Total solar terms and small solar terms

Among the 24 solar terms, there is only a small full, not a big full, because the ancients are more modest. Modesty is the traditional virtue of the Chinese nation, so there is no such thing as being full.

Xiaoman is one of the 24 solar terms. It has two meanings. The first meaning refers to rivers and lakes, which are small and full, and the rivers are gradually full. It means that in the summer solar term, the rain in the south begins to increase, so the water content in the lake is also increasing. Another meaning is that the ears of wheat are full, that is, the ears of wheat are just full but not full. Because the northern region has not yet entered the rainy season and the precipitation is relatively small, the fullness at this time corresponds to the state of wheat ears.

At that time, Xiaoman also symbolized a philosophy of life of the ancients. The ancients were modest, so they only pursued small fullness, not big fullness. The so-called extremes meet, and if it is too perfect, it may have a negative impact. Therefore, it is enough to achieve a state of small perfection, so there is no dzogchen in verse 24. Some scholars think that there is a great perfection in the 24 solar terms, but they renamed it the summer solstice. Xiaoman refers to when the sun is just full but not full, and the summer solstice is when the sun is at its peak, so some people regard the summer solstice as full.

As long as you pursue small enrichment in life, because small enrichment is already the most perfect state. If you pursue perfection too much, you may make yourself very tired and eventually lose more than you gain. If you are tired, you can't be satisfied in the end. As the saying goes, hungry snakes swallow elephants. People should have an empty cup mentality and reduce their desires in time in order to achieve a small and complete state. Xiaoman is a philosophy and a realm that can make you feel the happiness of life. You can make yourself grateful for what you have instead of asking for it endlessly. Because endless demands will not make you happy, but will only add trouble to you. Therefore, Xiaoman is the best state of life.