which was related to Zhu Yuanzhang's advocacy. According to Chen Shanggu's Miscellaneous Notes on Mao Yunlou in Qing Dynasty, one year when Zhu Yuanzhang was preparing for the New Year, he ordered every household to post a pair of Spring Festival couplets to celebrate. At first, Spring Festival couplets were carved on mahogany boards, and later rewritten on paper. The color of mahogany is red, which means good luck and avoiding evil spirits, so most Spring Festival couplets are written in red paper. However, temples are made of yellow paper, and toilet paper is made of white, green and yellow. Use white paper in the first year, green paper in the second year, yellow paper in the third year, and red paper after the funeral in the fourth year. Because Manchu is still white, the Spring Festival couplets in the Qing court are made of white paper, with blue borders on the outside and red stripes embedded inside.

It evolved from the peach symbol of Shu State.

All parts of the country have their own customs when posting Spring Festival couplets. Generally speaking, the best time to post Spring Festival couplets is the afternoon of the 29th lunar month (13 to 15). After the New Year, the pasted Spring Festival couplets should be taken down and burned (or thrown away) in the exact month. There is a folk myth that Spring Festival couplets are immortals in the sky, and they will rise when burned. In a word, the function of Spring Festival couplets lies in avoiding evil spirits and harmony.

I look forward to a good year in the coming year, so no matter where the Spring Festival couplets are posted, the time should not exceed New Year's Eve at the latest.

"Sticking Spring Festival couplets is very particular. Sticking them upside down will make people laugh. " Guo Dianchong introduced that generally speaking, the last word of the first couplet is "no sound" and the last word of the second couplet is "flat sound". For example, "the sea is the world of dragons" and "the cloud is the hometown of cranes". In this pair of couplets, "boundary" is continuous, while "township" is flat sound. Therefore, "The Sea is the Dragon's World" is the first one, and "Clouds are the Hometown of Cranes" is the second one. When posting Spring Festival couplets, people are facing the door, with Spring Festival couplets posted on their right hand and Spring Festival couplets posted on their left hand.

Guo Dianchong also told reporters that the horizontal batch can be posted on the top of the door, but it should be noted that the horizontal batch should be "unified" with the couplets posted on the door, because the horizontal batch mainly summarizes the contents of the upper and lower couplets. "In addition, Spring Festival couplets are also a kind of Spring Festival couplets." Guo Dianchong introduced that Spring Festival couplets are usually written on long red paper and pasted vertically, but not necessarily on the door, but on the wall. For example, "open the door" and "look up and see happiness" He also specially reminded the public that when choosing Spring Festival couplets, it is best to choose traditional red, which is also the most festive color.