Urgently seeking the manuscript of the Lantern Festival poetry recitation

The Lantern Festival is a traditional Chinese festival, as early as 2000 years ago in the Western Han Dynasty, the Lantern Festival Lantern Appreciation began in the Eastern Han Dynasty Ming Di period, the Ming Di advocated Buddhism, heard that the Buddhist monks on the fifteenth day of the first month of the Buddha's relics, lighted lamps to honor the Buddha's practice, the night of the day on the order in the palace and temples lighted lamps to honor the Buddha, so that the scholarly people are hanging lamps. Later, this Buddhist ceremonial festival gradually formed a grand folk festival. The festival has gone through the development process from the palace to the folk, from the Central Plains to the whole country.

At the time of Emperor Wen of the Han Dynasty, the 15th day of the first month was designated as the Lantern Festival. During the reign of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, the sacrifice of the god Taichi was scheduled for the fifteenth day of the first month of the lunar calendar. (Taiyi: the god who dominates everything in the universe). When Sima Qian created the "Taichu Calendar", the Lantern Festival was already recognized as a major festival.

Another theory is that the custom of burning lanterns on the Lantern Festival originated in Taoism's "Three Elements"; on the 15th day of the first month of the first Yuan Festival, the 15th day of the seventh month of the middle Yuan Festival, the 15th day of the tenth month of the lower Yuan Festival. Supervisor of the upper, middle and lower three yuan respectively for the sky, earth, people, three officials, the heavenly officials happy, so the festival to light.

The Lantern Festival festival period and festival activities, is with the development of history and extend, expand. In terms of the length of the festival, the Han Dynasty only one day, to the Tang Dynasty has been three days, the Song Dynasty is up to five days, the Ming Dynasty is since the eighth light, until the night of the first month of the seventeenth before the lights, the whole ten days. With the Spring Festival, the daytime for the city, bustling, night lights, spectacular. Especially the delicate, colorful lights, making it the climax of the entertainment activities during the Spring Festival. To the Qing Dynasty, and increased the dragon dance, lion dance, running boats, stilt walkers, twisting rice-planting songs and other "hundred theater" content, just shorten the festival period of four to five days.

On the origin of the Lantern Festival, there are several interesting folk legends:

The legend of the lamp

Legend has it that a long time ago, there are a lot of fierce birds and beasts, all around the harm to people and livestock, people will organize to fight them, there is a bird of God trapped in a lost and landed on the earth, but accidentally was unknowingly hunters to shoot dead. The emperor was furious when he found out about it, and immediately sent a decree ordering the heavenly soldiers to come to earth on the 15th day of the first month to set fire to all the human and animal properties on earth. The emperor's daughter is kind-hearted, can't bear to see the people suffer innocently, so she risked her life and secretly drove the auspicious clouds to the earth, and told the news to the people. When the people heard the news, it was as if a thunderbolt had rung over their heads. They were so scared that they did not know what to do. It was only after a long time that an old man came up with an idea, saying, "On the fourteenth, fifteenth, and sixteenth days of the first month, every family should set up lanterns, light firecrackers, and set off fireworks in their houses. This way, the emperor of heaven will think that people have been burned to death.

All of them nodded their heads in agreement, and went on their way to make preparations. To the first month of the fifteenth night, the emperor of the sky to look down, found the earth a red light, ringing the sky, three consecutive nights are so, thought it was a big fire burning flames, in order to the middle of the big fast. The people thus preserved their lives and their property. In honor of this success, from then on, every first month of the fifteenth, every family hangs lanterns, fireworks to commemorate this day.

Another legend says that the Lantern Festival was set up in honor of "Ping Lu" during the reign of Emperor Wen of Han Dynasty

Another legend says that the Lantern Festival was set up during the reign of Emperor Wen of Han Dynasty to commemorate "Ping Lu". After the death of Liu Bang, the founder of the Han Dynasty, Liu Ying, the son of Empress Lu, ascended the throne as Emperor Hui of the Han Dynasty. Emperor Hui was weak and indecisive, and the power gradually fell into the hands of Empress Lu. After the death of Emperor Hui of the Han Dynasty, after the death of the Emperor Lv, she took the reigns of the government to turn Liu's world into Lv's world, the old ministers in the court, Liu's clansmen are y indignant, but they are afraid of Lv's brutality and dare not speak out.

After the illness and death of Empress Lu, all of them were afraid of being harmed and ostracized. So, they secretly gathered at the home of General Lu Lu and ****planned for a rebellion in order to completely seize Liu's kingdom.

This matter spread to Liu's royal family, Qi Wang Liu Sang ears, Liu Sang to protect Liu's kingdom, decided to start a military crusade Zhu Lu and then with the founding of the veteran Zhou Bo, Chen Ping contact, designed to lift the Lu Lu, "Zhu Lu's chaos" was finally completely pacified.

After the rebellion, Liu Heng, the second son of Liu Bang, was crowned Emperor Wen of the Han Dynasty. Emperor Wen was y impressed by the hard-earned peace and prosperity, so he set the 15th day of the first month of the year when the "Lü's Rebellion" was quelled as a day of fun with the people, and every house in the capital was decorated with lanterns and colors to celebrate the occasion. Since then, the 15th day of the first month has become a folk festival celebrated by all the people - the "Lantern Festival".

Dongfang Shuo and the Lantern Girl

This legend is related to the custom of eating Lantern Festival: According to legend, Emperor Wu of Han Dynasty had a favorite minister named Dongfang Shuo, who was kind and funny. One day in winter, it snowed heavily for several days, and Dongfang Shuo went to the imperial garden to fold plum blossoms for Emperor Wu. When he entered the garden, he found a courtesan in tears, ready to throw herself into a well. Dongfang Shuo rushed to her rescue and asked her why she wanted to commit suicide. It turned out that the courtesan's name was Yuan Xiao (元宵), and she had two parents and a younger sister at home. Since she entered the palace, she never had the chance to meet her family. Every year to the end of the spring season, more than usual miss their families. She felt that it would be better for her to die than to be able to fulfill her filial piety in front of her parents. When Dongfang Shuo heard her story, he sympathized with her and assured her that he would try to reunite her with her family.

One day, Dongfang Shuo went out of the palace and set up a divination booth on Chang'an Street. A lot of people were eager to ask him for divination. Unexpectedly, each person's account of the request, are "the sixteenth day of the first month of the fire burning body" of the sign language. For a while, Chang'an was in a great panic. People asked for a solution to the disaster. Dongfang Shuo said, "On the evening of the 13th day of the first month, the Fire God will send a red-clothed goddess down to visit the earth, and she is the messenger who has been ordered to burn Chang'an, I will give you the copied verse, so that the present son of heaven can think of a solution." Having said this, he threw down a red post and went away. The people picked up the red post and hurriedly sent it to the palace to report to the emperor.

Emperor Wu received a look, only to see written on it: "Chang'an in the robbery, fire burned the Imperial Palace, fifteen days of fire, flame red night", he was shocked, and hastened to invite the resourceful Dongfang Shuo. Dongfang Shuo pretended to think for a moment, then said: "I heard that the fire god gentleman loves to eat dumplings, the palace Lantern is not often for you to make dumplings? On the fifteenth night, you can let the Lantern make soup dumplings. Banzai burned incense and made offerings, and ordered every family in Kyoto to make dumplings to honor the Fire Goddess. And then, you will summon your subjects to hang lanterns together on the fifteenth night, and light firecrackers and set off fireworks all over the city, as if the city is on fire, so that you can hide it from the Jade Emperor. In addition, notify the people outside the city, the fifteenth night into the city to watch the lanterns, mixed in the crowd to eliminate disasters and solve the problem". After hearing this, Emperor Wu was very happy, so he passed the order to do according to the way of Dongfang Shuo.

By the first month of the fifteenth Chang'an city of lights, colorful, tourists come and go, very lively. The parents of the courtesan Yuan Xiao also took her sister into the city to watch the lanterns. When they saw written "Lantern" big lantern, surprise shouted: "Lantern! When they saw the big lantern with the word "Yuanxiao" written on it, they shouted in surprise: "Yuanxiao!

After such a lively night, the city of Chang'an was indeed safe and sound. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was very happy, then ordered every first month of the future to make dumplings for the fire god king, the first month of the fifteenth as usual, the whole city hanging lights and fireworks. Because of the best dumplings made by the Lantern, people called the dumplings Lantern, this day is called the Lantern Festival.