Forbidden City twenty-four solar terms wallpaper of the standing summer
Lixia is the seventh of the twenty-four solar terms and the first of summer. Lixia, indicating the beginning of summer. "Standing" means "beginning" and "coming". In the "Explanation of the Seventy-two Waiting For the Moon Order", Yun: "Li, Jianshiye", and said: "Lixia, April Festival." Standing character interpretation see spring. Summer, false also, things up to this time are false big also. It can be seen that Lixia is commonly known as the April Festival, summer is the meaning of growing up, and everything in the world will grow up at this time of Lixia.
In astronomy, Lixia alternates from May 5 to 7 of the solar calendar every year, the sun travels to 45 degrees of ecliptic longitude, and at night the handle of the Big Dipper points to the heavenly position, which the ancients called the direction of Sundanese, that is, southeast. The "Almanac" said: "The bucket refers to the southeast, and the maintenance is Lixia, and all things have grown up here, so the name Lixiaye." "Filial Piety" Yun: "Fifteen days after the rain in the valley, douzhi Sundanese, for lixia." At this point, all are false daiya. ”
Summer is a turning point to bid farewell to spring and usher in summer, and is an important festival that marks the growth of all things into the peak season. After the summer, the sunshine increases, the temperature gradually rises, the thunderstorm increases, and everything enters a stage of thriving growth. The ancients divided each solar term into three seasons and five days as one. The three seasons of Lixia are: the first weather, the sound of grasshoppers; the second weather, the earthworm out; the third wait, Wang Guasheng. As the temperature rises, the yang qi gradually grows, the grasshoppers begin to chirp, the earthworms gradually crawl out of the ground, and the medicinal climbing vine plant Wang Gua, a specialty of North China, also climbs and grows rapidly at this time.
"To know spring and summer, Zhonglu Qi Zhu Ming." Earthworms who teach, Wang Pu self-synthesis. The curtain silkworms are cocoon-shaped, and the forest birds are feeding the chicks. Gradually feel that the cloud peak is good, and slowly take the rain to travel. Tang Yuanshu's "Yong 24 Qi Poems : Lixia April Festival" vividly describes the scenery of the Lixia season.
On the day of summer, the ancients held various summer ceremonies to welcome the arrival of summer
Lixia was established as a solar term as early as the last year of the Warring States period (239 BC). As the beginning of summer, Lixia has always been highly valued by people. On the day of summer, the ancients held various summer ceremonies to welcome the arrival of summer. "Etiquette" Yun: "The Son of Heaven is in the spring and the sun, and the moon is in autumn." The sun is rising, the moon is setting. "The kings of ancient times had their own ceremonies at four o'clock and eight festivals, and they were all ceremonies of the kingdom. The winter solstice festival is in the southern suburbs; the summer solstice festival is in the northern suburbs; the spring equinox is in the eastern suburbs; and the autumn equinox sunset moon is in the western suburbs. At four o'clock, there is also a greeting ceremony, that is, Li Chun, Ying Chun, the Qing Emperor in the eastern suburbs. Li Xia, yingxia Qi red emperor in the southern suburbs. Li Qiu, Ying Qiu Worship White Emperor in the western suburbs. Li Dong, the Winter Emperor in the northern suburbs. The emperor's summer ceremony is extremely solemn in chronological order with five elements, and when it is decorated with human etiquette. "Li Ji Yue Ling" Yun: "Tianzi Juming Hall left, riding Zhu Lu, riding a red horse, carrying a red flag, wearing a zhu yi, serving a red jade, eating a mushroom and a chicken, its instrument is high and thick." It is the month also, to establish the summer. The first three days of the summer, the Son of the Great History of the Heavenly Son: 'A certain day of the summer, Shengde is on fire.' 'The Son of Heaven is a qi. At the beginning of the summer, the Son of Heaven personally marshaled the three dukes, the ninth secretary, and the doctor to welcome the summer in the southern suburbs. Reciprocate, reward, seal the princes, and celebrate the deeds, all of which are happy to say. The Book of later Han Dynasty Sacrifices reads: "On the day of the establishment of summer, the summer is welcomed in the southern suburbs, and the Red Emperor is blessed." The flags are red. The song "Zhu Ming", the dance of the Eight Dances "Cloud Warp". From these ancient texts, it can be known that on the day of the establishment of the summer, the Tianzi personally led the Gongqing Doctor to the southern suburbs to welcome the summer. Not only did he wear a vermilion dress and jade ornaments, but he also rode a red horse and a scarlet carriage, and even the flag was scarlet. This kind of greeting ceremony, according to the seasonal nature of the summer season, the dress, accessories, carriages, horses, and flags in the ceremony are all scarlet. This kind of Zhu Chi tone of the summer ceremony reflects the ancestors' belief in the heavenly people who are in accordance with the heavens and the times.
During the Tang and Song dynasties, the Yuezhen Haidu Shrine was also associated with the Four Times. The Old Book of Tang says: "The Five Mountains, the Four Towns, the Four Seas, and the Four Dudes, each with one sacrifice in each year, each with five suburbs to greet the qi day." ...... Their livestock are all used too tightly, four each for the wedge and the beans. The official stabbed Shi Chong as the governor of the realm. The "History of Song" records: "On the summer day, Nanyue Hengshan was in Hengzhou, Nanzhenhui mountain was in Yuezhou, Nanhai was in Guangzhou, and Jiangdu was in Chengdu Province." These solemn and complicated ceremonies not only reflect the world view of the ancients, but also reflect the importance attached to the festival of Lixia.
The twenty-four solar terms under the old tree painting brush
Lixia is very suitable for sowing and growing crops, and the field work is getting busier and busier
In the summer, the temperature rises, the mountains are everywhere, the grass and trees are lush and lush, and it is a scene of vitality and greenery. In the book "Eight Notes of Zunsheng" written by Gao Lian in the Ming Dynasty, it is said: "On the day of Mengxia, the heavens and the earth began to hand over, and all things were beautiful. For Chinese, which are mainly based on farming, Lixia is an important time node and an important reference for farmers to arrange agricultural production. As a result, many agricultural proverbs related to Lixia were born in various places. Of course, the mainland is vast, the same festival, the temperature in different regions may be very different, the corresponding agricultural activities and agricultural proverbs also have great differences, but whether it is Jiangnan or North China, farmers and friends have their own busy agricultural work, but also have good expectations for the abundance of grains.
Rising temperatures and increased precipitation in the summer are very suitable for the sowing and growth of crops, so the field work is becoming increasingly busy. Some related agricultural proverbs such as "Before and after the summer, plant melons and beans", "Lixia sesame seeds are small full of grains", "Lixia plants hemp, seven strands and eight branches", "Season to Lixia, first plant hemp after planting hemp", "Qingming Straw Valley Rain Flowers, Planting Sweet Potatoes Before and After Lixia", etc., reflecting the variety of crops that can be planted before and after Lixia, so there is a agricultural proverb of "Lixia chaotic farming".
In addition to sowing, the management of crops is also very important at this time. Warm and humid weather is not only conducive to the growth of crops, but also makes weeds grow faster and faster, so weeding has also become an important task in this period. Therefore, there is a saying that "lixia is hoeed all over the place for three days". At this time, insects grow and reproduce more, and the prevention and control of pests and diseases is also indispensable. Therefore, there is also a agricultural proverb that "wheat flowering insects grow up and destroy larvae in Lixia".
Before and after the summer, the temperature in North China, Northwest China and other places rose quickly, but there was not much precipitation, the dry weather and soil drought seriously affected crop growth, so timely irrigation and drought resistance is also an important agricultural matter in the summer season, so the folk have "Lixia wheat grinning, can not lack water" said.
In addition, the folk often measure the harvest of the year with the shade of the summer, believing that if there is rain in the summer, the crops will grow well, and there will be a good harvest, so the folk proverb has the saying that "the summer is not down, the drought is until the wheat is over", "the summer does not rain, the plough rake hangs high", "there is no rain in the summer, and there is no rice in the head". In fact, in the summer season, the summer harvest crops enter the late stage of growth, the winter wheat is flowered and grouted, the rapeseed is close to maturity, the summer harvest crop year is basically fixed, and the harvest in the first half of the year is determined by the growth status at this time, so there is a saying of "standing summer and looking at summer".
During the Tang and Song dynasties, there was a custom of the emperor giving ice to xia, and the common people liked to drink ice on this day
After the summer, the weather began to be hot, in the ancient times without air conditioning and refrigerators, people learned to use ice cubes in winter and summer, not only as a cooling down, but also to make cold drinks and cold food. However, in ancient times, ice mining, ice making, ice transport, and ice storage were time-consuming and demanding, and only the imperial court and dignitaries could do it, so summer ice also became a precious thing, and the imperial court often awarded ice to officials in the summer. According to the "Zhou Li Tianguan Lingren", "Xia Zhibing, in charge. Zheng Xuan's note: "When the summer is strong, and the king gives it with ice, then the Lord will do it." It can be seen that as early as the Zhou Dynasty, there was a system of giving ice. With the evolution of the years, "giving ice" gradually became a custom of the summer day. During the Tang and Song dynasties, there was a custom of emperors giving ice to Xia. Wei Yingwu's "Xia Bingge" Yun: "Nine days of dew have not been sold, and the first opening of the zhao is given to the nobles." The Northern Song Dynasty historian Liu Shu's poem "The Last Volt" says: "Every year Chang'an is hot in the summer, and the internal officials belong to the ice return." The Ming Dynasty Liu Tong also recorded in the "Imperial Capital Scenery and Material Strategy": "Establish the summer day to open the ice, and give the minister of culture and martial arts." It can be seen that in the Ming Dynasty, it has become a tradition to dig out the ice cubes stored in the winter cellar on the summer day of Li and distribute them to civil and military officials. In the Qing Dynasty, the imperial court gave ice by printing and distributing ice tickets, and Fu cha Dunchong's "Records of the Yanjing Years" recorded: "From the day of the summer ambush to the end of the autumn day, each gate has given ice. At that time, the Ministry of Works will issue ice tickets and collect them by themselves, with different amounts and differences. ”
In the folk, the Tang Dynasty has appeared private ice "ice merchants", they dig their own ice cellar ice well to hide ice, wait until summer to sell, but the price is expensive, as the "Yunxian Miscellaneous Records" cloud "Chang'an ice and snow, to summer is the price of gold bi", it can be seen that far from ordinary people can enjoy things. At the time of the Song Ming Dynasty, there were more and more private ice collections, and ice drinks appeared. The "Imperial Capital Scenery Strategy" carries the clouds: "Standing summer and starting ice... The weaving (referring to the common people) must be sold and bought, and the two copper cups in the hands are stacked, and their raw bumps are called 'ice cups'. It can be seen that although the people have not realized the "freedom of ice cubes", they have the custom of drinking ice drinks on the day of summer. The Qing Ren Rang Lian's "Trivia of the Spring and Ming Dynasties" also records: "(Li Xia) The people who knocked copper cups and sold plum soup in the city were far and near with the watermelon sellers. "In the hot summer, a cold drink is arguably the best treat of the season.
Dunhuang twenty-four solar terms wallpaper of the lixia
At the turn of spring and summer, people taste the new spring and recharge their batteries for the upcoming hot summer
As the festival at the turn of spring and summer, Lixia is "the first of summer and the end of spring", alias "spring end day". People are grateful for the disappearance of spring light, and it is inevitable that there is a sadness of cherishing spring, so they prepare wine and food for spring to send off, called RaoChun. Wu Rongting's "Li Xia" poem Yun: "There is no choice but to go to spring, and the cherry shoots will be returned to spring." "Summer sends away spring and ushers in summer, which is the season when many animals and plants grow and mature, so many places still have new festivals. For example, Suzhou has the proverb of "LiXia sees three new", the three new are cherries, green plums, and wheat, and people first use these three new to worship their ancestors, and then taste them separately. In Wuxi and other places, there is a custom of "tasting three fresh in summer", and the three fresh are divided into three fresh, three tree fresh, and three fresh water. In Changshu, try new ingredients are more abundant, there is a "nine meat and thirteen vegetarian" saying, nine meat for crucian carp, salted eggs, snails, etc.; thirteen vegetarian including cherries, plums, wheat silkworms, bamboo shoots, broad beans and other vegetables and fruits. Hangzhou people lixia has the custom of eating "three roasts, five waxes, and nine hours new". Three burns refer to burnt bread, roasted goose, and shochu. Wula refers to yellow fish, bacon, salt eggs, sea lions, and Qingming dogs. At nine o'clock, the new refers to cherries, plums, anchovies, broad beans, amaranth, soybean shoots, roses, rice cakes, lettuce shoots.
In Shanghai, people also eat seasonal foods such as cherries and broad beans on summer days. In the "One Hundred Songs of Chongsha Bamboo Branches" handed down during the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, there is such a description: "The cherry pearl plum is sour at first, and the light wind of Lixia is mai Xiuhan." Find snail green shell eggs, spread the cold beans to share a meal. "It depicts a variety of seasonal foods that the people of Chongming like to eat during the summer season. In addition, the people of Shanghai also like to eat grass head cakes in the summer of Li, and the "Song of the Hucheng Years", which records the customs of Shanghai in the Qing Dynasty, says: "In the summer of Li, when catching up with the farmers, greet the "Li Xia", cut wild vegetables, there are so-called grass heads; grind the end to make rice, fry them in the grass heads, the taste is very crispy, and the name is 'stalled'. There is a cloud in the "Bamboo Branch Words of Shanghai County" by Qin Rongguang of the Qing Dynasty: "Wheat silkworms eat and eat stalls, and all taste of broccoli cutting." ”
There is also the custom of eating Lixia rice in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, Hangzhou generally eats "black rice" made of glutinous rice boiled with black rice leaves, and in Ningbo, it eats "five-color rice" made of five-colored beans such as red beans, soybeans, black beans, green beans, and mung beans mixed with white japonica rice. In many parts of the north, wheat appears, so there is a custom of making and eating pasta to celebrate the wheat harvest. For example, some areas make summer cakes or pasta cakes. Old Beijing paid attention to eating noodles in the summer, there is a common proverb of "entering the summer noodles, new heaven", and there are noodles worn by Qingming willow and fried as children's food, which is called "Yixia".
In addition, some areas also have the custom of drinking "Zhuse wine" in lixia, which is made by mixing plum juice into the wine, which is said to have the effect of nourishing the face, appetizing and relieving the heat, and is deeply loved by women. In the Ming Dynasty Tao Zongyi's "Sayings" volume Sanyi quoted the Yuan Mingshi", "Xuanchi Said Forest": "Li Xia, the custom is still Li, and the people of the time say: 'Li Xia can eat plum, can make the color beautiful.'" Therefore, the Japanese women will make a plum meeting, and take the juice and drink the wine, which is called the color wine. According to the "Pu Songling's Writings Cun Zhu Se Jiu", women in the ancient Qilu area had the custom of drinking "Zhu Se Jiu" in lixia.
During the summer season, many places have the custom of drinking lixia tea. Lixia tea in Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions, also known as "seven teas", is said to originate from the Song Dynasty, according to the "Record of Dream Liang" and other documents, at that time, the residents of Lin'an, the capital of the Southern Song Dynasty, had the custom of giving tea or gathering to drink tea during the festival or with newly relocated residents. In the Ming Dynasty Hangzhou scholar Tian Rucheng's book "Xi Dynasty Pleasures", it is recorded: "On the day of the establishment of summer, people each cooked new tea, accompanied by various colors of fine fruits, and sent to relatives to neighbors, called seven teas." Chen Can's poem by the Qing Dynasty: "Qiantang LiXia douhua is busy selling restaurants with green curtains." The cellar is open to invite guests to drink, and there is no need to eat seven teas. It also mentions the custom of drinking "Seven Houses of Tea" in Hangzhou in summer. Drinking "Seven Teas" in Lixia can not only make the neighborhood relations more harmonious, but also is said to have the effect of preventing summer fever. In Qian Siyuan's book "Wumen Supplementary Ride", there is a saying that "Lixia drinks seven teas and avoids summer fever". There is also a custom of drinking tea in Jiangxi, and there is a saying that "do not drink Lixia tea, a summer of suffering". The Bai people in Heqing County, Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture also have the custom of drinking Lixia tea during the Lixia period, and it has lasted for the whole summer since the beginning of the Lixia. This tea with unique flavor and health care function is a good recipe for bai people to refresh their spirits and prevent and cure diseases in the hot summer.
Although the local summer food customs are different, they all pin people's good wishes. At the turn of spring and summer, people cherish the spring and spring, taste the new in summer, and satisfy their appetites with fresh seasonal vegetables and fruits. At the same time, people are preparing for the upcoming hot summer, in order to complement the shape, recuperate, and hope to spend the hot summer safely, so there will be a summer "eat eggs and hearts, eat bamboo shoots and legs, eat beans and eyes" saying.
Yun Shouping's cherry
With the custom of hanging eggs and weighing people, I pray for good health in the busy work in the future
Eating eggs in Lixia is also an important custom of this festival, as the proverb "Lixia eats eggs, stones are trampled", which means that eating eggs in Lixia can enhance physical fitness and prevent summer fever. With the arrival of hot summer, people will have symptoms such as fatigue and fatigue, anorexia and weight loss, commonly known as "furuncle summer". Children are more likely to have summer, so people will soak the boiled eggs in cold water for a few minutes and then put on the woven silk mesh bag and hang it on the child's neck to pray for the child's healthy growth in the summer. As the saying goes, "Lixia chest hangs eggs, children do not have summer fever" and "Lixia chest hangs eggs, children keep safe".
Children with eggs hanging on their chests will also play "fighting eggs" in pairs. The egg has two ends, the tip is the head, and the round one is the tail. When fighting eggs, the egg head fights the egg head, and the egg tail hits the egg tail. Fight one by one, the breaker concedes defeat, and finally decides the winner or loser. The winner of the egg head is the first, the egg is called the king, the egg tail winner is the second, and the egg is called the little king or the second king.
In addition, Lixia also has the custom of "scale people", and it is said that Lixia can avoid emaciation in summer. Qin Rongguang's bamboo branch words describe the custom of Lixia, "Lixia weighs people lightly and heavily, and laughs and makes noise on the scales", which vividly describes this custom. In ancient times, there was no scale today, and it was necessary to hang a large scale on the beam, adults held the scale hook with both hands, and the weight of the scale was suspended on both feet; children sat in the basket to weigh the weight. If the weight is gained, it is called "fat", and the weight loss is called "eliminating meat".
These interesting customs reflect people's expectations for a safe summer. The summer festival at the turn of spring and summer can be said to be a "threshold period", whether it is the ancient summer ceremony or the custom of tasting new spring that has been passed down to this day, it is to allow people to smoothly transition to summer. In this season when all things are thriving, people pray through various rituals and customs to be healthy in the busy labor of the future. Lixia Yang Qi is high, and the news gua is Qiangua, which symbolizes pure Yang and Jian, indicating prosperity and strength. "Tianxingjian, a gentleman who strives for self-improvement." At a time when the epidemic is raging, we have firm convictions and unremitting efforts to improve ourselves, believing that we will be able to overcome difficulties and eliminate disasters.
Author: Cheng Peng (Ph.D. in Folklore, Assistant Researcher, Institute of Literature, Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences)
Editor: Fan Xin
Planner: Fan Xin
Editor-in-Charge: Shao Ling
*Wenhui exclusive manuscript, please indicate the source when reprinting.