Northeastern Folklore

Living in the northeast of the people, most of them are to break into the East over. When I think of my grandfather's generation or a generation above, leading his wife and children, picking a pick to run to the Northeast to survive, no matter what kind of difficulties and obstacles encountered, are not willing to leave behind the family tree on their backs. Although the genealogy only records the names of deceased family ancestors, but that represents the ancestors, the family in the ancestors in, ancestors in, home is also in. No matter where you land, every Spring Festival, they will represent the ancestors of the genealogy please out, back north to south, that is, towards the direction of the ancestor's hometown enshrined, as a way to send the nostalgia for the ancestors.

To this day, not only has the memory of the ancestor offering remained, but the tradition of ancestor worship has not been lost.

Every year on the 29th or 30th day of the Lunar New Year's Eve, early in the morning, mom and dad start to make preparations for the ancestors.

Dad prepares the sacrificial utensils: take out the family tree, dust it off, hang it on the north wall, glue the sacrificial couplets, the first couplet is "the golden furnace is constantly on fire for a thousand years", the second couplet is "the jade marquee is always bright and long-lasting lamp", and the horizontal inscription is "the ancestors' beans are forever". The first couplet is "The golden stove is constantly on fire for a thousand years", the second couplet is "The jade lamp is always bright", and the crossword is "Zu Dou Thousand Autumns Forever".

Mom to prepare for the offering of food: cabbage cut flowers cutter in the water tank soaked into flowers, and then red paper dyed color; the vermicelli oil deep-fried into a doughnut shape, but also with red paper color; small amount of water in a good chunk of fat meat spiral cut into the shape of a pagoda; pork belly stuffed with things, belly head inserted into a white and green green onions as the trunk into the shape of an elephant; the size of the small carp fried in oil until yellow; full of Four small bowls of rice, two pairs of buckle together, forming a round hill shape; special steamed pot of steamed buns, the top to be chopsticks dipped in red sealing clay embellished with plum blossoms of the regimental pattern.

During the time when mom was preparing the offerings and lunch, dad led us to put up the couplets and lucky charms. Around 10:00 pm, the couplets were posted, the offerings were basically ready, mom and dad began to arrange the offerings, after everything was ready, light an incense burner.

Although the old ancestor is ready, the actual ancestor has not come back, and needs to be picked up by the family after dark to celebrate the New Year.

One to two o'clock is the time for lunch. After lunch, in order to ensure that the night can be all-night vigil, the adults usually let the children first sleep. Some of the children will also go to play with their friends, and try to find time to rest before it gets dark.

As night falls, it's time for the family to receive the gods. It is the time for the family to receive the gods, which means to receive the ancestors of one's family home for the New Year. Folk believe that the New Year is a time of vacation in heaven and on earth, and it is only at this time that one's ancestors can come back to be reunited with their families.

The place to receive the god is at the crossroads of the village. You need to carry a lantern, a pinch of incense and some paper money. When you arrive at the crossroads, light the incense and stick it in the snow, then light the paper and burn it. Then you kneel down and kowtow in the southwest direction, chanting: "The old ancestors are coming home for the New Year, the old ancestors are coming home for the New Year". Then get up, adults carrying lanterns to take the children back. On the way back, they are not allowed to talk, probably because the old ancestors are following them, and they are afraid of disturbing them.

Back home, the candles lit, incense lit, and then pour some white wine with an iron plate with a match to light, the blue flame burned out, Dad took us to kowtow to the ancestors, the old ancestor is considered to be officially received back. At this time, mom cooked the dumplings on the offerings, with a plate to hold two plates on the offering table, the old ancestor ate the first meal after returning home for the New Year. Because the afternoon has just eaten dinner, a little later still have to eat New Year's Eve dinner, so this meal the whole family are symbolically eat a few dumplings, is to accompany the ancestors *** into the dinner.

After this meal, Dad would play poker with us, or we would go find our buddies to play, and the adults could take the opportunity to rest for a while, and then proceed to prepare the New Year's Eve dinner again.

Around midnight, it was time for the New Year's Eve dinner. Before the New Year's Eve dinner, there is a "paper handing out" ceremony, where firecrackers are fired from all the houses and a bonfire lit by sesame stalks is lit throughout the village. Children would jump through the fire in an attempt to burn away the bad luck, or they would stretch the top of the doorframe with their hands, chanting, "So-and-so has grown taller!

The fire is a great way to get your hands dirty.

After the paper, the family washed their hands and faces to wash away the bad luck of the past year, and then offered incense and kowtowed to their ancestors, after which the family sat around and ate the New Year's Eve dinner together, laughing and talking.

After the New Year's Eve dinner, it's time to go to the relatives' house to pay respect to the ancestors and elders. In the father brother led to the relatives, first to the room for the ancestors to the relatives of the ancestors kowtow, mouth chanting: "to the old ancestors kowtow," as if not chanting the relatives of the old ancestors can not be received as if. After kowtowing to the ancestors, they kowtow to the elders of the relatives. They still kowtow while chanting: "kowtow to granduncle," "kowtow to granduncle," "kowtow to uncle," and "kowtow to auntie. ". After kowtowing to this family, they go to another family and kowtow to the old ancestor, uncle, and aunt as usual.... ...

If you don't kowtow to your relatives on New Year's Eve, you should kowtow to them early in the morning on the first day of the year, and you can't skip the ceremony of worshipping your ancestors and elders.

In those days, when you kowtowed to the New Year's Eve, sometimes the elders would give you one or two dollars of New Year's money. For the children, it was a great income, and would probably make them excited for the whole month of January.