Traditional Culture Encyclopedia - The 24 Solar Terms - Is the winter solstice the end or the beginning of winter?

Is the winter solstice the end or the beginning of winter?

Is the winter solstice the end or the beginning of winter?

Whether the solstice of winter is the end or the beginning of winter, sentences are made up of words and phrases. In life, people communicate through sentences, which can express our inner language. Let me tell you whether the winter solstice is the beginning or the end of winter.

Is the winter solstice the end or the beginning of winter? 1 winter solstice is the beginning of winter, which means that we have really entered winter and the cold is coming.

The significance of winter solstice:

The solstice of winter means that the cold winter is coming. On the solstice in winter, the longitude of the sun is 270 degrees. On the solstice of winter, the sun shines almost directly on the Tropic of Capricorn, which is the place with the shortest day and the longest night in the northern hemisphere. Since the winter solstice, it has entered several cold days. Astronomy stipulates that this day is the beginning of winter in the northern hemisphere. However, after the winter solstice, the direct sunlight gradually moves northward, and the days in the northern hemisphere will gradually become longer. As the proverb goes, eating noodles on the solstice in winter will make the day longer.

Winter solstice is the 22nd solar term among the 24 solar terms in a year. It begins on February 22nd or 23rd of 12, when the sun reaches 270 degrees. It is one of the most important solar terms in China lunar calendar, commonly known as "Winter Festival", "Long Festival" and "Child Year". As early as 2500 years ago, during the Spring and Autumn Period, China determined the winter solstice by observing the sun through the soil, which was the earliest of the 24 solar terms. "Tong Wei's filial piety helps the gods": "The fifteenth day after the heavy snow is the winter solstice, in mid-November. Cathode and yang began to arrive, and arrived in the south, and gradually developed to also. 」

"Twenty-four solar terms" said: "On November 15th, the gas storage finally came to an end. The ancients said that the winter solstice is the time when Yin Qi is coming to an end and Yang Qi is about to begin. The sun is moving south, with short days and long shadows, so it is called the winter solstice.

From the solstice after beginning of winter, all places will enter the coldest stage, which is what people often say. From the solstice of winter, "Count Nine" is a section every nine days, while * * * is divided into 998 1 day. There is a folk song: "1929 did not move, walked on the ice in 3949, watched the willows along the river in 5969, opened the river in 79, swallowed it in 89, and added 19 in 99, plowing cattle everywhere." This ballad vividly reflects the seasonal changes in different periods, and also shows the wisdom of the ancient working people in China. March 9 is the coldest time, and the heat accumulated on the ground is the least, so there is also a saying that it is "cold on March 9". The Yangtze River valley in China is colder, but people can see the beautiful scene of wintersweet.

Is the winter solstice the end or the beginning of winter? On the solstice, the beginning of winter every year is the beginning of "nine days", that is, winter is about to enter the coldest time. Generally, the number of nine days is 865,438+0 days, and after 865,438+0 days, spring will come.

The custom of winter solstice

Winter solstice custom 1: ancestor worship

As early as the Eastern Han Dynasty, it was recorded in Cui Ai's "Four-person Moon Order" that the people wanted to offer something to Xuanming and Zuyou. The records of ancestor worship in the winter of solstice began to increase in the Song Dynasty. "Tokyo Dream" said that the capital attaches the most importance to the winter solstice festival, so it is easier to get new clothes, buy some food and enjoy the worship of ancestors.

According to Legend of Wulin, wonton is the first enjoyment, and winter ancestor worship to the sun became popular in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Jiajing's "Jiangyin County Records" records: "On holidays, the portrait of Zukao is hung in nave, and a ceremony is set up, and its ceremony depends on New Year's Day." In the southern region where the clan system is very popular, ancestor worship is often carried out in ancestral halls. Records of Nankang County, Jiajing, Jiangxi Province: "The winter solstice is before the ancestral hall, and the mausoleum is like a tomb."

The custom of offering sacrifices to ancestors in winter solstice is popular in Fujian province. For example, "Records of Jianyang County in Wanli" said, "It is a ritual for Japanese families to sacrifice their ancestors." Fujian people use special dumplings to worship their ancestors, while Qing people usually worship their ancestors at home, in graves and in the south where they live together in winter. They often worship their ancestors in their own temples like Qingming and Zhongyuan.

Winter solstice custom 2: September to dispel the cold in September

As soon as the solstice of winter arrives, it will enter several cold days. China folks call the winter solstice nine to nine, that is, from the winter solstice, it is divided into nine every nine days and blooms at 8 1 hour.

In the traditional culture of China, nine is the extreme number, representing the largest, largest and longest. Nine nines is eighty-one, which is the "maximum" number. People in ancient China believed that after the solstice of the 998th1winter, spring would definitely come.

Winter Solstice Custom 3: Eat jiaozi

Winter solstice is a very important solar term in the China lunar calendar, and it is also one of the traditional festivals of the Han nationality. It originated in the Han Dynasty, flourished in the Tang and Song Dynasties, and has been passed down to this day. The winter solstice is commonly known as "Winter Festival", "Dragon Solstice Festival" and "Asian New Year Festival". As early as 2500 years ago, during the Spring and Autumn Period, China observed the sun with earth gauges and determined the specific time of the winter solstice.

The winter solstice is the earliest of the 24 solar terms, and the time is between the solar calendar 65438+February 265438+February 0-23, which is the shortest day and the longest night in the northern hemisphere. On the solstice of winter, there are different customs in the north and south of China. Most areas in the north will eat jiaozi, and the south will eat jiaozi with their families. There is also a proverb: When the solstice of winter comes, you will eat jiaozi, and there are many poems and songs about this solar term, as well as some film and television works.

Is the winter solstice the end or the beginning of winter 3 1, and the origin of winter solstice?

Winter solstice is one of the "24 solar terms". During the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, twenty-four solar terms were absorbed into the calendar as a supplement to the calendar guiding farming, and the division of solar terms adopted the method of "balancing qi" (that is, the average time method).

The "leveling method" is to determine the shortest day in the Yellow River basin as the winter solstice by photogrammetry, divide the date between the winter solstice and the next winter solstice into twelve equal parts, which is called "Zhongqi", and then divide the dates between adjacent "Zhongqi" into equal parts, which is called "solar terms"; On average, there is a "neutral gas" and a "solar term" every month, which are collectively called "24 solar terms".

2. Winter solstice festival customs

south

Many places in southern China will celebrate the winter solstice. Many areas along the southern coast have the traditional custom of offering sacrifices to ancestors during the winter solstice. Every household is dedicated to ancestor statues, memorial tablets, etc. Go to the hall at home, place an altar, set up incense burners, offerings, etc. In some places, while offering sacrifices to ancestors, they also offer sacrifices to gods, land gods and deities, so as to make the next year's weather favorable and the family prosperous.

Cantonese people eat barbecue and ginger rice on the solstice in winter. On this day, most Cantonese people have the custom of "adding vegetables" to eat meat on the solstice in winter. In Chaoshan area, there is a folk saying that "Winter Festival Pills, once eaten, celebrate the New Year", commonly known as "Adding New Year". Hakkas believe that the taste of water is the most mellow in winter solstice, so it has become a custom for Hakkas to make wine in winter solstice.

People in Hangzhou eat rice cakes on the solstice in winter. From the late Ming and early Qing dynasties to the present, people in Hangzhou like to eat rice cakes on the solstice in winter. In winter solstice, you can cook rice cakes with different flavors, eat rice cakes in winter solstice and get old, which is auspicious. In Sichuan, it is the solstice to eat mutton soup in winter, and mutton is the first tonic in winter. In the area around the two lakes, red beans and glutinous rice must be eaten on the solstice in winter.

In some areas in the south, eating the winter solstice ball is more popular, which means reunion. On the morning of winter solstice, every household grinds glutinous rice flour and makes winter solstice balls with sugar, meat, vegetables, fruits and shredded radish, which are not only eaten by family members, but also given to relatives and friends as a sign of blessing. In fact, eating jiaozi on the solstice in winter is a traditional custom in China, which is more common in Jiangnan. There is also a folk saying that "eating jiaozi is one year older".

north

In many parts of northern China, it is a custom to eat jiaozi every winter solstice. According to legend, Zhang Zhongjing, a medical sage, saw the frozen people when he retired in his later years, so he wrapped mutton, some cold-dispelling herbs and dough in his ears and made the medicine of "Joule Decoction for Eliminating Cold" for the people to eat. Later, on the solstice of winter, people imitated eating and formed a custom. Most parts of northern China want to eat jiaozi on this day, because jiaozi means "driving away the cold". Up to now, there has been a saying among the people that "jiaozi bowls are not delicious in winter, and nobody cares about frozen ears".