Emperor Xuanzong of Tang issued an edict in August of the second year of Tianbao (743): "Every September 1, recommend clothes to the tomb." "Perhaps it directly contributed to the formation of the folk custom of paying homage to the tomb and sending clothes." Because the weather is still warm in September of the lunar calendar, and it is too early to send cold clothes, the Song Dynasty people pushed this festival custom to October Shuo (the first day of the first month).
The customs of october Shuo in the Song Dynasty mainly included giving clothes, sacrifices, and opening furnaces. Meng Yuanlao's "Tokyo Dream Record" records that since late September, Tokyo Bieliang (present-day Kaifeng, Henan) "sold clothes, boots and shoes, hats, and clothing sections, and burned them on october Day." On the first day of October, "all the soldiers went out of the city to eat the graves." The Southern Song Dynasty Wu Zimu's "Record of Dreams" also records that the Southern Song Dynasty jingshi Lin'an (present-day Hangzhou, Zhejiang) was also "a shishu who went out of the suburbs to sweep pines on the October Festival and sacrifice tombs". It was also from the two Song Dynasties that the folk gradually arose the custom of sweeping tombs and burning clothes on October New Year's Day. The elaborate "Past Events of Wulin" records: "In October Shuo, everyone went out to visit the tomb in the suburbs, using cotton fur and so on. ”
In the Yuan Dynasty, the ancestors were officially worshipped on October 1, called the "Winter Clothing Festival". Xiong Mengxiang's "Analysis of Jinzhi" records: "It is the month, and after one day in the capital, the season is called the Winter Clothing Festival." The sacrifice is first to go to the grave and sweep the yellow leaves for it. ”
In the Ming Dynasty, there were five-color (generally red, yellow, blue, white, and black) paper shops in the Beijing area, specializing in cutting and selling winter clothes. The winter clothes are divided into men's clothes and women's clothes, which are more than a foot long, and the clothes are printed with words and seals, and then sealed, indicating the place of origin, surname, and font size of the deceased, just like mailing letters in the world. On the first night of October, the family prepares offerings and makes offerings, while calling out the names of the deceased, burning the paper clothes at the door (or to the grave). It is believed that by doing so, the deceased will receive winter clothes from their loved ones. If the deceased dies soon, a white paper should be used as a winter coat. The reason is that the new ghost does not dare to wear colored clothes. If your family is poor and has no money to buy, you can make it yourself.
In the Qing Dynasty, the Winter Clothing Festival was roughly the same as in the previous generation, all on the October New Year, the people worshiped the ancestors and swept the tombs; in the evening, the shushu was used to make crowns, belts, clothes, and shoes, and burned after the sacrifice outside the door.
Chinese civilization has a long history, a vast land area, and many regional cultures, resulting in the festival customs of the same festival, which often differs according to the era and regional differences. For example, the "Winter Clothing Festival" burns paper cold clothes for the deceased, and in different regions, under the premise that the main festivals are roughly the same, it also presents different regional cultural concepts and characteristics.
Old Beijinger Customs: In the past, there was a proverb in Beijing called "October 1st, send winter clothes". This custom existed as early as the Ming Dynasty. Liu Tong's "Imperial Jingjing Scenery and Material Strategy" is written in great detail, the so-called "knowing his surname and characters, such as sending books" and so on. It means that the weather is cold, the family is wearing new clothes, and they should also send some winter clothes to their dead relatives. Every year until the first day of October, people always paste "winter coat bags" and "gold and silver bags" in advance, write the address on the outside of the baggage, collect it by so-and-so, and then incinerate it.
The "Winter Clothes Festival" in old Nanjing: On this day, people put various colors of paper paste into a red paper bag, and write the identity and name of the deceased. On the night of the first day of the first year, the paper bag was offered to the church for a memorial service, and then taken outside the door to be burned to show the memory of the dead, pray for blessings and blessings, and make the freshly harvested red beans and glutinous rice into a hot soup to taste new.
Customs of the Shanxi Winter Clothing Festival: When sending winter clothes in the southern Jinnan region, pay attention to wrapping some cotton in five-colored paper, saying that it is made cotton clothes and quilts for the deceased.
When sending winter clothes in the northern Jin Dynasty, the five-colored paper should be made into clothes, hats, shoes, and quilts. There was even a set of paper houses, with clear tiles and doors and windows. In addition to the reduction in size, these paper crafts look more exquisite and beautiful than the real house.
All the clothes and money given to the deceased must be burned, and only when they are burned cleanly can these Yang paper be transformed into satin cloth, house clothes, and gold, silver and copper coins of the Yin Cao Mansion. As long as there is one point that is not burned out, the previous achievements are abandoned and the dead cannot be used. Therefore, the cold clothes burned on October 1 should be particularly careful and meticulous. This kind of action reflects the mourning and reverence of the living for the dead, and belongs to a kind of spiritual sustenance.
When folk send winter clothes, they also pay attention to burning some five-colored paper at intersections to symbolize cloth. The intention is to relieve the orphaned souls of those who have no one to worship their ancestors, so as not to rob their relatives of the winter supplies they send.
Because the first day of October in the lunar calendar is a festival in hades, the ghost door is open and the elves are active, so people have a lot of taboos. Try to go out as little as possible, especially women avoid traveling, that is, when those timid men go out, they must also bring peach wood charms or cinnabar bags and other ghost-avoiding things, only in this way can they be steadfast in their hearts and truly feel a hundred percent "sense of security".