What is the origin and stress of February 2?

February 2nd is also called the Zhonghe Festival. Here is some information I am looking for!

March 1 day, 2006 is the second day of the second lunar month, and it is the Zhonghe Festival (also known as the Dragon Head Up and the Dragon Head Festival). It is also the legendary birthday of the Yellow Emperor and the festival of the descendants of the Yellow Emperor.

The Zhonghe Festival was formulated by Tang Dezong Shili in the fifth year of Zhenyuan (789), also known as the February 2nd of the Dragon's Rise. Originally February 1 day, the birthday of the land god was also included, so it was changed to February 2.

According to Li Bichuan in the Tang Dynasty, before the middle of the Tang Dynasty, there were only three festivals in spring-the ninth day of the first month, the thirtieth day of the first month and the third day of March, and there were no festivals in February. When he was in Tang Dezong, Li Bi wrote a letter saying that the first month was unlucky, and February 1st was the Sino-Japanese Festival as a symbol of service. Dezong agreed very much, and ordered that the ninth day of the first month, the first day of February and the third day of March be collectively called Sanling Festival. ?

These records show that the Sino-Japanese Festival has been confirmed since Tang Dezong's time. However, some activities of Zhonghe Festival did not begin in the Tang Dynasty. For example, Zhou Chao went to the eastern suburbs to worship the sun in the spring equinox and the western suburbs to worship the moon in the autumn equinox. The origin of sun cakes is also earlier, and it has been used until the Sui and Tang Dynasties. When he was in Tang Dezong, he learned from the activities of the vernal equinox that the contents of the memorial day enriched the Zhonghe Festival, so the Zhonghe Festival and the vernal equinox were mixed and inseparable.

(a) the sun god?

The sun god, also known as the sun god. This is one of the oldest nature worship, and there are images of worshipping the sun god in Yinshan rock paintings in Inner Mongolia and Cangyuan rock paintings in Yunnan. After the rise of Taoism, it is often called offering sacrifices to the gods of the sun, moon and stars. In ancient China, there were three times to worship the sun god: February 1st, March 19th and November 19th. ?

There are many legends about the sun. Tao Zun in Dawenkou has the image of the sun and the moon. Legend has it that there were ten suns at the earliest, and it was not until Houyi shot the sun that it became the sun. Some people say that the sun is male and the moon is female. As can be seen from the stone reliefs in the Han Dynasty, Sanzu lived in the sun. Later, the sun god was personified, became a man's image, and even had a wife. So there are sun gods and moon gods. Legend has it that they live in the Sun Palace and the Moon Palace and dominate world affairs. Although these legends were created by ancient people, they also reflected their actual feelings. People work at sunrise. With warmth, they can plant crops, and the sun disappears at night and on cloudy days. This change makes people associate, and finally creates the sun god. As for the legend of the sun jade chicken, it may be that the sunrise and the crow are linked together, and the sun and the chicken are companions. Once the cock crows and the sun rises, people get up and start their day's cultivation. ?

When offering sacrifices to the sun, sun cakes should be offered. These cakes are made of rice flour with pictures of the sun and crows printed on them, and some cakes are also made of chickens. People also eat sun cakes as food.

(2) the birthday of the land god?

Zhonghe Festival also offers sacrifices to the land gods. The land god is the god of ancient society and one of the gods worshipped by nature. However, the dates of birth of land gods or countries vary from place to place. Some places are scheduled for February 2, some are scheduled for June 1 day, and some are scheduled for July 7, but most of them are February 2. ?

Legend has it that the earliest land god was land, and there were no idols at that time. Most of the land gods of Li nationality in Hainan are made of stone and then personified. The first personified land god was the dog dragon, and later it was the land god. The land god was originally a woman, so she was called Mother Earth. Later, there were men and women named Tugong, Tumu, Tuzhu, Tugrandma and Tumiao. The popular "land to marry a woman" is also a social sacrifice. In the Water Margin, it is said that there is a picture of "the land god dispels the water monster", which describes the situation that the land god assists the rebel army in the battle, indicating that the land god has a deep foundation among the people. Jiangsu and Anhui have grand land meetings to worship the land gods. When offering sacrifices to the land god, some places will also worship the valley god. Jilin folklore: In ancient times, there was a woman named Gu Hui. When she gave birth, she only had sorghum rice to feed her hunger, so she died. Later, two millet trees grew on her grave. In her dream, she asked her husband to plant millet, and then there was millet land, and Gu Hui became the god of millet.

(3) Sacrifice to Shennong?

The fifth day after beginning of spring is the vernal equinox, which is usually considered as a social day, on which land gods and grain gods are worshipped. Eating community meals and drinking community wine are the remnants of ancient village residents who sacrificed to the land gods. Before and after offering sacrifices to the god of the land, the imperial courts in all previous dynasties offered sacrifices to Shennong, and the emperor himself held a ceremony to plow the fields. The so-called Shennong mainly refers to Emperor Yan. There are also sacrifices to the afterlife. This is a country, also called Tian Shen. In the past, Shennong Temple was built in every big city, and Kyoto was the most important. Because when offering sacrifices to Shennong, in order to promote agricultural production, the emperor had to personally offer sacrifices and hold a ploughing ceremony, so the immortal altar in Beijing was very large. When offering sacrifices to Shennong, it is mostly in the spring without rain, so it is also offered to the Dragon King to pray for rain.

(4) Does the dragon look up?

Zhonghe Festival, also known as Dragon Head Up and Dragon Head Festival. After the Mid-Autumn Festival, spring came, vegetation revived, and various insects revived. At this time, people painted the dragon back. As early as 6000 years ago, China believed in dragons. At that time, there were jade dragons and dragon cards. There were many images of dragons in Shang and Zhou dynasties, and the dragon king appeared after the introduction of Buddhism in Tang and Song dynasties. There is a spring Dragon Boat Festival in Huimin, Shandong Province, where a dragon is painted on the ground with stove smoke, commonly known as lucky dragon. There are two purposes to invite the dragon back: one is to invite the dragon back, sow rain and pray for a bumper harvest in agriculture; Second, the dragon is the god of all kinds of insects. When the dragon comes, all kinds of insects will hide, which is beneficial to human health and crop growth. On February 2, in Nantong, Jiangsu, people made peaches and five kinds of animals with flour, steamed them and put them on bamboo sticks. It is planted in graves and fields at night, thinking that it is the food of the insect god and the ancestor worship, praying for the ancestors to drive away the insect disaster and hoping that the insect god will not hurt the crops. At the same time, in order to harvest agriculture, we need plenty of sunshine, fertile land and rain. Therefore, praying for rain has become an important part of Chinese and Japanese festivals. At the same time, we have to play dragon play, which is to combine the Dragon Boat Festival with the rain. ?

Zhonghe Festival is also quite influential in ethnic minority areas. The Dong people, also known as the Dragon Rising in February, invite relatives and friends to have a meal in the wild during the festival, hoping for a bumper year. But the Dong people call the solitaire a cow, that is, rhinoceros, and think that rhinoceros is a symbol of the dragon. On holidays, people bring calves from outside the village and use them as bait to lure dragons into the village. Then, on the Dragon Boat Festival, cows are killed, beef is shared, and families eat wine. While drinking, he shouted "Jade Dragon Return Boxing" and sang "Jade Dragon Return Song". Finally, the horn is buried under the rhinoceros pond, which indicates that the rhinoceros will go home, the dragon will return to its place and the village will have a bumper harvest. Daur people also call Zhonghe Festival "February 2", while Manchu people call it Insect King Festival.

(5) Flower Festival?

Flower Festival is also called Flower Festival. The specific time is different. One is the second day of February, the other is February 12th, and the other is February 15th. Legend has it that this day is the birthday of flowers. At this time, all places worship the Flower Temple to celebrate the birthday of the Flower God, and go to the wild to enjoy flowers, plant flowers and trees, catch butterflies, or hold a flower viewing party. Beijingers often go to the Temple of Heaven and other places to admire peony and plant flowers and grass. Flower arranging festival is popular in Yunnan and other places. You Jiang Festival in Sichuan and Shixiang in Hangzhou are also activities to enjoy flowers. ?

In addition, the third day of February is Wenchang's birthday. Japanese scholars worship Wenchang and seek imperial examinations. ?

After February 2, the vast rural areas began to cultivate land, mulberry trees were widely planted in the south, and spring hunting was carried out in mountainous areas.

On February 2, the dragon looked up and ate during the festival.

February 2nd is one of the traditional folk festivals in China. On this day, Tang Dezong Shili personally proposed that it be designated as "Zhonghe Festival" in the fifth year of Zhenyuan (AD 789), which is also called "Dragon Head Festival" among the people. During the festival, people carry out various recreational activities around offering sacrifices to the dragon gods, praying for good weather and bumper harvests. Playing dragon lanterns is also because of this, and this festival is inseparable from people's agricultural activities.

According to legend, this festival originated in the Fu period, when Fu "emphasized agriculture and mulberry, plowed the fields". Every year on the second day of the second lunar month, he plows the plough himself. Later generations of Huangdi, Yao and Shun followed suit. Going to Zhou Wuwang is even carried out as an important state affair.

In some places around here, beans and popcorn are fried early on February 2, and some people sing while frying: "On February 2, the dragon looks up, full and small." Pray for a bumper harvest and a prosperous life in the coming year. On February 2, the northern land just thawed and everything revived. Chun Xue urged people to get ready for spring ploughing and planting.

On February 2nd, 100 insects were resurrected, and there was a custom of offering sacrifices to insects in Jiangsu. On this day, every household grinds aged glutinous rice, corn, sorghum, sesame and so on. Making into powder, and making into various fruit shapes, such as peach, bread roll or chicken and duck. After steaming, insert bamboo shoots and send them to the field head or ancestral grave at dusk, praying that all insects will not hurt Tanaka Jiahe, hoping for a bumper harvest that year.

During the Spring Festival, some places want to eat Sun Egg Cake. The production method of Sun Egg Cake is: make a cake with glutinous rice, make an inch-long animal symbolizing chicken with rice on the cake, or print a pattern symbolizing chicken on the cake. The chicken in the sun egg cake represents the sun, and the sun egg cake is used to worship the sun.

On February 2nd, wei ren in old Tianjin paid attention to eating spring cakes, also known as "spring plate", cutting sauced meat, smoked belly flowers, sauced elbows and sausages. Into filaments, some mixed with southern flavor. It is made of shredded smoked chicken, shredded belly, shredded ham, shredded sausage, raisins, fragrant wine, white sugar and soy sauce. It is salty and sweet, and smells fragrant.

In addition, we also need to cook vegetables (that is, pinch off two tender mung bean sprouts), stir-fry leeks with shredded pork, stir-fry spinach powder with shredded pork, spread classic dishes, and roll pot-stewed pancakes, which are called "Longlin cakes". Children love this thing, first, it tastes good, and second, it can roll food by hand and be free.

On February 2nd, people pay attention to eating spring cakes and frying stew. Braised pork is made of mung bean powder, which is soft, hard and elastic. Pour a little oil into the pot, cut the stew into small pieces, fry both sides with slow fire, drizzle with sesame sauce and garlic juice, and add a little balsamic vinegar. It's delicious, and it comes with sesame biscuits and crispy biscuits, which are all to everyone's liking.

2) On the second day of the second lunar month, it was called "Zhonghe Festival" in ancient times, commonly known as "the dragon looks up". It used to be one of the important folk festivals in the minds of old Beijingers. Therefore, before and after the "shock" of the 24 solar terms, spring returns to the earth and everything recovers. Insects, snakes and animals that are dormant in the soil or caves will wake up from hibernation, and the legendary dragon will wake up from a deep sleep, so it is called "the dragon looks up". As soon as the dragon looks up, it will rain, which indicates that the new year will be good and the crops will be bumper.

On February 2nd, there were many folk activities in old Beijing.

First of all, there is a certain emphasis on diet, because people believe that "Rowen gets rich", good weather and bumper crops, so the diet on this day is named after dragons. Generally, you should eat spring cakes, also called "Longlin"; Eating jiaozi is also called eating "dragon ears"; Eating noodles, also called eating "Longxu Noodles", is the name of Beijing Longxu Noodles. One of the most exquisite is to eat spring cakes, commonly known as pancakes. This is a special food in Beijing. It is a double-layer lotus leaf cake baked with white flour. You can uncover the lid, coat it with sweet noodle sauce, and roll it into a "box lunch", that is, moo Shu pork, bean sprouts mixed with vermicelli and sauce elbow. Taste palatable, taste good. As the saying goes, "all kinds of box vegetables have a good harvest in a good year."

There is also an important activity on February 2, that is, picking up the "aunt", that is, picking up the married daughter at home, so there is a saying that "picking up the baby on February 2". Old Beijingers are out of courtesy. In the first month, "aunt" can't live in her mother's house, and she must go back to her husband's house on the same day after the second day, especially the newly married "aunt". But on the second day of February, her family came to pick up her daughter and stayed for a few days or half a month. First, I was busy for a long time in the first month. When I was tired, I took her home and had a good rest. Second, the new year has just begun, and you have to be busy again. Treat her well. Spring cakes, which are pancakes, are usually served. In the days when I was taken back, my "aunt" just chatted around and was relaxed and happy.

Another activity on February 2nd was the emperor ploughing the fields. Because on February 2 every year, almost before and after the shock, "a plow goes into shock, and the vernal equinox is full of gas." Since then, it has been a busy time for spring ploughing in the north. In order to mobilize people to invest in spring ploughing production quickly and not miss the farming season, on February 2, the emperor will symbolically lead officials out of the palace to loosen the soil for his "one acre and three points". In the early Ming Dynasty, the emperor went to Xiannongtan to plow and loosen the soil on February 2 every year. Starting from Yong Zhengdi in Qing Dynasty, they went to Yuanmingyuan on February 2 every year and cultivated land in the "one acre garden" (now the west side of Yuanmingyuan in Haidian). There used to be a New Year picture called "The Emperor Ploughing the Fields". In the picture, an emperor wearing a crown and a dragon robe is plowing the land by hand, followed by a minister, carrying a bamboo basket in one hand and sowing seeds in the other. A seven-pin county magistrate in robes is in charge, and in the distance is the queen and maid-in-waiting who pick baskets to deliver meals. There is also a jingle in the painting: "On February 2, the dragon looked up, the emperor plowed the fields and drove the cows, and the queen in the palace always delivered meals. The courtiers lost their species, and Xia Geng led the world in spring, and the crops were abundant in autumn and autumn. " This painting also shows that people hope to have an enlightened emperor who can personally cultivate Xia Yun in the spring, so that the people can have plenty of food and clothing.

On the second day of the second lunar month, it is commonly known as "the dragon looks up". Early this morning, every household used firewood ash accumulated in the firewood stove to spread a long dragon on the ground, reaching to the nearby river or well, with the intention of sending the lazy dragon away. Then use loess to start from the river or the well, and lay a long queue until the door, with the intention of bringing Qin Long back. Because dragons can swim clouds and control water, this kind of dragon-attracting activity is to have a few good rains after warm spring, which is beneficial to spring ploughing, crop growth and harvest. In order to respect the dragon, women must stop sewing on the day of "the dragon looks up on February 2" to avoid "hurting longan". As February 2nd is already a "wake-up call", the yang is rising gradually, and all kinds of hibernating insects are gradually recovering. So, on this day, there was another activity to drive away poisonous insects. In the morning, the old man at home will knock on the edge of the kang with a stick and say, "Knock on the edge of the kang on February 2, and scorpions and centipedes will not meet." "On February 2nd, the dragon looked up and the scorpion centipede didn't show up. I think, in this way, scorpions, centipedes and other pests can't recover. As for the diet on February 2, we should change the way we eat and drink during the Spring Festival and be vegetarian. The seasonal vegetarian food of this day is fried braised pork. Braised pork is a gelatinous starch. Cut it into small pieces, put it in a pot and fry it in oil. When there is a layer of yellow pastry, put it in a bowl, dilute it with sesame sauce, sprinkle with minced garlic, and serve after stirring. It is delicious with staple food pie or sesame seed cake.

3) On February 2nd, Don Bai Juyi

On February 2nd, it was sunny and rainy.

Grass buds are temporary;

Light horse is young,

Tianjin crosshead.

February 2nd is a traditional festival of Han nationality. Popular in most parts of the country, Miao, Zhuang, Manchu, Dong, Li, She, Buyi, Hezhe, Ewenki and other ethnic minorities also celebrate this festival. There are many customs and activities in this festival, which are also called Flower Festival, Youth Walking Festival, Lai Picking Festival, Spring Dragon Festival, Qinglong Festival and Dragon Head-up Day. Because it is on the second day of the second lunar month, it is called. This custom was recorded in the Tang Dynasty. Bai Juyi's poem "February 2" said: "On February 2, the new rain is dark, and the grass-toothed vegetables are born for a while. The light shirt is ok, Ma Qing is young, and the cross is full of words. " At that time and later, people asked each other about their heritage with knives and rulers, welcomed wealth with 100 grains, melon seeds and fruits, and had activities such as picking vegetables, hiking and welcoming wealth. Yuan Fei wrote in "The Past Life in China": "On February 2nd, Youth Day, people in Renjun County visited and enjoyed the scattered suburbs. ..... ",and Wang Hao's" Guang Qun Jing Shi Pu "quoted" Mo Han Ji ":"In Luo Yang, February 2 is the Flower Lang Festival, which is also a vegetable picking festival. " After the Ming Dynasty, there were many customs about the dragon's head rising on February 2nd, such as scattering ashes to recruit dragons, helping dragons, smoking insects to avoid scorpions, shaving the dragon's head, and avoiding acupuncture longan, so it was called Dragon's Head Rising Day. Qing Xianfeng's "Wuding County Records": ... February 2 is the Spring Dragon Festival, and the kitchen is as gray as a dragon and snake, and it is called Lucky Dragon. In addition, there are activities to preserve customs, such as rushing to work, trial farming, frying scorpion beans, wearing grass, offering sacrifices to the dragon king, respecting land and grain, marrying women to live in spring, and writing by boys. Buyi people will hold a three-day festival on February 2, mainly to worship the land god. On the day of the festival, every family kills chickens to worship their ancestors and eats two-color (black and white) glutinous rice to pray for the peace of the whole village.

There are many activities about dragons on this day, so it is called Dragon Head-Up Day. The custom of raising dragon heads on February 2nd can be seen in Dong Liu and Yu Yizheng's "A Brief Introduction to the Scenery of the Imperial Capital" in the Ming Dynasty: "Raising dragons on February 2nd, putting leftover cakes from New Year's Day on the kang to smoke insects, which means attracting dragons, and insects can't get out." The Qing dynasty still followed its customs. Fu Cha Dunchong's Chronicle of Yanjing: "On February 2nd, the ancient Chinese Peace Festival was also celebrated. Let people look up. During the eclipse, those who eat cakes are called Longlin cakes, and those who eat noodles are called Longxu Noodles. Don't sew in the boudoir, lest you hurt the dragon's eyes. " The dragon is a saint in the ancient culture of China, an auspicious thing, and the master of wind and rain. As the saying goes, "the dragon doesn't look up, it doesn't rain", and the dragon looks up to make rain, and heaven and earth make love clouds to make rain, which is the condition for all things to have children. In addition, in ancient times, it was believed that the dragon was the essence of scale insects, and all kinds of insects were long. When the dragon came out, all kinds of insects hid. At the beginning of February, it is the time when spring returns to the earth and farming begins, and it is also the time when hundreds of insects are stinging and ready to move. Therefore, there are folk actions to help the dragon head, recruit the dragon head and shave the dragon head, and there are customs to eat dragon skin, dragon beard, dragon son and dragon forest cake, as well as taboos such as stopping needles and avoiding grinding.

4) The origin of "The Dragon Raises its Head on February 2"

On the second day of the second month of the lunar calendar, there is a proverb in China, "On the second day of February, the dragon looks up". In the north, February 2 is also called Dragon Head-Up Day, also known as Spring Festival. It was called the picnic festival in the south and the vegetable picking festival in ancient times. China people have had the custom of "February 2nd" since the Tang Dynasty. According to records, the origin of this sentence is related to the understanding of star movement in ancient astronomy and agricultural solar terms.

In the ancient astronomical observation model, 28 constellations were determined on the ecliptic on Sunday, which was called 28 nights. The ancients divided these 28 stars into four palaces according to the southeast and northwest, with 7 nights in each palace, and attached them to four kinds of animals according to their images. Among them, the seven nights in the East Palace is imagined as a dragon stretching from north to south, consisting of 30 stars.

Stars are relatively static. When the position of the earth's revolution makes the dragon constellation and the sun in the same direction, the sunlight will drown the starlight, and people will not see the dragon in the sky. After a while, the position of the earth shifted and the dragon constellation appeared again. Time and again, the ancients discovered this law and used it to judge the seasons.

The seven-night East Palace, known as the "Dragon Horn", appeared on the horizon on the first night, which was the time when spring came, so the ancients took its appearance as a symbol of spring. At this time, it coincides with the rainy solar term in February of the China lunar calendar, resulting in the saying that "on February 2nd, the dragon rises". Bai Juyi, a famous poet in the Tang Dynasty, said in a poem: "On February 2, it was sunny and rainy, and the grass buds were born for a while; The light shirt is thin and the horse is young, and the cross is full of words. "

5) On February 2nd of the Yuan Dynasty, it was clearly "the dragon looked up". On this day, people eat noodles, which is called "Longxu Noodles". There are pancakes called "Longlin"; If it includes jiaozi, it is called "dragon tooth".

It is a misunderstanding to call "the second day of the second lunar month" Zhonghe Festival. Zhonghe Festival originated in the Tang Dynasty. According to documents such as "Old Tang Shu De Zongji", Tang Dezong Zhenyuan has been taking February 1st as the Zhonghe Festival for five years. On this day, officials have a day off, and people fill green cloth bags with Cooper fruits and give them to each other. This is called "providing children". At that time, Chang 'an, the capital of China, also made cakes with glutinous rice, which were called "sun cakes" to worship the sun. The custom of offering sacrifices to the sun on Zhonghe Festival continued until the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Because the second day of the Sino-Japanese festival is February 2, some people in later generations confuse the two.

It was in the Yuan Dynasty that the "Dragon Rising on February 2" officially formed a folk festival. China has been an agricultural country since ancient times, and the climate plays a decisive role in agricultural harvest. This festival reflects the expectations of the general public for the spring rain, hoping that there will be enough rain in spring to lay the foundation for a bumper harvest in autumn.

Why does it take "February 2" to raise the dragon's head? Because February of the lunar calendar has entered the mid-spring season, at this time, the sun is in full swing, the earth is recovering, and plants are sprouting. It is very necessary for farmers to plow and sow in spring, so it is necessary to keep the soil moist and water-retaining. If it rains at this time, it is really precious, so there is a saying that "spring rain is as expensive as oil". In terms of solar terms, early February is between "rain", "fright" and "vernal equinox". This is a time when it needs to rain, and it may rain. How people hope to achieve the purpose of rainfall by praying for dragons.

Why does the dragon "look up"? Because before and after the shock pad in early February, all kinds of animals that had been dormant for a winter recovered their vitality, so it's time to do something. The dragon looks up, indicating that the dragon is also moving and has to perform the duty of rainfall. However, this statement is the usual explanation of "the dragon rises on February 2", which is easy to understand. However, "the dragon looks up" has an ancient astronomical explanation and is often ignored.

The ancients thought that the earth was motionless and the sun was moving. As early as the Spring and Autumn Period or even earlier, people regarded the annual orbit of the sun between stars as a circle, which is the so-called ecliptic. Then divide the circle into 28 equal parts with some stars to form 28 intervals, which are called 28 places. "Accommodation" means living. If you observe the movement of the moon, you basically stay for one night every day, 28 nights in turn, about one month, so it is called "lodging". Divide these 28 huts in four directions: southeast, northwest and northwest, and there will be 7 huts in each direction. For these 28 nights, they are all named. The seven hotels in the East are called Jiao, Kang, Bian, Fang, Xin, Wei and Ji, which are combined into one group and called the Oriental Black Dragon. Among them, the horn is the symbol of the dragon's head, the kang is the dragon's neck, the night is the dragon's chest, the room is the dragon's stomach, the heart is the dragon's heart, and the tail and jump are the dragon's tail. In winter, these seven nights in the Black Dragon are hidden under the horizon and can't be seen after dusk. In early February, when dusk came, hornbills appeared from the eastern horizon. At this point, the whole body of the black dragon is still hidden below the horizon, and only a corner is exposed, so the black dragon looks up. Explaining the word "dragon", Shuo Wen Jie Zi said: "Dragon is the length of scale worm. It can be quiet and clear, detailed and huge, short and long. The vernal equinox ascends to the sky and the autumnal equinox dives deeply. " They all refer to the subtle changes of black dragon's seven nights, but there are not really beasts and dragons changing. "Ascending to the sky at the vernal equinox" means that at the vernal equinox, corner beams begin to appear in the sky, and the oriental black dragon appears, that is, the dragon looks up.

In ancient China, the worship of dragons continued, and dragons were more and more clearly regarded as animal gods in charge of rain. Therefore, in the fifth year of Zuo Zhuan, Huan Gong said that "the dragon is now", which means that the dragon will appear after being electrocuted and stung, and a sacrifice to pray for rain will be held at this time. Shan Hai Jing, a geographical myth work during the Warring States Period, also said that Ying Long lived in the south, "so it was rainy in the south", while Candle dragon "didn't eat or sleep, and the wind and rain were a disaster", which often attracted wind and rain. Because imaginary dragons can fly in clouds and fog, superstitious dragons can bring good luck to people, and when they arrive on earth, they can become emperors, so the emperor is called the real dragon emperor.

The earliest record of holding a rain-seeking activity directly with the help of the image of a dragon can be found in Dong Zhongshu's Spring and Autumn Stories in the Western Han Dynasty. The book mentions dancing dragons for rain. The stone reliefs of the Han Dynasty are also engraved with the dance scene of "playing with dragons". These can be regarded as the origin of playing dragon lanterns in later generations.

People in the Tang Dynasty have regarded the second day of February as a special day, saying that it is a day to welcome wealth, and eating "fruit to welcome wealth" on this day means eating some snacks. The court of the Song Dynasty also had special activities on this day. When the Song people carefully recorded the Southern Song Dynasty in Old Wulin, there was a "Cai Cai" royal banquet in the palace on the second day of February. At the banquet, fresh vegetables such as lettuce are planted in some small hooves (measuring instruments with small mouths and big bottoms), and the names are written on silk and placed under the hooves for everyone to guess. According to the result of the guess, there are rewards and punishments. This activity is both an early adopter and an entertainment, so at that time, "the palace is also more effective." However, these "February 2" activities in the Tang and Song Dynasties have nothing to do with "Dragon Rising".

February 2 of the Yuan Dynasty was clearly "the dragon looked up". Analysis of Tianjin Record mentioned that "February 2nd is the day when the dragon rises" when describing the customs of metropolis in Yuan Dynasty. On this day, people eat noodles, which is called "Longxu Noodles". There are pancakes called "Longlin"; If it includes jiaozi, it is called "dragon tooth". In short, it should be named after the dragon body.

After the Yuan Dynasty, there were more records about various folk activities of "Dragon Rising on February 2". People also call this day the Dragon Head Festival, Spring Dragon Festival or Qinglong Festival. The Chronicle of Yanjing Years Old in the late Qing Dynasty said: "February 2nd ..... Today people call for the dragon to look up. During the eclipse, those who eat cakes are called Longlin cakes, and those who eat noodles are called Longxu Noodles. Don't sew in the boudoir, lest you hurt the dragon's eyes. " At this time, not only should we eat cakes and noodles, but women can't do needlework for fear of hurting the dragon's eyes. "Liaozhong County Records" recorded the local folk custom of February 2 in the Republic of China, saying: "February 2, commonly known as the dragon looks up. In the morning, knocking on the beam with a pole means knocking on the tap, which means that the dragon stabbed to the ground and covered the shock stage. Farmers eat cakes and steamed bread made of coarse rice flour for breakfast. Therefore, women shave their children every day, covering up the meaning of the dragon's head. " This is a folk custom in Liaoning. Knock on the beam with a long pole in the morning to wake up the dragon. At the same time, I also make some pasta to eat.

In addition to eating pasta, there are activities to fetch water from home. The Qing Dynasty's "Wan Shu Miscellaneous People" said: "On February 2, everyone called the dragon to look up, and the villagers used gray twisted cloth to enter the kitchen from the outside and circled the water tank, which was called bringing the dragon back." This activity is in the early morning of the festival. People scatter plant ash and chaff all the way from the river and the well to the water tank at home, just to have good weather. If you don't trust, only when it rains, you must bring water into your home and let the rain fall on your own fields, so that you can get what you want. This is a reflection of the economic consciousness of small farmers. In some places, there are activities of playing dragon lanterns, which also means begging for rain. It is a custom in many places to pay attention to shaving your head on this day.

Since the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the activities of "smoking insects" and "frying beans" have been added on February 2nd. The Ming Dynasty's "A Brief Introduction to the Scenery of the Imperial Capital" said: "On February 2, the dragon looked up ... smoked the bed kang and smoked the insects, so as to attract the dragon, the insects could not get out." In the Qing Dynasty, Kangxi's Daxing County Records recorded that "on February 2, each family made vegetarian cakes and fried them, which was called smoked insects."

Why do you want to smoke insects? At the beginning of February in the lunar calendar, the weather is getting warmer and the insects are beginning to stir. Some insects are harmful to human health. Therefore, on this day, more and more people use fried food and pancakes to smoke and kill insects. This is a concept that emphasizes hygiene. In the north, such as Hebei, Shandong, Shaanxi and other places, there is also the custom of eating fried beans to repel insects. People soak soybeans in salt water for a period of time, then take them out and stir-fry them in a pot. Soon, soybeans jumped in the pot to warn insects and drive them away. As for some articles mentioning that there are some folk customs in Beijing, such as "picking up aunts on February 2", I don't need to go into details here.

As an ancient folk festival, the rise of the Dragon on February 2 has basically faded out of the modern life of China people. However, we should also realize some cultural connotations of "the dragon rises on February 2", such as the worship of dragons by the ancients and the materialistic explanation of "the dragon rises" in ancient astronomy, which still has research value.