Chinese folk customs: "vertical" Mid-Autumn Festival and hope for "breaking of the moon"
"Vertical" Mid-Autumn Festival
"Book of Rites" is a book that records the sacrificial rites of the Zhou Dynasty. There is the sentence "The emperor rises in spring and the moon in autumn", that is, he worships the sun in spring and the moon in autumn. Because the word "autumn" comes from "he" and "fire", implying "the crops are ripe". For a good harvest, naturally I have to thank the moon. Spread among the people, there are cultural customs to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival such as viewing lanterns, making cakes and fruits, slaughtering chickens and geese, eating reunion dinners, worshiping the moon, offering sacrifices to the moon, and appreciating the moon.
In the past, Guangzhou people were no exception, and they had their own local characteristics-the "Vertical" Mid-Autumn Festival: On the Mid-Autumn Festival night on August 15th, a flagpole was erected on the balcony, lanterns were hung up, and tea and fruit cake baits were set out. The family gathered to eat and have fun. It was called the "Vertical Mid-Autumn Festival". Hanging lanterns means "adding a child", and children carry all kinds of lanterns together to play around.
Suck snail: Legend has it that Zhang Gugu is good at weaving straw sandals and presents them to poor people who have no shoes. A rich man learned that he thought it was a way to make money and asked Zhang Gugu to teach his servants the skills of weaving shoes. Zhang Buyun was beaten until he vomited blood. Before Zhang died, he was afraid that his skills would be lost, so he called a poor neighbor over on the night of August 15th and taught him the skills of shoe-weaving under the moon. He died as soon as he finished weaving the soles (so the straw sandals had no bottom, ears were fixed at the front and back, and were threaded with ropes). Zhang Gulou liked to eat field snails during his lifetime, so people in Guangzhou and the Pearl River Delta pay homage to Zhang Gulou with snails every year during the Mid-Autumn Festival. After paying homage, everyone sucked on the field snails together, saying that sucking the snails would make their eyes brighter.
Couplets collection: I don't know when the Mid-Autumn Festival couplet collection began. Old Guangzhou knows that in 1933, Tan Jienan and Chen Boqi converted the Guan Mansion in Dishifu into a catering business, and the shop was called "Tao Tao Ju". Later, in order to promote his essence in making Mid-Autumn Festival mooncakes, a mooncake collection couplet was held, and celebrity Huang Cibo was invited to read and comment. The first place was named Wen Guyin. His link said: "The bright moon does not worry about pearls feeding the night, and the sky is high and the autumn is practiced." This activity has been passed down. (Note: Huang Cibo, also known as Huang Foyi, compiled "Guangzhou City Square Chronicles".) (Liu Wenlan)
Looking forward to the "moon breaking"
The world is so big that there are no surprises. While most people are looking forward to a full moon during the Mid-Autumn Festival, in some places in our country, they are looking forward to a "breaking moon". The Tu people living in Gansu and Qinghai have the custom of "beating the moon": on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, a basin of clear water is placed in the courtyard of each family. When the reflection of the full moon appears in the basin, people will keep hitting it with small stones, beating the full moon until it is "completely skinned." In the Linqing area in northwest Shandong, there was also the custom of "rolling the moon" in the past: on the Mid-Autumn Festival, every family cut a big and round moon and put it on the window. In the full moon are the legendary Chang'e or pomegranate, lotus, peony, butterfly, etc. According to local custom, the full moon must be torn on the same day, which can drive away evil spirits and bring good luck. This custom comes from a legendary story: when Jiang Taigong became a god, his wife was named the god of poverty. The queen was worried about her and worried that she would harm the poor, so she made her "come back at the sight of a breach." Therefore, people tear the moon in order to dissuade the poor gods and make life rich and beautiful.
Whether looking forward to a full moon or a "broken moon", it reflects people's yearning and pursuit of a happy life, and their goals are the same. This difference in folk customs just reflects the richness of our country's national culture.