The origin of Lantern Festival?

Lantern Festival on the 15th day of the first lunar month, also known as Lantern Festival and Spring Festival, is a traditional folk festival in China. The first month is the first month of the lunar calendar. The ancients called it "Xiao", and the fifteenth day is the first full moon night in a year, so the fifteenth day of the first month is called the Lantern Festival. Also known as the first lunar month, Lantern Festival or Lantern Festival, it is the first important festival after the Spring Festival. China has a vast territory and a long history, so the customs of celebrating the Lantern Festival are different all over the country, among which eating Yuanxiao, watching lanterns and dancing dragons and lions are several important folk customs.

Lantern Festival is one of the traditional festivals in China, which existed in the Western Han Dynasty more than 2,000 years ago. Lantern Festival viewing began in the period of Emperor Han Ming in the East. Ming Di advocates Buddhism. He heard that on the fifteenth day of the first month, monks watched the Buddhist relics and lit lanterns to worship the Buddha, so that all the gentry and ordinary people hung lanterns. Later, this Buddhist ceremonial festival gradually formed a grand folk festival. The festival has experienced a development process from the court to the people, and from the Central Plains to all parts of the country. On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, just after the Spring Festival, the traditional festival Lantern Festival in China was ushered in. The first month is the first month of the lunar calendar. The ancients called the night "Xiao", so they called the fifteenth day of the first month the Lantern Festival. The fifteenth day of the first month is the night of the first full moon in a year and the beginning of the Yuan Dynasty. On the night of Spring Festival, people celebrate this festival and the continuation of the Spring Festival. Lantern Festival is also called "Shangyuan Festival". According to the folk tradition in China, on this bright night, people light thousands of lanterns to celebrate. Go out to enjoy the moon, light and set fire, enjoy riddles, celebrate the Lantern Festival, have family reunion, and celebrate the festive season. It's fun [1]. During the reign of Emperor Wendi, the fifteenth day of the first month was named Lantern Festival. During the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, the sacrificial activities of "Taiyi God" were scheduled for the 15th day of the first month. Taiyi: the God who rules the universe. When Sima Qian created the taichu calendar Law, he already recognized the Lantern Festival as a kind of heavy Yuanxiao food-Yuanxiao.

Big festival. Another way of saying it is that the custom of burning lanterns in Lantern Festival originated from the "ternary theory" of Taoism; The fifteenth day of the first month is Shangyuan Festival, the fifteenth day of July is Zhongyuan Festival, and the fifteenth day of October is Xiayuan Festival. The officials in charge of the upper, middle and lower elements are heaven, earth and man respectively. The celestial officials are happy and the Lantern Festival should be lit. The festivals and customs of Lantern Festival have been extended and expanded with the development of history. As far as the length of festivals is concerned, there is only one day in Han Dynasty, three days in Tang Dynasty and five days in Song Dynasty. In the Ming Dynasty, lights were lit from the eighth day of August until the seventeenth night of the first month, a total of ten days. Connected with the Spring Festival, it is a city during the day, full of excitement, and brightly lit at night, which is spectacular. Especially the exquisite and colorful lights make it the climax of entertainment activities during the Spring Festival. In the Qing Dynasty, there were more "hundred operas" such as dragon dancing, lion dancing, dry boating, walking on stilts and yangko dancing, but the festival period was shortened to four to five days. Shangyuan means the first full moon night of the New Year. The origin of Shangyuan Festival is recorded as years old in Miscellaneous Notes, which is a Taoist stereotype. Taoism once called the 15th day of the first month the Shangyuan Festival, the 15th day of July the Zhongyuan Festival and the 15th day of October the Xiayuan Festival, which were collectively called the "Sanyuan Festival". The gods worshipped by Wudou Midao, an important school of Taoism in the late Han Dynasty, were celestial officials, local officials and water officials. They said that God bless the people, the local officials forgive sins, and the water officials relieve Eritrea. They used three yuan to match the three officials, saying that Shangyuan Tianguan was born on the fifteenth day of the first month, Zhongyuan was born on the fifteenth day of July, and Xiayuan Shuiguan was born on the fifteenth day of October. In this way, the fifteenth day of the first month is called Shangyuan Festival. In the Southern Song Dynasty, Wu said in a dream: "The fifteenth day of the first month is the day when God bless the people." It is said that God bless the people and local officials make atonement, but the real motivation of the Lantern Festival custom is that it is at a new time point, and people make full use of this special time stage to express their wishes for life.

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The formation of Lantern Festival custom has a long process. According to historical data and folklore, the fifteenth day of the first month was paid attention to in the Western Han Dynasty. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty sacrificed "Taiyi" (Taiyi: the God who rules everything in the world) in Ganquan Palace on the first night of the first month, which was regarded by later generations as the forerunner of offering sacrifices to the gods on the fifteenth day of the first month. However, the fifteenth day of the first month is indeed a folk festival after the Han and Wei Dynasties. The introduction of Buddhist culture in the Eastern Han Dynasty is of great significance to the formation of Lantern Festival customs. Lantern festival lantern

During the Yongping period of Emperor Hanming (58- 175 AD), because Ming Di advocated Buddhism, it coincided with Cai Cheng's return from India to seek Buddha, saying that on the fifteenth day of the first month of Mohatuo in India, monks gathered to pay tribute to the relics, which was an auspicious day to participate in Buddhism. In order to carry forward Buddhism, Emperor Han Ming ordered "burning lamps to show Buddha" in the palace temple on the 15th night of the first month. Therefore, the custom of burning lanterns on the fifteenth night of the first month, with the expansion of the influence of Buddhist culture and the addition of Taoist culture, gradually spread in China. It is also said that the Lantern Festival originated from the Torch Festival. In the Han dynasty, people held torches in rural fields to drive away insects and wild animals, hoping to reduce pests and pray for a bumper harvest. To this day, people in some areas in southwest China still use reeds or branches as torches on the 15th day of the first month, and hold high in groups to dance in fields or grain drying fields. Since the Sui, Tang and Song Dynasties, it has been in full swing. Tens of thousands of people took part in singing and dancing, from faint to dark. With the changes of society and times, the custom of Lantern Festival has changed greatly, but it is still a traditional folk festival in China. Another way of saying it is that the custom of burning lanterns in Lantern Festival originated from the "ternary theory" of Taoism; The fifteenth day of the first month is Shangyuan Festival, the fifteenth day of July is Zhongyuan Festival, and the fifteenth day of October is Xiayuan Festival. The officials in charge of the upper, middle and lower elements are heaven, earth and man respectively. The celestial officials are happy and the Lantern Festival should be lit. The festivals and customs of Lantern Festival have been extended and expanded with the development of history. As far as the length of festivals is concerned, there is only one day in Han Dynasty, three days in Tang Dynasty and five days in Song Dynasty. In the Ming Dynasty, lights were lit from the eighth day of August until the seventeenth night of the first month, a total of ten days. Connected with the Spring Festival, it is a city during the day, full of excitement, and brightly lit at night, which is spectacular. Especially the exquisite and colorful lights make it the climax of entertainment activities during the Spring Festival. In the Qing Dynasty, there were more "hundred operas" such as dragon dancing, lion dancing, dry boating, walking on stilts and yangko dancing, but the festival period was shortened to four to five days.

Edit the relevant legend in this paragraph.

The origin of lighting lamps

Legend has it that a long time ago, there were many fierce birds and beasts everywhere, which hurt people and livestock, so people organized to beat them. A god bird landed on the earth because it got lost, but was accidentally shot by an unsuspecting hunter. The Emperor of Heaven was very angry when he learned that. He immediately issued a decree, ordering the heavenly soldiers to set fire to the land on the fifteenth day of the first month, burning all the people, livestock and property. The daughter of the Emperor of Heaven is kind-hearted. She couldn't bear to see the innocent suffering of the people, so she risked her life and secretly rushed Xiangyun to the world to tell people the news. When people heard the news, they were like a thunderbolt overhead, and they were so scared that they didn't know what to do. After a long time, an old man came up with an idea. He said: "On the 14th, 15th and 16th of the first month, every family decorated their houses, set off firecrackers and set off fireworks. In this way, the emperor will think that people have been burned to death. " Everyone nodded and said yes, and they were ready to go separately. On the night of the fifteenth day of the first month, the emperor looked down and found that for three consecutive nights, the world was red and the noise was deafening. He thought it was the flame of the fire, and he was overjoyed. In this way, people saved their lives and property. In order to commemorate this success, every household hangs lanterns and sets off fireworks on the fifteenth day of the first month to commemorate this day.

Emperor Wendi commemorates Pinglu.

According to legend, the Lantern Festival was set up to commemorate Pinglu during the reign of Emperor Wen of Han Dynasty. After the death of Emperor Gaozu Liu Bang, Lv Hou's son Liu Ying became Emperor Hui of Han Dynasty. Hui Di was born weak and indecisive, and power gradually fell into the hands of Lv Hou. After Hui Di's death, he monopolized state affairs and turned Liu's world into Lu's. The old minister of the DPRK and Liu Zongshi were deeply indignant at this, but they were afraid of cruelty and did not dare to say anything. After Lv Hou's death, Zhu Lu was afraid of being hurt and excluded. So, in the general's home, they secretly assembled and plotted to make trouble in order to completely seize Liu's country. This story reached the ears of Liu Nang, the king of Liu. In order to protect Liu Jiangshan, Liu Nang decided to attack Zhu Lu. Later, he got in touch with founding fathers Zhou Bo and Chen Ping, and planned to get rid of Lv Lu. After the rebellion, the ministers made Liu Heng, the second son of Liu Bang, king and called him Emperor Wen. Deeply moved by the hard-won peace and prosperity, Wendy ended the "Zhu-Lu Rebellion". Since then, the fifteenth day of the first month has become a popular folk festival-"Lantern Festival". Another way of saying it is that the custom of burning lanterns in Lantern Festival [2] originated from the "ternary theory" of Taoism; The fifteenth day of the first month is Shangyuan Festival, the fifteenth day of July is Zhongyuan Festival, and the fifteenth day of October is Xiayuan Festival. The officials in charge of the upper, middle and lower elements are heaven, earth and man respectively. The celestial officials are happy and the Lantern Festival should be lit. The festivals and customs of Lantern Festival have been extended and expanded with the development of history. As far as the length of festivals is concerned, there is only one day in Han Dynasty, three days in Tang Dynasty and five days in Song Dynasty. In the Ming Dynasty, lights were lit from the eighth day of August until the seventeenth night of the first month, a total of ten days. Connected with the Spring Festival, it is a city during the day, full of excitement, and brightly lit at night, which is spectacular. Especially the exquisite and colorful lights make it the climax of entertainment activities during the Spring Festival. In the Qing Dynasty, there were more "hundred operas" such as dragon dancing, lion dancing, dry boating, walking on stilts and yangko dancing, but the festival period was shortened to four to five days.

Dong Fangshuo and Yuanxiao Girl

This legend is related to the custom of eating Yuanxiao: According to legend, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty had a favorite named Dong Fangshuo, who was kind and funny. One winter, it snowed heavily for several days, and Dong Fangshuo went to the Imperial Garden to fold plum blossoms for Emperor Wu. As soon as I entered the garden gate, I found a maid-in-waiting in tears ready to throw herself into the well. Dong Fangshuo rushed forward to help and asked her why she committed suicide. It turns out that this maid-in-waiting named Yuanxiao has parents and a sister at home. Since entering the palace, she has never missed the legend of Dong Fangshuo and Yuanxiao girl.

Meet my family. When spring comes, I miss my family more than usual. I think in front of my parents, I would rather die than be filial. Dong Fangshuo expressed deep sympathy for her suffering and assured her that she would try her best to reunite with her family. One day, Dong Fangshuo left the palace and set up a divination pavilion on Chang 'an Avenue. Many people are scrambling to find him for divination. Unexpectedly, what everyone wants is the signature of "burning us on the 16th day of the first month". Suddenly, there was a panic in Chang 'an. People are looking for a solution to the disaster. Dong Fangshuo said, "On the night of the 15th day of the first month, Vulcan will send a goddess in red to visit the earth. She is the messenger who ordered the burning of Chang 'an. I'll give you the copied poem and let today's emperor do something. " Say that finish, then dropped a red pillar and roared off. The people picked up the red post and quickly sent it to the palace to report to the emperor. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty took it and read: "Chang 'an is robbing, and the Forbidden City is being burned. It has been burning for fifteen days, and the midnight snack is red." He was so scared that he soon invited resourceful Dong Fangshuo. Dong Fangshuo thought for a moment and said, "I heard that Vulcan likes to eat dumplings. Don't Yuanxiao in the palace often make dumplings for you? Let Yuanxiao package jiaozi on 15th night. Long live the incense and offerings, and order every family in Kyoto to pack jiaozi and worship Vulcan together. Then tell the subjects to hang lights together on the fifteenth night and set off firecrackers and fireworks all over the city, as if the whole city were on fire, so that the jade emperor could be fooled. In addition, inform the people outside the city to go to the city to watch the lights for fifteen nights, and they will eliminate disasters and solve problems in the crowd. " Liang Wudi was very happy after hearing this, so he ordered him to do it according to Dong Fangshuo's method. On the fifteenth day of the first month, Chang 'an City was decorated with colorful lights, crowded with tourists and very lively. The parents of the maid-in-waiting Yuanxiao also took their sister to the city to see the lights. When they saw the big palace lantern with the words "Yuanxiao" written on it, they shouted in surprise: "Yuanxiao! Lantern Festival! " When Yuanxiao heard the shouts, she was finally reunited with her relatives at home. After such a busy night, Chang 'an was safe. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was overjoyed and ordered that glutinous rice balls should be made for Vulcan every year on the fifteenth day of the first month. On the fifteenth day of the first month, the whole city was decorated with lanterns and set off fireworks. Because jiaozi cooked by Yuanxiao is the best, this day is called Lantern Festival.

Yuan Shikai and Yuanxiao

It is said that Yuan Shikai, a national thief, usurped the achievements of the Revolution of 1911 and was bent on restoring the throne, but he was afraid of people's opposition and was always on tenterhooks. One day, he heard people selling Yuanxiao in the street screaming, "Yuanxiao." I think the word "Yuanxiao" is homophonic with "Yuan Xiao", which is suspected of the demise of Yuan Shikai and related to my own fate. So before 19 13 Lantern Festival, it is forbidden to call it "Yuanxiao", and it can only be called "glutinous rice balls" or "fruit powder". However, the word "Yuanxiao" was not cancelled because of his will, and the people did not buy his account, so it was still circulated among the people.

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Since the custom of decorating lanterns on the Lantern Festival was formed, the fifteenth day of the first month has been an important event in all dynasties. Emperor Wen of Liang Jian once wrote a poem "Li Edeng Fu": "The south is full of oil, and the west is full of paint. Su Zheng is resting in peace, and the wax comes out of Longchuan. " Oblique light sets each other off, and the reflection is clear. "It depicts the grand occasion of the court decorating lanterns during the Lantern Festival. During the reign of Yang Di, a grand banquet was held every year on the 15th day of the first month to entertain guests and envoys from all over the world. According to the Records of Music in Sui Shu, the Lantern Festival is very grand, with lanterns and colorful decorations everywhere, singing and dancing day and night, with more than 30,000 performers and more than 0.8 million musicians. The stage is eight miles long, and countless people are watching lanterns, staying up all night, enjoying themselves and being very lively. In the Tang dynasty, it developed into an unprecedented lantern market, and after the middle Tang dynasty, it has developed into a national carnival. In the prosperous period of the Tang Xuanzong Kaiyuan (685-762 AD), the lantern market in Chang 'an was very large, with 50,000 lanterns and all kinds of lanterns. The emperor ordered 20 giant lantern buildings with a height of 150 feet, resplendent and magnificent. In the Tang dynasty, a curfew was imposed, and it was forbidden to travel when drums were banned at night. Those who committed crimes at night were punished. Only on the Lantern Festival did the emperor grant a three-day ban, which was called "letting the night go". In the Song Dynasty, lanterns were extended from three nights to five nights. In addition to lanterns, fireworks were set off, and various juggling performances were held, making the scene more lively. "Tokyo Dream" records that during the Lantern Festival, on the Imperial Street in Kaifeng, 10,000 lanterns piled up into a lantern mountain, and the lanterns were fireworks, resplendent and magnificent. The girls in Kyoto are singing and dancing, and people are watching. "Tourists gathered under the two colonnades of the Imperial Street, with unique skills, singing and dancing, tangent scales and noisy music, stretching for more than ten miles." Streets and alleys, teahouses and restaurants, lights and candles are burning together, gongs and drums are loud, firecrackers are ringing, and hundreds of miles of lights are lit, and compatriots everywhere celebrate the Lantern Festival.

In the Ming Dynasty, after Zhu Yuanzhang ascended the throne in Jinling, in order to make the capital prosperous and lively, he also stipulated that the lights should be turned off on the eighth day of the first month and on the seventeenth day for ten consecutive nights. All kinds of figures are depicted on lanterns, dancing, birds flying, dragons dancing, lanterns and fireworks shining all night, drums and music ringing, which is the longest Lantern Festival in China. In the Qing Dynasty, Manchu entered the Central Plains. The date was shortened to five days and continues to this day. Solve riddles on the lanterns solve riddles on the lanterns, also known as playing riddles, is an activity added after the Lantern Festival. Lantern riddles first developed from riddles and originated in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. This is a literary game full of ridicule, discipline, humor and banter. Lantern riddles hung on lanterns for people to guess and shoot began in the Southern Song Dynasty. "Old Things in Wulin: Lights" records: "People make poems with silk lanterns, laugh at them, draw characters, hide their heads and slang, and tease pedestrians." Lantern Festival, the imperial city stays up all night, and the Lantern Festival is enjoyed in spring. People are mixed. Poems and riddles are written on lanterns, reflected on candles and listed on the road, so people can guess, so they are called "riddles". Now every Lantern Festival, playing riddles is everywhere. I hope this year is festive and safe. Because riddles are enlightening and interesting, they are welcomed by all walks of life in the process of communication. During the Tang and Song Dynasties, various acrobatic skills began to appear in the lantern market. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, besides riddles and hundreds of operas, there were also opera performances. In addition to visiting the lantern market, people in the past dynasties also had customs such as welcoming children to visit Ce Shen, crossing the bridge and touching nails to walk away from all diseases, and playing games such as Taiping Drum, Yangko, stilts, dragon dance and lion dance. Lantern Festival in traditional society is a folk festival that both urban and rural areas attach importance to. It is particularly lively in the city, which embodies the unique carnival spirit of China people. The traditional Lantern Festival's function of festival customs has been dispelled by daily life, and people have gradually lost their spiritual interest. The complicated holiday custom is simplified to the eating custom of "eating Yuanxiao". Dance dragon lantern

Playing dragon lantern, also known as dragon lantern or dragon dance. Its origin can be traced back to ancient times. Legend has it that as early as the Yellow Emperor, in a large-scale song and dance in the suburbs of Qing Dynasty, there was a leading bird image played by a man, and then a dance scene with six dragons interspersed with each other was arranged. The dragon dance recorded in writing is Zhang Heng's Xijing Fu in Han Dynasty. The author vividly described the dragon dance in the descriptions of hundreds of plays. According to the records in Sui Shu Le, Huanglongbian, which was similar to the dragon dance performance in one hundred plays in Yang Di period, was also very wonderful, and dragon dance was very popular in many places in China. The Chinese nation advocates dragons and regards them as auspicious symbols. Walking on stilts is a popular folk performance. Stilts originally belonged to one of the hundred ancient operas in China, which appeared as early as the Spring and Autumn Period. In China, stilts first appeared in Liezi Fu Shuo: "Those who had orchids in the Song Dynasty used their skills to dry the Song and Yuan Dynasties. Summoned in the Song and Yuan Dynasties to see their skills. Lion dance is an excellent folk art in China. Whenever the Lantern Festival or the celebration of the General Assembly, people always come to the lion dance to entertain. This custom originated in the Three Kingdoms period and was popular in the Southern and Northern Dynasties. It has a history of 1000 years. Folk Traditional Program-Lion Dance

Rowing a dry boat, folklore is to commemorate Dayu who has made great contributions to water control. Rowing a dry boat, also known as running a dry boat, is an imitation of a boat on land, and the performers are mostly girls. Dry boat is not a real boat. It is made of two thin wooden boards, sawed into a boat shape, tied with bamboo and wood, covered with colored cloth and tied around the girl's waist, just like sitting on a boat, rowing with paddles in hand, singing and jumping while running. This is a dry ship. Sometimes, another man dressed as a boatman performs with his partners, mostly dressed as a clown, and amuses the audience with all kinds of funny actions. Dry boats are very popular in many areas of our country. In ancient times, there were "seven sacrifices" at the sacrificial gate and the sacrificial households, which were two of them. The method of sacrifice is to insert poplar branches above the door, insert a pair of chopsticks in a bowl filled with bean porridge, or put wine and meat directly in front of the door. The rat-chasing activity is mainly aimed at sericulture families. Because mice often eat silkworms in large areas at night, it is said that they can stop eating silkworms by feeding them rice porridge on the fifteenth day of the first month. As a result, these people cooked a large pot of sticky porridge on the fifteenth day of the first month, and some even covered it with a layer of meat. They put porridge in a bowl and put it on the ceiling, corner and mouth where mice haunt, cursing that mice will not die a natural death if they eat silkworm babies again. According to the Chronicle of Jingchu, on the fifteenth day of the first month, a fairy descended to a family named Chen and said to them, If you can sacrifice to me, your silkworm will have a bumper harvest this year. Later, a custom was formed. Sending lanterns to children is also referred to as "sending lanterns", that is, before the Lantern Festival, the bride's family sends lanterns to the newly-married daughter's house or ordinary relatives and friends to the newly-married infertility house to add auspiciousness, because "lamp" is homophonic with "Ding". This custom exists in many places. In Xi city, Shaanxi province, lanterns are put on from the eighth to the fifteenth day of the first month. In the first year, a pair of palace lanterns and a pair of stained glass lamps were presented. I hope my daughter will be lucky after marriage and have children early. If the daughter is pregnant, in addition to the big palace lantern, one or two pairs of small lanterns should be sent to wish her a safe pregnancy. Zi Ying Drum Drum is also called Gucci. In the north, it is called Toilet Drum and Hangsan Drum. The ancient folk custom is to offer sacrifices to Ce Shen Zigu on the 15th day of the first month, and to offer sacrifices to silkworm and mulberry, which shows many things. Legend has it that Zi Guyuan was a concubine and was envied by her eldest daughter. On the fifteenth day of the first month, he was killed in the toilet and turned into Ce Shen. On the night of welcoming the daughter-in-law, people tie the portrait of the daughter-in-law with straw and cloth, and greet her in the toilet with pigsty at night. This custom is popular in the north and south, and it was recorded as early as the Northern and Southern Dynasties. On the Lantern Festival, "walk through all diseases" to seek happiness.

Walking through all kinds of diseases, also known as swimming through all kinds of diseases, dispelling all kinds of diseases, baking all kinds of diseases, crossing bridges and so on. It is an activity to eliminate disasters and pray for blessings. On the Lantern Festival night, women meet and go out together. When they see the bridge, they will cross it, thinking that this can cure diseases and prolong life. Walking away from all diseases has been a custom in the north since the Ming and Qing Dynasties, some of which were carried out in the fifteenth, but most of them were carried out in the sixteenth. On this day, women dressed in festive costumes went out of their homes in droves, crossed the bridge for danger, went into the city, and knelt down to beg for their children until midnight. The festival of stealing vegetables, which is popular among Miao people in Ping Huang, Guizhou, is also held on the 15th day of the first lunar month. On this day of the festival, girls will steal other people's food in droves. It is forbidden to steal from one's own family or friends of the same sex, because stealing vegetables is related to one's marriage. The stolen vegetables are limited to cabbage, and the quantity is enough for everyone to eat. Stealing vegetables is not afraid of being discovered, and people who are stolen are not strange. Everyone put together the stolen dishes and made a cabbage feast. It is said that whoever eats more will get the right person early. At the same time, the silkworms they raise are also the strongest and the silks they spit out are the best. Bawu Festival is a traditional festival of Yi people, which falls on the 15th day of the first lunar month. "Eighth Five-Year Plan" means "coming back from hunting". Found in Heihu residential area, a branch of Yi nationality in Heqing, Yunnan. At that time, this festival was originally a custom activity to celebrate the return from hunting, and there was no fixed festival.