Composition of Unit 2, Volume 2, Chinese Language for Grade 6 published by People's Education Press: Hakka people celebrate important festivals

Hakka women are famous for their virtuous, diligent and thrifty people.

Wearing a straw hat and a large cardigan, carrying a child on her back, holding a rake, and walking barefoot in the fields, this is the traditional image of a Hakka woman. The custom of Hakka women wearing straw hats began in the late Song Dynasty. At that time, the Hakka ancestors moved south from the Central Plains. In order to survive, women also farmed and worked like men. However, it would be inappropriate for a woman to step out of her purdah and show herself in public, so she wears a bamboo hat on her head and a black cloth with two small holes to cover her face. Later, when they found it inconvenient in actual use, they cut the cloth short and sewed it around the brim to become a practical and beautiful hat. Later, they even removed the curtains and only wore bamboo hats. Precisely because of the need for work, Hakka women have never bound their feet, and their long cardigans are shortened from their original robes.

The twelfth day after a Hakka woman gives birth to a child is called the "Dachao", and she will give ginger wine to her neighbors as a sign of good news. Of course, the wine is Niangjiu that Hakka women eat during the "confinement period", and the ginger in the wine is particular, either ginger slices or ginger strips, indicating the birth of a boy or a girl respectively. Generally, the host does not need to mention it. When the neighbors see the ginger in the wine, they will say "Happy Nong Wa" or congratulate "Happy Nong Zhang". The so-called "Nong Wa" means giving birth to a girl and giving her tiles to play with. Nowadays in the Central Plains, girls are still called "Yatou Pianzi". I don't know if they have the same meaning; the so-called "Nong Zhang" means giving birth to a girl. Boy, give him jade to play with. Obviously, this gender tendency favors boys over girls. The expression of ginger slices and ginger strips is not only a symbol of gender, but also has the meaning of favoring boys over girls. To this day, the custom of giving ginger wine is still popular in the Hakka area. Of course, there has been no culture for a long time such as "Nong Wa" and "Nong Zhang". The most common thing to say to a baby boy is: "Congratulations, just like his father." "Yes!" To those who give birth to a girl, they usually comfort them by saying: "It's the same whether they are born boys or girls"; or they change the subject and ask about the mother's safety.

Similar to the use of ginger slices or strips to express gender, things can be found everywhere in the Hakka area, ranging from mountains and ravines to chopsticks and bowls and spoons. Almost anything round or triangular is used. It can be associated with women, and almost anything that is strip-shaped and straight can be associated with men.

New Year's Eve

"The New Year is the most solemn and joyful festival of the year". Hakka people, like most places across the country, regard the New Year as the most solemn and joyful festival of the year. People start preparing for the New Year very early. In September and October, sweet potato slices and rice cake slices are dried for frying and stir-frying during the New Year. As soon as the "Winter Solstice" arrives, wine begins to be steamed. On the thirtieth day of the new year, every household will steam sugar cakes, make rice crackers, butcher pigs, make tofu, slaughter chickens, etc. to welcome the new year happily

Sacrifice to the stove

December On the 23rd day of the 23rd day, sacrifices were made to the kitchen stove. After the evening of the 23rd day, the stove surface should be cleaned, the old one should be taken down and burned. On the morning of the 30th day, the new statue should be put up, and the gifts and greetings should be given away. Wine and meat should be arranged. Candies, sugar cane, rice crackers, etc. are burned in front of the stove, candles are lit, and paper cannons are set off.

Enter the New Year

On the 25th day of the twelfth lunar month, we enter the "New Year". People who go out have to rush home to celebrate the New Year. After reaching the age limit, children should be taught not to curse each other or say unlucky words. Before and after entering the new year, you should choose an auspicious day to sweep and clean the house. It is necessary to clean the kitchen tables and benches, wash and dry the bedding and mosquito nets, and celebrate the new year cleanly.

Celebrating the New Year

New Year’s Eve, also known as New Year’s Eve, is the most lively and joyful day during the New Year. On this morning, every household will worship Bodhisattva and worship gods. On New Year's Eve, portraits of ancestors should be hung in every hall, and bright red Spring Festival couplets should be pasted on the door. Red paper strips should be pasted on barn doors, in front of poultry stalls, on furniture, beds, and beside water tanks, which is called "Signing the New Year." ", also called "Shanghong". Both adults and children should take a bath, put on new clothes, and celebrate the New Year cleanly. Each hall must also display an offering table, arrange an incense table, and place chicken, fish, meat, fruits, etc. to worship the ancestors. On New Year's Eve, we have a reunion dinner with sumptuous dishes. A few extra sets of bowls and chopsticks should be placed on the table to invite the ancestors to come back and celebrate the New Year together. Before the meal, the ancestors should sift the wine first, sprinkle the wine on the ground, and then start eating. During the banquet, the elderly and children ate chicken drumsticks to show respect for the elderly and the young.

Staying up late

After the reunion dinner, the stove should be washed clean in preparation for a vegetarian meal on the morning of the first day of the first lunar month or throughout the day. In the evening, it is necessary to stay up late, bid farewell to the old year, and welcome the new year. Every room should be brightly lit all night, which is called "lighting the new year's fire." In some places, cattle pens and pig houses are also lit with lights. Parents need to give lucky money to their children, and in some places, they also give lucky money to the elderly.

Open the gate

On the first day of the first lunar month, the gate is opened according to the auspicious time specified in the "Tongshu". Suddenly, the sound of firecrackers comes and goes, resounding through the sky.

New Year greetings

Eat vegetarian food on the morning of the first day of the first lunar month. After the meal, people greet each other and say auspicious words to each other. The children are wearing new clothes and playing happily, and some are vying to pay New Year greetings to their elders: "My father-in-law and uncle's family are getting rich, so bring the candy cakes and fruits to Ya (me)." On the second day of the first lunar month, I visit relatives to pay New Year's greetings. Especially the newly married son-in-law (the in-laws’ family will use book stickers to invite him) will go to the parents-in-law’s home to pay New Year greetings. Usually the young couple goes together, and sometimes the son-in-law goes alone; some come back on the same day, and some stay for five or six days. When you go, you should bring little hens, rice crackers, candies, incense candles, firecrackers, etc. When you arrive, you should burn incense, light candles, and set off firecrackers in front of the ancestors of the Yue family. At noon, the Yue family entertained guests, and the son-in-law had to get drunk. He would not be enthusiastic if he was not drunk.

Eat New Year's rice

Eat "New Year's rice" on the morning of the third day of the Lunar New Year (some steam it in the evening of the 29th day of the first lunar month, and some steam it in the evening of the second day of the first lunar month). Put on chopsticks. If there are several people in the family, insert a few pairs, and then insert a branch with leaves. Some even put oranges, grapefruits and other fruits on them. Before eating the New Year's meal, the meal should be placed on the "that day" altar to worship the gods and ancestors. There are a lot of dishes to prepare for New Year's Eve dinner, including chicken and meat, which is similar to having a reunion dinner on New Year's Eve. No killing is allowed on the third day of the lunar month. Chickens should be killed on the second day of the lunar month or kept during the Chinese New Year.

Out of the year boundary

On the fifth day of the first lunar month, out of the year boundary. The portraits of ancestors in the hall must be put away, the paper door curtains must be removed and burned, and those who go out to work can start their journey.

Lantern Festival

On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, the Lantern Festival is also called the "Shangyuan Festival". Every household prepares dishes and drinks to celebrate the New Year. The Lantern Festival is about to take place, and the New Year's entertainment activities reach their climax. From the beginning of the Chinese New Year to the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, recreational activities continue in various places, mostly dragon lantern parades and lion dances. Some activities start on the first or second day of the first lunar month. Before the dragon lantern and lion teams arrive, they will post a message in advance and give them red envelopes and snacks after they arrive. In addition to performing in every household, dragon lanterns and lion troupes also go to temples and ancestral halls in the village to pay New Year greetings to gods and ancestors. During the first market period after the Spring Festival, dragon lanterns, boat lanterns, lion lanterns, etc. all come to the market to perform, which is called "opening the market." From the Spring Festival to the Lantern Festival, there are the following recreational activities in various places:

Spring Cow Sending is usually held on the first day of the Lunar New Year. A team of three or five people will form a team to send pictures of Spring Cows to each household. Those who play small drums and cymbals play at the door of each house and send red stickers "Congratulations on the New Year", and the owner will give red envelopes.

Straw dragons are cut into sections, filled with incense, and carried by children to dance in front of the stoves of each household and in the pig pens and cattle pens to wish the family a safe life and the prosperity of the livestock. Each household will give red envelopes, and the children will get Happy, the master wishes good luck.

Bat lanterns are also danced by children from house to house. "The fire dragon comes into the house and wants you to hold a candle."

Ship lanterns The lanterns are shaped like boats and are used for singing performances on land. Rehearsing before the Spring Festival, the gong and drum team played ten times to cooperate. After arriving at the village, after eating snacks, there will be a performance in the open space. The boatman and the boatman will sing "October Pregnancy", "Twelveth Ancient", "Guanziren", "Yizhihua" and other tunes. The boatman only rows and does not sing. song. In the evening, we have to "open the Heavenly Official" in the ancestral hall, sing "The Heavenly Official Blessing", etc., and finally have a drink and a meal.

Lion Lantern There are Nuo people on the stage, a lion head, a lion tail, a monkey, a sand monk, and a gong and drum team. After the lion, monkey, and sand monk finish singing, they will perform martial arts performances, including boxing, knife dancing, stick playing, and table dancing. The Lions team will hire a master to teach them martial arts before the Chinese New Year.

Spring Equinox

At the Spring Equinox in February, we begin to visit tombs and worship ancestors, also called "Spring Festival". Before sweeping the tomb, a grand ancestor worship ceremony must be held in the ancestral hall. Pigs and sheep are slaughtered. Drummers are invited to play. The ceremonial student reads the sacrificial text and leads the three offerings.

When the spring equinox tomb sweeping begins, the tombs of Kaiji ancestors and distant ancestors are first swept and paid homage to. The whole clan and the whole village are mobilized. The scale is large, and the team often reaches hundreds or even thousands of people. After the tombs of the founding ancestors and distant ancestors have been swept, the tombs of the ancestors of each house will be swept and worshiped in separate rooms, and finally the private tombs of each family will be swept and worshipped. In most Hakka areas, spring ancestor worship and tomb sweeping begins at the Spring Equinox or earlier, and must be completed by the Qingming Festival at the latest. There is a saying in various places that the tomb doors will be closed after the Qingming Festival, and the ancestors' spirits will no longer be used.

Qingming Festival

On the Qingming Festival in March, we worship our ancestors. In most Hakka areas, in addition to the Spring Equinox tomb sweeping to worship ancestors, there are also some places where tomb sweeping is held during the Qingming Festival. On the day of Tomb Sweeping Day, there are also some places where people worship the Lord Tutu and other shrines beside the road.

Dragon Boat Festival

The fifth day of May is the Dragon Boat Festival. Every household buys meat, kills ducks, makes rice dumplings, and makes rice crackers to celebrate the festival. The Dragon Boat Festival is a big festival. In many places, people who work outside will go home to celebrate the festival.

Hungry Ghost Festival

Most Hakka areas regard July 15th as the "Ghost Festival". In some places, the festival is celebrated one day earlier. It is said that "people celebrate the festival on July 14th, and ghosts celebrate the festival on July 15th." In some places, Hakkas also worship their ancestors in the middle of July.

Mid-Autumn Festival

The Mid-Autumn Festival on August 15th, commonly known as the "August Festival", is also a big festival. Eat mooncakes, admire the moon, and celebrate reunion. Every household has to buy food and wine, buy pork, slaughter chickens and ducks, and make rice crackers for the festival. On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, families gather together to celebrate the festival and eat moon cakes to admire the full moon after dinner.

Double Ninth Festival

The ninth day of September is the Double Ninth Festival, also called the Double Ninth Festival, commonly known as the "Nineteenth Festival". It is a major festival at the end of the year. As the saying goes, many people who go out have to rush home to celebrate the festival. On this day, people in many places take their children to climb mountains, and some fly kites on high mountains, which is said to ward off evil spirits and plagues. Many old people say that this custom was brought by their ancestors from the northern Central Plains and has been passed down from generation to generation. On this day, some old people and women go up the mountain to the nunnery to burn incense and worship Buddha.

Winter Solstice

Winter Solstice falls in the eleventh month of the lunar calendar and is also called "winter year". During the winter solstice, people eat pork and beef, make rice crackers, and boil soup balls. Rich people eat velvet antlers and ginseng to nourish the winter.