Legends of traditional festivals in China

Legend has it that there was a monster named Nian in ancient China, with long tentacles and a ferocious face. Nian lived on the seabed for many years, and climbed ashore every New Year's Eve, devouring livestock and killing people. Therefore, every New Year's Eve, people in the village fled to the deep mountains to avoid the harm of the "Nian" beast. Since then, people have to stick red paper, wear red robes, hang red lights, beat gongs and drums and set off firecrackers every year until the end of the year, so that Nian Beasts will not dare to come again.

Keeping the old year is the custom of staying up late to welcome the new year on the last night of the old year. Also known as "New Year's Eve", the common name is "Endure the Year". The trend of observing the age rose in the Southern and Northern Dynasties, and many scholars in the Liang Dynasty had poems about observing the age. "One night for two years, five hours for two years." People light candles or oil lamps, a custom that has been passed down to this day. The origin of this custom is hard to know.

There is an interesting fairy tale among the people: in ancient times, there was a fierce monster scattered in the mountains, which people called "Nian". Its appearance is ferocious, its nature is ferocious, and it specializes in eating birds, animals and insects. It changes its taste every day, from kowtowing insects to living people, which makes people talk about "Nian".

Later, people gradually mastered the activity law of "Nian", that is, every 365 days, people go to places where people live in concentrated communities to taste fresh food. The haunting time is after dark, and when the rooster crows at dawn, they return to the mountains.

After determining the date of the ravages of 2008, people regarded this terrible night as a gateway, and came up with a set of methods to close the New Year's Day: every family cooked dinner in advance, turned off the fire, cleaned the stove, then tied up all the stalls in the henhouse, sealed the front and rear doors of the house and hid in the house for New Year's Eve dinner.

The meal was very rich because of its ominous significance. In addition to having dinner with the whole family to show harmonious reunion, we should also worship our ancestors before eating and pray for their blessing to spend the night safely. No one dares to sleep after dinner, so they huddle together to chat and be brave. Gradually formed the habit of not sleeping on New Year's Eve.

2. Legend of Lantern Festival

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.

3. The Legend of Tomb-Sweeping Day

According to legend, during the Spring and Autumn Period, Zhong Er, the son of the Jin Dynasty, went into exile to escape persecution. On the way to exile, he was tired and hungry in a deserted place and couldn't stand up anymore. I searched for it for a long time, but I couldn't find anything to eat. When everyone was in a hurry, I pushed the minister to a quiet place, cut a piece of meat from his thigh and cooked a bowl of broth for the son to drink. Zhong Er gradually recovered his spirit. Zhong Er shed tears when he found that the meat was cut off by mesons pushing his legs.

Nineteen years later, Zhong Er became the monarch, that is, the historical Jin Wengong. After he ascended the throne, Wen Gong rewarded the heroes who accompanied him in exile at first, but forgot to push the meson. Many people complained about meson push and advised him to admire it. However, mesons despise those who strive for merit the most. He packed his bags and quietly went to Mianshan with his mother. Hearing this, Jin Wengong was ashamed and personally took someone to ask Jiexiu, but Jiexiu had left home for Mianshan.

Mianshan Mountain is high and dangerous, with dense trees. It's hard to find two people. Someone offered a plan to burn Mianshan from three sides and force a meson to push out. The fire burned all over Mianshan, but there was no trace of meson push. After the fire was put out, it was found that Jiezitui had sat under an old willow tree with his old mother on his back and died. Jin Wengong cried. When I was buried, I found a bloody book in a tree hole, which said, "May my master be clear forever."

In order to commemorate meson push, Jin Wengong ordered that this day be designated as "Cold Food Festival". The following year, Jin Wengong led ministers to climb mountains to pay homage. He found that the old willow was dead and resurrected, so he gave it the title of "Qingming Willow" and told the world, so he named the day after the Cold Food Festival "Tomb-Sweeping Day".

According to textual research, the origin of Qingming actually has nothing to do with meson push. Qingming, as a solar term, was determined long before the Zhou Dynasty. ? [1 1] Most traditional festivals are regarded as the "origin" by a legend attached to them, but in fact, these statements are far later than the birth of festivals and are the result of substitution by later generations.

4. Legend of Dragon Boat Festival

According to the history book Biography of Qu Yuan and Jia Sheng, Qu Yuan (about 339 BC-about 278 BC) and Danyang (now Zigui, Yichang, Hubei) were ministers in the Spring and Autumn Period.

According to legend, Qu Yuan advocated using talented people, empowering them, making them rich, and urging them to unite against Qin, which was strongly opposed by others. Qu Yuan was expelled from the capital and exiled to the Yuanxiang Valley. During his exile, he wrote poems such as Li Sao, Tian Wen, Jiu Ge and so on, which were concerned about the country and the people.

In 278 BC, Qin Jun invaded Kyoto, Chu. Qu Yuan was heartbroken to see his motherland being invaded, but he was reluctant to give up his motherland. On May 5th, after he wrote his last poem "Huai Sha", he plunged into the Miluo River and wrote a magnificent patriotic movement with his own life. After Qu Yuan threw himself into the river, the local people immediately rowed to rescue him.

In order to mourn, people rowed on rivers, and later it gradually developed into a dragon boat race. People were afraid that fish in the river would eat his body, so they went home and threw rice balls into the river to prevent fish and shrimp from ruining Qu Yuan's body. Later, eating zongzi became a custom.

According to documents, the earliest connection between Qu Yuan and Dragon Boat Festival is the wonderful book Continued Harmony written by Wu Yun of Southern Liang in the Southern and Northern Dynasties. At this time, Qu Yuan has been dead for more than 750 years. It can be seen from the lost articles of Customs Tong (written by Ying Shao at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty) copied in the Tang Dynasty that Qu Yuan had appeared in the folklore of the Dragon Boat Festival as early as Xu Dong, the emperor of the Han Dynasty, but it was more than 400 years since Qu Yuan died.

Although many Dragon Boat Festival customs have nothing to do with Qu Yuan, Qu Yuan's patriotic spirit and touching poems have been deeply rooted in people's hearts for thousands of years, so people "cherish it as filial piety, tell it to the world and spread it to the Tao". Therefore, the theory of commemorating Qu Yuan has the widest and deepest influence and occupies the mainstream position. In the field of folk culture, China people associate dragon boat racing and eating zongzi on the Dragon Boat Festival with commemorating Qu Yuan.

5. The Legend of Tanabata

The custom of begging for cleverness on Valentine's Day in China began in the Han Dynasty. Ge Hong's Miscellaneous Notes on Xijing in the Eastern Jin Dynasty records that "women in the Han Dynasty often put seven-hole needles in the building on July 7, and everyone gave them", which is the earliest record of begging for ingenuity seen in ancient literature. ? [15] Therefore, the seventh day of July is also called Begging for Clevership Festival.

On a clear summer and autumn night, the sky is full of stars, and a galaxy runs across the north and south. On the east and west banks of the Milky Way, there is a shining star across a river, that is Altair and Vega. It is a traditional folk custom to sit and watch morning glory and Vega on Qixi night.

According to folklore, the weaver girl is a beautiful, clever and ingenious fairy when the cowherd and the magpie bridge meet in the sky on Tanabata night every year. On this night, the girls put seasonal fruits and vegetables in front of the bright moon in the sky, prostrating themselves in worship, begging the goddess of heaven to give them intelligent hearts and dexterous hands, let them master their knitting skills, and even beg for the combination of love and marriage. Countless sentient men and women in the world will pray for a happy marriage at the stars on this night, when the night is already quiet.

6. Legend of Mid-Autumn Festival

In ancient times, there were ten days in the sky at the same time, crops withered and people were miserable. A hero named Hou Yi has infinite power. He sympathized with the suffering people, drew his bow, shot down more than nine suns in one breath, and ordered the last sun to rise and set on time for the benefit of the people. Hou Yi's wife is called Chang 'e, and she spends all her time with her except hunting. Many people with lofty ideals came here to study as teachers, and Meng Peng with ulterior motives joined in.

One day, Hou Yi visited a friend in Kunlun Mountain and asked the Queen Mother for a bag of elixir. It is said that taking this medicine can instantly ascend to heaven and become immortal. However, Hou Yi was reluctant to leave his wife and temporarily handed over the elixir to Chang 'e for collection. Chang 'e hid the medicine in the treasure chest of the dresser.

Three days later, Hou Yi led his entourage out hunting, while Meng Peng pretended to be ill and didn't go out. Shortly after Hou Yi led the crowd to leave, Meng Peng broke into the backyard of the back room with a sword and threatened Chang 'e to hand over the elixir.

Chang 'e knew that she was no match for Meng Peng. In a crisis, she turned to open the treasure box, took out the elixir and swallowed it in one gulp. Chang 'e swallowed the medicine and immediately floated off the ground, rushed out of the window and flew into the sky. Because Chang 'e was worried about her husband, she flew to the nearest moon and became a fairy.

In the evening, when Hou Yi came home, the maids cried and told what happened during the day. Hou Yi was surprised and angry, and drew his sword to kill the villain. Meng Peng has escaped. Hou Yi was so angry that his heart was broken. He looked up at the night sky and called for Chang 'e. At this time, he found that today's moon was exceptionally bright, and a swaying figure resembled Chang 'e.

When Hou Yi missed his wife, he sent someone to Chang 'e's favorite back garden, set a table of incense, put on Chang 'e's favorite honey and fresh fruit, and offered a remote sacrifice to Chang 'e in the moon palace. After hearing the news that the Goddess Chang'e flying to the moon became an immortal, people set up an incense table under the moon and prayed for good luck and peace to the kind Chang 'e. Since then, the custom of Mid-Autumn Festival in Yue Bai has spread among the people.

7. The Legend of Double Ninth Festival

Like most traditional festivals, the Double Ninth Festival is regarded as the "origin" of climbing custom by a myth and legend attached to the meeting. This legend can be found in the mythical novel "The Peace of Qi Xu" written by Wu Jun in the Liang Dynasty: Runan Huanjing and Fei Changfang traveled together for many years, and Changfang said, "On September 9th, there will be disaster in your home. It is advisable to leave in a hurry and let the family make their own crimson bags, hold dogwood, tie their arms, and climb high to drink chrysanthemum wine. This disaster can be eliminated. " Picturesque scenery, family climbing mountains. The same is true at night, when chickens, dogs, cattle and sheep suddenly die. The eldest room listened: "This can be exchanged." Today, people climb mountains and drink on the 9th, and women take the bag of Cornus officinalis, so the cover begins here.

Folk Evolution Edition: According to legend, in the Eastern Han Dynasty, there was a plague demon in Ruhe River. As soon as it appeared, people in every household fell ill and died every day, and people in this area were tortured by plague demons. A plague claimed the lives of young Huan Jing's parents, and he almost died of illness himself.

After he recovered from his illness, he bid farewell to his beloved wife and fellow villagers and decided to go abroad to study fairy arts to rid the people of the plague. Huan Jing visited the world famous scholars everywhere, and finally found that there is an oldest mountain in the East with a magical fairy on it. Huan Jing braved hardships and traveled long distances, and finally found the mountains and immortals under the guidance of the crane.

On this day, the immortal called Huan Jing to his side and said, "Tomorrow is the ninth day of September, and the god of plague will come out to do evil again. When you learn the skill, you should go back and kill the people. " Xianchang gave him a pack of dogwood leaves and a cup of chrysanthemum wine, and secretly taught him how to ward off evil spirits and let him ride a crane home. Huanjing returned to his hometown. On the morning of the ninth day of September, according to the fairy's instructions, he led the villagers to a nearby mountain and gave everyone a dogwood leaf and a cup of chrysanthemum wine to prepare for subduing the evil spirits.

At noon, with several strange calls, Mo Wen rushed out of the Ruhe River, but just as Mo Wen jumped down the mountain, he suddenly smelled the strange fragrance of Cornus officinalis and the alcohol smell of Chrysanthemum, and his face suddenly changed. At that time, Huan Jing chased Mo Wen down the mountain with a demon sword in his hand, and stabbed him to death in a few rounds. Later, people regarded climbing on the Double Ninth Festival as an activity to avoid disaster. Obviously, this story is "pure fiction", just an absurd legend attached to it.

8. The Legend of Winter Solstice

According to the existing literature, people began to celebrate the winter solstice as early as 2500 years ago in the Spring and Autumn Period. Legend has it that as early as 3000 years ago, Duke Zhou began to use the method of returning to the earth to measure the shadow and measure the position of the world in Luoyi. This was a political move at that time, but it became one of the festivals that affected future generations for thousands of years.

When the Duke of Zhou arrived in Luoyang, he measured that Luoyang was "in the world" by the method of returning to the soil, and then began to divine the country and the land. It is recorded in Shangshu Luogu that the Duke of Zhou "Panluo City" made some investigations in several places around Luoyang, and finally determined that Jianshui East, Zhuoshui West and Zhuoshui East are "Weiluo City" (all good places to build ancestral halls).

The historical fact that the Duke of Zhou chose the base site of Luoyi through the "investigation of returning to the land" was recorded in ancient books and was regarded as the law of sealing the country by later generations. The purpose of "Tugui Topography" is to find out "in the soil" (the center of the country). The essence of this method is that "the tree is eight feet high and the summer solstice is five inches long;" On the solstice of winter, the scene is one foot, three feet and five inches long (that is, an eight-foot high benchmark is erected). On the summer solstice, the shadow at noon is 65,438+0.5 feet, and on the winter solstice, the shadow at noon is 65,438+03.5 feet). "The depth of the soil is measured, the shadow is positive, and the land is searched. It stops at four o'clock." What is measured by this method is the theoretical position of Luoyang and Luoyi in the soil.

According to the investigation of Duke Zhou, Zhou people made a detailed plan for the first national capital after the demise of Shang Dynasty. "Yizhou Zuoluo Book" said: "It is a great city, growing in the soil for a week, ... in Luoshui in the south and Mangshan in the north, and the world is in harmony."

According to records, in the Zhou and Qin Dynasties, November was the first month, and the solstice in winter was the beginning of the year. In other words, people celebrate the New Year on this day. Hanshu said: "The sun is the spirit from winter to day, and the ruler is the dragon, so congratulations ..." In addition, there is a cloud: the ancients thought that the sun was the spirit of heaven and earth, and it was a "lucky day" from winter to day, that is, the next cycle.

There is also a saying that the winter solstice originated in the Han Dynasty as a festival. The winter solstice is a "winter festival", so it is regarded as a big festival. There is a saying that "the winter solstice is as big as a year".

In ancient times, there was a saying that "the winter solstice will bring the sun", that is to say, the spirit of the sun began to recover slowly from the winter solstice. As the modern poem says: If winter comes, can spring be far behind? In ancient times, people wandering in other places had to go home for the winter festival at this time, which was called "having a home at the end of the year".

The Book of the Later Han Dynasty records: "Before and after the winter solstice, gentlemen lived quietly, and hundreds of officials refused to listen to politics. They chose an auspicious day and then saved trouble." In the folk, people visit each other and give each other food. ?

The solstice in winter is also a traditional sacrifice day. It is said that after the Song Dynasty, the winter solstice gradually became a festival to worship ancestors and gods.

In the Tang and Song Dynasties, the solstice in winter was the day of ancestor worship. The emperor went to the suburbs to hold a ceremony to worship heaven, and the people had to worship their parents.

During the winter solstice in Ming and Qing Dynasties, the emperor held a ceremony to worship heaven, which was called "the winter solstice in the suburbs". During this period, there were folk customs such as ancestor worship and family banquet. Therefore, winter solstice is called "off-year".

As a festival, the winter solstice originated in the Han Dynasty, flourished in the Tang and Song Dynasties, and has continued to this day. The first month of the weekly calendar is November in the summer calendar, so the first month of the Zhou Dynasty is equal to November in the solar calendar today, so there is no difference between New Year greetings and New Year celebrations. It was not until Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty adopted the summer calendar that the first month was separated from the solstice in winter. It can also be said that the simple "winter solstice festival" began in the Han Dynasty, flourished in the Tang and Song Dynasties, and has existed ever since.

In the Han Dynasty, the winter solstice was regarded as the "Winter Festival", and the official ceremony called "Celebrating Winter" was held. This is a routine official festival, and the custom of "worshipping winter" was popular in the officialdom.

There is such a record in the Book of the Later Han Dynasty: "Before and after the winter solstice, a gentleman was prepared for danger in times of peace, refused to listen to politics, and chose an auspicious day to save trouble." Therefore, on this day, the court will have a holiday and rest, the army will be on standby, the frontier fortress will be closed, the business trip will be closed, relatives and friends will send meals to each other, visit each other, and have a "quiet" holiday happily.

During the Wei, Jin and Six Dynasties, the solstice in winter was called "Zi Sui", and people should pay homage to their parents and elders. After the Song Dynasty, the winter solstice gradually became a festival to worship ancestors and gods.

In the Tang and Song Dynasties, the solstice in winter was a day to worship gods and ancestors. On this day, the emperor will hold a ceremony to worship the gods in the suburbs, and the people will also worship their parents on this day. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, the emperor had a ceremony to worship the sky, which was called "the sky in the suburbs from winter to Japanese". There was a ceremony in the palace where hundreds of officials congratulated the emperor. They also threw thorns at each other and congratulated each other, just like New Year's Day. Today, only Chaoshan and parts of Zhejiang still continue the old habit of ancestor worship.

9. Mid-Autumn Festival

The Mid-Autumn Festival originated from the "July and a half" harvest in early autumn to worship ancestors. The appearance of "July and a half" can be traced back to the ancient harvest festival and ancestor worship.

In ancient times, people often relied on the blessing of the gods to obtain a bumper harvest in agriculture. Dong Zhongshu of the Han Dynasty said in the Four Sacrifices in the Spring and Autumn Period: "The ancients had four sacrifices at the age of four. Four worshippers, born at four o'clock, worship their ancestors and parents. Therefore, spring is called temple, summer is called temple, autumn is called delicious, and winter is called steaming. "Worship ancestors in spring, summer, autumn and winter, but" autumn flavor "is very important. Autumn is the harvest season. People hold ceremonies to offer sacrifices to ancestors' souls, first offering the best seasonal products to the gods, and then tasting the fruits of these labors themselves, hoping for a good harvest in the coming year.

According to historical documents, autumn ancestor worship activities existed in the pre-Qin period; At first, the date of "Autumn Taste" was uncertain. Later, it gradually fixed around July 15, usually the first full moon after beginning of autumn, and the breath of new autumn was in full swing.

And "July and a half" is called "Mid-Autumn Festival", which originated from Taoism after the Eastern Han Dynasty. Among Taoist immortals, there are heavenly officials, local officials and water officials, which are collectively called "three officials and emperors". They are representatives sent by the Emperor of Heaven to the world, and they counted the merits and demerits of the world for the Emperor of Heaven on the "Three-Yuan Day" respectively to decide rewards and punishments: the heavenly officials blessed the Yuan Dynasty on the 15th day of the first month, the local officials were exonerated in the middle of July 15th, and the water officials were exonerated in the next month on October 15th. The magistrate is in charge of the underworld, and the focus of inspections is naturally all kinds of ghosts. So by the middle of the Yuan Dynasty, all ghosts will leave the underworld and be examined. Ghosts with owners will go home, while those without owners will wander around the world looking for something to eat. ?

In the Tang Dynasty, the rulers respected Taoism, and the Taoist Mid-Autumn Festival became popular, and gradually fixed the "Mid-Autumn Festival" as the name of the festival. On the Mid-Autumn Festival, it is said that the underground palace is in charge of the gates of hell. On the Mid-Autumn Festival, the underground palace opens the door of hell, which is also the day when the deceased ancestors can go home and reunite. Therefore, it is also a ghost festival, and people generally carry out activities of offering sacrifices to ghosts.

On this day, we should worship ancestors, sweep graves and light lanterns to light the way home for the dead. The Taoist temple held a grand ceremony to pray for good luck in the Dojo, the content of which was to cross over the souls of the dead. The ancients set off river lanterns in the Mid-Autumn Festival, and the Taoist made a prayer bowl, which is a traditional folk custom in China. Buddhism and Taoism have different interpretations of the significance of this festival. Taoism emphasizes filial piety; Buddhism, on the other hand, focuses on the "Purdue" of ghosts and ghosts released from the underworld.

The ancients attached great importance to sacrifice since ancient times. "July 30th" originated from three cultures: folk secularism (post-Han Confucianism), Taoism and Buddhism. Its sacrificial culture has been circulating for a long time and has a wide influence on this area.

The custom of "July 30th" can be said to be a fusion of secularism, Taoism and Buddhism. According to the Book of Laws, "On the Mid-Yuan Day in July, the local officials fell, and the good and evil on earth were decided, so the Taoist priests chanted scriptures at night and the prisoners were free from hunger." The term "Mid-Autumn Festival" refers to July 15, which is actually "the day of forgiveness in the underground palace", but in folk letters, the ghosts sacrificed on this day are not only for ancestors and relatives, but also for wandering souls.

Before the Mid-Autumn Festival was formed, July 15th had been requisitioned by Buddhism. July in Buddhism was originally a festive month of Buddhism, not a "Ghost Festival". But why did the Kasahara Festival in July become the "Ghost Festival"? Euglena basin, a transliteration of Sanskrit Ulambana, originally meant to "save the upside down", that is, to save the ghost suffering in hell.

During the Western Jin Dynasty, the Buddhist sutra Lanjing was translated and introduced into China. The story of "turning a blind eye to save the mother" in Buddhist scriptures coincides with the concept of filial piety that still existed at that time. Later, Liang Wudi and Xiao Yan in the Southern Dynasties advocated the theory that "the three religions are of the same origin", making it a folk festival. At that time, its main function was to worship Buddha. It didn't change until the Song Dynasty, and it developed into a ghost that recommended death.

I don't know if it's a coincidence, or if the Bonin Festival, Zhongyuan Festival and Bonin Festival of Taoism affiliated to Buddhism are all scheduled for July 15. So that later generations thought that these two were two names of a festival. At the same time, because its meaning and customs have long been difficult to distinguish, the customs of the two festivals began to be confused.

It is generally believed that the Mid-Autumn Festival is also called "Orchid Festival" and "Ghost Festival"; In fact, there is a big misunderstanding in this understanding. Correctly speaking, Ghost Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival and Orchid Festival belong to folklore, Taoism and Buddhism, and they are in a parallel relationship, not three different names of a festival.

In the folk "Ghost Festival", the whole July of the lunar calendar should be "Ghost Festival". On the first day of the seventh lunar month, Yan opened the gate of hell, released ghosts to the dead and enjoyed human offerings. On the last day of July, the gate of hell closed again and the ghosts had to return to the underworld. However, the word "zhong" in the Mid-Autumn Festival originated from the Taoist ternary theory, and it was formally finalized in the middle and late Tang Dynasty.

10, the legend of Laba Festival

Legend 1

Laba Festival is the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month (December), which originated in the late Yuan and early Ming Dynasties. It is said that when Zhu Yuanzhang was in trouble and suffering in prison, it was freezing. The hungry Zhu Yuanzhang actually found some seven or eight kinds of miscellaneous grains such as red beans, rice and red dates from the mouse hole in prison. Zhu Yuanzhang cooked these things into porridge. Because it was the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, Zhu Yuanzhang called this pot of miscellaneous grains porridge Laba porridge. I enjoyed a delicious meal.

Later, Zhu Yuanzhang pacified the world and became the emperor facing south. In order to commemorate that special day in prison, he designated it as Laba Festival and officially named the miscellaneous grains porridge he ate that day Laba porridge.

Legend 2

The founder of Buddhism, Sakyamuni, was originally the son of Sudoku king in northern India (now Nepal). He saw that all beings were suffering physically and mentally, dissatisfied with the theocratic rule of Brahmins at that time, and gave up the throne and became a monk. After six years of asceticism, he became a Buddha under the bodhi tree on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month.

In the past six years, I have only eaten one hemp and one meter a day. Later generations did not forget his sufferings and ate porridge as a souvenir on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month every year. "Laba" became "Buddha's Day". "Laba" is a grand festival of Buddhism. Before liberation, Buddhist temples all over the country held Buddhist baths and chanted scriptures, and imitated the legend that a herder offered chyle before Sakyamuni became a monk, and cooked fragrant cereal porridge to offer sacrifices to the Buddha, which was called "Laba porridge". Laba porridge was presented to disciples and kind men and women, and later became a folk custom.

It is said that in some monasteries, before the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, monks would hold alms bowls along the street and cook the collected rice, chestnuts, dates, nuts and other materials into Laba porridge and distribute it to the poor. Legend has it that eating it can get the blessing of Buddha, so the poor call it "Buddha porridge"

Legend 3

Laba Festival comes from the custom of "dressing up as a ghost with red beans". Legend has it that Zhuan Xu, one of the five emperors in ancient times, turned his three sons into evil spirits after his death and came out to scare children. In ancient times, people generally believed in superstition and were afraid of ghosts and gods. They believe that adults and children suffer from strokes and poor health because of the spectre of epidemics. These evil spirits are fearless, only afraid of red beans, so there is a saying that "red beans play ghosts." Therefore, on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, porridge is cooked with adzuki beans and adzuki beans to dispel the epidemic and welcome the auspicious.

Legend four

Laba Festival originated from people's memory of Yue Fei, a loyal minister. At that time, Yue Fei led troops to resist gold in Zhuxian town, which was in the severe winter of September. Yue Jiajun had no food and clothing, was hungry and cold, and the people sent porridge one after another. Yue Jiajun had a hearty meal of "thousand porridge" sent by the people, and the result was a great victory. It was the eighth day of December. After Yue Fei's death, in order to commemorate him, people cooked porridge with miscellaneous grains and beans on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, which finally became a custom.

Legend five

Qin Shihuang built the Great Wall, and all migrant workers were ordered to come. They can't go home for many years, and they rely on their families to send them food. Some migrant workers whose homes are separated by water in Qian Shan are unable to deliver meals, resulting in many migrant workers starving to death at the site of the Great Wall.

One year, on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, migrant workers who had no food jointly accumulated a few handfuls of coarse grains, put them in a pot and cooked them into porridge. Everyone drank a bowl and finally starved to death under the Great Wall. In order to mourn the migrant workers who starved to death at the Great Wall site, people eat Laba porridge every year on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month as a memorial.

Legend six

According to legend, the old couple lived a hard life, scrimped and saved a lot of money, but their precious son didn't live up to expectations and married a daughter-in-law. They soon lost their wealth. On the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, the young couple were cold and hungry. Fortunately, villagers and neighbors helped to cook a pot of "hybrid porridge" mixed with rice, noodles, beans and vegetables.

It means: "Eat mixed porridge and remember the lesson." This porridge made the young couple get rid of their bad habits and embark on the right path. By living hard, their days are getting better day by day. The popular custom of Laba porridge is that people follow it to warn future generations.

Extended data:

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The origin of ancient traditional festivals is related to ancient primitive beliefs, sacrificial virtues and astronomical calendars. Most festivals are formed in the activities that the ancients chose auspicious days to thank the gods of heaven and earth and their ancestors for their kindness. Many traditional festivals have entered the national "sacrificial ceremony". In the historical evolution, the dates of some festivals have been adjusted (for example, the date of the Dragon Boat Festival was changed from "noon on the moon" to "the fifth day of May" in the Han Dynasty). Traditional festivals in China are diverse in form and rich in content. They are an important part of the long history and culture of the Chinese nation and the basic framework of a civilized country. The origin and development of festivals are the "cultural process of gradual formation and perfection" of human society and the product of the evolution and development of human civilization. ?

The traditional festivals of the Chinese nation bear the humanistic and natural cultural contents such as faith, sacrifice, astronomy, geography, phenology, martial arts and calendar. Most traditional festivals were formed in ancient times, and the early festival culture reflected the ancient people's worship of nature and the humanistic spirit of the integration of man and nature in ancient society. A series of sacrificial activities contain profound cultural connotations of etiquette, music and civilization. In the historical development, some traditional festivals after Qin and Han dynasties were replaced by legends such as "avoiding epidemics and disasters" or "historical figures" at the attached meetings, but the actual investigation shows that these "legends" were born much later than festivals and were constructed by later generations. The vast majority of folk festivals come from the primitive beliefs, sacrifices and astronomical calendars of the ancients, and the relationship with heroes is often the result of artificial construction.

Documented traditional festivals can be traced back at least to Xia and Shangshu. In the pre-Qin period, the year was divided into 24 solar terms, all of which were completed. Later, some traditional festivals are also closely related to these solar terms, which provide a prerequisite for festivals. Every traditional festival in China has its own origin and necessary conditions for its formation.

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Most holiday customs appeared in ancient times, but their richness and popularity have gone through a long process of development. Folk festivals come from primitive beliefs and the needs of daily life. The earliest folk activities were related to primitive worship and sacrifice. According to legend, some festivals are the birthdays of ancient people, so they should be attached. Because there was no birthday celebration in ancient times, people were afraid of being rejected, and the real birthday would never be revealed.

In the development after Qin dynasty, some "legends" were added to replace the origin of festivals, which added a bit of romance to festivals; There is also the impact and influence of religion on folk festivals. For example, the Dragon Boat Festival, a folk custom, was commemorated by Qu Yuan, and the "July and a half" autumn harvest festival was absorbed and evolved into the "Mid-Autumn Festival". The historical development of these festivals bears rich culture and connotation. All these are integrated into the content of the festival, which makes the festivals in China have a deep sense of history.

By the Han Dynasty, major traditional festivals in China had spread all over the country. People often say that these festivals and customs were popularized in the Han Dynasty, which was the first great development period after the reunification of China, and provided good social conditions for the popularization and dissemination of festivals and customs.

This festival has developed into the Tang Dynasty, and has changed from the original solemn sacrificial atmosphere to entertainment etiquette. The Tang Dynasty is an important period for the formation of traditional festivals and customs in China. Since then, festivals have become colorful, and many sports and entertainment activities have appeared, which soon became a fashion. These customs continue to develop and continue.

Baidu Encyclopedia: Traditional Festival in China