The Relationship between Cold Food Festival and Tomb-Sweeping Day

In ancient times, the relationship between "Tomb-Sweeping Day" and "Cold Food Festival" was: the day before in Tomb-Sweeping Day was "Cold Food Festival", and now they have merged into one in customs.

Tomb-Sweeping Day started in the Zhou Dynasty and has a history of more than 2,500 years. Qingming is one of the twenty-four solar terms in the China lunar calendar. At this time, the rain increased, and the earth showed a scene of spring, tranquility and peace. It is said that Tomb-Sweeping Day originated from the "tomb sacrifice" ceremony of ancient emperors and generals, and later people followed suit, offering sacrifices to ancestors and sweeping graves on this day.

In ancient times, the day before Tomb-Sweeping Day was called "Cold Food Festival". According to legend, during the Spring and Autumn Period, Jin Wengong was in trouble, and Jiexiu cut his own meat to satisfy his hunger. After Jin Wengong ascended the throne, Jiexiu was asked to be an official, but Jiexiu lived in seclusion in Mianshan. Jin Wengong asked Yamakaji to try to force Jiexiu out, but Jiexiu was burned to death by mistake. Jin Wengong regretted it very much and ordered that fire should be banned from now on. Because of the fire ban, people can only eat cold food on this day, so it is called "cold food". After that, cold food and cold food gradually merged into one, which was followed from generation to generation and became a traditional festival of the Chinese nation.

The custom of cold food festival

1, food customs

The Cold Food Festival mainly includes spring wine, fresh tea, clear spring and sweet water. Of course, at the Cold Food Festival, all drinks are also "cold drinks". In ancient Jinnan area, there were also special foods of the Cold Food Festival, such as bean jelly, cold noodles and cold cakes. People living in mountainous areas will also fry whole grains before the Cold Food Festival.

Step 2 insert willow

Willow is definitely a legendary plant in the eyes of the ancients. "The Chronicle of Jingchu's Age" records: "On the cold food day between Jianghuai, every family broke the door". In the Cold Food Festival, in order to commemorate Jietui, people will insert willow branches into doors and windows, which mainly means to praise Jietui's noble quality of "not eating wealth".

In some places, it is even popular to insert willow branches in graves and sleeping stoves, and "wear a head or a belt". "Cold food doesn't wear willow, and the red face turns white" is a favorable proof of the custom of inserting willow in ancient cold food festival.

3. Poetry

When the ancient people celebrated the Cold Food Festival, they all held sacrificial activities, which were roughly similar to those in Tomb-Sweeping Day. Therefore, people will be moved by the scene on the day of the festival, especially for poets living in the Tang and Song Dynasties, who wrote many poems related to the Cold Food Festival. More than 300 poems related to the Cold Food Festival were recorded in The Whole Tang Poetry.