The Origin and Legend of Double Ninth Festival

The Origin and Legend of Double Ninth Festival

What are the origins and legends of the Double Ninth Festival? Many traditional festivals in China have their own unique origins and history. Behind those customs handed down are beautiful, romantic or legendary stories. Let's share the origin and legend of the Double Ninth Festival.

The origin and legend of the Double Ninth Festival 1 1, the legend of the Double Ninth Festival

According to legend, there was a god of plague in runan county during the Eastern Han Dynasty who would come out to do evil on the ninth day of September. The plague demon took away Hengjing's parents, so he decided to stop the immortals from learning art and kill the people. Hengjing went through hardships and found a powerful fairy. He studied martial arts with his master and finally learned to subdue demons.

Hengjing returned to his hometown, and according to the instructions of the fairy, on the ninth day of September, he gave each villager a piece of dogwood and a cup of chrysanthemum wine, and took the villagers into the mountains to avoid disaster. When the plague demon appeared, he suddenly smelled the smell of dogwood and chrysanthemum wine and dared not move forward. At this time, Heng Jing killed the plague demon with a sword. Since then, inserting dogwood and drinking chrysanthemum wine have become the custom of the Double Ninth Festival.

In the folk concept, nine means longevity, so the ninth day of the ninth lunar month is also designated as the Day of Respect for the Elderly. In 2006, the Double Ninth Festival was listed in the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage by the State Council.

2. The origin of the Double Ninth Festival

The ninth day of the ninth lunar month is the traditional Double Ninth Festival in China. There are roughly three views on the origin of the Double Ninth Festival.

1. According to "The Sum of Continuation of Qi", Huan Jingshi studied with Fei Changfang, a master of Yi Studies in Han Dynasty, for many years. One day, Master Fei told his disciples that cornus was going to climb the mountain on September 9, and Huan Jing and his family survived because they listened to the master's words. All the livestock that didn't evacuate died of the plague. So on September 9 every year, I go out to climb mountains to avoid disasters and get used to each other.

2. Taoism originated in Han Dynasty. In the Book of Changes, which is regarded as a classic by Taoism, odd numbers are regarded as positive numbers, even numbers as negative numbers, and "nine" in positive numbers as "extreme yang". September 9 is the meeting of the two poles, so it is called "Chongyang". Yang also means steel, and Chongyang is regarded as "the second day" because it is "the meeting of two steels". The purpose of climbing mountains and joining dogwood is to "solve problems", from which the custom of Chongyang comes.

3. Originated in Qi Jinggong during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period in the 5th century BC. On the ninth day of September, he took a lot of people to climb mountains and walls, feeling crisp in autumn, so he decided it was an auspicious day. Since then, he will go out to climb mountains on this day every year. Later generations imitated it and formed customs.

However, historians and folklorists have not yet come to a conclusion as to which of these three statements is correct.

3. Double Ninth Festival custom

There are many customs of Double Ninth Festival in our country. In some places, we choose to climb mountains, that is, climb mountains or towers. Some places also choose to eat Chongyang cake, which is some cakes. Some will also enjoy chrysanthemums and drink chrysanthemum wine with relatives and friends. Or insert dogwood chrysanthemum, in short, customs vary from place to place.

In ancient China, we attached great importance to the traditional festivals in China, because each festival had its significance or something important happened to commemorate that day.

Since modern times, people have transformed rice fruit into a unique nine-fold rice fruit. Wash high-quality late rice with clear water, soak it for 2 hours, take it out and drain it, mix it with water and grind it into slurry, add alum, stir it evenly, add brown sugar, then put it in a steamer, spread a clean cooking cloth, then scoop in rice slurry for nine times, steam it for a few hours, then take it out of the cage, and spread peanut oil on the rice noodles.

This rice fruit is divided into nine overlapping layers, which can be uncovered and cut into water chestnuts. The four sides are well-defined, star-shaped and translucent, and it tastes sweet and soft, not sticky. Respect for the elderly is the best gift for Chongyang.

The origin and legend of the Double Ninth Festival. The origin of Double Ninth Festival

The origin of Chongyang can be traced back to before the pre-Qin period. "Lu Chunqiu Qiu Ji Ji" contains: "(September) ordered the family to slaughter, prepare the fields for harvest, and cite five essentials. The Tibetan emperor's book is collected in the holy warehouse, and I only respect it. " "It's the day, Great Emperor. I'll taste the sacrifice and tell the son of heaven." It can be seen that at that time, when the crops were harvested in autumn and September, there were activities of offering sacrifices to the emperor and ancestors to thank them for their kindness.

Jia, a palace official of the Western Han Dynasty in the Han Dynasty, said in Miscellanies of Xijing: "On September 9, Pei Yun ate bait and drank chrysanthemum wine, and Yun Chang made life." According to legend, since then, there has been the custom of seeking longevity on the Double Ninth Festival. This is influenced by the ancient wizards (later Taoist priests) who pursued immortality and collected drugs to take. At the same time, there are also large-scale banquet activities, which developed from the Qingfeng banquet in the pre-Qin period. The Chronicle of Jingchu Age said: "On September 9th, four people got together for a picnic." Duke Du of Sui looked at the clouds and said, "I don't know when the banquet on September 9 started, and it hasn't changed since I was stationed in the Song Dynasty." Longevity and feast form the basis of the Double Ninth Festival.

During the Three Kingdoms period, Wei Wendi Cao Pi's Book of Nine Days and Zhong You said, "From year to month, it is September 9. Nine is the number of yang, and the sun and the moon coincide. Compared with its name, it is suitable for a long time, so it is a feast. " It can be seen that holiday customs have been finalized. The theme of the Double Ninth Festival is longevity, wearing dogwood, brewing chrysanthemum wine, enjoying chrysanthemums, making wine and offering sacrifices to the gods. Spread to this day, it has increased the connotation of respecting the elderly and is more meaningful. In addition, there are hiking picnics and various games.

Second, the custom of the Double Ninth Festival,

The Double Ninth Festival is a traditional festival of the Han nationality, which combines many kinds of folk customs. Celebrating the Double Ninth Festival generally includes traveling to enjoy the scenery, climbing high and looking far, enjoying chrysanthemums, planting dogwood all over the place, eating double ninth cake, drinking chrysanthemum wine and other activities.

Gordon 1

The Double Ninth Festival first has the custom of climbing mountains. Autumn in September, the sky is crisp, this season, climbing high and looking far can achieve the purpose of refreshing, fitness and recuperation.

As early as the Western Han Dynasty, the Annals of Chang 'an recorded that people visited the Han capital on September 9th. In the Eastern Jin Dynasty, there was a famous story that "the hat fell from Longshan".

Step 2 eat Chongyang cake

According to historical records, Chongyang cake, also known as flower cake, chrysanthemum cake and five-color cake, is made randomly. It was the original intention of the ancients to make cakes at dawn on September 9. The child put a cake on his head and said a word in his mouth, wishing the child all the best. Exquisite Chongyang cake should be made into nine layers, like a pagoda, with two lambs on it, which conforms to the meaning of Chongyang (sheep). Some people even put red paper flags on Chongyang cakes and light candles. This probably means "lighting a lamp" and "eating cakes" instead of "climbing", and using a red paper flag instead of dogwood. There is still no fixed variety of Chongyang cake at present, and the soft cakes eaten around Chongyang Festival are called Chongyang cakes.

Step 3 enjoy chrysanthemums

The Double Ninth Festival has always had the custom of enjoying chrysanthemums, so it has been called Chrysanthemum Festival since ancient times. September of the lunar calendar, commonly known as Chrysanthemum Month, holds a chrysanthemum party on holidays, and people from all over the city go to the meeting to enjoy chrysanthemums. Since the Wei and Jin Dynasties in the Three Kingdoms, it has become fashionable for Chongyang parties to drink and enjoy chrysanthemums and recite poems. In the ancient customs of Han nationality, chrysanthemum symbolizes longevity.

Step 4 drink chrysanthemum wine

Chrysanthemum contains health-preserving ingredients. In Jin Dynasty, Ge Hong's "Bao Pu Zi" recorded that people in Nanyang Mountain drank sweet valley water full of chrysanthemums and lived longer. Drinking chrysanthemum wine on the Double Ninth Festival is a traditional custom in China. Chrysanthemum wine, in ancient times, was regarded as the "auspicious wine" that Chongyang must drink to eliminate disasters and pray for blessings.

Chrysanthemum wine appeared in the Han Dynasty. Later, there were stories about sending chrysanthemums for birthday and picking chrysanthemums to brew wine. For example, Emperor Wei Wendi Cao Pi once sent chrysanthemums to Zhong You on the Double Ninth Festival (wishing him a long life), and Emperor Liang Jianwen's "Picking chrysanthemums in the basket, the morning dew is wet" is an example of picking chrysanthemums to make wine. Until the Ming and Qing Dynasties, chrysanthemum wine was still very popular, and it was still recorded in Gao Lian's Eight Chapters of Respect for Life in the Ming Dynasty. This is a popular health drink.

5. Pei dogwood

The custom of inserting Evodia rutaecarpa was popular in ancient times, so it is also called Cornus Festival. As a medicine, Cornus officinalis can make wine, strengthen the body and get rid of diseases. Evodia rutaecarpa and chrysanthemum were very common in the Tang Dynasty. Cornus officinalis has a strong aroma, and has the functions of expelling parasites, removing dampness, expelling wind, promoting digestion and resolving food stagnation, and treating cold and heat. People think that the ninth day of September is also a day of disaster, so people like to wear dogwood to ward off evil spirits and seek good luck on the Double Ninth Festival. Therefore, Cornus officinalis is also called "evil spirit".

Third, the legend of the Double Ninth Festival.

One of the legends is related to Taoism.

This is a fairy tale related to Taoism. According to legend, during the Eastern Han Dynasty, there was a plague in Ruhe River, spreading various plagues, causing numerous deaths and injuries to the people. Hengjing, a local young man, can't stand it. After many hardships, he found a powerful fairy to be his teacher. When he learned martial arts and prepared to return to China to kill athel Loren, his master gave him a pack of dogwood leaves and a bottle of chrysanthemum wine.

After Hengjing returned to his hometown, he climbed up the mountain to fight the plague. After hundreds of rounds, the plague finally disappeared. Since then, people have had the Double Ninth Festival to commemorate this event. The Double Ninth Festival is the time for Jing to return to his hometown to kill the plague. With the passage of time, the custom of climbing to avoid epidemic, wearing dogwood leaves and drinking chrysanthemum wine has also been established on the Double Ninth Festival.

The second legend is related to enjoying chrysanthemums and drinking chrysanthemum wine.

A long time ago, there was a farmer named A Niu. When he was seven years old, his father died unfortunately, and his mother was heartbroken and suffered from eye diseases. A Niu tried countless ways to cure her eyes, until one night, A Niu dreamed that a girl told him that as long as she went to smallpox on the ninth day of September and found a white chrysanthemum on the swing, she could cure his mother's eye disease.

Although A Niu feels incredible, a dead horse is a living horse doctor. He went to smallpox to look for chrysanthemums on the ninth day of September. I didn't expect there to be chrysanthemums. A Niu dug it up and decocted it into liquid medicine for his mother to take, and soon he saw the light again. From then on, A Niu began to plant chrysanthemums. People also call the ninth day of September the Chrysanthemum Festival, and they also have the custom of enjoying chrysanthemums and drinking chrysanthemum wine.

The origin and legend of the Double Ninth Festival 3 ● What food does the Double Ninth Festival eat?

The customs in most parts of China are different, but many areas will choose to eat Chongyang cake. Chrysanthemum, a famous flower in China, is also a famous flower with long life. Later, I will choose some chrysanthemum cakes to symbolize longevity. Others will drink chrysanthemum wine on the Double Ninth Festival.

Double Ninth Festival, regardless of its origin or implication, means a long and beautiful life. Moreover, chrysanthemum has become a scene in the poems of many poets in the early years.

As early as Qu Yuan's pen, there was a saying that "the autumn chrysanthemum leaves the English for dinner", that is, eating chrysanthemum petals. Chrysanthemum wine existed in the Han Dynasty. Wei Shi once gave chrysanthemum to Zhong Wu in Chongyang, wishing him a long life. Ge Hong of the Jin Dynasty recorded in Bao Puzi that there was a family in Nanyang Mountain, Henan Province, who lived a long life because of drinking the sweet valley water full of chrysanthemums.

In Liang's "Picking Chrysanthemums", there is a saying that "under the east fence of picking chrysanthemums, picking pearls tells each other, and the morning dew is wet", which is also a move of picking chrysanthemums to make wine. Until the Ming and Qing Dynasties, chrysanthemum wine was still very popular, and it was still recorded in Gao Lian's Eight Chapters of Respect for Life in the Ming Dynasty. This is a popular health drink.

It seems that chrysanthemums were very popular in ancient China. Tao Yuanming has a poem "Picking chrysanthemums under the hedge, leisurely seeing Nanshan", which is very leisurely and represents the people's good wishes.

● Why is the Double Ninth Festival a festival for the elderly?

The reason why the Double Ninth Festival is the festival for the elderly is that it was officially designated as the festival for the elderly in 19 89. In fact, the Double Ninth Festival existed in ancient times. At that time, on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month, people would climb mountains with their relatives and friends to avoid disasters, hoping that the elderly could live a long and healthy life.

The ninth day of the ninth lunar month is the traditional Double Ninth Festival in China. Nine has always been the most worshipped mysterious number in faith, and nine is the number of yang, so this day is called Double Ninth Festival, also known as Double Ninth Festival.

In ancient times, when the Double Ninth Festival came, it was the most beautiful moment in autumn scenery, so at that time, both literati and ordinary people would go out to see chrysanthemums with relatives and friends, which meant to eliminate disasters.

September 9th is also called the Festival for the Elderly, because it is homophonic with "long", and nine is the largest number in the number, so it is naturally easy to be endowed with the meaning of longevity. Calling this day the Day for the Elderly is to hope that the elderly can live a long life and give their best wishes to the elderly.