In the last month of the lunar calendar, that is, December, we usually call it the Waxing Moon. In our Chinese folk, this is a common sense problem that has become a convention, and it is known from the mouth of adults as soon as we understand things.
However, we often know what it is, but we don't know why it is so. Why is December called waxing moon? Regardless of age, regardless of the region north and south, many people may not be clear, and even many people have not considered this problem. During this lunar month, the last school just briefly talked to you about this problem.
Why is it called Wax moon? The key is to start with this wax.
Wax, a very old year-end ritual, is also known as wax.
In our ancient Chinese agricultural society, many of people's customs and habits are very closely related to agricultural production. Whenever agricultural production is harvested, people will think that this is the result of the help and protection of the gods of heaven and earth and the ancestors of the ancestors, so they must be grateful and repay the favor, hold a very solemn sacrifice ceremony, to pay tribute to the gods of heaven and earth who are in charge of wind, rain, fields, and agriculture, as well as their ancestors, and pray for the next year's wind and rain, and the peace of the country. In agricultural life, the three seasons of spring ploughing, summer cultivation and autumn harvest are relatively busy, only the winter Tibetan season is relatively idle, so people often hold grand sacrifices at the end of the year and this month, and call this sacrifice activity "Wax Festival", and the december of the lunar calendar where the Wax Festival is held is called "Wax Moon".
But is it "wax" or "wax" (zhà)? Dynasties were not unified. For example, during the Zhou Dynasty, it was called "wax", and in the Han Dynasty, it was changed to "wax"; in the Tang Dynasty, it was also called "wax", and in the Song Dynasty, it was changed to "wax". However, this change is generally only the name used for sacrifice, and even the two sacrifice names exist at the same time, and December is called "Wax Moon", which has basically been passed down since the Han Dynasty.
What is the difference between wax and wax? La is a common word for hunting, meaning hunting, hunting a hundred beasts to sacrifice ancestors. The Chronicle of Justice says: "The day of december is also ... Animal hunters sacrifice their ancestors at the end of their lives. And wax means "so", which means to gather all things to worship the gods. In some local chronicles, it is recorded: "Wax sacrifices ancestors, wax reports hundred gods, and sacrifices are made differently on the same day." ”
There is also a saying that the original meaning of "ba" is dried meat, which is a method of processing meat food, and the people salt and sauce the meat after marinating it, and then put it in a ventilated place to dry it, and then make it into dried meat. Because the climate of December at the end of the year is very suitable for making dried meat, December is called "Wax Moon".
In fact, "Wax Moon" is only one of the other names of the Lunar Calendar December, and there are many other names for December, such as: Waxing Winter, Residual Winter, Polar Moon, Yu Moon, Ice Moon, Poor Winter, etc., but the most familiar of them is "Wax Moon".