What is the significance of the 24 solar terms?

The 24 solar terms are a special creation of astronomy and meteorology in ancient China, which is the experience summarized by the working people in long-term practice. It reflects the natural phenomena such as the change of seasons, the warmth and coldness of the weather, the condition of precipitation, and the signs of weather on the earth.

Over the past thousands of years, the festival has played a great role in promoting the development of agricultural production in China.

Some festivals also have moving stories. For example, the Qingming Festival is related to Chong Er, the Duke of Jin. When he was a young man, Duke Wen of Jin went through a lot of hardships. In order to escape from his stepmother's cruelty, he went into exile for 19 years, and was in a desperate situation several times. Once when he was out of food, a minister named Jie Zi Tui, who was in exile with him, painfully cut a large piece of meat from his thigh to feed Chong Er, thus surviving the difficult situation. But when Chong Er returned to his country and became the king, he forgot about Jie Zi Tui, who had cut off his own flesh to serve the king, when he rewarded him for his service!

Jie Zi Tui didn't argue about the unfair treatment, but left the capital with his old mother without saying a word, and ran to the Mianshang Mountain in Shanxi Province to live in seclusion. Soon after, the Duke of Jin remembered the merits of Jie Zi Tui, but he did not know where he was. He was greatly chagrined and sighed, "This is the fault of the widow." It took months of searching to learn of Jie Zi push's whereabouts, so Duke Wen of Jin personally ran to Mian Shang Mountain.

However, Mianshang Mountain is so high and forested that the Duke of Jin searched for a long time and still had no clue. He was also very upset that Jie Zi Tui refused to come out of the mountain. Jin Wendong is in a difficult time, someone came up with a bad idea, said that if the Lord set fire to the mountain, has always been filial to his mother's jiezi push will be for his mother's safety and come out of the mountain....... So, a fire burned all over the mountain, and for three days and three nights did not see the mother and son out. Later found that the mother and son hugged together, has been burned to death under a large willow tree!

Duke Wen of Jin regretted his death and was saddened. In order to commemorate this meritorious official, he renamed Mian Shang Shan as "Jie Shan", and ordered that no fire should be set for cooking for one month (later changed to three days), and that all people should eat only cold food. Therefore, also known as the day of the fire (the fifth day of the third month of the lunar calendar) for the "Cold Food Festival", and later gradually evolved into the Qingming Festival, one of the twenty-four solar terms. Until today, Qingming Festival is still an important traditional festival for our people to pay homage to their ancestors and remember their ancestors.

There is a festival song that summarizes the names and dates of the 24 festivals, making it easy for people to remember: spring rain startles the spring clear valley days, summer full of mango summer heat connected; autumn dew fall cold frost fall, winter snow snow winter small cold. Monthly two festivals date set, up to one or two days difference, the first half of the year is six, twenty-one, the second half of the year is eight, twenty-three.

Spring, is the first of the four seasons, "Gongyang Zhuan": "Spring what, the beginning of the year also."

"The first day of spring, all the grass back to bud." Li is to see, spring is stupidity, is the beginning of all things have the meaning of life. Li, also means to build the beginning.

Spring winds blow and rain gradually increases. "Spring rain is as expensive as oil", spring began to wind wood, but those who produce wood must be water, rain is conducive to agricultural production.

Hibernation, spring thunder rattles, startling the hibernating underground snakes and insects hundred feet. Most parts of China are entering the busy spring plowing season.

Spring equinox, "yin and yang are also half, so day and night are even and cold and heat". At this time, most of China's overwintering crops into the spring growth stage. Central China agricultural proverb: "Spring equinox wheat up, a moment worth a thousand."

Ching Ming, is the meaning of bright and clean. Most of China's warm climate, grass and trees sprouted, changing the scene of not long ago cold winter withered grass, while across the south of the Yangtze River is the spring crop sowing, seedling season.

Spring to summer, "summer, false also, broaden the relief of all things, healthy growth also". This means that the temperature rises, prompting the growth and development of all things.

Summer, summer, summer is full, the South has been a early summer scenery, and the north is also full of willows to send the spring, Jiangnan with cherries, loquats, plums should be the market, it is the "summer of the three dynasties all over the hoe".

Small full, "things long to hoe, are full also". Wheat and other fruitful and plump, this time of year, China's northern summer heat crop seeds gradually ripe, the south began the summer harvest and summer planting season.

Mangseed, it is the time to plant the grain with awns, wheat, oilseed rape ripe, began to harvest, and then busy sowing rice seedlings, busy farming.

Summer solstice, to is the meaning of pole, is the sunlight straight oblique to the north of the ultimate, the day is the longest, the shortest night. At this time, crops grow vigorously, weeds, pests and diseases grow and spread, need to strengthen field management, it is "summer solstice cotton grass, better than a snake bite".

Small summer, "summer, hot". Small summer, although the weather is hot, but not yet to the extreme. Most parts of China began to enter the hot season, agriculture is busy with field management of summer and fall crops.

Da summer, "is the extreme of heat", is the hottest season of the year. "Hot in three volts", three volts refers to the period from mid-July to mid-August on the solar calendar. The great summer is just before and after the middle ambush, which is often the hottest period of the year in most parts of China, but also the fastest-growing period of temperature-loving crops of rice and corn.

Summer is over and fall is coming, the ancient book says: "Autumn, into also, all things are accomplished also." Crops sown in spring are about to be harvested.

Autumn, the season into the fall, the temperature began to fall, people after hard work in the spring planting and summer work, the harvest is in sight. In the central part of China, early rice is harvested, and late rice is also busy with transplanting and management.

Summer, "at" is the meaning of rest, this time of year, the heat gradually recede or rest, the temperature in most parts of China is gradually declining, the crops began to change from green to yellow.

White Dew, when the weather begins to turn cooler, and the moisture from the lower air condenses into bright dewdrops on the grass.

The autumnal equinox, "when yin and yang are in the right place, when the half of autumn is also", is again the time when day and night are equal, presenting a golden autumn scene.

Cold dew, dew white and then cold, the weather becomes cooler, the dew is also colder. At this time, the weather is cool in most parts of China for fall harvest and fall planting.

Frostfall, "the air is purified and condensed, and the dew crystallizes into frost." Around the time of frost, the first frost starts in the Yellow River basin, and the southern region is busy with fall harvesting and fall planting.

Winter is coming, winter is the end of the four seasons. "Winter, the end, is also the collection of all things."

Rising winter, the season enters winter, the weather is colder, the Yellow River basin north of the region began to freeze, insects hibernate underground. All regions carry out basic construction of farmland water conservancy.

Small snow, "gas cold and will snow carry on", this time, the sky began to snow, trees withered, the scenery depressed.

The snow, rain and snow, the earth silver. The big one is also full of, to this snow is even more so. "Snow is an omen of a good year."

Winter solstice, the sun directly above the Tropic of Capricorn, the northern hemisphere night is the longest, the shortest day. "Nine cold", nine nine is calculated from the day of the winter solstice, each "nine" for nine days, from "one nine" to "nine nine", ***81 "****81 days.

Small cold, the weather suddenly cold, not yet cold to the extreme. Small cold is just three nine days, cold in the "three nine". This time of year there are often cold weather. Most parts of China into the cold period.

The big cold, cold to the extreme. "Three feet of ice is not a day's cold." By the big cold, the weather is even colder, when most of China for the coldest period of the year.