The origin and legend of the Cold Clothes Festival

The origin of the Cold Clothes Festival, according to history, originated in the Zhou Dynasty. There is the story of Meng Jiangnu sending cold clothes for thousands of miles and the legend of Zhu Yuanzhang granting clothes.

The Cold Clothes Festival, also known as the "October Dynasty," "Ancestor Festival," "Hades Festival," "Autumn Sacrifice " "October 1", is a traditional Chinese festival, people will be in this day to burn offerings, to commemorate the death of loved ones, so-called send cold clothes. This festival has a history to study, it originated in the Zhou Dynasty, the origin of Meng Jiangnu thousands of miles to send cold clothes of the allusion and the legend of Zhu Yuanzhang grant clothes.

The first day of October on the lunar calendar is the first day of winter, and in ancient times there were customs such as giving clothes, offering sacrifices and opening furnaces to remind people of the arrival of winter. On this day, women would take out their cotton clothes and give them to their relatives who were in distant places and serving in the corvée. While sending cold clothes to their relatives, they gradually developed the practice of sending cold clothes to their ancestors and the deceased.

Customs of the Winter Clothes Festival

1, Guangxi

Nanning, Guangxi, more than in the early October 10th repair of the ancestral graves, held a winter festival. At this time the weather is getting cold, people make paper clothes incinerated in front of the grave, called send cold clothes, in order to show care for the ancestral feelings of memory.

2, Shandong

Every year on the first day of October on the lunar calendar, is also the day of Shandong people for the deceased loved ones graves, they will be their own fall harvest items for the deceased loved ones offerings, to the ancestors to report a year of fruitful harvest. In addition to this, they will also cut clothes out of colored paper and burn them for their ancestors to express the meaning of "October 1, burning cold clothes on the graves".

3, Jiangsu

Jiangsu region by the influence of the Central Plains also have to send the cold clothes custom, to all kinds of clothes in a red paper bag, written above the identity of the deceased and the name of the night of the first day of the first day of the paper bag for the hall to pay homage to some of the later to get the door to the incineration, and at the same time will have harvested adzuki beans, glutinous rice and so on made into a gourmet food for the ancestors to taste the new. In fact, this series of ritual activities are to remember the ancestors, pray for blessing the family prosperity, peace and prosperity of children and grandchildren.

Reference: Baidu Encyclopedia - Cold Clothes Festival