Cover news reporter Li Yuxin
"The fire tree and the silver blossom are combined, and the iron lock of the star bridge is opened." Dark dust goes with the horse, and the bright moon comes one by one. More than a thousand years ago, the Tang Dynasty poet Su Wei wrote this poem "Fifteen Nights of the First Month", which recorded the scenery of the Lantern Night in Chang'an City, the scene of the hustle and bustle of the carriages and horses, and the fire trees and honeysuckle in the verses, so that future generations can still feel the liveliness and joy of that night.
On February 15, the annual Lantern Festival arrives. As one of the traditional festivals in China, since ancient times, there have been a series of folk activities such as viewing flower lanterns, eating tangyuan, guessing lantern riddles, and setting off fireworks, which have continued to this day, making the Lantern Festival a happy celebration for the whole people. But during the Lantern Festival, there are still some customs that have gradually faded over time and are not known to the young people of the moment.
"In the old days of Chengdu, on the night of the Lantern Festival, there was also the custom of chasing rats and welcoming zigu." Folklore expert Liu Xiaochang said that the fifteenth day of the first month to chase rats, this custom prevailed in the ancient south rich in silkworms in the vast areas. At the same time, the lantern night greeted zigu, which lasted until the late 1940s, when it gradually disappeared in Chengdu and the surrounding areas.
Chengdu Museum restored the March silkworm market view
Chase the rats and protect the silkworms in order to pray for a good harvest
"To chase a rat is to expel a rat." Liu Xiaochang said that for thousands of years, the mulberry silkworm industry in Shudi has been very developed, and the wen, pi, chong, and xin counties around Chengdu have been places for planting mulberry silkworms for thousands of years, including the thousand-year-old town of Tuqiao outside the south of the city. For silkworm farmers, rats have become natural enemies, and they have worked hard to feed silkworms to more than an inch long, and they are about to form cocoons, but they are eaten by rats, which will really make silkworm farmers feel sad. The custom of chasing rats is precisely so that silkworms are not spoiled by rats.
So, how do you expel rats? In the agricultural era, sericulture farmers believed that on the night of the fifteenth day of the first month, they cooked porridge and fed it to rats, and some of them also covered it with a layer of meat and placed it in a place where rats often appeared, so that their domestic silkworms would not be harmed by rats. The reason why such a "gentle" way to expel rats is because the ancients believed that rats were grain gods and did not dare to easily offend, so they could only hope that after the rats were full, they would not eat silkworm babies again.
"On this day, the silkworm woman got up early in the morning to cook a large pot of porridge, and even cut a piece of meat that she was usually reluctant to eat, chopped it into porridge, and put it on the roof, corner, corner, and silkworm rack where rats often appeared. When the silkworm woman was setting the bowl, she also had to chant words to curse the rats, and whispered: 'Big rats, little mice, porridge are all eaten, if you eat my silkworms again, a nest of size will not be good to die'. ”
According to the "Records of Continued Harmony" written by Liang Wujun of the Southern Dynasty, "The people of the world pray for porridge in the middle of the first month, add meat to cover it, and climb the house to eat it." Spell: Ascend to the top, carry the rat brain, want to come or not, wait for me three silkworms old. It's for the silkworms! In the ancient book of the Southern and Northern Dynasties, "The Chronicle of the Jingchu Dynasty", there is also a record of the custom of "chasing rats": "On the fifteenth day of the first month, make bean paste, add oil and paste it, and open the temple door." First of all, the willow is inserted, and as the willow points out, it is still sacrificed with a wine diet and even a porridge. "Its intention is also to chase rats and protect silkworms."
"Therefore, the purpose of chasing rats on the night of the Lantern Festival is to feed the rats a few bowls of porridge, and its purpose is also to grow well in the next year' silkworm babies, form large cocoons, and pray for a good harvest." Liu Xiaochang said.
"Qianlong Emperor Lantern Xingle Map" axis, Qing, The Palace Museum collection
Ying Zigu chatted with the "toilet god" for some intimate words
In the old days, on the day of the Lantern Festival, the housewives in the countryside on the outskirts of Chengdu were particularly busy, not only chasing rats, but also welcoming Zigu. According to legend, Zigu was originally a concubine of others, jealous of the eldest woman, and was killed in the toilet on the fifteenth day of the first month, becoming a toilet god. And in folklore, Zigu is a kind, poor girl. The people sympathized with her, missed her, and somewhat conveniently appeared the custom of "welcoming the purple girl on the fifteenth day of the first month". It is reported that this custom is popular in all parts of the north and south, and has been seen in records as early as the southern and northern dynasties.
"Because Zigu died in the toilet, it is called the toilet god, and Yingzigu is also called the toilet god." Liu Xiaochang explained that in the hearts of the people in the old days, Zigu was a concubine with a tragic fate, who was deeply insulted and persecuted by the rich women, so it attracted people, especially the eldest girls and young daughters-in-law, to have a deep sympathy, so on this night there was a custom of welcoming Zigu.
In ancient times, when it came to the Lantern Festival, the women in the family got up early and were busy using straw to make life-size purple statues, and then using paper to draw eyebrows, eyes, mouths, and using red paper to soak a little water to paint their faces red. Afterwards, the painted Zigu was respectfully placed next to the pigsty and toilet. Or a new broom is used as a purple girl, decorated with a ring, a hairpin with flowers, and a silver broom is inserted into the head of the broom, dressing up the purple girl, setting up a toilet, and waiting until night to meet her.
"When it was just after dark, the women respectfully placed the tied Zigu in the stove, toilet or pigsty, burned three incense sticks, a pair of candles, a few pieces of paper money, and, like their sisters, took the hand of the Zigu and said something intimate." Liu Xiaochang also said that before Ying zigu, the stove door should be cleaned, there can be no firewood ash, and where the fire must be extinguished, the fire tongs and blowing torches cannot be put into the ash trough in front of the stove. In addition, it is necessary to be quiet when greeting Zigu, because Zigu is shy.
"Lantern Night, men, women and children, are spending the Lantern In various forms to welcome the arrival of the new year." Liu Xiaochang said.
Cartography He Yu