The plot of The 87th Episode of "Journey to the West" in Fengxian County, which has not rained for many years, is still fresh in people's minds, only because the Jade Emperor was unintentionally offended when he enjoyed the incense of the world. In fact, the time of folk worship of the Jade Emperor is exactly the ninth day of the first lunar month of each year, commonly known as "Heavenly Gongsheng".
The influence of the Jade Emperor in ancient folklore is well known, but its origin is relatively late, and the earliest known title of Jade Emperor originates from Tao Hongjing's "True Spirit Position Karma Map" during the Southern Dynasty, in which the titles of "Jade Emperor Daojun" and "Gaoshang Jade Emperor" appear for the first time. Before that, most of them were called "Emperor Tian", "Hao Tian", and "Heavenly Emperor", although the titles were different, but they were fundamentally the titles of the highest god. It was not until the Sui and Tang dynasties that the belief in the "Jade Emperor" gradually spread throughout the land of Shenzhou. The life of the Jade Emperor was gradually produced and perfected during the Tang and Song dynasties, according to the "Collection of the Jade Emperor of Gaoshang", the Jade Emperor was born at noon on the ninth day of the first month of the first month of the First Month of the First Month of the First Moon, the Guangyan Miaole King's Palace, and when he became an adult, he gave up the country and cultivated in the Puming Xiangyan Mountain, and cultivated into a golden immortal after three thousand disasters. After more than 100 million disasters, he eventually became the Jade Emperor. In 1015 AD, Emperor Zhenzong of Song honored the Jade Emperor with the title of "Taishang Kai Tianzhi Imperial Calendar Containing True Body Dao Jade Emperor Great Heavenly Emperor", and the saying that the nine days of the first lunar month were born was also spread in the folk.
Because most of the ancient Chinese arithmetic, the most, the largest number is usually represented by nine, and coincides with the legendary birthday of the Jade Emperor, so it is called "Tianri", so the ancient folk usually celebrate on this day, and the celebration ceremony is inseparable from the nine "wines" because of the harmonic culture, and every household in addition to the big meal, but also have to drink freely, with a grand and festive way to wish the Jade Emperor a birthday.
Legend has it that men and women can touch the seven fairies by finding a large osmanthus tree on this night and singing some happy and auspicious songs under the tree. The ancients believed that the children of the Seven Fairies were the most beloved daughters of the Jade Emperor, as long as she was happy, the Jade Emperor would love the house and Bless the world with smooth wind and rain, as the saying goes, "Seven does not come out, eight do not return, a lot of things on the ninth" is also derived from this.
The so-called "seven out", to the effect that it means that going out to run errands or talk about business in the first month should not be chosen on the seventh day of the first year, and the ancients thought that most of them were not easy to do and difficult to talk about. And "eight no return" is to say that when you want to go out and want to go home, you can't choose the eighth day of the first year, they think that "eight" means "hair", and the ancients usually use "return" to describe completion, they think that since a thing is completed, it is difficult to "send". Therefore, the ancients thought that the things of the seventh and eighth days of the first seven days were best left to the ninth day to do, nine is the number of the greatest to the yang, and doing things on this day is not only efficient but also more efficient, because the first nine is the birthday of the Jade Emperor, the ancients believe that this day can not only get the blessing of the Jade Emperor, but also the warning of the Emperor on the sky is still in front of them, people will be reasonable on this day and dare not be hypocritical, so things are much easier to do.
It is worth mentioning that there is another interpretation of "seven not out, eight not returning", the so-called "seven out" means that there are seven things that are not done well, namely "firewood, rice, oil, salt, sauce, vinegar, tea". This covers several things that are indispensable for people's basic life, and most of the people who go out in ancient times are the pillars of the family, and the "seven outs" is to remind them to settle in the basic life of the family before going out. The "eight non-returns" is just the opposite, saying that if you violate any of the eight things of "filial piety, compassion, loyalty, faith, etiquette, righteousness, honesty, and shame", you should not go home, these eight things are the foundation of the ancients, and if you violate them, you will be regarded as a person without morality, which will bring shame to your ancestors and your family.
In addition to the above "Jade Emperor Meeting" celebrations, some regions will also hold some activities with regional characteristics on the ninth day of the first lunar month. Many places in Fujian regard the ninth day of the first lunar month as the birthday of King Wuzhu of Minyue, and the Yuanjiu Ascending Festival in Dazhou, Sichuan is also derived from this. It can be seen that each day in the first month has been given a special folk significance, and the ninth day of the first lunar month hopes that the blessings of heaven are also a vivid embodiment of the people's good wishes such as dispelling evil, avoiding disasters, and praying for blessings.