Cover news reporter Li Yuxin
"The rain on the sky street is as moist as crisp, and the grass color is close but there is none." After a smooth and moist spring rain, the grass and trees sprouted, and everything began to grow and recover nourished by the rain. Therefore, since ancient times, there has been a saying that "spring rain is as expensive as oil", which shows that the rain in early spring has an incomparably important role in the germination of plants.
Spring awakens the creatures of the earth, and for the human beings living in this land, of course, it is no exception. On February 19, the second of the twenty-four solar terms, the rain, arrived, which also brought the breath of early spring. Taking advantage of the spring when everything grows, people carry out customs such as "Labaobao" and returning to the mother's house on this day. And "Labaobao" is the ancient folk culture of Sichuan, which means that parents find a dry father and mother for their children.
"Why choose the day of rain saving to 'Labaobao'? It is taken from the meaning of 'rain and dew moisturizing and easy to grow'. "Folklore expert Liu Xiaochang said that in the old days, Chengdu used to pay homage to Daddy LaBao on the day of the rain, and most of the places were at the head of the Jinhua Bridge on the Jiang'an River." On that day, the bridge was crowded with people, inside and out, on and under the bridge, full of people who were labaobao. In the surrounding one or two miles, even the people from far away from Chengdu Shuangliu also like to run to see the liveliness, and the crowds are gathered at the bridge, just like catching a meeting. In his narration, it seems that he can glimpse the lively scene of the rain festival at that time.
Folklore expert Liu Xiaochang
Pray for the doll's blessing
"Labaobao", the ancient folk culture of Sichuan region. In ancient times, people were superstitious and liked to ask gods for their children, especially those who were only afraid of their children's premature death, they must worship a dry father for their children in order to live a long life. This act has been passed down to this day, and has become a custom of one party, which is also called "Labaobao", that is, the meaning of parents to their children to recognize their fathers and mothers. At present, Sichuan Guanghan still retains this custom, and there is a festival "BaoBao Festival" with the participation of the whole people. However, it is worth mentioning that the "Baobao Festival" of Guanghan is held on the sixteenth day of the first month, which originated from the folk customs of traveling to hundreds of diseases and Labaobao on the sixteenth day of the first month, and has become a very influential local traditional festival and folklore.
Although there are nuances in time, the core of the custom of "Labaobao" is generally the same. According to Liu Xiaochang, in the old days, the "Labaobao" activities of Chengdu people were generally located at the jinhua bridge of the Jiang'an River. Why did you choose this place? That's because in the past, because of the bridge, there was a city, and there was a bridge before there was a city, which has become a symbol of prosperity for thousands of years. And it is said that the ceremony of worshipping Ganpa "LaBaobao" must be held on the bridge, so that most of them will have good results.
"In the past, on the day of the rainy season, whether it was sunny or rainy, the parents who were ready to pull the dry father had to prepare the wine, meat and incense candles in advance, carry it in a bamboo basket or carry it on their backs, and rush to the head of the Jinhua Bridge from all directions early in the morning." Liu Xiaochang recalled that at about ten o'clock in the morning, the bridge was already full of groups of dolls wearing new clothes, shoes, and new hats, and the doll's parents, uncles and uncles who came to help, also looked around and looked around at the bridge that was suitable for being a dry father.
Guanghan 2018 Baobao Festival scene Picture from the official website of Guanghan Municipal People's Government
So, what kind of person will become the object of "pulling the guarantee"? This also mainly depends on the parents of the dolls. Liu Xiaochang said that if parents want the doll to be smart and diligent in reading, then they must find a smart reader to give the doll as a dry father; some parents think that their children are young and weak, and they want to pull a strong, tall and large man. "To bai ganda's 'baobao' is nothing more than a kind of sustenance in the heart."
As the saying goes: "Bye-daddy La Bao Bao, is to rely on a 'pull' word." On the day of the rain, the bridge is full of tourists, and if parents are satisfied with the right young men or middle-aged people, they can pay attention to a "stable and accurate" approach. "After seeing it, the parents rushed up to surround this person, and at this critical moment, they must not let go, if they lose their hands, they will be robbed by others immediately." At this time, it depends on who has the ability, first put the new hat in the hands of the doll on the head of this person, and then it will be counted as a thing. Liu Xiaochang described the scene of that year, only to see that with the help of a family, the "Bao Bao" who was wearing a new hat was red in the face, standing on the side to watch the lively tourists clap their hands and applaud, and their waists were bent with laughter.
"In the old days, on this day, the crowd gathered at the head of the bridge, just like a meeting. Those who sold snacks, hemp sugar, and cold noodles were all gathered on both sides of the bridge, and they were lively and miserable. Speaking of such a scene, Liu Xiaochang also smiled and bent his eyes.
Guanghan 2019 Baobao Festival scene Picture from the official website of Guanghan Municipal People's Government
Return to the door to pray for the health of the elders
In addition to worshiping a dry father and placing hopes for the dolls' good health, they naturally have deeper feelings for their own biological parents. On the day of the rain, there is also the custom of receiving birthdays and returning to the mother's house, Liu Xiaochang said that in the old days, Chengdu people would return to their parents and parents-in-law on this day to pray for the elders to live a long life and be healthy.
"When she comes home, my daughter always prepares a jar of 'can meat' early, which is a stewed old hen, pig's trotters, and pig's elbows to honor her parents. Among the gifts prepared, there is also a red belt that is two feet long, which is called 'receiving life'. At the same time, the son-in-law did not forget to grab a large handful of leaf cigarettes produced in Shifang and wrapped them in red paper and gave them to the old man. ”
Liu Xiaochang also said that if the new son-in-law came to visit the festival, the mother-in-law would also send a black cloth hook umbrella to the son-in-law, which was meant to shield the future grandson from the wind and rain. "It is said that this umbrella sent by the mother-in-law can also hook the son-in-law at any time and will not run around."
The rain is coming, and spring is coming. Although some areas are still in the cold of spring at this time, in the face of uncertain weather changes, hot and cold, warm and cold. But the arrival of rain proves that the spring of Spring and Jingming is already at hand. When spring is getting stronger, everything is endless, whether it is "Labaobao" or Shoushou, it implies people's desire to be healthy in the spring full of hope, and to have their children thrive. On this day, it seems that everything in the world is full of poetry, and people pray for smooth health and happiness in different forms to welcome the warm blossoms of spring.
Rainwater poster Draft: Liu Yuxi