What are the folk customs in China?

As an integral part of China traditional culture, China traditional folk custom was conceived, produced and passed down under the restriction of the unique natural environment, economic model, social structure and political system of the Chinese nation. Therefore, China's traditional folk customs not only have the characteristics of human folk customs, but also have a unique personality different from other countries and nations. Analyzing and revealing the basic characteristics of traditional folk customs in China is the proper meaning of studying folk culture, and describing it with various specific events should be two complementary and indispensable aspects of in-depth study of China folk customs. Regrettably, in recent years, comprehensive discussions have been relatively silent. This paper aims to arouse people's attention to this research. Throughout the inheritance and evolution of China folk customs, the following characteristics are very obvious.

First of all, the initial belief will last for a long time.

Primitive beliefs and customs have been inherited and popularized for thousands of years, which is a major feature of traditional folk customs in China. Nature worship, animal and plant worship, totem worship, ancestor worship, witchcraft, divination, prayer, sacrifice and taboo are not only embodied in people's belief activities, but also run through all aspects of people's material life and spiritual life. We don't have to spend pen and ink to describe all kinds of complicated witchcraft and sacrificial ceremonies, just look at the beliefs and customs that permeate people's daily lives, which is enough to illustrate this problem. For example, in material production activities, it has long been a traditional custom of agricultural production to pray for spring, report autumn, pray for rain, avoid disasters, predict climate and year with divination, and form a series of taboos around farming. "Zuo Zhuan" records: "The second worship of the country, ... began in summer." [1] The Records of Sacrifice to the Suburbs in the Han Dynasty also recorded: "It is not too late to worship the country in the suburbs." [2] It can be seen that offering sacrifices to land gods and valley gods was very popular as early as ancient times. Since then, the whole process of agricultural production has always been accompanied by a series of beliefs and customs. According to the Book of Rites, except in November and December, there are fixed activities such as "praying for the valley", "appealing to the people's society" and "praying for the coming year" in October. In fact, many agricultural festivals are formed from this. This farming belief and custom is immortal in later generations, and it is far from extinct today. As far as hunting, animal husbandry, fishery, forestry, transportation, trade and other industries and handicrafts are concerned, some witchcraft ceremonies are held to worship related gods and abide by them.

Some taboos and so on are also very common phenomena.

Primitive beliefs and customs are often reflected in the basic necessities of life. If building a house and building a grave are closely related to the theory of geomantic omen, it is the first step before construction to ask the Yin and Yang teachers to look at geomantic omen and choose a homestead. From breaking ground to building houses, every important link should be auspicious, and there are a series of witchcraft, sacrifice and taboo activities in the whole process. Among them, the ceremony on the beam is particularly grand, and red notes such as "Good luck on the beam" and "Jiang Taigong is here" should be posted on the beam; Artisans should sing "On Liang Wen" when climbing the mountain, and then throw steamed bread and loose money on the beam to exorcise evil spirits and kill ghosts. Sometimes a bronze mirror is hung under the eaves to illuminate evil spirits.