Holiday customs of Zhao family

(1) Spring Festival, that is, the first day of the first month, is also called "Chinese New Year" in Zhaojiacun. Spring Festival is the beginning of a year, and it is also the most important festival in a year. Early in the Spring Festival, everyone puts on new clothes and opens the door to set off firecrackers, which is called "opening the door to set off firecrackers". After the firecrackers, the ground was smashed with red, which was called "full house red" to offer sacrifices to the kitchen god, burn incense candles (a kind of folded yellow paper) paper (burning paper), and respect the ancestors. After breakfast, it is a New Year call. The forms of villagers' New Year greetings in Zhao Jia village can be roughly divided into three categories: one is family-style New Year greetings, which is respect for ancestors, and the younger generation must kowtow to the central family that serves the deceased ancestors. Then according to the seniority, the younger generation kowtows to the elders to pay New Year greetings. Worshipped elders should distribute walnuts, candy and so on to their children. The newly married daughter-in-law must worship the family elders, and the worshippers should give gifts. Kowtowing to pay New Year greetings is the most complete and lasting way for villagers in Zhao Jia village to pay New Year greetings. However, it is taboo for unmarried girls to kowtow to celebrate the New Year. The villagers said that unmarried girls kowtowed to the "iron head". The second is to pay a courtesy visit to colleagues and friends to pay New Year greetings, usually just bowing. The third is to be grateful for the New Year, bring some gifts to those who owe others' feelings, and take the opportunity to express their gratitude. After New Year's greetings, literary and art lovers can take part in various entertainment activities such as Yangko and Shehuo.

(2) On the second day of the first month, my nephew worships my uncle, my son-in-law worships Zhang Yue, and my married daughter worships her mother. In particular, newlyweds must pay a New Year call to their elders at home in Zhang Yue on this day, and the New Year visitors will host a banquet and give gifts to the "new son-in-law". With the innovation of social etiquette, the custom of young people kowtowing to their relatives to pay New Year's greetings has gradually faded, so walking is generally enough.

Other relatives and friends worship each other on the third and fourth days.

(3) On the fifth day of the first month, people in Zhao Jia Village are also called "Five Poor", and they are used to eating "jiaozi", which is called "filling the poor pit". It is inappropriate to do anything on the day when the five-year plan is broken, especially not to use sharp tools such as knives, scissors and needles, or something will happen in the new year. The activities of people in Zhaojiacun are mainly to shake the poor and send them to the poor. (1) earthquake poor, zhao village people also called "ring poor pit", "Fried poor pit". Every Friday, the whole village sets off firecrackers, burns incense and makes sacrifices to protest against poverty. Send to the poor. On this day, many families collectively bathe, wash their hair and wash their clothes, which is called "washing the scabies of the poor". Wash away the "poor scab", glow, get rid of poverty and get rich. The activity of breaking the five-year plan is the ancestors' fear of poverty and their yearning for a rich and fulfilling life.

(4) Seven days, that is, the seventh day of the first month. It is said that Nu Wa created chickens, dogs, pigs, cows, horses and other animals at the beginning of the world, and then created people on the seventh day, so this day is the birthday of mankind. According to legend, this day is also the day when the soul returns. There are many taboos, and almost nothing is suitable. In particular, sharp tools such as knives, scissors and needles should not be used, otherwise it will be bad for the soul. On that day, every household's diet was mainly long noodles, also called "noodles without soul". "Soul collection" is the abbreviation of caring for the soul, and "Soul collection" is also a symbol of disaster-free and disease-free, healthy and long life.

(5) The Lantern Festival, that is, the fifteenth day of the first month, is called "the fifteenth day" or "the fifteenth day" in Zhaocun. Lantern Festival is the first full moon night of the New Year. The main activities of people in Zhao Jia village during the Tenth Five-Year Plan period are as follows: ① Setting off firecrackers in the morning, that is, getting up to welcome the arrival of the Tenth Five-Year Plan. (2) Sacrificial activities such as offering sacrifices to ancestors to sweep graves and send stoves at night. It is particularly important to offer sacrifices to graves. Usually the direct descendants of the deceased. Before dark, they took incense paper (a kind of folded yellow paper) and mingbi, bowed down at the tomb of the deceased, burned incense, burned paper and mingbi, and placed their grief on another full moon night. (3) Set off firecrackers and fireworks to celebrate the15th National Day. (4) Hang lanterns. After dark, hang lanterns in front of every household and stay up all night. Children carry lanterns, light fireworks and wander around. From a distance, everything is red and very spectacular. Zhaojiacun used to be a famous village that made paper lanterns. According to its shape, the varieties are: cow dung, cupping, watermelon, lotus, lantern car and so on. ⑤ Play social fire, including walking on stilts, jumping Zhong Kui, floats, etc. Zhaojiacun, who plays social fire, is also famous. There was an early rural proverb that said, "The Zhao family has many children. They were playing with fire when they sold the land. They didn't plant peas until February and a half. " Although derogatory, it is enough to show that Zhaojiacun's social fire is very famous. In recent years, because the pace of people's life has become faster, most of the people who work outside the home went to work before the 15th, and the school also asked their children to go back to school to register on this day, so the Lantern Festival on the 15th day of the first month gradually became cold.

(6) On the 24th day of the first month, people in Zhao Jia Village called it "Liaogan Festival". In the early morning of this day, housewives usually use the wheat straw harvested in the previous year to burn a fire at the water hole (the drain of rainwater and sewage) outside their walls, and bake the recently used daily tools and other items on the flame. Children jump around on the fire to show evil spirits, eliminate disasters and get rid of diseases, hoping that the family business will prosper. People in Zhao Jia Village were forbidden to bake cakes and pot helmets before the 24th day of the first month, and they can only bake cakes and pot helmets when the weather is hot after the Liaogan Festival.

(7) Tomb-Sweeping Day, generally around April 5th of the Gregorian calendar. Tomb-Sweeping Day is not only an important festival, but also an important solar term. "Before and after Tomb-Sweeping Day, point melons and grow beans" means that Tomb-Sweeping Day is regarded as a solar term. People in Zhao Jia Village visit graves in Tomb-Sweeping Day, mainly to visit graves, worship ancestors and plant trees. The details of grave sweeping activities are the same as those of Lantern Festival.

(8) Dragon Boat Festival, that is, the fifth day of the fifth lunar month. People in Zhao Jia Village pay attention to eating zongzi and glutinous rice during the Dragon Boat Festival. Insert mugwort leaves on the lintel, stick mugwort leaves on children's ears, coat realgar wine on their palms, hang sachets on their chests, and tie flower ropes on their wrists and ankles. In order to achieve the functions of suppressing evil spirits, expelling worms and eliminating diseases. In the past, children wore "belly wrap" on the Dragon Boat Festival. As the name implies, "Chinese-style chest covering" is a small dress wrapped around the stomach, which helps to protect children from catching cold. "Wrapping the belly" is also a gift that grandparents and uncles will give to their grandchildren and nephews when the Dragon Boat Festival approaches. "Wrapping the belly" itself is a work of art, with vivid embroidery patterns, "five poisons" and various flowers, birds, fish and cordyceps. There are many middle-aged and elderly women in Zhaojiacun who are experts in making "wrapped stomachs". Because few people wear it now, gastrointestinal diseases are frequent. It is said that the famous "505" magic vitality bag in the world today is inspired by "wrapping the stomach" and developed to prevent common gastrointestinal diseases.

(9) Mid-Autumn Festival, the 15th day of the eighth lunar month. It is relatively simple for people in Zhaojiacun to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival. On the night of the full moon, the atmosphere of reunion is relatively strong. Most families eat "fried cakes", and all kinds of seasonal fruits and moon cakes are placed in the yard to celebrate the harvest and harvest the autumn seeds by offering the moon. But after all, it's the busy farming season, and many moon-watching activities have been diluted by the busy farming season.

(10) Double Ninth Festival, the ninth day of the ninth lunar month. 29 is very important, also called "Double Nine". After the mid-Han dynasty, the Confucian concept of yin and yang has six yin and nine yang. Nine is a positive number, so "Double Nine" is also called "Double Nine". Because the homonym of "99" on the ninth day of September is "long" and has a long-term meaning, activities to worship ancestors and respect the elderly are often carried out on this day. Most people in Zhao Jia Village don't celebrate the Double Ninth Festival, but only on this day do they eat "jujube cakes". The homophones of "jujube cake" are "cake" and "high". As a holiday food, it is first to celebrate the harvest of autumn grain and like to taste new grain. The people have the auspicious meaning of "the more they eat, the higher they eat", "the higher they live" and "the richer they live".

(1 1) October 1st is also an important sacrifice day of June 65438+ October 1 in the ancient calendar. People in Zhaojiacun call the sacrificial activities on June 65438+ 10 1 "sending winter clothes". "Sending winter clothes" is a commemorative paper product made of paper and cotton and shaped like clothes. When winter comes, the immediate family members of the deceased will be cremated in front of the tomb of the deceased. "Sending winter clothes" is a form of "offering sacrifices to the grave", which expresses the grief of the living for the dead.

(12) Laba Festival, the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month. In ancient times, it was called "Lari". Since the pre-Qin period, Laba Festival has been used to worship ancestors and gods and pray for good harvest and good luck. It is said that the founder of Buddhism, Sakyamuni, attained enlightenment on the eighth day of December, so Laba is also a Buddhist festival, also known as "Buddhist Enlightenment Festival". People in Zhao Jia Village eat Laba porridge on Laba Festival. "Laba porridge" is made of eight kinds of raw materials, such as rice, millet, mung bean, adzuki bean, peanut, jujube and walnut kernel. It is extremely nutritious when cooked with strong fire and slow fire.

(13) Off-year, the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month, is also called "Festival of offering sacrifices to stoves". People in Zhao Jia Village celebrate the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month as a sacrifice to the Kitchen God. Because most families have posted portraits of the kitchen god near the stove, after a year of smoky fire, the portraits are old and black. It is necessary to take off old portraits and cremate them, paste new portraits, burn incense and paper, and even kill pigs and sheep as sacrifices. The purpose is to let the kitchen god "speak well in heaven and return to the palace for good luck." Most of the portraits of Kitchen God posted on the 23rd of the twelfth lunar month were removed and cremated after the 15th of the first month. As the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month approaches the Spring Festival, most families begin to clean the indoor dust on this day, and adults and children take a bath and have their hair cut. As the saying goes, "If you have money, you can shave your head for the New Year".

(14) New Year's Eve

New Year's Eve refers to the night on the last day of the twelfth lunar month, which is connected with the first day of the first month. The word "except" in "New Year's Eve" is "go; Easy; "Alternate" means "the month is poor and the old year is exhausted". People should get rid of the old year and welcome the new year. Therefore, the activities during the period are centered on resigning the old and welcoming the new, eliminating disasters and praying for blessings.

The activities of Zhao's New Year's Eve mainly include: ① Sticking to the door god, that is, sticking a portrait of the door god on the door leaf. There are some door gods, such as Qin Qiong, Wei Chijingde (Weichi Gong), Guan Yu and Zhang Fei. The door idol has a left door leaf and a right door leaf. Sticking Spring Festival couplets is a kind of couplets. Because they were posted during the Spring Festival, they were named Spring Festival couplets. The Zhao family is called "Yes". Spring Festival couplets are mostly written in red paper. But the temple is guarded by yellow paper and white yellow. Use white paper in the first year, yellow paper in the second and third years, and restore red paper after the funeral in the fourth year. On New Year's Eve, paste the prepared Spring Festival couplets on the gate. (3) Sacrificial activities such as graves and stoves. Sacrifice to sweep the grave is particularly important. Generally, the direct descendants of the deceased bring incense paper and mingbi before dark, bow down at the tomb of the deceased, burn incense, set off firecrackers, burn paper and mingbi to express their grief for the old year. (4) Shousui, also known as "sitting at night" in Zhao Jia village, starts with the New Year's Eve, and you should eat slowly, starting with lighting lanterns and sitting, and some families have to eat until late at night. The custom of observing the old age not only expresses the nostalgia for the fleeting time, but also expresses the good hope for the coming New Year. ⑤ Give lucky money, which is usually given to the younger generation by elders after the New Year's Eve, to encourage children and grandchildren to learn and grow in the new year. Some parents also put lucky money under their children's pillows after their children fall asleep at night. This reflects the care of the elders for the younger generation, and it is a custom that is integrated into family ethics. Farewell to the old firecrackers, is the end of the year, is a resounding future!