How the custom of raising the head of the dragon on the second day of the second month was formed

After hundreds of years of development and evolution, the February 2nd festival is still in most parts of China to inherit, and because of the differences in geographical or natural and other conditions and each has its own characteristics, the inherent cultural core through a variety of different forms of inheritance, in our country's colorful culture of many festivals is unique. However, we should also be sober to see that in recent years due to the strong impact of the market economy, ? February 2nd? festival has clearly shown signs of decline. As an endangered traditional culture, it is important for? February 2?

An in-depth study of the customs of the festival has been urgent.

I. Existing Chinese February 2 festival

February 2 festival since the Tang Dynasty began to become a festival, to the Yuan Dynasty was finally finalized, through the Ming and Qing dynasties continue to improve, incorporating a number of cultural connotations, uninterrupted inheritance down to the present day is still many ethnic groups are still prevalent in an important traditional festivals.

The Han Chinese February 2 festival is relatively more prevalent among ethnic minorities, and a folk proverb has been circulating in the north of China: ? February 2, the dragon raised its head, the big warehouse full, small warehouse flow. February 2 customary activities held countless, Shaanxi area people in this day around the house scattered grass ash, said ? The wall of the house? . The intention is to disinfect and drive away insects, prevent snake bites. Shaanxi Foping area, people in the early morning of February 2 to end on a dustpan stove ash or other grass ash, scattered around the house, knocking on the door with a rolling pin, in order to disinfect insect repellent. Hanzhong area Nanzheng, Xixiang area, people in February 2nd with dustpan grass ash, along the house around the spread, while spreading read: ? February 2, ash dustpan, bugs and ants fly over. It is said that this can prevent scorpions and insects from entering the house.

North Shaanxi Fugu, Yulin area over the ? Dragon Carrying Heads? festival, early in the morning to the stove ash for the house, prevent insects and scorpions, and will be made into ? The first thing you need to do is to make sure that you have a good understanding of what you are doing. (a kind of offering) to the family old and young to eat, in order to luck. Beijing and other places, there is a proverb ? February 2, shine the beams, scorpions, centipedes, no place to hide? is circulating, that is, according to the February 2 every year, the bugs shine activities. This activity is generally carried out in the evening of February 2, people will finish the New Year's Eve after the remaining candles lit to the four corners of the house to shine a light, that is, if you do, will soon be resuscitated scorpions, centipedes and other insects and ants will be smoked because of the oil and smoke shot and the annual candle shaking and fall dead, has achieved the purpose of driving away insects and snakes.

The Northeast and other places are popular February 2, women to cloth made into a chicken shape, hanging indoors, thus ? The first time I saw this, I was in the middle of the night, and I was in the middle of the night, I was in the middle of the night. , some places also clean the room on this day, that can make people healthy.

Some places in the South have February 2 insect sacrifice custom, Jiangnan belt, every February 2 households to the old corn, sorghum, glutinous rice and buckwheat, etc. Ground into rice flour, made of rolled dough, peach and other kinds of fruit shapes, some also pinched into the shape of a pig, dog, goat, chicken and other poultry shape, steamed inserted on the bamboo, to the time of the sun to the head of the field, or placed in front of the graves of the family ancestors. It is said that the god of insects will not eat the crops of the people who worship it after eating. People in Suzhou and Hangzhou worship the God of Land on February 2, which is considered to be the birthday of the Grandfather of the Land, and set up incense to pay homage to the Grandfather of the Land and pray for a good harvest.

People in Chengdu and other places in February 2, there are also out trekking, enjoy the spring custom. Jiangnan region, especially around Suzhou and Hangzhou, February 2 festival food is also very distinctive, Jiangsu people since the Qing Dynasty is used to eat on February 2 ? The first thing you need to do is to make sure that you have a good understanding of what you're doing. , this rice cake by oil frying after eating, especially delicious. North and south of the people around the food is also used to eat on February 2, crowned with? Dragon? word, such as ? dragon beard noodles? The Dragon's Bowl is a great example of a dish that can be eaten on February 2nd. Dragon unicorn? and "Dragon Horns". dragon's horn? What's the name of the dragon? dragon ears? , etc. The food should be made in the shape of a dragon or a part of a dragon's body.

People in Tianjin eat ? Pan-fried casserole. , casserole that is the symbol of the dragon scale, the production of casserole starch boiled into a gelatinous block, cut into small slices and placed in a pan frying until a layer of yellow crispy fried, and then sheng to the bowl pouring soy sauce, sesame paste, and then sprinkled with minced garlic, stirring can be eaten, the taste is very delicious. The flavor is very fresh and delicious. Eat the dragon scale cake, the whole year is not frozen? .

Northeast, there are February 2 to eat pig's head custom, Dragon Head Festival this day, to set up a table at home pig's head feast, symbolizing the food dragon head. A family around the food, while eating the fragrant, steaming pork, while eating some pancakes and other cooked food as a mixture. When making pork, the pig's hair should be pulled out first, boiled in boiling water, plus pickled leeks, sauce, scallions and other condiments before eating. This made the pork fat but not greasy, flavorful. In addition, some areas in the north, people also want to dance on February 2 this day to celebrate, listen to commentaries, the South is by the performance of community theater, sacrifices to the landlord and other collective pleasure occasions.

Regrettably, these festive customs, which are still so popular in modern society, have been seriously diluted with the strong impact of marketization in contemporary society. Nowadays, most of them have survived only in some forms among the Han Chinese people, and are preserved in the form of shaving the dragon's head, eating dragon's beard noodles, and some vague forms of entertainment.

Two, the February 2nd Festival faded reasons

Since the 20th century, with the rapid development of China's economic modernization and the accelerated pace of political change in the country, our country was once exceptionally popular national traditional festivals to a large extent suffered an impact, especially to February 2nd Festival as the representative of a number of endangered festivals are tending to die, due to a variety of reasons, some of the festivals of the folk culture was artificially distorted, Deformation, some of them are forgotten, traditional festivals? Cultural memory? Gradually forgotten by the people.

First of all, for a long time people have formed a prejudice against the traditional festival culture

Since the recent times, the social change is intense, the socio-political culture has undergone a major change, coupled with the promotion of the movement of changing customs for decades, the feudal backwardness and the link between the traditional culture slowly gathered in the hearts of the people, including the February 2nd festival, including the traditional culture was discarded across the board, watered down.

We see that modern festivals such as ? New Year's Day? ,? Labor Day? and so on are more marketable to contemporary people, who are keen on ? Golden Week? enjoyment, and those inherited thousands of years, contains a rich national cultural connotation of the Dragon Boat Festival, Qingming, the Mid-Autumn Festival and other traditional festivals are in a state of self-perpetuation, only in rural and remote areas still retain some of the original style, but with the accelerated process of urbanization, the space for them to survive is also gradually squeezing the content and form of the sharp decline in the survival of the environment is seriously deteriorating. The environment for their survival is seriously deteriorating.

Secondly, it is not easy to preserve the forms of festival culture

Compared with tangible cultural heritage, intangible cultural heritage does not have physical? cultural relics? to rely on. Modern society, entertainment is increasingly varied, spiritual enjoyment of fast food accelerated the demise of traditional festival culture, like the February 2nd Festival, a kind of spontaneous organization by the masses, resources to participate in the larger popular festivals, has been very difficult to continue its vitality. For many years, our inability to protect the cultural heritage of the protection of the work of the low awareness of the protection as well as the lack of attention to the ideological, so that the February 2nd Festival customs on the verge of extinction, February 2nd Festival of the cultural connotations of the gradual been forgotten by the people.

Finally, the impact of foreign cultures has also largely aggravated the demise of the February 2nd traditional festival

Since the end of the Qing Dynasty, the door of the country was forced to open, the Western values and lifestyles of the moment such as a tidal wave of influx into the country, and the reform and opening up since the government down to the civil initiative to cater to the impact of Western culture has been the February 2nd festival as the representative of traditional festivals have suffered a heavy blow to the young generation of the young people to forget, cold shoulder. It has been forgotten by the young generation. They generally believe that these traditional festivals passed down from their ancestors that is rustic and lack of fashion, the general pursuit of Western Christmas, Valentine's Day, etc. as fashionable, the strong penetration of Western culture, resulting in the traditional festivals are increasingly receiving the cold shoulder.

In today's globalization, our traditional social life structure is rapidly structuring, and our inherent cultural traditions are undergoing drastic changes. In the strong penetration of Western culture in the environment, the February 2nd Festival as a representative of the traditional culture has been seriously destroyed and abandoned has been seen everywhere, the modern society and the lack of links to traditional society makes the traditional festivals gradually lost its original cultural connotations, increasingly ? The traditional festivals have lost their original cultural connotations and become increasingly hollowed out. , the rest is just some superficial form of eating and drinking. So, etc., so that our protection work will be more difficult, the urgency of protection is also increasingly profound.