Tuanzi fortune-telling _ Tuanzi fortune-telling novel

What festival is the next Lantern Festival?

The origin of the next Yuan Festival is related to Taoism. Taoism believes in heaven, earth and water, forming a three-way festival. That is, the fifteenth day of the first month is Shangyuan Festival to commemorate the birthday of the gods; July 15 is the Mid-Autumn Festival to commemorate the birthday of the earth god. 10 15 is the next Lantern Festival to commemorate the birthday of the water god. The next Yuan Festival prevailed in the Song Dynasty and remained popular until the Qing Dynasty.

There are two main custom activities in the next Yuan Festival: offering sacrifices to the water official emperor and the kitchen god.

According to legend, the duty of the Three Officials Emperor is to master the fate of mankind and the migration of ghosts and gods, in which the gods bless people, the land gods atone for their sins and the water gods help people solve their troubles. Water officials focus on water management; China has been a big agricultural country since ancient times, and the relationship between water and agricultural production is particularly important. Therefore, throughout our country, people have the custom of worshipping water gods since ancient times. In the next Lantern Festival, people will prepare dishes and feast, and go to Sanguan Temple to worship the water god Shuiguan the Great. However, the contents and methods of sacrifice vary from place to place, often with their own local colors. For example, in the next Yuan Festival, in Shandong Province, ancestors will also be worshipped. Shaanxi will offer sacrifices to the mountain gods as well as the emperor of the water official. On this day, a meeting to greet God was held in Hunan. In Putian, Fujian, on this evening, every household has to pay homage to the God of Water. When offering sacrifices, we put vegetarian dishes and burn incense one by one on the ridge of the field to show piety. In Tibet, the next Lantern Festival is called Princess Wencheng's birthday. "Men and women dress up to celebrate, and every family drinks."

Sacrificing the furnace god is also an important activity of the next yuan festival. The alchemists regard the next Yuan Festival as their own festival, because they think that the ancestor of Taoism, Laojun, is their grandfather, industry god and protector, and they should sacrifice to Laojun ... Why do they think Laojun is his grandfather and protector? Legend has it that The Journey to the West described the story of an old man tempering the Monkey King with a gossip furnace. Over time, the story became a "historical fact" and the old gentleman became a "furnace god". Became the industry god of metal manufacturers. There is also a legend that alchemy prevails in Taoism. An alchemist can't live without a stove. As the ancestor of Taoism, Laojun is naturally the kitchen god. Therefore, goldsmiths, silversmiths, coppersmith, blacksmith, tin smith, tinker, miner, coal miner and other metalworkers and their related personnel all regard Lao Jun, the ancestor of Taoism, as their ancestors. Craftsmen and miners can have a rest and eat better food when they pay homage to the furnace god Lao Jun. They will worship at the tomb of Lao Jun and pray for his safety.

The custom of offering sacrifices to furnace gods on the next Yuan Festival was formed late, which began in the Ming Dynasty and should be related to Taoist beliefs.