What are the traditional customs among the people during the Beginning of Summer?

The Beginning of Summer is on May 5 or 6 every year, when the sun reaches 45 degrees of ecliptic longitude. The arrival of Beginning of Summer heralds the change of seasons and is the beginning of summer, which was divided into four seasons according to the lunar calendar in ancient times. What are the traditional customs of the people during the Beginning of Summer? This article is a compilation of information on the traditional customs of the people during the Beginning of Summer. This article is for reference only.

Traditional folk customs at the beginning of summer. As the beginning of summer, there are naturally some colorful customs spread among the people, and these customs have continued to this day, with different customs in different places.

At noon that day, every household cooked whole eggs (boiled eggs in shells and cannot be damaged), soaked them in cold water for a few minutes, then put them in the already woven silk mesh bags and hung them around the children's necks. superior. The children gathered in groups and played egg-fighting games. The egg is divided into two ends, the pointed one is the head and the round one is the tail. When fighting eggs, the head of the egg fights the head of the egg, and the tail of the egg hits the tail of the egg. They fight each other one by one, and the loser admits defeat, and finally the winner is determined. The winner of the egg head is the first, and the egg is called the big king; the winner of the egg tail is the second, and the egg is called the little king or the second king.

Lunch is glutinous rice with peas mixed in. There must be special dishes such as boiled eggs, whole bamboo shoots, and shelled peas on the table. The local custom is to eat eggs in pairs and bamboo shoots in pairs, no matter how many peas there are. According to folklore, eating eggs in the Beginning of Summer will make you feel happy. Because the egg is shaped like a heart, people believe that eating the egg will protect the heart and spirit from loss. After the Beginning of Summer comes the hot summer. In order to prevent the body from losing weight in the hot summer, the Beginning of Summer should take supplements. Eye diseases were common in ancient times. In order to eliminate eye diseases, people ate peas to pray that their eyes would be as clear as fresh peas and that they would be free from disease and disaster.

There is a custom of weighing people after lunch at the beginning of summer. People hang a large wooden scale at the entrance of the village or at the gate of the platform, with a stool hanging from the scale hook. Everyone takes turns sitting on the stool to weigh people. The person weighing the scales said auspicious words while weighing the flowers. The old man said: "The scale flower is eighty-seven, and the life is ninety-one". The scale girl said: "One hundred and five kilograms," and someone from outside the ministry came to the door. Don't agree, don't agree, don't agree, it's fate that the number one scholar is your destiny. The child who weighed the scale said, "One dozen flowers weigh twenty-three, and the little official will be a good man when he grows up." The county magistrate of the seventh grade should not be in trouble, and the three public servants and nine ministers are easy to conquer. Scale flowers can only be played from the inside (that is, from a small number to a large number), not from the outside.

As for the origin of this custom, folklore says it is related to the story of Meng Huo and Liu Adou. It is said that Meng Huo was subdued by Zhuge Liang and after surrendering to the Shu Kingdom, he followed Zhuge Liang's advice. On his deathbed, Zhuge Liang asked Meng Huo to visit the Lord of Shu once a year. The day Zhuge Liang gave the order happened to be the beginning of summer that year, and Meng Huo immediately went to pay homage to Adou. From then on, every summer, Meng Huo came to Shu to visit him. A few years later, Sima Yan, Emperor Wu of Jin Dynasty, destroyed Shu and kidnapped Adou. Meng Huo did not forget the prime minister's request. Every year at the beginning of summer, he led his troops to Luoyang to visit Dou. Every time he went, he would weigh Adou's weight to verify whether Adou was being mistreated by Emperor Wu of Jin. He threatened that if he treated Adou badly, he would raise an army to rebel against the Jin Dynasty. In order to accommodate Meng Huo, Emperor Wu of the Jin Dynasty cooked glutinous rice and peas to make lunch for Adou on the Beginning of Summer every year. Adou saw that the peas and glutinous rice were glutinous and fragrant, so he ate twice as much. Meng Huo went to the city to weigh people, and every time they weighed a few kilograms more than the previous year. Although Adou had no skills, Emperor Wu of Jin did not dare to bully him because of Meng Huo's act of weighing people in the early summer, and he lived a peaceful and happy life with good fortune and longevity. Although this legend is different from historical facts, what the people hope for is a peaceful world with peace and happiness, happiness and longevity. Weighing people at the beginning of summer will bring blessings to Adou, and people also pray to God to bring them good luck.

Customs of the Beginning of Summer - Prevention of Summer Sickness

The Beginning of Summer is also called the Beginning of Summer Festival. In Wenzhou, every family eats bamboo shoots and Huai beans (ie broad beans, because their species come from the two Huaihe Rivers, so Called Huaidouzi) and green plum seeds. In Yueqing, every family, young and old, eats tea eggs, green plums, fresh bamboo shoots, and fresh broad beans, thinking that it can prevent "skin disease" (people will become thin and weak in summer). After transplanting rice seedlings in the countryside, farmers kill chickens and ducks to nourish the body, and give water chestnuts to the cattle to strengthen their muscles and bones, in preparation for the next step of "double summer" work. Every family also makes wheat cakes or black rice flour cakes to offer sacrifices to their ancestors, both rich and poor.

The Custom of Beginning of Summer - Buying Red Flowers

During the Beginning of Summer, in various parts of southern Zhejiang, every household also buys safflower and new tea for use in the new year. There is a poem that says:? At the beginning of summer, on the clear day of April, I discussed with my husband how to pay for the new year. I couldn't wait for the red flowers, salt and vegetables, so I bought new tea to celebrate the new year.

? Because new grains are being planted at that time, and it is the time when harvests are not harvested. If you do not reserve firewood and rice, it will be expensive to buy when there is a shortage. At the same time, the silkworm moth emerges from the cocoon and pulls out new silk. If the tea leaves are not collected, they will become old leaves after this. Safflower is used for dyeing women's clothes. It is produced in April and must be purchased in time.

Customs of the Beginning of Summer - Addressing People

The custom of "addressing people" on the day of the Beginning of Summer is mainly popular in southern my country and originated from the Three Kingdoms era: Meng Huo was conquered by Zhuge Liang and after he surrendered to the Kingdom of Shu, Follow Zhuge Liang's advice. On his deathbed, Zhuge Liang asked Meng Huo to visit the Lord of Shu once a year. The day of Zhuge Liang's instructions happened to be the beginning of summer that year, and Meng Huo immediately went to pay homage to Adou. From then on, Meng Huo came to visit me every summer. Many years later, Sima Yanhuo, Emperor Wu of Jin Dynasty, conquered Shu and kidnapped Adou. Meng Huo did not forget the great trust he had received from his prime minister. Every year at the beginning of summer, he led his troops to Luoyang to visit Adou. Every time he went there, he weighed Adou to verify whether Adou had been mistreated by Emperor Wu of Jin. He threatened that if he treated Adou badly, he would raise an army to attack Jin. In order to win Meng Huo's trust, Emperor Wu of the Jin Dynasty cooked glutinous rice and peas to make lunch for Adou on the Beginning of Summer every year. Adou saw the glutinous and fragrant peas and glutinous rice, and his appetite increased greatly. When Meng Huo went to the city to pay his respects, he was a few kilograms heavier than the previous year every time. Although Adou had no skills, Emperor Wu of the Jin Dynasty did not dare to treat him badly because of Meng Huo's act of becoming a man in the Lixia period, and his life was peaceful, with good fortune and longevity. Although this legend is inconsistent with history, what the people hope for is a peaceful world with peace and happiness, happiness and longevity. Lixia said that people can bring blessings to Adou, and people also hope that God will bring them good luck. The custom of weighing people at the beginning of summer has been passed down to this day. On the day of the beginning of summer, after lunch, people hang up a large wooden scale at the entrance of the village or at the gate of the platform, with a stool hanging from the scale hook. Everyone takes turns sitting on the stool to weigh. An ancient poem goes: "In the beginning of summer, people are weighed and weighed, and the boudoir laughs and makes noises on the hanging beam." ?The person weighing the scale said auspicious words while weighing the flowers. When calling an old man, he said: "A flower weighs eighty-seven and lives to be ninety-one." When he called her a girl, she said: "One hundred and five kilograms," and someone from outside the ministry came to the door. Don't agree, don't agree, don't agree, don't you agree? Is it fate for the number one scholar? When weighing a child, it is said: "One dozen flowers weigh twenty-three, and the little official will be a good man when he grows up." The county magistrate of the seventh grade should not be in trouble, and the three public servants and nine ministers are easy to conquer. Scale flowers can only be played from the inside (that is, from a small number to a large number), not from the outside.

On the first day of summer, there is a custom of weighing people in various places. Hang a large scale in the atrium or patio of your home. Men, women and children at home can weigh them, but the main purpose is to weigh the children. There is a touching legend among the people: It is said that during the Three Kingdoms period, Zhao Zilong rescued Liu Adou from Cao Ying's million-strong army at Changbanpo. Adou's biological mother, Mrs. Mi, committed suicide by throwing herself into a well in order not to drag Zhao Yun down. Adou was taken care of by Liu Bei himself. But Liu Bei was fighting in the north and south, and it was inconvenient to take the child with him in the army, so he thought it would be better to leave Adou to his later wife, Mrs. Sun (Sun Quanmei), to raise him. So Liu Bei prepared many gifts, and Zhao Zilong escorted Adou to the Kingdom of Wu. When we arrived in Wu State, it happened to be the Beginning of Summer Festival. When Mrs. Sun saw the fair and fat little Adou, she liked it very much, but she had concerns: I am the second wife after all. If Adou is not raised well, not only will it be difficult to explain to her husband, but she will also become a laughing stock among the people. She thought of a way: Today is the beginning of summer. I will weigh Adou in front of Zhao Zilong. I will weigh Adou again at the beginning of summer next year. Then I will know whether the child is well raised. After making up her mind, Mrs. Sun immediately asked someone to weigh the little Ah Dou. From then on, Mrs. Sun would greet Little Adou every year on the Beginning of Summer and then report to Liu Bei. In this way, in the Jiangnan area, the custom of addressing people on the Beginning of Summer was formed. There are also some taboos when weighing people. For example, when weighing, the weight cannot move inward, but can only move outward, which means it can only increase the weight, not reduce it. Another example is that the number of pounds that is weighed is nine, and one more pound must be added when counting, because nine is the last number and is unlucky. Usually, the weighing is repeated on the Beginning of Summer in the second year to test whether one is fat or thin during the year. In Huzhou, a child who is being weighed must put a stone in his pocket. Firstly, it increases the weight, and secondly, it means longevity. In Ningbo, on this day, a large scale is hung in the ancestral hall, and a basket is hung on the scale hook. Adults and children are weighed one by one. It is said that they can avoid the suffering of summer heat. Gaining weight is said to make them gain weight every year. Losing weight is called "eating meat". , you need to take supplements.

Customs of the Beginning of Summer - Wu Lang Ba Bao went to Mount Wu

At the beginning of summer, workers in various industries took a vacation and went to Wu Mountain to play. There is a Hangzhou proverb: Wu Lang Ba Bao went to Wu Mountain.

?Wulang refers to the rice pounder, the shaver, the horse dumper (the one who produces dung), the cobbler, and the foil beater. The eight treasures are the bartender, the noodle treasurer, the tea treasurer, the rice treasurer, the land treasurer, the horse treasurer, the phase treasurer (yin and yang), and the milk treasurer (who is engaged in raising babies). Thirteen craftsmen went to Wushan that day. The Thirteen Craftsmen are carpenters, plasterers, stonemasons, blacksmiths, shipwrights, Buddhist carvers, carvers, painters, silversmiths, coppersmiths, sawmakers, bamboo cutters, and potters.

Customs of the Beginning of Summer - hanging eggs and fighting eggs

As the saying goes: "If you hang eggs on your chest at the Beginning of Summer, your children will not have summer cramps." ?Diarrhea is a common symptom of abdominal distension, anorexia, fatigue and weight loss in summer, and children are very easy to recover from it. At noon in the Beginning of Summer, people boil A-ring eggs (boiled eggs in shells and cannot be damaged), soak them in cold water for a few minutes, then put them in a woven silk mesh bag and hang them around their children's necks. To pray for the healthy growth of children in the summer. The children with eggs hanging on their chests gathered together in twos and threes to play egg fighting. The egg has two ends, the pointed one is the head and the round one is the tail. When fighting eggs, the head of the egg fights the head of the egg, and the tail of the egg hits the tail of the egg. Fight one by one, the loser will admit defeat, and the winner will be decided in the end. The winner of the egg head is the first, and the egg is called the big king; the winner of the egg tail is the second, and the egg is called the little king or the second king.

The Customs of the Beginning of Summer - Worshiping Ancestors and Gods

As the beginning of a season, people have paid great attention to the Beginning of Summer since ancient times. According to historical records, during the Zhou Dynasty, on the first day of summer, the emperor would lead his ministers to the southern suburbs to hold ceremonies to welcome the summer. After the ceremony, the officials in charge of the fields, mountains and forests were ordered to patrol the plains of heaven and earth on behalf of the emperor. Condolence and encourage farmers to work hard. In addition, the emperor also had to present pigs to the ancestral temple and hold a ceremony to taste the new wheat when the agricultural officials presented it. Among the people, on the day of the Beginning of Summer, newly harvested fruits are used as offerings to the gods to express a new harvest. The first thing that comes to mind is to tell the gods and ancestors that these vegetables and grains have been harvested and dedicated to them for their enjoyment.

During the Beginning of Summer, the weather is unpredictable, and hail may occur in some places. Therefore, in ancient times, farmers had the custom of worshiping the Hail God in the countryside on the Beginning of Summer, in order to pray for the elimination of hail disasters and a bumper harvest.

The traditional custom of eating shad in the Beginning of Summer

Wenzhou has the custom of eating shad in the Beginning of Summer. Anchovy is a famous fish in our country. Li Shizhen's "Compendium of Materia Medica" contains: "There are some in early summer, but not in the remaining months, so they are called shad." Every year at the turn of spring and summer, shad swarms travel up the sea and rivers to lay eggs. Their bodies are rich in fat and their meat is extremely delicious. ?It is said that after the Beginning of Summer, the anchovy bones become hard and unpalatable. For example, if you give anchovies to someone before the festival, they usually have fragrant flowers on the hairpin. Sun Qinxi's "Poetry of Giving Small Stones to Send Anchovies" written by Ruian in the Qing Dynasty contains the line "When the yellow croaker Fengxin is picking up flowers, he also orders fairy flowers to send snow shad", and notes: "I send shad to my hometown, and cover them with rose flowers." Up, the posture becomes more wonderful. ?

Eat supplementary food

Jiande folk song: ?At the beginning of summer, eat supplementary food. ?Generally, they eat roasted eggs with red dates and stewed chicken with astragalus to nourish the body and prepare them for intense agricultural work. There are also people who take the Five Tiger Pills, which are red dates, black dates, walnuts, longan, and lychee. There are also those who eat "three and a half", that is, one and two each of dangshen, astragalus, and angelica, and half and a half of achyranthes.

Burning wild rice

In Jiaxing, there is a custom of burning wild rice. Wild rice is usually held in groups of children. Each family gathers firewood and rice, picks fresh broad beans from the fields, and cooks the broad bean rice in a pot outdoors (sometimes adding a small amount of bacon and spring bamboo shoots). In Huzhou, children in the village, either three to five, or six or seven, go outside the village to cook wild rice. The rice comes from hundreds of families begging from each family. For the dishes, broad beans and peas can be picked from any family's field (not counting stealing, But you are not allowed to harvest only one field, you must go to several fields). Some children went to the river beach to fish, and the girls set up the pots and collected firewood. It is believed that people who have eaten wild pot rice will no longer suffer from summer heat and will become smarter and more diligent. On the 12th day of the twelfth month of the lunar month, on the birthday of Silkworm Hua, farmers in Deqing knead several puppies out of rice flour and hang them in a ventilated place to dry in the shade. They are commonly called "Lixia Dogs". When the wild pot rice is cooked on the Beginning of Summer, the rice-flour puppies are washed and cooked together with the wild pot rice. It is said that children who eat it become stronger than dogs. The adults eat Lixia wine at home. On this day, there are maltose cakes available in the market, and there are also homemade ones.

Eating Beginning of Summer Rice

In the old days, on the day of Beginning of Summer, people in most places used red beans, soybeans, black beans, green beans, mung beans and other five-color beans mixed with white japonica rice to cook five-color rice. ?, later evolved into glutinous rice cooked with Loudou meat, and the dishes include Micai yellow croaker soup, which is called "Beginning of Summer Rice". The local custom is to eat eggs in pairs, bamboo shoots in pairs, and peas are not counted.

Place boiled eggs, whole bamboo shoots, shelled peas and other special dishes on the table. It is said that eating eggs in the Beginning of Summer is the most important thing for people. Because the egg is shaped like a heart, people believe that eating eggs can replenish the heart and spirit. After the Beginning of Summer comes the hot summer. In order to prevent the body from being depleted in the hot summer, you should take supplements at the Beginning of Summer. Rongzhou proverb has prosperous life, which means that people's legs are as strong as spring bamboo shoots and can walk long distances, which means the main leg. Shelled peas are shaped like eyes. Ancient people often had eye diseases. They ate peas to pray that their eyes would be as clear as fresh peas and that they would be free from disease and disaster. Ningbo's Beginning of Summer custom is to eat "foot bone bamboo shoots", which are cooked with black bamboo shoots. Each one is three to four inches long and are not cut open. When eating, you have to pick two bamboo shoots of the same thickness and eat them in one bite. It is said that eating them can help the foot bones. Jian? (good health). People in Changsha, Hunan Province, eat soup balls made of glutinous rice flour mixed with wormwood on the beginning of summer, called "Lixia Geng".

Folk proverb goes: "After eating the Beginning of Summer soup, the stones will be trampled into a pit"; "Eating a dumpling (pronounced as "Tuo") in the Beginning of Summer and crossing the river with one foot means that the metaphorical power is endless and the body is as light as a Yan. Farmers in suburban counties of Shanghai use wheat flour and sugar to make long strips of food called "wheat silkworms" on the first day of the summer. People eat them and say they can avoid the disease. Folks in Tongshan County, Hubei Province regard the Beginning of Summer as a grand festival. People in Tongshan eat pickles, shrimps, and bamboo shoots in the Beginning of Summer. They say: "eat pickles to make your eyes bright, eat shrimps to make you strong, and eat bamboo shoots to strengthen your bones." In southern Fujian, people eat shrimp noodles at the beginning of summer. They buy sea shrimp and mix it with noodles to cook. The sea shrimp turns red when cooked, which is an auspicious color. Shrimp is a homophone for summer, which expresses wishes for summer. In the eastern Fujian area, people mainly eat "guangbing" (baked with flour and a little salt) during the Beginning of Summer. In Zhouning and Fu'an in eastern Fujian, the cakes are soaked in water and made into dishes, while in Jiaocheng, Fuding and other places they cut the cakes in half and add fried bean sprouts, leeks, meat, pickled vegetables, etc. And eat it. Some villages in Chunchi Town, Zhouning County, eat "Beginning of Summer Paste". There are two main types: rice paste and sweet potato flour paste. A large pot is used to cook the soup, which is rich in content, including meat, bamboo shoots, wild vegetables, chicken and duck offal, tofu, etc. Neighbors are invited to drink the soup. This is somewhat similar to the custom of eating "Qijia porridge" at the beginning of summer in rural areas of eastern Zhejiang. "Qijia Porridge" and "Qijia Tea" are also another way to try new things in the Beginning of Summer. "Qijia Porridge" collects rice from neighboring families, adds various beans and brown sugar, and cooks it into a big pot of porridge. . It’s up to everyone to share. ?Qijia Tea? Each family brings their own newly roasted tea leaves, mixes them, cooks or brews them into a large pot of tea, and then everyone sits together and drinks it. These porridge or tea are not necessarily delicious foods, but these rituals can be said to be important social activities in the old rural society. There is a saying that after eating this kind of porridge, neighbors will be harmonious and they can devote themselves to summer farming.

In Lishui, bamboo shoots, peas and glutinous rice are cooked into rice on this day, which is called "Beginning of Summer Rice". In Qingyuan County, every family eats fragrant soup during the Beginning of Summer, also known as "Lixia Soup". Eggs are eaten all over Jinhua, which is called "Lixia Egg". Eat bamboo shoots in Dongyang and other places. Eating green plums in Pujiang and Yiwu is said to avoid foot soreness, commonly known as "joint foot stems". There is a custom in various places that people should not sit on the threshold, as it is said that if you sit on it, your hands and feet will be sore all year round. Dongyang's old custom is that women have their eyebrows trimmed and their ears pierced, and calves' noses pierced, mostly on this day.

Drunken Summer

In Taizhou, during the Beginning of Summer Festival, young ramie leaves are picked, boiled and pounded into pulp, mixed with wheat flour to make pancakes, spread on a pan to make wheat pancakes, and wrapped in meat. Eat vegetarian meat. People who don't know how to drink alcohol drink a little or eat glutinous rice and fermented wine on this day to get drunk before taking a break, so it's called "Drunk Summer". The elderly also eat chicken porridge to replenish their body. Taizhou natives also eat green plums, eggs, and longans. It is said that if you eat longan, your eyes will be clear all year round, if you eat plums, your back will not be sore in the summer, and if you eat eggs, you can strengthen your foot bones. The Hokkien people in Yuhuan steam eggs and pork with brown sugar and old wine as a tonic for the Beginning of Summer.

Eat healthy-footed bamboo shoots

At the beginning of summer, the stalagmites have just emerged. In the mountainous countryside of Huzhou, every family digs up a few stalagmites, simmers them in the shell over a charcoal fire, simmers them and then peels them. Remove the shells of the bamboo shoots, dip them in some salt, soy sauce and pepper and eat them, which is called "healthy bamboo shoots". It is said that eating bamboo shoots can make the bones of the feet strong. In Zhoushan, at noon, cowpeas, glutinous rice, black bamboo shoots, soft vegetables, scallop crabs, pomfret, etc. are used to worship ancestors. The cooked black bamboo shoots and soft vegetables are not chopped into pieces and are called "foot bone bamboo shoots" and "fanfeng vegetables". It is said that eating black bamboo shoots can strengthen the feet, eating soft vegetables can prevent heatstroke, and eating cowpea rice can prevent mosquito bites. In Jiande, mountain people also go to the mountains to pluck wild bamboo shoots, soak them whole in salt water and eat them, which is called "eating healthy bamboo shoots".

In Lin'an and Yuqian, every family cooks bamboo shoots and stews meat. After cooking, the whole family, men, women, old and young, eat two bamboo shoots each, and the children also add an egg. They think that eating an egg at the beginning of summer will give them ten thousand more strength. This custom still exists today.

Five-color rice

In Ningbo, each family cooks rice with red beans, soybeans, black beans, green beans, mung beans and other five-color adzuki beans mixed with white japonica rice. It is commonly known as "five-color rice", also called "five-color rice". Beginning of summer rice?. Zhenhai is called "Wutou", which means elders, husband, wife, son and daughter. Ninghai and other places call it "Colorful Auspiciousness". Each family also boils eggs with tea leaves, called "Lixia Eggs", and gives them to each other. In Fenghua and other places, there is still the custom of making rice duck eggs on this day. Eating cherries and red dates means your eyes are bright; eating conch clams means you are smart; eating fried broad beans means your teeth are strong. Cixi also has the custom of eating raw tofu.

Eating silkworm flower rice

It is customary to eat cherries, bamboo shoots, and old wine on this day. There is a custom of eating silkworm flower rice in Xinchang. Silkworm flower rice is a mixed rice cooked with three types of rice: glutinous rice, japonica rice, and chan rice. It is believed that silkworm flower rice will be good after eating salty meat silkworm rice.

Three roasts, five wax cakes and nine o'clock new ones

On this day, Hangzhou still has the custom of eating "three roasts", "five wax buns" and "nine o'clock new ones". The three roasts are summer cakes, chicken, and wine. Five cured meats, namely yellow croaker, salted duck eggs, sea clams, bacon, and Qingming dogs. Nine o'clock is new, that is, cherries, plums, anchovies, broad beans, amaranth, bamboo shoots, soybeans, roses, black rice cakes, and lettuce bamboo shoots. He also eats small wild bamboo shoots, thinking it can help people gain strength.

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