What's the difference between Spring Festival and New Year's Eve?

Abstract: Spring Festival and New Year's Eve are traditional festivals in China, and their time and customs are quite different. The Spring Festival in a broad sense includes Chinese New Year and New Year's Eve, while the Spring Festival in a specific sense refers to the first day of the lunar new year, that is, the first day of the lunar new year. On this day, people will carry out activities such as offering sacrifices to stoves, sweeping dust, posting New Year greetings, and paying New Year greetings. New Year's Eve refers to New Year's Eve, that is, New Year's Eve. On this day, people will carry out activities such as putting up door gods, putting up Spring Festival couplets and putting up New Year pictures. Next, let's take a look at the differences between Spring Festival and New Year's Eve, as well as the allusions and legends between New Year's Eve and Bian Xiao. What's the difference between Spring Festival and New Year's Eve?

First, the time is different.

In a broad sense, the Spring Festival includes Chinese New Year and New Year's Eve, and Chinese New Year and New Year's Eve are all on the same day. The Spring Festival in a special sense refers to the first day of the New Year, that is, the first day of the Lunar New Year. New Year's Eve refers to New Year's Eve, that is, New Year's Eve.

Second, the customs are different.

New Year's Eve is one of the most important traditional festivals in China. It refers to the night on the last day of the Lunar New Year, that is, the night before the Spring Festival. Because it often falls on the 30th or 29th of the twelfth lunar month in the summer calendar, it is also called the 30th anniversary. People often stay up all night on New Year's Eve, which is called keeping watch. On New Year's Eve, we should not only clean the house and the outside, but also paste door gods, Spring Festival couplets, New Year pictures and door cages.

The Spring Festival, commonly known as the "annual festival", is the most solemn traditional festival of the Chinese nation. The customs of this day include offering sacrifices to stoves, sweeping dust, paying New Year greetings, and worshipping God. Since the first year of Emperor Taizu of the Han Dynasty, the first day of the first month of the Xia Dynasty (lunar calendar) has been regarded as "Year", and the date of the annual festival has been fixed and continues to this day. New Year's Day was called "New Year's Day" in ancient times. The Gregorian calendar was adopted after the Revolution of 1911, so the Gregorian calendar 65438+ 10 1 is called "New Year's Day" and the first day of the first lunar month is called "Spring Festival".

Legends related to New Year's Eve and Spring Festival

First, the legend of New Year's Eve

Legend has it that in ancient China, there was a four-legged beast-Xi, who was short of food because of heavy snow in winter. He often goes to the nearby village to look for food. Because of his huge body, bad temper and ferocity, he brought great disasters to the villagers. At the end of the twelfth lunar month, people packed their bags to help the elderly and take care of the young, and went to the nearby bamboo forest to avoid the evening.

One year, people in the village met a child about seven or eight years old on the way to pack up and escape, and fell hungry on the side of the road. A kind old woman woke up the child and told him to go up the mountain to avoid the evil beast. In the evening, the clever children and the old woman followed the villagers to the bamboo forest behind the village. Because the bamboo forest is cold in winter, everyone is so cold that they cut bamboo to build houses and burn fires to keep warm. The children rescued by the old woman curiously asked everyone: Our bamboo forest is so close to the village, aren't you afraid to come here tomorrow? An old man replied, "When I was young, I came here with the villagers to escape from the dusk. When it snowed heavily in those years, it ran after me because it was hungry, but every time it saw villagers chopping bamboo in this bamboo forest, it left in a hurry. " The child thought about it and told everyone: "I have a way to get rid of' Xi' so that everyone will not have to go out to flee every twelfth lunar month." Hearing this, everyone was very happy and asked what to do. The clever boy told everyone: cut a few more bamboo knots with you, and the whole village can go home tonight! As long as you hang a red cloth outside your door, after dawn tomorrow, dusk will not come again. The villagers listened to the children with a grain of salt, and the old man in the village took them home.

It soon became dark, and no one dared to sleep for fear of "evening". In addition to hanging red cloth strips outside their homes, the villagers also came to the open space in the middle of the village to guard some broken bamboo knots brought back from the bamboo forest. It's cold, let's make a fire to keep warm, and take out something to eat when we are hungry? At midnight, I heard a loud noise and everyone huddled in fear. At this time, the clever boy suddenly stood up and told everyone, "I'll go and get him, and then everyone will throw the broken bamboo joint that we kept all night into the fire."

Before the kind old woman reached out and pulled, the child had reached the village entrance. The child saw that Xi was breaking into the village and destroying many things, so he shouted: You come every year, which makes it impossible for the people to live and work in peace and contentment. I must give you something today! ! "Xi" heard the child's crying and followed the sound, but when he saw the red cloth hanging on the wall of the house, he dared not go in, so he followed the child's voice and endured a hungry stomach and came to the open space in the middle of the village. At this time, the child said loudly: "folks, throw the broken bamboo knot into the fire!" " ! However, everyone was already standing there because of fear, and at this moment "Xi" picked up the child with his horn and slammed it on the ground. The villagers responded to the sound of children falling to the ground and threw bamboo joints into the fire. Because it was cut down not long ago, the wet bamboo joints burst and crackled when they met the prosperous fire! "Xi turned and ran away after hearing the sound, without destroying anything in the village.

At dawn, the "evening" was scared away by the sound of the burst of bamboo joints thrown into the fire. Residents' homes were not saved because of dusk, but people were not happy. Because the clever boy who saved the village was killed by Xi. This day is the first day of the first month. This clever boy, his name is Nian.

Because "Xi" is not dead, everyone is waiting to break the bamboo festival on the thirtieth day of the twelfth lunar month every year, hoping to get rid of "Xi" as soon as possible. However, year after year, no one saw "Xi" again. There are only firecrackers and red cloth strips hanging in front of the door to prevent the arrival of "Xi". However, this legend and the custom of the New Year have been left to us: On the 30th night of the twelfth lunar month, everyone gets together for dinner and waits for the bell on New Year's Eve. Set off firecrackers and put up couplets. Wait until dawn to visit each other's neighborhood and exchange greetings and blessings. On the first morning, the villagers visited each other to see if their neighbors were injured and said something auspicious and polite. I hope that the "dusk" of the twelfth lunar month in the coming year will not come again.

Second, the legend of the Spring Festival

In ancient China, there was a monster called Nian. Its tentacles were very long and fierce. Nian lived on the seabed for many years, and climbed ashore every New Year's Eve, devouring livestock and killing people. Therefore, every New Year's Eve, people in the village fled to the deep mountains to avoid the harm of the "Nian" beast.

Then one year on New Year's Eve, an old beggar came from outside the village and told people how to drive away Nian beast. It turns out that Nian was most afraid of red, fire and explosion. Since then, every year on New Year's Eve, every family has posted red couplets and set off firecrackers. Every household has a bright candlelight, so it is better to wait for the New Year. In the early morning of the first day, I want to say hello to my relatives and friends. This custom has spread more and more widely, and has become the most solemn traditional festival among the people in China.