Anhui Huangshan folk traditions

LaBa: the eighth day of the twelfth month of the lunar calendar is LaBa Festival, because the twelfth month of the lunar calendar called "La month", so the name. "Lahai" a pass, the Spring Festival is approaching, every family from Lahai this day, clean house dust. The day to eat Laha congee, Yixian County, Xiuning County, North Township area also sun-dried tofu, said "Laha tofu". After Laha, families began to slaughter the New Year's pig, eat each other pig wine, wrapped in glutinous rice dumplings, make rice, fried oil tofu, fried peanuts and other food. The family will also fry oil tofu, fried peanuts, fava beans, make sesame sugar, frozen rice candy. But also people will arrange the wedding activities held on this day, so there is a ballad said: "Lapa Lapa days good, how many big nuns change sister-in-law".

Small New Year's Eve: December 24 of the lunar calendar, commonly known as "Small New Year's Eve". Late the night of the day before, every family sacrifices stove, for sending "nine fields East Kitchen Secretary Zaojun" to the sky, commonly known as "send stove". Prayer Zaojun in front of the Jade Emperor to say more good words, blessing the family animal peace. On the day of the Lunar New Year, the ancestors' paintings were hung in front of each house, on which the names of the ancestors were recorded, or the remains of the ancestors were drawn. Set up candlestick incense, tribute, to receive the ancestors to the home for the New Year. From this day onwards, every household cleans its furniture, unpacks and washes its bedding, sweeps away the dust, and welcomes the New Year in a clean and tidy manner.

New Year's Eve: the proverb "rush thirty nights, leisure first day of the morning". The difference between the New Year's Eve dinner and the midnight firecrackers is not that big.

The Spring Festival: On the first day of the New Year, everyone dresses up, the younger generation pays tribute to their elders, everyone pays tribute to their ancestors in turn, and their peers congratulate each other. On this day, pay attention to taboos, do not move the knife and scissors, do not take the needle and thread, do not fry in the pot (avoid noisy), do not dip the broom, do not splash water out of the door, do not break the cups and bowls of utensils, do not scold the children. That taboo for the inauspicious, this year there will be broken, sick and other calamities. Qimen County, there is a "shouting" custom. That is, on the first and second days of the first month, by the highest village for the foreman, the organization of young people and boys, lined up in a long serpentine array, shouting from home to home to pay homage to the New Year, each to a household, by the foreman shouted the name of the party being paid homage to the New Year and add the appellation, or: "to the Hall of Treasure to pay homage to the New Year," or the appellation of the call to pay homage to the worship. The person to be worshipped immediately responded to say "thank you for coming", shouting the New Year's people repeat: "should come". The first thing you need to do is to get your hands on a new one, and you'll be able to do that.

Lunar New Year's Eve: the 15th day of the first month of the Lantern Festival, families eat Lantern Festival. At night, but also to send the ancestors back to the mountain, in front of the portrait of the ancestors with food and wine, incense and worship, every family also hang colorful lanterns, Huizhou District, the town of rock temple lanterns most prevalent in the Lantern Festival.

February 2: February 2 of the lunar calendar is the birthday of the land master, the ancient Huizhou called "dragon head". About because into the midsummer season, the rain gradually more, can hear the thunder, so there is this saying. In the countryside, this day farmers avoid going to the ground, women avoid taking needle and thread idle day. Jixi County, the rules of this day, there are wrapped in a lifetime of glutinous rice a zongzi boiled, to worship the land god. February 2 and for the birthday of the flowers, it is also known as the "Flower Dynasty Festival", this day, the literati display flowers, Wenchang will be held, the competition poetry.

Other festivals such as Qingming, summer, Dragon Boat Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, etc., Huizhou region also has a strong regional ethnic characteristics, we will continue to introduce in the future.

Two, Huangshan production customs

Huizhou old production industries, such as agriculture, from the intention, business, etc. have their own rules and customs. The rural areas to sacrifice "grain god", pray for prosperous crops; drought often Xing "rain", vegetarian fasting, do Taoist worship dragon lady Bodhisattva; cattle transfer, the buyer wants to take the cattle rope will be replaced by the old cattle rope, called "broken rope ", said the buyer and seller are not allowed to regret. Bricklayers to build a house door square, to slaughter the rooster, chicken blood will be drenched in the doorway, called the "sacrifice of the door god", and recite the words of sacrifice "chicken blood drenched to the east, congratulations to the east of the family to add children and grandchildren; chicken blood drenched to the west, congratulations to the east of the family to add more children." People echo each other for good luck. Carpenters enshrine "Master Lu Ban", the most taboo early in the morning someone sitting on his tool bench, meaning sitting on a cold bench, that is, no business to do. Stores set up "God of Fortune seat", year-round enshrinement of the "Marshal", in order to business prosperity, make money and so on.

Opening the rice planting door: the first rice planting in rural areas every year is called "open rice planting door". Shexian this day to set up a banquet to invite "Tian Gong, Tian mother", worship, the first plug first plug three incense in the ridge, but also pious kneeling. Huoning, Tunxi this area, the family to go to the rice field selected "door to", and then pull out a piece of mud seedlings, placed on a tea tray, sent home on the tribute table, worship heaven and earth, will be with mud seedlings dumped on the board, has all stuck for no harm, no harm, a good omen of good growth. Cattle Fukui: an organization dedicated to praying for the security of the cattle. All farmers who wish to join the association, each head of cattle to pay one or two silver yang as the cattle welfare association fund. Members of the cattle stolen or lost, reported by the head of the year (a year), that is, sent around to look for and return the owner of the lost free of charge, such as cattle can not be found, the owner of the lost can also be cattle Fukui will be able to receive some relief money as compensation.

Playing the gong to seal the mountain: mountainous areas for the protection of forests to form many rules and customs, playing the gong to seal the mountain is one of the more popular. Every winter, the village or township set a person to sound a gong, calling out the name of the place where the mountain is closed, and walking around the village to indicate the prohibition of the statute. After that, every family will warn each other not to violate the rules. At the same time, sound the gong, in the main road junction and the mountain boundaries set up wooden signs, stone signs, in order to indicate the scope of the mountain ban.

The God of Fortune: Huizhou to the fifth day of the fifth month of the lunar calendar for the God of Fortune Day, industrial and commercial enterprises in this day to receive the God of Fortune.

Opening Ceremony: Huizhou new store opened this day, to be in front of the store Phi red and colorful, hanging gold signboards, firecrackers, some also play music, to celebrate. On the opening day of the door to the customer, a symbolic hand under the red paper bag (currency refund), while giving a certain amount of goods, such as cloth store gift 3 feet of red cloth, department stores to give a daily necessities, and so on.

Learning the art: the Republic of China, learning the art of apprenticeship must be introduced by the sponsor, for the master and apprentice to discuss the agreement. Negotiated, the apprentice to do to worship wine, to the master salute. Bricklayer to learn the art, generally a year out of the master; carpentry to learn the art, is three years, are no wages, the master only supply meals. Three years rose as a mate, the master to give a certain amount of living expenses, the art of becoming a living before leaving the division.

Three, Huangshan tea ceremony

"Shennong Ben Cao Jing" is China's first pharmacological monograph, written since the Warring States period, written in the Western Han Dynasty. This book in the form of legends, collecting since ancient times, the working people's long-term accumulation of knowledge of medicines, which has such a record: "Shennong tasted a hundred herbs, encountered seventy-two poisons, and got the Tantui and the solution". According to the evidence: here is the tea refers to the ancient tea, to the effect that, far away in ancient times, the legendary Shennong's, personally tasted a hundred herbs, in order to find the plants that are conducive to the survival of mankind, but also many times a day within the poisoned. But because of taking tea and saved. This is a legend, with obvious exaggeration, but can also be learned from it, the human use of tea, may be from the beginning of the medicinal use.

Huangshan for the tea township, the production of Huangshan Mao Feng, Keemun black tea (one of the world's three most highly scented tea), Taiping Monkey Kui, etc., renowned at home and abroad, Huangshan life in the mountains between the good water, the natural love of the mountains and water, with this heirloom of the Tea Ceremony.

The ancients drink tea, focusing on a "taste" word. "Tasting tea", not only to identify the advantages and disadvantages of tea, but also with the meaning of God's reverie and appreciate the interest of drinking tea. People living in today's society, busy work, very few ancient people's leisure, however, tea is not all impossible, someone can be busy in a pot of tea, choose a quiet place, pouring their own drinks, to eliminate fatigue, clean up the trouble and benefit from the thought, and invigorate the spirit.

The term "tea ceremony" can be simply interpreted as the way of tea, refers to the tea, tea tasting procedures. When it comes to the tea ceremony, it is widely believed that it is a traditional Japanese art form. In fact, the tea ceremony originated in China and was introduced to Japan from China by Japanese students during the Tang and Song dynasties, and even the term tea ceremony was first used in the Tang Dynasty in the book Feng's Seeing and Hearing. Southern Song Dynasty (1191), by the Japanese people as "tea ancestor" Zen master Rongxi, had come to China twice to study Buddhism, returned home with tea seeds and tea planting technology, and then by the monk Chiriku tea ceremony to the folk, become quite characteristic of the Japanese traditional tea drinking practices.

Huizhou people a year, drinking tea, but more concentrated into the habit of "tea", "afternoon tea", "night tea". After washing up in the morning, a cup of fragrant tea, fine full drink, fresh air and fragrant tea fragrance refreshing, this is a wonderful way to fitness. Can not eat, can not not drink" said. So the tea to pay attention to the fine taste. After lunch, a cup of strong tea, digestion and stomach. Drinking afternoon tea is different from the tea, he paid attention to the thick. Nightfall, a cup of tea drinking courtyard, a day of labor fatigue suddenly eliminated, instead of free and cozy; winter night, hot tea with the fireplace, melting warmth 弥心间, night tea is about comfort, spontaneity. Huangshan people make tea, very concerned about the water, like to take the clear and sweet mountain springs, river water, well water times. Tea utensils also use tin pot gallbladder, tea leaves in the gallbladder, gallbladder in the pot, but there are fine holes, juice out of the leaf is not out, easy to drink.

Ancient Huizhou pursued Zhu Xi "family rituals", etiquette is very strict, as the tea ceremony to treat people is more elaborate, as the saying goes, "look at the people on the tea divided into three classes", the meaning of this. Guests to the master of the first gift is on the tea. Your guests to come, or meet the celebration, pay attention to eat "three tea", that is, jujube and chestnut tea (eat jujube boiled chestnut tea), egg tea (eat five spiced eggs under the tea), tea. On the first day of the New Year, the whole family to eat three tea; the first month of the guest to eat three tea; wedding, the new son-in-law door to eat three tea.