In ancient times, due to the limited scientific conditions, people used the observation of celestial phenomena as an important basis for their actions in their daily lives, and summarized many laws and terms. "The Art of War" also lists "time of day" as one of the five major factors affecting the victory or defeat of a battle. As a result, many traditional customs related to celestial phenomena in traditional Chinese culture have been extended.
February 30, the last day of the second lunar month, is known as the "obscure day" in the old tradition, which is related to the change of the moon in the sky, and is also the second obscure day in the lunar year. How did the saying "obscure day" come about? What are the particularities in the old customs? Let us take a look at them together.
February 30: "Obscure Sun"
In ancient times, people did not have astronomical telescopes and other equipment, but this did not prevent the ancients from being curious and exploring the changes of the sun, moon and stars. When the ancients observed the moon with the naked eye, they found that there was a pattern to follow in the shape of the moon, and thus formulated the lunar calendar that uses the changes in the phases of the moon to calculate time.
When the moon is between the earth and the sun, the moon is unable to reflect sunlight at this time, just facing the earth with a dark side, this day was set by the ancients as the first day of the lunar calendar, also called "new day". When the earth is between the moon and the sun, the front of the moon can be fully illuminated at this time, and this day was set by the ancients as the fifteenth day of the lunar calendar, also called "looking at the sun".
In the cognition of the ancients, because the first day of the lunar calendar is the "New Year's Day", you can't see the moon when you look up at the night sky, so it is given a negative color, after all, people are more in pursuit of "flowers and full moon". The day before the "New Year" happened to be the last day of the lunar month, and it was the alternate day of the transition to the "New Year", and the night was relatively dark, so the ancients named it "New Year".
In the old customs, it is believed that on the day of the end of the moon, the magnetic field of nature will change, "it is easy to produce chaos when it changes", so it is necessary to do things steadily, and because the moon is almost invisible on this day, the ancients will also act more cautiously, hoping to use this to pray, the good wishes of praying in their hearts and dispelling disasters.
According to the old saying, the following three things that the ancients usually avoided doing every obscure day:
1. Do not move
Do not move the stove position
In ancient times, when people built a house, they would plan the location of the kitchen stove at home in advance, and generally after it was set, it was rarely moved. The ancients believed that the people took food as the sky, and the kitchen stove was a very important place in the house, and there was also a saying that "the kitchen goes in three directions, and the stove is blessed in two places". If it is necessary to move the location of the kitchen stove due to some special circumstances, the ancients will also avoid the obscurity, hoping to ask for an auspicious statement. From a practical point of view, most of the kitchen stoves are arranged in the east of the house, because the south is directly sunny, the north air is humid, and the west and west are seriously sunburned, which is not conducive to the preservation of food. However, today's high-rise housing is very different from ancient housing, and there is no need to rigidly abide by it, and the specific situation still needs to be adjusted according to the actual situation.
2 Non-borrowing
Do not borrow money
Borrowing money is not new to modern times, as early as the Northern and Southern Dynasties, pawnshops have appeared, but some people will worry that after the goods are lost, there is a risk that they will not be able to redeem it, so they will borrow money from people they know. In the old custom, it is believed that "do not borrow money on obscure days", and borrowing money will have the meaning of "scattering wealth", which will affect one's financial situation. From the practical sense, the "obscure day" is the last day of the lunar month, the ancients lived according to the lunar calendar, at the end of the month, everyone is more strapped for money, at this time to lend money, if you can't recover it on time, it will have a bad impact on yourself, so the explanation, it makes sense.
3 No Return
Don't come home late
In ancient times, there were no street lights, car lamps and other lighting equipment, and there were no lights in high-rise buildings, and people were more guided by moonlight when they walked at night, which is one of the reasons why the ancients paid so much attention to the changes of the moon. After the obscurity, it is the new sun, so the moon is basically not visible at night, and it is pitch black. Therefore, on a dark day, the ancients would rush home before dark to avoid returning late and walking at night. From the point of view of travel safety, this old custom is understandable.
The 30th day of the second lunar month is the last day of the second lunar month, and it is also the "obscure day" in the old tradition. The above-mentioned "1 does not move, 2 does not borrow, and 3 does not return" all belong to the old rules about obscurity in the old customs, and they may not necessarily be followed, but please be more respectful, so as not to violate the taboo of others.
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