What are the customs of Mid-Autumn Festival?

The customs of Mid-Autumn Festival include: stepping on the moon, offering sacrifices to the moon, enjoying the moon, begging for the moon to shine on it, watching the tide, eating moon cakes, burning incense, burning lanterns, guessing riddles, playing with rabbits, playing with lanterns, dancing dragons, listening to incense, stealing moon dishes, burning pagoda lights, throwing handkerchiefs to attract relatives, stealing melons to pray for blessings, drinking osmanthus wine, stealing vegetables and begging for lang, and eating snails to enjoy the moon.

To the moon.

On the night of Mid-Autumn Festival, there is also a special activity called "Walking the Moon". In the bright moonlight, people wear gorgeous clothes, travel in groups of three or five, or stroll the streets, or lack boats on the Qinhuai River, or go upstairs to watch the moonlight, talking and laughing. In the Ming Dynasty, Nanjing had a building to look at the moon and a bridge to play with the moon. In the Qing Dynasty, there was the Moon Tower under Lion Mountain, which was a scenic spot for tourists to enjoy the moon. Traveling on Mid-Autumn Festival night to enjoy the moon, Shanghainese call it "walking on the moon".

Sacrifice the Moon

Sacrificing the moon is a very old custom in China, and it is actually a worship activity of the ancients to the "Moon God". In ancient times, there was a custom of "autumn and dusk". The moon at night is to worship the moon god. In ancient times, in some places in Guangdong, people had the custom of worshipping the moon god on the night of Mid-Autumn Festival. In Yue Bai, a big incense table was set up, and the sacrifices included moon cakes, watermelons, apples, red dates, plums and grapes. Under the moon, put the "Luna God" tablet in the direction of the moon, and the red candle burns high. The whole family took turns in Yue Bai to pray. Sacrificing the moon to admire the memory of the moon expresses people's good wishes.

Appreciating the moon: the custom of appreciating the moon comes from offering sacrifices to the moon, and serious sacrifices have become relaxed enjoyment. It is said that the moon is closest to the earth this night, and the moon is the biggest and brightest, so there has been a custom of drinking and enjoying the moon since ancient times; The daughter-in-law who goes back to her parents' house will go back and forth to express her happiness and good luck. Written records show that folk Mid-Autumn Festival activities began in Wei and Jin Dynasties, but they did not become a habit. In the Tang Dynasty, it was quite popular to enjoy and play with the moon in the Mid-Autumn Festival. Many poets wrote poems about the moon in their masterpieces.

Begging for the moon to shine on it: In the old society, there were women in Dongguan who believed that "the elderly were the media". Anyone who has adult men and women and no lover at home is convenient to burn incense and light candles in jathyapple in the middle of the Mid-Autumn Festival, and ask the elderly to fix them up. According to legend, the quiet moonlight on the night of Mid-Autumn Festival can make women pregnant. In some areas, on the Mid-Autumn Festival moonlit night, some infertile women who have been married for a long time will go out to bathe in the moonlight, hoping to have children early, which is called "depending on the moon".

The custom of watching tide in Mid-Autumn Festival has a long history. "I know that the Jade Rabbit is very round, and it has been frosty in September." The message is that the door should be closed and the night tide will stay to see the moon. "This is the poem" Watching the Tide on August 15th "written by Su Shi, a great poet in the Song Dynasty. In ancient Zhejiang, besides enjoying the moon, tide watching was another Mid-Autumn Festival activity.

Eat moon cakes

Eating moon cakes has become a necessary custom to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival in all parts of China. On this day, people eat moon cakes to show "reunion". Moon cakes, also called moon dumplings, harvest cakes, palace cakes and reunion cakes, are offerings to worship the moon god in ancient Mid-Autumn Festival. Moon cakes were originally used to worship the moon god. Later, people gradually regarded Mid-Autumn Festival as a symbol of family reunion. Mooncakes symbolize a happy reunion. People regard them as holiday food, use them to worship the moon and give them to relatives and friends. ? [2]? [8]?

Burning bean fragrance: We should burn bean fragrance on the Mid-Autumn Festival night in Jiangsu. There are silks around the incense barrel, which depicts the scenery of the Moon Palace. There are incense sticks made of thread Kaori with paper kuixing and colorful flags on them. There is also the custom of burning incense and fighting among the people in Shanghai. ? [9]?

Burning lamp: burning lamp helps moonlight. On the night of Mid-Autumn Festival, candles are lit in lanterns and tied to bamboo poles, tile eaves, terraces and other heights, commonly known as "Mid-Autumn Festival on trees" or "Mid-Autumn Festival vertically".

Guess: On the Mid-Autumn Festival full moon night, many lanterns will be hung in public places. People get together to guess riddles written on lanterns, because this is the favorite activity of most young men and women.

Playing with rabbits: Playing with rabbits originated in the late Ming Dynasty and was popular in Beijing. Amin Jikun (born around 1636) wrote in "The Legacy of Kaoting": "The Mid-Autumn Festival in Beijing is mostly in the shape of a mud rabbit, posing as a human being, and is worshipped by children." By the Qing dynasty, the function of male prostitutes had changed from offering sacrifices to the moon to children's Mid-Autumn Festival toys. Rabbits are made of mud. The rabbit head is armored, flags are inserted to protect its back, its face is covered with gold mud, and it is also harmonious to paint, sit or stand, pound or ride a beast, and its two big ears stand upright. In the folk customs around Beijing, the Mid-Autumn Festival sacrifice to male prostitutes is actually not so solemn, but more of a game.

Play with lanterns

There are many games in Mid-Autumn Festival, the first is playing lanterns. Mid-Autumn Festival is one of the three major Lantern Festival in China, so we should play with lanterns in festivals. Of course, the Mid-Autumn Festival does not have such a large lantern festival, and playing with lanterns is mainly between families and children. As early as the Northern Song Dynasty, it was recorded in Old Wulin that the Mid-Autumn Festival was a custom, and there was an activity of "putting a small red light into the river to drift and play". Lantern playing in Mid-Autumn Festival is mostly concentrated in the south. For example, the autumn festival in Foshan mentioned earlier has all kinds of colorful lights: sesame lights, eggshell lights, wood shavings lights, straw lights, fish scales lights, chaff lights, melon seeds lights, birds, animals, flowers and trees lights, which are amazing.

In Guangzhou, Hong Kong and other places, Mid-Autumn Festival activities will be held on Mid-Autumn Festival night, and trees will be erected, which means that lanterns will be erected high. With the help of their parents, children make rabbit lanterns, carambola lanterns or square lanterns out of bamboo paper, hang them horizontally on short poles and then stand on high poles. They are high-tech and colorful, adding another scenery to the Mid-Autumn Festival. Children often compete with each other to see who stands tall, much taller and has the most exquisite lighting. In addition, there are sky lanterns, that is, Kongming lanterns, which are made of paper and tied into large lanterns. Burning candles under the lamp, the hot air rises, making the lamp fly in the air, making people laugh and chase. In addition, there are children carrying all kinds of lanterns to enjoy in the lower reaches of the moon.

In Nanning, Guangxi, in addition to all kinds of lanterns tied with paper and bamboo for children to play with, there are also simple grapefruit lanterns, pumpkin lanterns and orange lanterns. The so-called grapefruit lamp is to empty the grapefruit, carve a simple pattern, put on a rope and light a candle inside, which is very elegant. Pumpkin lanterns and orange lanterns are also made by removing pulp. Although simple, it is easy to make and very popular. Some children also put grapefruit lights into the pool water to play games. There is a simple autumn lantern in Guangxi, which is made of six bamboo sticks, pasted with white gauze paper and inserted with candles. Hanging on the platform for offering sacrifices to the moon or for children to play with. Now, in many areas of Guangxi and Guangdong, the Lantern Festival is arranged on the Mid-Autumn Festival night, large modern lanterns illuminated by electric lights are made, and new lanterns made of various plastics are used for children to play, but the simplicity of the old lanterns is gone.

Listening to incense: Listening to incense is an ancient Mid-Autumn Festival custom, which is popular in Taiwan Province. In ancient times, a girl who wanted to marry a good wife burned incense in front of the gods at home, told her worries, prayed for guidance from the gods and listened to the incense. Then, according to the instructions, they remembered the first sentence they overheard on the road, and then threw it at home to judge the quality of divination. For example, divination is a lifelong event, and what you hear is eating cookies or flowers and the full moon, which means it is a good omen and the happy event is near.

Stealing moon dishes: According to legend, if an unmarried girl steals vegetables or onions from other gardens on the night of Mid-Autumn Festival, it means that she will meet a prince charming in the future. There is a saying in Taiwan Province that "steal onions and marry a good husband;" Stealing vegetables and marrying a good husband refers to this custom. On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival in Dong nationality township of Hunan Province, an interesting custom "stealing moon dishes" is popular. According to legend, in ancient times, on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, fairies in the Moon Palace came to the underworld, and they spilled nectar all over the world. Fairy nectar is selfless, so people can enjoy fruits and vegetables sprinkled with nectar on this night.

Burning pagoda lamp

Mid-Autumn Festival lanterns are different from Lantern Festival lanterns. Pagoda lights are lit on the night of Mid-Autumn Festival, which is mainly popular in the south. Pagoda lamp is that the children in the village pick up rubble and build a pagoda-shaped lamp. In the Qing Dynasty, villagers in Suzhou used tiles to build a seven-level pagoda in the wild. In the middle of the tower is the Tibetan king, surrounded by lights, which are called "tower lights". Guangzhou children burn "Fanta lamps" and exchange them with broken tiles; There is also a pomelo peel lamp, carved with red pomelo peel, with a glass lamp in the middle, glowing red. In addition, the game of burning tile lamp (or burning flower tower, burning tile tower and burning fan tower) is widely circulated in the south, and it is circulated in Jiangxi, Guangdong, Guangxi and other places.

Throw a handkerchief to get married: In some areas of Fujian, there is a custom of "throwing a handkerchief to get married" on the night of Mid-Autumn Festival. Generally, colorful tables are set up in the square, arranged in the shape of a moon palace, with jade rabbits and osmanthus trees. Some unmarried women dressed as Chang 'e threw handkerchiefs embroidered with different colors on the stage. If someone receives a handkerchief of the same color as Chang 'e, they can go on stage to receive the prize. When some unmarried boys return handkerchiefs, if Chang 'e likes them, they can make friends, and like-minded boys can tie the knot.

Stealing melons to pray for children: In Hengyang, Hunan, there is a saying, "On the night of Mid-Autumn Festival, melons are sent". "It turned out that Xifeng's shoe house was there, and she married a woman who couldn't have children for several years. Relatives and friends had to bring a melon to the door. In the first few days, a melon will be stolen from the garden, which must be unknown to the owner. The painted clothes are human's. Give a long life to people who are good at it, circle gold and shoot guns, and send them to their homes. Older people put wax gourd on the bed and cover it, so that they can remember the sun in the door. As you sow, you reap. Those who suffer from melons hold a grand banquet to entertain them, if it happens again. When a woman gets a melon, she will cut it off. It is said that this matter is the most verified cloud. " In Hengyang, anyone who is married and has no children in the village will be given a "bride price" as long as his popularity is good.

Drinking osmanthus wine: People often eat moon cakes and enjoy osmanthus in Mid-Autumn Festival, and eat all kinds of food made of osmanthus, especially cakes and sweets.

Stealing vegetables to marry: In Taiwan Province Province, unmarried women have the custom of "stealing vegetables to marry" on Mid-Autumn Festival night. The beautifully decorated woman stepped on the moonlight and stole onions and vegetables from other people's gardens. After stealing them, it indicates that she will meet the only thrill. Therefore, Taiwan Province Province has "stealing onions and marrying a good husband; The proverb "steal vegetables and marry a good husband".

Eating snails: People believe that eating snails in the Mid-Autumn Festival can improve their eyesight. After investigation, vitamin A contained in snail meat is an important substance of eye visual pigment. It can be seen that this statement is reasonable. But why do you have to eat it on the Mid-Autumn Festival? It was pointed out that before and after the Mid-Autumn Festival, snails were empty and there were no snails in the abdomen, so the meat was particularly fat. Nowadays, in Guangzhou, many families have the habit of frying snails in the Mid-Autumn Festival.

Osmanthus fragrans: On the night of Mid-Autumn Festival, people look up at the osmanthus fragrans in the middle of the month, smell the osmanthus fragrance, drink a cup of osmanthus honey wine, celebrate the sweetness of the whole family and get together, which has become a beautiful enjoyment of the festival.