The Origin of Xiaoman Festival and Traditional Activities

Xiaoman is the eighth of the twenty-four solar terms, the second solar term in summer. Between May 20 and 22 every year, when the sun reaches 60° of the yellow meridian, it is called Xiaoman. Here is the origin of Xiaoman festival and traditional activities I organized for you, I hope it can help you.

Origin of Xiaoman Festival

Between May 20 and 22 every year, when the sun reaches 60° of the yellow meridian, it is Xiaoman, which is the beginning of the hot summer, and even more prone to diseases. The name "Xiaoman" comes from the crops. Summer crops are beginning to fill the seeds, but not yet ripe, just a small full, not yet full.

"Monthly Order seventy-two wait collection": "April in the middle of the month, the small full, things to this small to get full." At this time, the northern part of the country wheat and other summer crops have begun to full grain, but not yet mature, about the equivalent of late milk ripening, so it is called a small full. The southern region of the farmers' proverbs to give a new meaning to the small full: "full of small, dry break Si Kan"; "full of small, regardless of the mango seed". The "full" is used to describe the surplus and deficit of rain, pointing out that if the field is not full of water at the time of the small full, it may cause the field to dry out, and even the mango can not be planted rice.

Xiaoman's three seasons: "The first season of the bitter vegetable show, the second season of the death of the grass, the third season of the arrival of the summer heat."

Bitter vegetable show: "Bei Ya" to the bitter vegetable. Mao Shi said: "Who said the bitter?" is also. Bao said: "sense of fire gas and bitter flavor into." "Er Ya" said: "not glory and solid is called the show, glory and not solid is called the English," this bitter vegetables should be said English. Bao said: "sense of fire gas and bitter flavor into." Cai Yong "order of the month" to say endive.

靡草死: Zheng Kangcheng, Bao Jingxiang are cloud: waste grass, Drabanemerosa hebecarpa genus. Rites of Passage" note said: "the branches and leaves of the grass and the thin ones." Fang's said: "all things sense of the sun and born, is strong and stand; sense of the Yin and born, is soft and go." The "wilted grass" is the birth of the yin, so it does not win over the yang and die.

Small full of traditional activities

1, grab the water

Farmers have a proverb: "small full of moving three cars (water car, oil car, silk car)."

Said the small full of the season is prone to dry weather, farmers will use the water car to take the car drainage.

Now, the waterwheel has long been replaced by advanced machinery, but the traditional culture has been preserved. In the area of Jiangsu and Zhejiang, the annual small full season will be held "grab water" ceremony. "Grab water" ceremony can be lively, people in the waterwheel base to eat wheat cake, wheat cake, wheat dough, drums and gongs a call, the crowd stepped on the pre-loaded waterwheel, dozens of a step, the river water into the field.

2, pray for silkworms

Jiangsu, Zhejiang and other areas, fertile soil, the rural villages flourished sericulture.

Silkworms are very delicate, very difficult to raise, so the area of Jiangsu and Zhejiang will be held at the time of the small full Praying silkworm festival.

There is no fixed date to pray for the silkworm festival, each family held on any day, but before and after the difference of two or three days. Many places in the south built "Silkworm Lady Temple" "Silkworm God Temple", sericulture family will go to the temple to kneel and worship, and offer wine, fruits, sumptuous dishes.

3, to see the wheat yellow

"Wheat yellow, women look at the mother, removed the bar yoke, the mother to see the wrongdoer."

In the Guanzhong region, the small full season married daughters to return to their parents' home to visit, to ask about the preparations for the summer harvest, this custom is called "look at the yellow wheat".

Going home can not be empty-handed, son-in-laws, daughters usually carry oil cake, mung bean cake, yellow apricots, etc. as gifts.

4, Xiaoman "bitter vegetables" in season

"Spring wind blowing, bitter vegetables long, the wild land is a granary."

If a nursery rhyme can take us to the memories, then a flavor that can make us feel in the memories. Eating bitter greens, for the custom of Xiaoman, and also as one of the earliest wild greens consumed by Chinese people, its flavor is full of historical weight.

Bitter greens are found all over the country, and medically it is called septoria. Though bitter and astringent, it is rich in nutrients, containing a variety of vitamins, minerals, choline, etc. It has the effect of clearing away heat and detoxifying the body.

Bitter vegetables are eaten in a variety of ways, you can roll the water shabu-shabu, and then vinegar, sesame oil and other cold; can also be pickled and eaten, crispy and refreshing; you can also do soup, stuffing, stir-frying, the flavor is different.

Small full of common sense

1, sleep too late

At this time can not be too late to lie down and get up early, late at night to eat and drink socializing, watching the drama of the late night, etc. It is recommended that we do not do first.

2, lying wet and cold

After the small full of temperatures significantly higher, more rain, but the morning and evening will still be cooler, the temperature difference between the day is still large, especially after the rainfall temperature drop is more pronounced, so we should avoid trying to cool down and cool off by the wind, especially at night when you sleep. Otherwise, cold and dampness stay in the skin,郁而化热, easy to cause rubella, eczema and other skin diseases; reside in the joints, easy to trigger various types of rheumatic diseases. Although now generally will not sleep on the stone or cold ground, but air conditioning, cooler, cold shower, short skirts, etc. brought by the cold and dampness may not be small. If you are inadvertently subjected to dampness and cold, you can get rid of the dampness through exercise or a hot bath.

3, eat cold food

To try to avoid too cold external environment, while the body to maintain a warm internal environment. Into the summer, people often like to use cold drinks to cool down, but if not divided into men and women old and young, all figure mouth pain, cold drinks will cause gastrointestinal discomfort and abdominal pain, diarrhea and other diseases. Especially children's digestive system development is not yet sound, the elderly viscera function gradually decline, so children and the elderly are more likely to appear in this case, which is often committed to the small full season health taboos.

4, burst temper

The heat is easy to sweat, and Chinese medicine has always been regarded as sweat "heart of liquid", sweating too much natural easy to consume the heart yin liquid, leading to the heart of the sun is more weak hyper, the person will feel tired, this is called the "strong fire food gas," that is, fire is too strong will consume us, we will not be able to eat the gas. This is called "strong fire eats gas", that is, the fire is too strong will consume the gas in our body. Therefore, in this summer climate, we need to pay attention to the harm of heart fire on the human body. First of all, don't lose your temper and add fuel to the fire. Su Wen - four qi regulates the divine great theory" also mentioned "so that the will not anger", is to pay attention to people do not because of the mood of irritability and indiscriminate loss of temper. "The gas can be released, if received outside", to the gas venting calm, free, as it is received outside - like a comfortable.