Mid-Autumn Festival, what festival is it? What is the best day to do it?

In the old customs of our country, the 15th day of the seventh lunar month is the Mid-Autumn Festival, commonly known as July 30th.

The Mid-Autumn Festival originated from Taoism. According to Taoist records: "On the Mid-Autumn Festival, local officials searched for people to distinguish between good and evil ... They recited classics, ten sages and Qi Yongling's articles day and night. When the prisoner was hungry, he was relieved. " Therefore, since ancient times, people have regarded this day as a day to sacrifice their dead relatives and mourn their ancestors.

The origin of Mid-Autumn Festival is also closely related to the Buddhist "Dream Orchid Club". "Menglan" is Sanskrit, meaning upside down, and the basin refers to the container of offerings. They believe that this instrument can save the pain of the deceased parents and relatives. There is a story in the Buddhist Scripture of Dream Orchid that Manglietia (also known as Lotus), one of the top ten disciples of Sakyamuni, wants to repay his parents' kindness after getting six (six kinds of wisdom), that is, to inspect with the eyes of a Taoist and see his dead mother suffering in the hungry ghost road, skinny and inhuman. Manglietia was very sad, so she filled a bowl of rice and wanted to give it to her mother, but the rice was just delivered to her mother and turned to ashes before it was finished. Manglietia was helpless, crying and begging the Buddha to help save her mother. Buddha said, "Your mother is sinful, and you can't save her by yourself. You have to rely on the Taoist power of ten monks. On July 15th, the monks settled in the summer, and their practice was successful. You should offer a big pot of Menglan, feed ten monks all kinds of food, and save your mother by their spiritual strength. " Manglietia did as the Buddha instructed, and his mother really walked out of the hungry ghost road. The Buddha also said: "In the future, all disciples of Buddhism can enjoy themselves (comfortably) on July 15. On this day, the Buddha likes the sun, prepares all kinds of food and provides various pots for monks. This not only adds happiness and longevity to the living parents, but also leaves suffering and happiness for the dead parents, in order to repay their kindness in raising them.

In the Western Jin Dynasty, The Classic of Yulan Pen was translated into Chinese. Because it advocates repaying the kindness of parents' upbringing, which is roughly the same as the traditional Confucian filial piety in China, it has been highly respected and valued by kings of past dynasties and widely circulated in China. Since Liang Wudi founded the Orchid Club in the south, it has become a custom, and the scale is getting bigger and bigger. On July 15, Li Yu of Tang Daizong held a grand bonsai appreciation meeting in his palace. The temples in the city should also prepare offerings and display them in front of the Buddha statue, which is very pious.

By the first year of the Song Dynasty and the First Year of the Song Dynasty, July 15th had evolved into a folk ancestor worship day, in which every family worshiped their ancestors and their families were ruined, and it was popular to cross over the lonely souls and wild ghosts with river lanterns. In the Qing Dynasty, people paid more attention to the Mid-Autumn Festival in July 15. Generally, temples, courtyards and ancestral temples all over the country hold Lanpen meetings, set up high platforms to recite scriptures and articles in the streets and alleys to make the land and water flow smoothly, and perform the drama "Saving Mother by Mulian", and also carry out some activities such as lion dancing and juggling. At night, paper boats of various sizes were put into the water, lit and burned, and at the same time, the river was released. It's just that at that time, every household had to burn paper money on the roadside outside the door to worship wild ghosts.

Today, during the Mid-Autumn Festival on July 15, there are still many places in China that maintain the custom of offering sacrifices to ancestors.

Customs before and after Mid-Autumn Festival.

Hebei Province

Nanpi County took fruit, bacon, wine and money to the ancestral grave on July 15. And holding the hemp valley to the field stalk is called "recommending something new." The Mid-Autumn Festival in Guangping County is called "sending sheep" by offering fresh food to ancestors and preparing fruits, vegetables and steamed sheep for grandchildren. On July 15, Qinghe County went to the grave to pay a sacrifice and offer steamed sheep to her daughter.

[Shanxi Province]

On this day, scholars in Yonghe County offered sacrifices to Kuixing. The shepherd family in Zhangzi County slaughtered sheep in the Mid-Autumn Festival, competing with the gods. It is said that this can increase the output of sheep. Meat is also given to relatives, while those who are poor and have no sheep use steamed noodles in the shape of sheep instead. Farmers in Yangcheng county make cats, tigers and grains from wheat crumbs and offer sacrifices in the fields, which is called "going to the fields". In Mayi County, the Mid-Autumn Festival takes wheat flour as a child's shape, which is called "dough figurine" and is given to children by relatives. Farmers in Xinxian County hang colored paper on the stalks of fields on the Mid-Autumn Festival.

[Guangxi Province]

Yangshan people take July 14th as the festival to connect eyes, killing ducks to worship their ancestors, and there were no pedestrians on the road that day, which is called "hiding from ghosts".

Henan Province

When the Central Plains paid homage to the local officials in Shangqiu County, a paper flag was hung at the door, which is said to be insect-proof. Flying kites during Mid-Autumn Festival in Mengjin County. On July 15, the magistrate of a county drew a gray circle in front of the door and burned paper gongs in the circle to worship the ancestors.

[Shandong Province]

Fishermen in Long Island made boats out of wooden boards, put "for XXX" notes on them, or set up a memorial tablet for people drowned in the sea, put food, clothes, shoes and socks on it, and then light candles. The married man put the boat into the sea. In Zhanhua County, every family set up a shed to pick Kyle and fresh grass leaves, which is called "Horse House", in which Zupai is invited to offer sacrifices. Ling Du county calls the Mid-Autumn Festival "pinch festival", and every family eats humble meals.

Shanxi(Province)

Lintong county burned paper to worship Magu on July 15. Farmers in Chenggu County will drink alcohol on the Mid-Autumn Festival, which is called "hanging hoes". Yannong went to the field on the morning of Mid-Autumn Festival, picked the highest and densest ear of rice, hung a five-color paper flag and named it "Tian Zan".

Jiangsu Province

Residents of Wuxian County fold gold ingots with tin foil during the Mid-Autumn Festival and burn them along the road, which is called "ghost fate". There is still a kind of paper ghost circulating in Yizheng county, which contains bowl lamps, gamblers, drunkards and senior officials. There are four boats in the Zhongyuan Festival River in Yixing County, one is the flame mouth, the other is the Buddha chanting, the other is the tin foil ingot burning, and the other is the river lantern. On this day, villagers in Dong Xian eat flat food, which is a dustpan-shaped food made of flour and sugar. When releasing river lanterns in Shanghai, the stern is decorated with red and green paper lanterns, which is called "Dugu".

Sichuan Province

In Sichuan province, there is a custom of burning paper to worship ancestors in the Central Plains. That is, a stack of banknotes is sealed in a small envelope, and the name and title of the recipient, the number of envelopes received, and the name and time of the silk changer are written on the envelope. It is said that the Gate of Ghost was closed on July 15, and all families had to "send their children to Shigu". Chengdu people tied the "flower tray" with paper, put paper money and fruit offerings, and walked around the house, saying, "Dear friends, neighbors, former residents, ghosts who don't want to go back, please put them on the flower tray and send you back!" After that, the back end incinerates the outside of the house.

[Zhejiang Province]

Jiashan county regards the rain of Mid-Autumn Festival as a sign of rice harvest. In Tonglu County, people sing gongs and scatter rice in the wild on the night of Mid-Autumn Festival, which is called "giving food". The Lanshe Society in eastern Zhejiang invited 24 old ladies to recite the scriptures and "walk eight knots". Eating "jiaozi Cake" on the rooftop during Mid-Autumn Festival is similar to spring rolls. There is also the custom of setting up street lamps. There are six able-bodied men as a group: one who knocks gongs, one who plays bangzi, one who carries lanterns, one who sprinkles salty rice along the way, one who makes incense along the way (inserted on a sweet potato or taro), and one who makes tofu and rice balls along the way (placed on a big leaf), with a sacrifice every hundred steps or so.

[Jiangxi Province]

People in Ji 'an burn paper for the New Year, and pregnant women are forbidden to fold paper ingots. It is said that the paper ingots folded by pregnant women cannot be carried by ghosts after being burned, and it is also impossible to send them to the underworld. When releasing the flame, the mage threw buns and fruits at the audience. Legend has it that a woman grabbed a steamed stuffed bun and had a child the next year. A child who robs steamed stuffed buns will never be afraid in his life. Ancestor worship in Anyuan County began on July 12, and incense and tea were burned in the morning and evening. On the fifteenth night, burn clothes and give paper money.

[Fujian Province]

On the Mid-Autumn Festival in Yongfu County, married women must go home to worship their ancestors. Fuzhou dialect calls the Central Plains "Paper Burning Festival". The married daughter prepared her parents' clothes and robes and put them in a box called a gauze box, which was sent to her parents' home. There was a custom of Pudu in the middle of Yuan Dynasty in central Fujian, which was held in both urban and rural areas, and its funds were raised by people along the gate. Even the poorest families will try their best to raise money to cope. There is a proverb: "Pudu does not pay, and the plague is in front of us." Purdue does not contribute, and the dwarf will pick it up. " There are also children's bands performing in Purdue.

[Guangdong Province]

On July 15, people surnamed Lin in Qujiang County offered sacrifices to their ancestors and the king of the head of a dog, and gave them to the little boys and girls who sang and danced in colorful clothes. People in Guishan County regard July 14 as the Mid-Autumn Festival. It is said that because Yuan soldiers went south in those days, in order to avoid chaos, the festival was celebrated one day in advance. In Chenghai county, ancestor worship and kitchen god are held on the Mid-Yuan Festival. People in the central plains of Deqing made cakes with winter leaves wrapped in powder, which were called "bridges" to worship their ancestors. In ancient Shigu, Chaoyang County, wealthy families would buy plows, waterwheels and even girls from poor families, write them on paper and scatter them when giving food. If you can't afford farm tools or a wife, you can get a voucher.

[Yunnan Province]

After the Tengyue people offered sacrifices to their ancestors, they burned a bag and carved a cucumber into a boat shape, which was called a "cucumber boat" and incinerated it with the bag.

Mid-Autumn Festival in Taiwan Province Province

The Mid-Autumn Festival in Taiwan Province Province also has the custom of ancestor worship. The customs in the early Qing Dynasty and the middle Yuan Dynasty were recorded in Gao Gonggan's Fu Zhi of Taiwan Province (1696), Volume 7. When you worship your ancestors, you should "burn them in the shape of colored embroidery, and the clouds will make clothes under the spring." At the same time, a bonsai was held and a monk was invited to preside over it. After dusk, talking on the altar and eating soup and rice at the bottom of the altar are called "giving".

During the Daoguang period, the scale of sacrifice in the Central Plains was bigger than before. Chen Peigui's Records of Danshui Hall (1846) Volume 11 records the following grand occasion:

/kloc-On 0/5, Jin Chen reported a banner in Chengzhuang to welcome the gods and make pilgrimages, which still touched people. Men and women have prayers, and paper cangue follows. Every January, every family goes to Pudu, that is, Lanpen. Not just a day's ears. It is said that the first day of July is to open hell, and the thirtieth day is to close it, delaying monks from going to the altar to eat, so as not to sacrifice souls. The temple has been built for two or three days. But on the first day, water lanterns were put on, and each person was given a small lantern, and the surnames were arranged as a team. The string songs were filled, the candlelight was like day, the furnishings were shining, and the performance was almost empty. There is an example set, where animals are sacrificed, lush, with mountains and mountains, and bamboo planting is high. ……

Besides water lanterns and Purdue, the custom of "robbing orphans" is also popular in some places. The so-called "robbing orphans" is to set up a high platform in Purdue Square, which is filled with all kinds of offerings. After Purdue, the organizer gave the order, and everyone rushed to grab the sacrifice. This custom is described in Volume 9 of Records of Penghu Hall (1893): "The more severe, the more you gain. Even fighting, falling on the stage, and casualties are really bad winds. " Because ghosts gather in Pudu in July, some people are afraid that orphans will linger, so they invented the method of robbing orphans. It is said that ghosts will be too scared to leave when they see a group of people who are fiercer than themselves robbing sacrifices. However, the scene of robbing orphans is too intense, often causing casualties. So when Liu Mingchuan was governor (1884), he ordered a ban, but the effect was not good. I heard it occasionally until the Japanese occupation period, and then it gradually disappeared.

1980 (199 1 year), after 40 years of seclusion, Ilantou once again held the activity of robbing orphans. Organizers still use the old system to build double sheds, the largest of which is called "solitary shed", which is 39 feet off the ground, 32 feet long and 24 feet wide, and is about four stories high, decorated with 13 food and pure gold medals. Little people call it "rice shed". In the past, it was dedicated to grabbing food for beggars, so the height was less than half that of the solitary shed. The teams are divided into five groups, each with a pillar. When the organizer gives the order, the contestants will try their best to climb into the shed. Because this is a game with rules of the game, there is no scene of looting, and it is a folk sports worthy of promotion.

People in Taiwan Province Province attach great importance to Purdue to the fact that money and grain are huge and unbreakable (General History of Taiwan Province Province (19 18), Volume XXIII). Even during the Japanese occupation, Purdue was held every year under the pressure of official suppression of folk activities. The Pudu custom in Taiwan Province Province in the middle Yuan Dynasty during the Japanese occupation period was recorded in detail in the third part of "The Wedding and Funeral of Old Customs in Taiwan Province Province" (1934).

Taiwan Province Province is commonly known as "good brothers". During the Mid-Autumn Festival, Purdue's lonely soul is called "worshipping good brothers". Purdue can be divided into two types: public Purdue and private Purdue.

The so-called private education refers to the education that focuses on residential units such as streets and villages. From the first day of July to the thirtieth day, everyone * * * negotiates with each other and holds the days of Village A and Village B in turn according to the regulations. In previous years, there was a popular song "Pudu Ballad" in Lugang, which was enough to prove the grand occasion of Pudu:

The first water lantern, the second Pugong, the third Mijie, the fourth temple, the fifth palace, the sixth Tucheng, the seventh Niangsheng, the eighth new palace, the ninth Xinghua Mazu Palace, the tenth harbor, the eleventh vegetable garden, the twelfth Longshan Temple, the thirteenth yamen, the fourteenth ghost town, the fifteenth old palace and the sixteenth.

In the afternoon of Purdue Day, every household puts a sumptuous meal at the door, commonly known as "worshipping the door". Put a stick of incense in each dish. More careful people will also prepare cigarettes, betel nuts, rouge, white powder and so on. After the worship, burn paper money and then offer sacrifices. It is said that if the offerings are too small, or the cooked vegetable rice is too bad, you will be retaliated by your good brothers, or your family will get sick, or your poultry and livestock will die suddenly. So every family should make every effort to prepare a sumptuous meal.

Buddhists abstain from killing animals, so they will use vegetarian food instead of big fish and big meat in folk sacrifices. Even so, the starting point of both is to spread the dew to all beings.

The so-called "public sacrifice", also known as "temple fair", is usually held on July 15. As the saying goes, "worship in July and a half" takes the temples in each village as the center, and the main priests are local rich people or temple leaders. On the eve of the public sacrifice ceremony, if you want to inform orphans to accept the public sacrifice ceremony, you must "plant lanterns and poles" in front of the temple to summon the gods. The so-called lamp pole is a wooden pole or bamboo pole several feet high, with a lantern hanging at the top and lighting at night. Folk believe that the higher the lantern pole, the more ghosts it attracts. In order to avoid too many hungry ghosts, only lanterns two or three feet high are erected at ordinary times, and lanterns over five feet can only be erected at Dapudu. In addition, during Purdue, people in south-central China will hang "Purdue Lights" in front of their houses, aiming at illuminating the road for lonely souls and wild ghosts.

As for drowning ghosts, use the "water lamp" to inform. Water lamps are divided into water lamp holders and water lamp rows. One of the water lanterns is a round lantern, which reads "One Temple Celebrates the Central Plains", and the other water lantern made in the shape of a house is commonly known as "Paper Cuo". The water light row is made of wood and tied into a raft, which is four or five feet long and more than ten feet wide. Divide into thousands or hundreds of grids, and each grid is hung with a lamp. The water lantern parade was also led by a band. Boys and girls dressed as fish, shrimp and aquarium took part in the parade and arrived at the river bank after a week of sightseeing in the city streets. There is a table on the river bank with three sacrifices on it. Ask the monks and Taoists to recite the scriptures, and then put the water lamp in the shape of a house into the water. Water lanterns are provided by major surnames, all of which indicate their surnames. According to legend, the faster the water lamp flows and the farther it goes, the better the luck of the surname.

The temple owner in charge of the ceremony sent people from house to house to collect money, commonly known as "donating money". The people who donated money hung lanterns at the door and wrote "Celebrating the Central Plains".

On Purdue Day, an altar named "Purdue Altar" was set up in the courtyard of the temple, and the four characters of "Orchid Club" were written on the altar or the statues of Sangong and the Great were hung. There are three barrel lamps on the altar. A bucket lamp is to fill a rice bucket with white rice, and then put in mirrors, Gu Jian, small scales, scissors, rulers, paper umbrellas, oil lamps and other items to ward off evil spirits. There is a long table in front of the altar for people to lay their sacrifices. There are paper figures in front of the temple, a mountain god riding a lion on the left, a ground riding a tiger on the right, and a tongue-shaped mage. Master Shi is commonly known as the "Ghost King". It is said that he is the leader of a very evil soul, and he often leads his people out to harm the world. Fortunately, Guanyin Bodhisattva subdued him, so he wore a Guanyin statue on his head.

During Purdue, there were many ghosts, and I was afraid that they would do something wrong, so I asked the mountain gods, the land and the master to exercise a little restraint. In addition, there are two kinds of solitary sheds made of paper, one is the Cold Forest Academy (Hanlin Academy), which is the memorial tablet of ghosts who will enjoy equal status, and the other is the memorial tablet of common ghosts. Some people also set up solitary sheds such as "men's hall" and "women's room" according to gender.

In addition to the Pudu altar, it is necessary to set up a solitary shed for sacrifices, shrines, rice and other sacrifices. Every sacrifice should be inserted with a banner that says "Celebrate the Central Plains" or "Worship the Yin Light". The next book is the name of a good man and a good woman. There must be whole pigs and whole sheep in the offering. The owner thinks that the fatter the pig, the more pious it is, so everyone has to compete for size. The sacrificed pig needs sweet fruits such as pineapple and citrus, which is said to be afraid that it will complain to the gods.

There is also a kind of "animal watching", which is only for viewing. Chicken, duck, fish and flour are kneaded into patterns of birds, animals and even historical figures and placed on solitary sheds. Most of the sacrifices are chickens and ducks, so as the saying goes, "ducks in July and a half, I don't know whether to live or die." An altar was built with wooden boards, and the offerings were arranged in layers, which was called "Meat Mountain". Although the offerings are rich, people are still afraid that there are not enough ghosts to enjoy, so they have to invite monks and Taoists to "melt food" and increase these offerings several times by chanting. You should set up a stage and act for your good brother. More people than this day entertain relatives and friends, which is very lively.

After Purdue, the temple will invite Taoist priests, mages or people from the troupe to "dance Zhong Kui". Use Zhong Kui's magic knife to drive away the ghosts stranded in the local area. When Zhong Kui jumped, ordinary people were afraid of being washed away by Sha Qi, so they were afraid to stay at the scene. After Zhong Kui jumped off, the temple was successfully realized. However, as the legend goes, the gate of hell closed on the afternoon of the first day of August, and private education continued in various industries in the second half of July.

At present, the Mid-Autumn Festival in Taiwan Province Province is characterized by Keelung Mid-Autumn Festival. In the middle of Qing Dynasty, immigrants from Zhang Quan and Quanzhou flooded into Taiwan Province. Due to the strong ancestral home concept of early immigrants, different settlements were formed. Because of the conflict between land boundary and irrigation, the two sides often fight. In Keelung area, during Xianfeng period, more than 100 people were killed in a fierce battle. After that, influential people from both sides came forward to mediate the burial and agreed to hold Purdue in July of the lunar calendar. Due to this special historical factor and the conscious promotion of local people, Yuanxiao in chicken coops has become a kind of sightseeing activity with considerable scale and characteristics.

The Mid-Autumn Festival in Hsinchu is stationed by the highest-ranking "Lingwei Gongdu Town God" in Taiwan Province. Every year, the Lord of Mid-Autumn Festival comes to the territory, which becomes a major event in the middle of the year. As the gates of hell are wide open in July, you must invite Lord Huang Cheng to visit Qi Jing Town to ensure safety. As usual, when the city god makes a tour, he will invite the gods of nearby temples to participate in the grand event. The protagonist of the parade is Lord Huang Cheng's sedan chair. Accompanied by the leader of the Youth League, the art pavilion, and the seven lords and eight lords (namely General Fan and General Xie) who are ferocious and afraid of cloth. A string of "orphan cakes" hung between the necks of seven grandfathers and eight grandfathers, and women often begged to go back and give them to their young children. It is said that eating it can make children grow up safely.

The route of Huangcheng border also includes Zhengjia Temple in Hsinchu. The Zheng family temple is the home temple of Zheng Yongxi, a scholar who opened Taiwan. In the early years, when the city god was just renovated and rebuilt, it was all thanks to Zheng's donation. Therefore, every Mid-Autumn Festival, he goes to Zhengjia Temple to express his gratitude.

Among the Hakka settlements in Taiwan Province Province, Yuanpudu is represented by Yimin Temple Gongpu in Xinpu. The origin of Yimin Temple can be traced back to the rebellion of Zhu Yigui in the 60th year of Kangxi (1722) and the forest rebellion in the first year of Qianlong (1782). At that time, the militia who responded from all over the country went out of the province and looted their homes. In order to defend their homeland, Hakkas in Hsinchu area organized their own guards to fight against it, and hundreds of people died before and after. The local squire buried their bones together in the present Yimin Temple, and held Purdue on July 20th every year. Emperor Qianlong gave a plaque "Commending the Loyalty Pavilion" as a reward.

One of the major features of Pudu in Yimin Temple is the God Pig God Sheep Competition held every year since the Qing Dynasty. The top five pigs must all weigh more than 1000 kg. The selection of holy sheep is based on the length of horns. 1976, there were two 8-inch-long sheep in Fangliao village. In order to make the pigs and sheep more eye-catching, the owner will also build a beautiful exhibition shed for them, put glasses and hats on the pigs and sheep, and dress up as a gentleman, which is very cute.

The ceremony of Purdue kicked off on July 18th of the lunar calendar. /kloc-On 0/9, we will welcome the righteous, and there will be activities such as water lanterns, array heads, flags, gongs and drums performances in the evening. There will be a public sacrifice at 10 on the morning of July 20th, and it will be offered at 12 at noon and given in the afternoon. 17 o'clock, the network is lonely, 23 o'clock, lonely. The temple also performed a three-day peace play, providing sesame porridge for believers to eat. Sugar porridge is one of the traditional habits of Yimin Temple. In the early days, Yimin Temple occasionally helped some poor people, so it cooked sugar porridge to satisfy the hunger of the poor. After many years of interruption, 1988, while celebrating the bicentennial of the temple, I cooked sugar porridge for the believers.