By Rita | 23 December 2021 | 0 Comments
Winter Solstice
Winter solstice
Winter solstice (冬至), one of China's twenty-four solar terms and one of the eight astronomical solar terms, is opposite to the summer solstice. The winter solstice begins when the sun reaches 270° of the yellow longitude, around December 22 of the Gregorian calendar. At the end of the cathode, the yang qi begins to emerge, the sun reaches the south, the sun reaches short, and the sun’s shadow reaches long, Gu said "winter solstice".
North of China
A family in Beijing eats dumplings on the winter solstice
The North’s Winter Solstice Food Customs:
There is a proverb “Dumplings in winter solstice and noodles in summer solstice”. It is believed that the human body consumes a lot of calories because it is cold in winter and should eat more nutritious foods to supplement calories. Therefore, there is the custom of eating dumplings and wontons during the winter solstice: eating wontons means breaking the yin and relieving the yang, expressing the chaotic state of the new and old transition of the winter solstice, and also means opening up the world by yourself; and eating dumplings is also commonly known as "An ear" (squeezing dumplings like ears) Folk custom believes that not eating dumplings during the winter solstice will freeze your ears, and it is also unfavorable for farming. Another saying that eating dumplings is a commemoration of the king of medicine Zhang Zhongjing. Dumplings, wontons and steamed buns will be eaten by family members around the table, called "steamed winter". Of course, there are exceptions, such as the popular custom of drinking mutton soup on the winter solstice in Zaozhuang, Sichuan and Shandong, which means to drive away the cold. Food customs vary from place to place, but eating dumplings is the most common.
In the Southern Song Dynasty, Chen Yuanliang mentioned in "Sui Shi Guang Ji": "Beijing masters, the winter solstice eats more wontons."; [4]
Southern Song Dynasty Zhou Mi mentioned in "S: Wulin Old Things/Volume Three": "Xiangxian uses wontons."; [4]
During the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, a period of folk customs was recorded: "Winter solstice, worship to ancestors, eat wontons, take embryos of yin and yang, and contain all kinds of things."; [9]
Hebei’s "Baixiang County Chronicles" mentioned: "On the winter solstice, make ravioli for food, and take the heavens to open up the children." "[4]
Legend has it that the medical sage Zhang Zhongjing in the late Han Dynasty learned that the villagers in his hometown worked hard in the cold winter. On the winter solstice, he used mutton and other cold-removing medicinal materials to wrap the dough in the shape of ears to treat the villagers’ illnesses and replenish their bodies. The name of this prescription is called "Quhan Jiao Er Tang", Jiao Er is dumplings.
According to the earliest recorded custom in "s: Jingchu Sui Shi Ji", some places in Shaanxi will eat red bean porridge during the winter solstice, thinking that it can expel the epidemic ghost to avoid the epidemic and Bu Renri, according to legend, the son of Gonggong died on the winter solstice. After the incarnation. Traditional Chinese people have always used red beans, adzuki beans, peach trees and other "sacred objects" to avoid disasters and epidemics to accompany the festival, and even "cut the grass to become a horse, and throw the beans to become a soldier." "There is also a description: "Mixed bean curd is disgusted with the custom of pitying Jing, and the cloud and things are reminiscent of Lutai"; then this custom merged with the Laba porridge of the Dongla Festival, and the spread of folk memory became blurred.
"Owning a furnace to drink": The fire and wine are both warm, warm the wine around the furnace, reunite and drink together, both Fuyang and festive celebrations.
A small number of Han and Korean people in the north also eat dog meat, which is considered to be a great tonic food.
The northern Manchu banner people both worship the sky and ancestors during the winter solstice: at the night of the winter solstice, the family will shop tables in the courtyard, set up tables, hang "tiandi wuer", kill pigs to sacrifice; at the same time, make sacrifices to the ancestors and erect ancestor poles in the courtyard , The top of the pole is in the shape of a gourd, and there is a "diao bucket" underneath. Afterwards, relatives and friends who participated in the festival were given the meat used for the sacrifice (called "white meat") to enjoy, which is to "eat white meat"; while pig intestines and pig urine were thrown into Diao Dou to be eaten by birds.
Before and after the winter solstice in the north, the old landlords were also in the period of debt collection. People also like to sweep snow and make tea, which they think is helpful for fitness.
south part of China
Singaporeans of Xinghua descent make glutinous rice balls during the winter solstice
Fuzhou eaten on the winter solstice
The winter solstice eating custom in the south, some places have the custom of winter solstice gnocchi, rice noodles and other sweets:
On the winter solstice, round foods made of rice noodles are eaten, namely "dumplings", "dumplings", and "tuanyuanzi" (called "balls" in northern China). The round shape symbolizes the sky and the sun, which means reunion at the end of the year. The stuffed dumplings are used as ancestor worship, and those without stuffing are used as worship to the gods. People in coastal areas often turn the gnocchi into red and white to imply the harmony between yin and yang. Eating gnocchi during the winter solstice also symbolizes one year older. In addition to eating and drinking, there is also a folk custom of "drying winter rice". After washing the white rice, it is exposed to the sun on the winter solstice and left for the sick to cook porridge in the future.
There is a proverb, "If you want to be rich, eat a piece of hot tofu in the winter solstice." It is popular in the south to eat tofu on the eve of the turn of the year when the winter solstice is the turn of the year.
In the areas of Jiangsu and Zhejiang, in addition to eating soup dumplings during the winter solstice, they also eat osmanthus fermented rice noodles and worship their ancestors.
It is a custom in Suzhou that family members gather for a reunion dinner on the winter solstice. If family members go out, they will also leave a set of tableware and chopsticks for suspense. Among them, the meals include whole chicken, whole duck, big herring, red braised hoof and so on. In addition, there is also the custom of drinking winter solstice wine. The wine is made with wine and sugar. Generally, it is only made in winter solstice with sweet-scented osmanthus winter wine, suitable for all ages.
Nanyue, traditional Guangzhou people spend the winter solstice, worship their ancestors, feed consumption, eat glutinous rice balls, make waxed glutinous rice, slaughter chickens, kill ducks, stew eight treasures (referring to stew and boil eight rare and precious cooking ingredients), and rural residents outside Guangzhou On the winter solstice in the old days, the cattle would be fed glutinous rice cakes, rice juice, distiller’s grains, radishes, vegetable water, etc., to reward his hard work in the past year, and hope that the cattle will continue to be the masters in exchange for a good harvest in the coming year.
In the Fuzhou area of Fujian Province and the Matsu area, a food similar to glutinous rice balls is eaten in the winter solstice:
In addition, there is the custom of eating long noodles, which symbolizes longevity and hopes that the length of the day after the winter solstice will gradually increase and the earth will rejuvenate as soon as possible. "S: Menglianglu/Volume 06" mentions that "the sundial will grow longer after a sun, and it will add a ray of power to Meng Yue."
Tomb sweeping during the winter solstice is called "winter paper". This custom is found in some places in southern Fujian and Puxian, which means that the souls of descendants and ancestors coexist.
A game of diet divination is also popular in Jiangnan, using glutinous rice balls to symbolize people and praying for fertility through divination:
Put the rice balls in the bamboo sieve and take out two at a time. In the end, if 1 rice ball is left, it is considered that a boy is bound to be born, and if there are 2 rice balls, it is considered that a girl is bound to be born.
The winter festival rounds made with glutinous rice are roasted with fire. If the glutinous rice balls swell but do not crack, it is considered suitable for a boy, and if the glutinous rice balls swell and crack, it is considered to be a sign of giving birth to a girl.
Source: Wikipedia
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