The origin of setting off firecrackers in the Spring Festival. Which dynasty was it that set off firecrackers in the Spring Festival?

The custom of setting off firecrackers in the Spring Festival began in the Han Dynasty. According to "The Story of Meng Jing Times" written by Nan Liang Zonggu, "On the first day of the first month ... the rooster crowed, and people set off firecrackers in front of the court to drive away evil spirits from Shan Yao." In ancient times, firecrackers were set off by burning bamboo in a fire. Because the air in bamboo is heated and expanded, it makes a "crackling" sound to ward off evil spirits, hoping for good luck and happiness in the coming year.

Spring Festival generally refers to New Year's Eve and the first day of the first month. But among the people, the Spring Festival in the traditional sense refers to the sacrificial stove on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month or the 23rd or 24th of the twelfth lunar month in La Worship until the 15th day of the first lunar month.

There are only three opinions about the origin of shooting during the Spring Festival, which are widely circulated. By the way, introduce two customs of shooting during the Spring Festival. Let's take a look:

First,? What is the origin of shooting during the Spring Festival?

? One of the Origins of Spring Festival Evening Shooting: Jiang Ziya?

Setting off firecrackers has something to do with Jiang Ziya. According to legend, Jiang Ziya helped Zhou Wuwang destroy the Shang Dynasty and seal the king, so he went to the altar to seal the gods. All the heroes were sealed, but his wife, Ma Shi, came. While Jiang Ziya was fishing in Weishui, waiting for Zhou Wenwang, his wife thought he was poor and stomped away. Now the world is going to be closed, and when she came to ask for the throne, she said angrily, if you are a jinx, you can only stay for 30 nights, and you can drill wherever it is dark. Later, firecrackers were set off in the New Year just to break bad luck and leave her nowhere to hide.

In the southern minority areas, bamboo poles and branches are burned during the Chinese New Year, which makes some noise. According to ancient records, firecrackers were originally called firecrackers, which means that burning bamboo makes a noise. With gunpowder, especially after the improvement of papermaking technology, it has become fashionable to use paper as a gun. Especially a string of small whips, almost all made of paper and gunpowder, are woven together like whips, so there is the saying of firecrackers.

? The Second Origin of Spring Festival Evening Shooting: "Shan Sao"?

When it comes to the origin of firecrackers, we have to mention an animal named "Shan Sao". When people camp in the wild deep in the forest, they will light bonfires. In order to prevent the invasion of hawthorn, people lit bamboo in the bonfire and scared it away with the crack of bamboo.

It is said that the smell of surf will make people feel cold and suffer from the ghost of cold and heat diseases. Using firecrackers to scare away mountains is to drive away evil spirits, so as to get good luck and peace. Later, with the appearance of gunpowder, people began to burn saltpeter, sulfur and charcoal in bamboo tubes, so the "deflagration war" came into being. Since the Song Dynasty, people have replaced bamboo tubes with paper tubes and hemp sticks wrapped in gunpowder, which has become "firecrackers".

"Jing Chu Ji nian" records: "the first day of the first month, the day of three yuan. It is said that at the end of the month, chickens crow and firecrackers are burned in front of the court to eliminate mountain evils. " This is also the origin of people setting off firecrackers during the Spring Festival.

? The Third Origin of Spring Festival Shooting: "Nian" Beast?

According to legend, in ancient China, there was a monster named Nian, with a long, pointed head and an unusually fierce appearance. Nian beast has lived under the sea for many years. Every New Year's Eve, it crawls ashore to devour livestock and kill people. Therefore, on New Year's Eve, people help the old and take care of the young and flee to the mountains to avoid the harm of Nian beast. It is said that Nian beast has a big head and a small body, and it is more than ten feet long. Its eyes are like two bells, coming and going like the wind. When it is called, it sounds "year after year", hence the name Nian Beast.

A fierce monster called Nian goes from one house to another every year1February 30th, foraging for human flesh and killing creatures. On the night of the thirtieth day of the twelfth lunar month, Nian came to a village. It happened that two cowboys were fighting for a whip. Nian suddenly heard the sound of whipping in mid-air and ran away in fear.

Knowing that Nian was afraid of ringing, people tried to use firecrackers to resist it, which gradually evolved into setting off firecrackers in the Spring Festival today, which is also the origin of people setting off firecrackers in the Spring Festival later.

Second,? The custom of shooting during the Spring Festival?

In the Ming and Qing Dynasties, etiquette-conscious people in China also stipulated that many people should pay attention to setting off firecrackers. According to the discharge time, it is divided into "closed firecrackers" and "open firecrackers".

? One of the customs of shooting during the Spring Festival: "collecting firecrackers"?

On New Year's Eve, after offering sacrifices to ancestors and deceased parents, when the whole family closes for a family reunion dinner, they should set off firecrackers, usually 1-3, which means that all the unpleasantness of the old year will be sent away, and then the whole family will sit around and talk and laugh until the New Year bell rings.

Taizhou has a story of "collecting firecrackers" to drive away pirates, and a large number of pirates are gathering off Taizhou. Although he was beaten by Qi Jiajun, the dog couldn't change the habit of eating shit all the time. They are going to sneak attack on Taizhou in the dark when the soldiers and civilians are partying on the evening of the 30th and the defense is lax. Ladies and gentlemen, you should know that it is really easy to succeed in a sneak attack by robbers, especially when there is no clear goal.

At eleven o'clock in the evening, the robber's boat approached Taizhou Bay, and the shore was quiet from a distance. The robbers were so happy that they thought they could return home with their full loads. Who knows, before they could close their mouths, suddenly the guns on the shore rumbled and the flames soared. This earth-shattering battle scared the Japanese robbers out of their wits. While crying with tears, they shouted, "Dig the ant in the house, dig the ant in the house" and hurriedly turned around and fled for their lives.

The sound of guns on the shore lasted until dawn. Scared out of her wits, the Japanese robbers shivered in the ocean, but never dreamed that it was General Qi who let the people set off the closed-door cannon that caught them in the tourist trap. Since then, Taizhou people have fired closing guns on the 30 th night, which has been passed down to this day.

? The second custom of shooting during the Spring Festival: "Open the door and set off firecrackers"?

China has the folk custom of "setting off firecrackers". On the morning of New Year's Day, when you open the door or go out to pay New Year's greetings, you will set off firecrackers, which is also called "opening the door". The moral is that the Chinese New Year is booming, and it is very harmful to go out without sex. After the firecrackers, the ground is broken red, which is the so-called "full house". At this time, the streets are full of anger and joy.

The Chronicle of Jingchu records that on the first day of the first month, the rooster crowed for the first time, and everyone got up and set off firecrackers in their yard to drive away the evil spirits of plague. There was no gunpowder or paper at that time, so people burned bamboo to make it burst and make a sound to drive away the plague. Later, with the appearance of gunpowder, people began to burn saltpeter, sulfur and charcoal in bamboo tubes, so the "deflagration war" came into being. Since the Song Dynasty, people have replaced bamboo tubes with paper tubes and hemp sticks wrapped in gunpowder, which has become "firecrackers". This is the origin of "firecrackers".

The origin of setting off firecrackers in the Spring Festival is different in north and south, but one thing is basically the same, that is, family reunion, visiting relatives and friends, visiting elders and so on. I hope we can remember these customs full of affection and good wishes and pass them on from generation to generation.