What is Xiaoman: What are the origins and customs of solar terms?

Grain bud is one of the twenty-four solar terms and the second solar term in summer. Xiaoman-refers to the summer crops with full seeds, but not yet mature, just small and not yet full. Every year from May 20th to 22nd, when the sun reaches 60 degrees, it is in full bloom.

Cheshen

Sacrificing the car god is an ancient small custom in some rural areas. In related legends, Erche God is a white dragon. People put fish, incense sticks and other items on the waterwheel to worship. The most interesting thing is that there will be a glass of white water during the sacrifice, which will be poured into the field during the worship, meaning to bless the prosperity of the inkstone.

Silkworm sacrifice

Silkworm cocoon in xiaoman season

According to legend, Xiaoman is the birthday of the silkworm god, so when Xiaoman is in the solar term, there is a silkworm blessing festival in Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces. China's farming culture is a typical "male ploughing and female weaving". The raw materials for women's weaving are mainly cotton in the north and sericulture management in the south. Silk needs to be spun from cocoons, so sericulture is extremely prosperous in rural areas in southern China, especially in Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces.

Silkworms are pampered "pets" and are difficult to feed. Temperature, humidity, cold, mature, dry and wet mulberry leaves will all affect the survival of silkworms. Silkworms were regarded as a "godsend" in ancient times because they were difficult to raise. In order to pray for the forgiveness of "natural things" and the harvest of sericulture, people hold a silkworm prayer festival when they release silkworms in April.