Bailu is the fifteenth solar term of the twenty-four solar terms and the third solar term of autumn, indicating the end of the Mengqiu season and the beginning of the mid-autumn season. This year's White Dew Festival falls at 5:26:31 a.m. on September 8 in the Gregorian calendar, which is the time of Yin. During the white dew season, the weather is getting cooler, and the dew condenses and turns white, hence the name "white dew".
Classification of white dew
According to the time of the White Dew Festival, the ancients divided Bai Lu into "Early White Dew" and "Late White Dew". If the white dew festival is before unitary time (5 to 7 pm), it is called "early white dew"; If the intersection is after unitary time, it is called "late white dew". The folk proverb says "early white dew is wet, late white dew is cool and squish", which means that it is easy to rain after early white dew, and the weather is sunny but frosty after late white dew. This year happens to be early white dew, this rain is from the early morning of this year, the phenomenon of flooding streets in most parts of Guangdong, really echoing the proverb that early white dew is wet.
According to the lunar date, the ancients divided white dew into "single white dew" and "double white dew". If the festival falls on the odd-numbered day of the lunar calendar, it is called "single white dew"; If the festival falls on an even-numbered day in the lunar calendar, it is called "double white dew". In 2023, the Bailu solar term falls on the 24th day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar, and the 24th is a double day, which is obviously "double white dew".
The custom of white dew
- Body supplementation: There are folk sayings such as "eighteen pots in the summer, white dew do not show your body" and "white dew does not make up, suffer in autumn and winter", which means to pay attention to proper warmth to avoid catching colds.
- Eating Guiyuan: Guiyuan, also known as longan, has the custom of eating Guiyuan in Guangdong, Fujian and other places. Gui yuan is warm and sweet, and has the effect of tonifying blood and calming the spirit, strengthening the spleen and nourishing the stomach. People make homemade dried cinnamon balls for preservation.
- Drink licorice soup: Licorice soup is a sweet soup made with licorice, dates, lotus seeds, etc. Licorice soup has the effect of moisturizing the lungs and relieving cough, clearing heat and detoxification, and harmonizing various medicines. There is a saying among the people that "a white dew soup, boundless autumn happiness".
The health of white dew
- Living and recuperation: "In the "Yellow Emperor's Internal Classic", it is said: "In autumn and March, lie down early and get up early, and be happy with chickens", that is, daily living should pay attention to going to bed early and getting up early. At this time, the yang qi of nature will gradually converge, and the yin qi will become more and more abundant. From the perspective of TCM health preservation, living should also adapt to this change in nature.
- Diet conditioning: Bailu is prone to autumn dryness symptoms, which is mainly caused by "dryness and dryness", drinking more water and taking Chinese medicine to nourish the yin and moisturize the lungs can play a better role in nourishing the yin and dryness. In addition, you can also eat more fresh vegetables, fruits, and eat more tonics such as lilies, honey, lotus seeds, etc., to conform to the cleansing nature of the lungs.
- Exercise maintenance: Bailu is a period of high incidence and aggravation of respiratory diseases, such as bronchial asthma, allergic rhinitis, chronic pharyngitis, etc., at this time, strengthening exercise is also an effective way to prevent the onset of the disease and alleviate the condition. Choose appropriate exercise methods according to your physical condition, such as jogging, brisk walking, swimming, etc. every day. It is also necessary to combine work and rest, pay attention to rest, such as walking, meditation, etc. to relax. And to achieve the purpose of sports conditioning, dynamic and static combination.
I hope my introduction is helpful to you. If you have any more detailed introduction, please feel free to post it in the comments section.