Is there anything special about the Great Cold?

The Great Cold is the last of the twenty-four solar terms, and it is called "Great Cold" when the sun reaches 300 degrees of the yellow meridian around 65438+1October 20th every year. Great cold refers to extremely cold weather. Time-sharing, time-sharing, time-sharing and time-sharing have three meanings: "Great cold is the middle and shaped by slight cold, so it is called great ... extremely cold, so it is called great cold." At this time, the cold wave frequently goes south, which is the cold period of the year in most parts of China. The wind is strong, the temperature is low, and the snow on the ground does not melt, showing a cold scene of ice and snow. The Great Cold is the last of the 24 solar terms in China. After the great cold, a new year's solar cycle is ushered in.

Weide abundant gourmet

According to the custom of China, especially in rural areas, people are busy going to old cloth and new ones to pickle new year's vegetables and prepare new year's goods every cold festival. During the period from the Great Cold to beginning of spring, there were many important folk customs and festivals. For example, sumptuous food, kitchen sacrifices and New Year's Eve, and sometimes even the Spring Festival, the biggest festival in China, are all in this solar term. The cold solar term is full of joy and festive atmosphere, and it is a cheerful and relaxed solar term. Tail teeth originated from the custom of worshipping the earth god as "teeth", and the so-called second day of February is the first tooth. From now on, every second and sixteenth day is the "tooth", which happens to be the tail tooth on the 16th day of the twelfth lunar month. For example, on February 2nd, Weiya has spring cakes (called Runbing in the south). On this day, buyers and sellers will hold a banquet, and boiled chicken is an essential dish at the banquet. It is said that whoever the head of a chicken faces means who the boss will fire next year. Therefore, some bosses now generally aim at their heads, so that employees can enjoy delicious food and have a stable year after returning home. [2]

Dietary changes

The severe cold solar terms often coincide with the end of the year, and the Spring Festival in 2009 is included in the severe cold solar terms. Therefore, in such a cold solar term, in addition to doing farm work to conform to the solar term, we have to rush about for the New Year ―― catching up on new year's goods, buying new year's goods, writing Spring Festival couplets, preparing all kinds of sacrificial supplies, sweeping away dust and wiping things, removing old cloth, preparing new year's goods, pickling all kinds of sausages and bacon, or cooking new year's dishes such as chicken, duck and fish. At the same time, sacrifice ancestors and various gods to pray for good weather in the coming year. In addition, in the cold season, people often snap up sesame stalks in the street. Because "sesame blossoms are getting higher and higher", on New Year's Eve, people scatter sesame stalks on the way outside for a walk, so that children can crush them, which is homophonic "stepping on the old". At the same time, the homonym of "crush" and "old" means "peace all the year round", which is a good slogan for New Year's Day. This also makes the great cold drive away evil and welcome auspicious festivals more intense.

Due to the transition from the Great Cold to beginning of spring, cultured families have also adapted to the seasonal changes in diet. The amount of food supplemented by the Great Cold is gradually decreasing, and more food is supplemented to adapt to the rise of everything in spring. In Foshan, Guangdong, there is a folk custom of cooking glutinous rice in a big cold pot. Glutinous rice is sweet and warm, and has the effect of keeping out the cold and nourishing. Anqing, Anhui has the custom of frying spring rolls in cold weather.

In short, the Great Cold is the end of the 24 solar terms, and it is also the season when winter is coming to an end. You can already vaguely feel the signs of spring coming back.