The Historical Origin of Chinese Weddings

According to legend, the earliest marriage relationship and wedding ceremony in China began with the Fuxi family's system of marriage and Nuwa's establishment of a matchmaking contract. In the book "Tong Jian Wai Ji", it is written: "In the ancient times, men and women were not different, and Tai Hao started to set up a marriage ceremony with the ritual of "Li Lei Pi" (a pair of deer skins). From then on, the "Lipi" (a pair of deer skins) became one of the classic wedding gifts. After that, in addition to the "Lipi gift" in addition, but also "must tell the parents"; to the summer and the Shang, and appeared in the "pro-greeting in the court" "pro-greeting in the Hall The rituals of the "kiss and welcome in the hall". The Zhou Dynasty is the etiquette of the era of completion, which gradually formed a complete set of marriage etiquette, "rituals" in the detailed regulations, the whole set of rituals for the "six rituals". The six rites of marriage have since become the template for traditional Chinese weddings, which have been passed down to the present day.

Zhou system wedding, starting from ancient times to the Xia Shang, integrated in the rituals and music of the Western Zhou, carried forward in the gentleman style of the Spring and Autumn and the Warring States, stabilized in the final formation of the Han nation of the Chinese ethnic groups, in the long three thousand years has always been the blueprint for the wedding of China, and ultimately become a brilliant cloud.

The wedding at that time was also called the faint ceremony. There was no extravagant bride price, no ostentatious ceremony, and no noisy feast. The wedding ceremony emphasizes the righteousness of husband and wife and the gift of marriage, and is not considered to be a thing that can be noisy and noisy. At that time, the ceremony was simple and clean, there was no such complicated stuff as picking the cover and making a mess in the bridal chamber, the couple "fm radio" and "fm radio", and then joined hands in the bridal chamber. The next day to see the aunt and uncle, after three months to see the family temple, from then on, the bride officially into the husband's family. Shang and Zhou period of the faint dress is not now people misunderstand the big red piece, but the dignified basaltic dress (basaltic, black in the red color, according to the idea of the five elements, is symbolic of the sky, the most sacred color). The bridegroom's family does not extinguish the candles for three days, thinking of their daughter in the light of the fire; the husband's family also does not raise music for three days, comforting the bride who misses her parents; the whole ceremony is quiet and serene, but there is a kind of power in the quiet and meticulous ceremony that shakes the hearts of the people. The quiet and beautiful ceremony that begins in the dusk reflects the breath of a long-lost civilization - the pure, beautiful and great Han civilization that speaks directly to the heart. It refers to the later Chinese wedding that evolved gradually from the Zhou wedding system. It is a mixture of many other sources of wedding etiquette, there are many variations, so it is called "developmental".

When the wedding was slowly put in the daytime is not known, perhaps because of the war after the Han Dynasty, the night is not safe, perhaps because of the infection of Hu customs, coupled with the later wedding ceremony gradually become bigger, longer, and gradually put in the morning, so that the ceremony often lasts a day of celebration.

Unlike later weddings, pre-Qin to two Han weddings, the female father to welcome the son-in-law at the door, the etiquette is very heavy, not to mention difficult son-in-law, Tang "Feng's wenxianliu" 6 Volume 5 cloud: "modern marriage has a barrier car, son-in-law under the son-in-law, but the fan and the view of the flowers and candles." Since the wedding had the guests of honor and the wedding banquet, the secular and celebratory atmosphere of the wedding was gradually expanded. The celebratory atmosphere of weddings was the norm for the people, but it also came from the customs of the neighboring countries of China. The Hu wedding is very festive, and many of the miscellaneous customs of later weddings, such as making trouble in the bridal chamber, are the wedding customs of the Khitan. Crossing the fire bowl, on the other hand, comes from the Manchu. According to the Rites of Zhou, there is no cover for weddings, but the red cover has become a symbol of secular weddings. The wedding ceremony in the Rites of Passage did not hold music, no wine feast to honor the guests, only in the new room for the bride and groom to set up a special seat. In later times, the banquet for guests became an essential part of the wedding, and the disturbing of the room became a reserved program. Perhaps, we are more familiar with the wedding is: a worship of heaven and earth, two worship high hall, husband and wife worship.

Looking at the above two traditional Chinese wedding mode, it is not difficult to see: the long history, the vastness of the country, the degree of cultural genetic variation is not small, after all, there is no exchange of nationalities on the earth does not exist, in the development of weddings, the Chinese nation of the wedding wedding wedding ceremony, absorbing the customs of many foreign peoples. Through many active and passive inter-ethnic exchanges, through many national ups and downs, the Chinese wedding in a long time slowly change.

Intriguingly, the revision of the ritual books through the ages reveals the attitude of the ancients towards this phenomenon: a preference for the Zhou ritual marriage system, and a tolerance for the secular marriage system. As a result, the ideal and the secular are not contrary to each other, and each has its own market. This may be one of the characteristics of Chinese culture, the ancients have given the appropriate way to deal with, do not need to be demanding uniformity. The six rites of marriage

Chinese weddings can be divided into three stages:

Pre-marital rites, i.e., "betrothal"

The wedding ceremony, i.e., "marriage" or "marriage" rites, is the ceremony of "marriage" or "marriage", i.e., "marriage" or "marriage" rites.

According to the Book of Rituals, the Faint Rites: "The Faint Rites, will be combined with the good of the two surnames, the upper in order to serve the clan and temple, and the lower in order to succeed the future generations, so the men are heavy, so the Faint Rites to the Nacai, ask the name of the Nage, Naji, Naji, please period, are the master of the spindle a few outside the door, into the Greetings and rise to the temple, at the command of the Temple, and the worship and welcome to the door, into the Greetings and rise to the Temple, at the command of the Temple, so the respect and caution and the right to the Faint Rites also. Therefore, it is said that the dim rites are also the basis of the rites."

And the so-called six rites, according to the records of the rituals, respectively, is the nacai, ask the name, naji, naji, please period, kiss welcome. The six rites are said to have been created in the Zhou Dynasty, and some scholars believe that the six rites were already in place during the time of King Wen of Zhou, although some people do not follow the six rites.

Three years of Han Pingdi Yuan Shi, Liu Xin and other miscellaneous wedding, four auxiliary ministers and doctors Chuanqian Lang Shi family members feasible to meet in person, the next year, the Queen is also Nacai, Buji. Wei Jin and North and South Dynasties, the crown prince to marry the crown princess wedding are not please welcome, since the Eastern Han Dynasty to the Eastern Jin Dynasty a lot of time are not in accordance with the six rituals of marriage.

After the Tang Dynasty, the Crown Prince began to welcome, and the Prince's wedding will follow the six rites. Later and "ask the name" in the "Na Cai" and "please date" in the "Na Cheng"; so although the concept is still in accordance with the Therefore, although conceptually the six rites are still followed, in reality there are only four rites, namely, "Nacai", "Naji", "Najie", "Najing" and "Greeting". In fact, there are only four rites, namely, "Nage", "Naji", "Najing" and "Greeting". Zhu Zi's family rite combines "Naji" and "Najing" into one rite, so there are only three rites.

During the Yuan Dynasty, a wedding ceremony was added to the wedding ceremony.

During the first year of the Hongwu period of the Ming Dynasty, the Zhuzi family rituals were used as the standard for weddings.

The Qing Dynasty, according to the Tongli records, Han officials from the seventh grade above **** have nine rites, but are spelled out into a woman into a son-in-law of the rites, and the ancient six rites are only left to "discuss the marriage", "natsui," "nazi", "nazi", "please", "please", "please", "please", "please", "please", "please", "please", "please" and "please". The six rites of the ancient times were only five rites, namely, "discussing marriage", "accepting marriage", "accepting money", "inviting the date" and "inviting the welcome". The marriage of the other soldiers and the common people is relatively simple, and the civil wedding is generally carried out in accordance with the Zhu Zi family law.

Three Books and Six Rites

Three Books

Three Books, i.e., the Book of Hire, the Book of Rites, and the Book of Welcoming:

The Book of Hire The Book of Hire, which is used for betrothal, is handed over to the woman's family by the man's family at the time of the "Naji" (passing of the Wending).

The Book of Ceremony The Book of Ceremony is the book used during the "Naji" (ceremony), and details the type and amount of gifts.

Welcome Book As the name suggests, the welcome book is the book used to welcome the bride, i.e., when the bride is being welcomed.

Six Rites

Na Cai is also known as "Cai Zai", which is equivalent to what is known in later generations as "marriage proposal" and "matchmaking". It is a decision made by the man after careful consideration. The Rites of the House of Wen Gong said, "The ceremony of choosing a bride is the same as what is known in this world as the "marriage proposal"." In ancient times, it was simpler and simpler, as recorded in the Rites of Passage for the Scholarly Class, the gift for the scholarly class, known as "Zhi" or "Zhi Zhi", was only "with a goose". The original should be stick pheasant, but the pheasant is not easy to catch, mostly dead pheasant, wedding time is not appropriate, and the wedding is a major event in life, so the licensed newcomers have to cross their status level to wear and use clothing line.

Tang Du You's Tongdian records 30 kinds of gifts for the wedding ceremony:

Gifts Symbols

Yuan crimson, sheep Yuan, like heaven, crimson, sheep, and Xiang Xiang are also grouped together, but not partisan geese: geese follow the yang

Soju, clear liquor

Baijiu, white wine, white wine, and happy reasons

Japonica rice: Japonica rice to feed the family

Jikji rice: common millet

Pu, a common millet, is a symbol of the family's love and care.

Pu (蒲): many bushes, soft in nature

Reed (苇): the reed is soft for a long time

Cedar (卷柏): the cypress (卷柏) grows in a curled up form

Jiahe (嘉禾): the harvest is a blessing to the land

Wisp (缕缝衣): a garment of long-lasting threads that extends the life of the people who are different from the others

Lacquer (漆): lacquer that is good for its inner and outer light

Five Colors (五色丝): five-color silk that has a long history of stretching and bending

Cacaca (合欢) bells. The sound of the bell is harmonious

Jiu Zi Mo: The nine sons of Mo will have children and grandchildren for a long time

Money: The money is more than enough

Lu De and Herb: Lu De is good for luck

Phoenix: The phoenix is a combination of the male and female

Sherry Beasts: The Sherry Beasts are cheap and modest

Mandarin Ducks: Mandarin Ducks need to be in harmony with each other when they are in flight

Fortunate Beasts: Blessed Beasts have a respectful body and a kind heart.

Fish: A fish in an abyss has no shot

Deer: A deer is a deer with a good fortune

Wu: A bird knows how to feed its mother and is filial to her husband

Jiu Zi Wu: A woman with nine sons has four achievements

Yang Suo: Yang Suo has become a famous man and has made a good name for herself

Ye Dan: Ye Dan is a king's glory, and the green is the head of the color, which is the first color of the Orient

Asking for a name: Asking for a name is a way for a man to ask a woman's family the name and the birthdate of the daughter of a girl, and the name and the date of birth of a girl. If the woman's family accepts the man's proposal, she will give her daughter's name and the eight signs of the time to the man's family and put them in front of the gods or ancestors to divine the luck, and if the divination is favorable, she will decide to marry the woman's daughter.

Naji: Naji, that is to say, over Wen Ding, a little bit like the Westerner's betrothal, this is in fact the marriage has been initially agreed.

NaZheng: NaZheng, that is, to pass the big gift; "Na" is the meaning of hiring money, and "zheng" is the meaning of "into", that is to say, the man's family needs to pay the hiring gift before the marriage is completed. This means that the man's family needs to pay the bride price before the marriage can be consummated. During the ceremony, the man's family will invite two or four female relatives (who must be fully blessed) and a matchmaker to the woman's home with the bride price, gift money, and bride price; after the ceremony is completed, the marriage contract will be formalized.

Please date: "Please date" means to "choose an auspicious date" for the marriage. The man's family chooses an auspicious date for the marriage and prepares a book on the auspicious date of the marriage and gifts for the woman's family, who accepts and agrees to the date of the marriage.

Personal welcome: The bridegroom will go to the bride's home with the matchmaker and friends and relatives to welcome the bride on the day of the wedding. Before the groom goes to the woman's home, he will first pay his respects at the ancestral temple of the woman's home, and then take the bride back to the man's home in a sedan chair. The bride and groom will then hold a ceremony at the man's house to worship heaven, earth and ancestors before being sent to the bridal chamber.

Exchanging genealogical records

Exchanging genealogical records means that the families of the man and the woman exchange their genealogical records with each other as a proof of betrothal. After the matchmaker proposes a marriage, if the man's and woman's dates do not conflict with each other, the two sides will exchange their genealogies.

Wending

The man's family will choose an auspicious day and bring some gifts to the woman's family, which are usually three sacrifices, wine, etc., and formally present a letter of engagement.

The ceremony of "passing through the ceremony"

After the "passing through the ceremony" is held, the ceremony of "passing through the ceremony" will be held, which is the most solemn and important ceremony of the betrothal; because after this ceremony, it is as if the marriage contract has been formally established. As with the "Wending" ceremony, the man's family will choose an auspicious day and bring the bride price and various gifts to the woman's home, while the woman's family will also prepare gifts in return. Here are the gifts for both the man and the woman:

Gifts for the man's family

The gifts below are all even-numbered in order to symbolize "good things come in pairs," and the types of gifts vary according to the customs of each region.

The bride price: This is a token of the man's recognition and gratitude to the woman's parents for their daughter's upbringing.

Bride money: one quan (50 kilograms)

Seafood: four, six, or eight types, depending on the financial situation of the man's family. Each style is usually divided into two packages. Among them, hairy vegetable is a must for its meaning of wealth, while other seafood includes abalone, dried oysters, dried scallops, mushrooms, shrimp, squid, sea cucumber, shark's fin and fish maw.

Three animals: two pairs of chickens, two males and two females (if the parents are incomplete, then a pair is sufficient); pork three to five pounds of double fly (hi only fly), that is, a piece of connected to open the two, in order to show fruitful and sincere respect.

Fish: big fish or pangolins; meaning fishy; also means a lot of money in the year.

Coconut: two pairs (one pair for incomplete parents), meaning that there is a master (coconut) and a son.

Wine: four sticks, meaning love is strong.

Si Jing Guo: Dried longan, dried lychee, dried peach and peanuts in shell, to bless the prosperity of children and grandchildren, and also implies the meaning of complete happiness and endless life.

Sheng Guo: it means to be born alive

Four Colors of Sugar: it means icing sugar, orange cake, winter melon sugar and golden prickly pear, which means the elephant is sweet and dense, and the meaning of white head to old age.

Tea and sesame: Because seeds are necessary to grow tea, tea is used as a gift, implying that once a woman concludes a marriage contract, she must keep her word and never regret it, i.e., the "oil and sesame tea ceremony".

The post box (gift box): inside the lotus seeds, lilies, green wisps, cypress, betel nut two pairs, sesame, red beans, mung beans, red dates, dried peach, dried longan, as well as the red head rope, Li Shi, hiring gold, decorative gold, dragon and phoenix candles and a couplet

Incense gun bracelet gold: incense (boneless foot green), gun (big firecrackers and big firecrackers), bracelet (dragon and phoenix pair of happy bracelet).

Dou two rice: the male party to prepare twelve pounds of glutinous rice, three pounds of sugar, this is for the female family to do the dumplings, in order to take it to the fullest, sweet and full of meaning.

Gifts for the woman's family

Half of the gifts for the man's family or a number of tea leaves

Fruits

Lotus root, taro, pomegranate (a pair of each)

Helvet scarf

Long pants: that means a long life of wealth

Shoes (a pair of): that is, together with the (shoes) to old age

Benber, ginger, tea decoction stacks, muffins

The bride price

Benber, ginger, tea decoction stacks, muffins

The bride price

Benber, ginger, tea decoction stacks, muffins

Returning the bride price

Betel nut (receive one and return the rest to the man's family): it means that a man will live to a ripe old age

Setting up the bed

After choosing an auspicious date, the "man of luck" will move the new bed to the appropriate position a few days before the wedding. The location should be determined by the eight characters of the man and the woman, as well as the position of the gods, and the bed should not be placed in a position where it is opposite to the sharp corners of tables, cabinets and cupboards.

Then, a "grandchildren's lady" will be responsible for making the bed, and setting out various kinds of happy fruits, dried lychees, red and green beans, and lai sees.

After the bed is made, it is forbidden to let oneself or other adults sit or lie on it, especially for widows and the widowed; however, babies can be allowed to play on the bed first, which is a sign of adding to the family's wealth.

Dowry

The dowry must be delivered to the man's house at least one day before the wedding. The amount of dowry symbolizes the status and wealth of the woman's family. In addition to jewelry, the dowry is mainly auspicious:

Butterflies: scissors

Sweetness: sugar

Flower: vase

Fruitfulness: seventy-two sets of clothes

Crying for the marriage

According to the Book of Rituals, "Confucius said, "The family of the marrying woman will not rest the candle for three nights, thinking of the daughter's family, and will not stop for three nights. Three nights without resting the candle, thinking of separation."

Crying for marriage may be something difficult to understand today; however, in ancient times, because transportation was not as convenient as in modern times, it was difficult for daughters to have the opportunity to see their families after they were married off.

And in fact, it was not always possible for a woman to return to her mother's home to visit her family, as is the case today; returning to her mother's home required the approval of her husband's family.

There is also a theory that the weeping marriages originated from the fact that women could not have free marriages in ancient times, so they would use the songs of weeping marriages to accuse the unfair marriage system in ancient times.

Top

In ancient times, men performed the "crown rite" at the age of 20, indicating that they had reached adulthood. A woman who reached adulthood at the age of fourteen had her "marriageable age" (及笄禮). The ceremony is a symbol of the age of marriage. So the rite of passage is inextricably linked to weddings.

After the wedding, the woman needs to change her hair style to show that she is no longer a girl, but a bride to be married. The "top of the head" is not just the hair being combed and bunned, but the entire head being dressed, and the face being opened and the eyebrows drawn, and the fat and powder applied.

The "open face" refers to the use of fine fluff to remove the bride's sweaty face, so that the face is more polished.

"Hair combing" is a very elaborate ceremony. Comb hair to use a new comb, to help "on the head" of the person must be "full of blessings" (commonly known as "good life" and "good life woman"), that is, "good life" and "good life woman".

In addition to the above, the person must be a "full-blooded person" (commonly known as "good life man" and "good life woman"), that is, he or she is a person who has all six relatives and a full family.

Additionally, the mother's family will also host a banquet and invite guests, and the grandness of the ceremony can be seen here.

"Good fortune" and "good fortune woman" for the bride and groom to comb the hair, one side comb, one side said:

A comb comb to the end, two comb comb to gray hair eyebrows, three comb comb to children and grandchildren all over the ground, four comb comb comb to the four silver bamboo shoots to all standard Qi

Covered head

The family will also hold a banquet and invite guests, "on the head" is also seen here.

The bride is usually covered with a square red scarf three feet long on one side of the head, which is called the red scarf called "cover scarf", commonly known as cover head.

There are two ways to describe the custom of covering the head: one is to say that the head is to cover up shame; the other is to say that it originated from the ancient marriage of plunder, which means that the bride can never find her way back after covering her head.

Going out

Going out means that the bride leaves her mother's house. When the auspicious time is reached, the woman must be carried by the eldest sister of the truth to the palanquin; it is said that the bride will bring bad luck if she lands on her feet.

When leaving the house, the bride's sister-in-law is not allowed to see her off, because the character for "sister-in-law" has the same sound as the character for "broomstick", so it is believed that seeing the sister-in-law off on her way out of the house will bring bad luck.

Nowadays, when the bride leaves the house, the bridesmaids (who accompany the bride to the man's house and must be unmarried) hold red umbrellas to protect the bride, in order to spread the leaves. As the bride and her sisters walk, they scatter rice in the air, on top of the umbrella and on top of the float to "feed the golden chickens," meaning that the chickens will not peck at the bride after pecking at the rice. Finally, before boarding the float, the bride bows to her friends and relatives to show her appreciation.

Welcome the bride

In ancient times, the man had to welcome the bride. The "welcome of the bride" was the most solemn of the six rites of passage. Without the groom to meet the bridegroom, there would be no bride to get married. In ancient times, there are on foot, there is also a car, the more common is to use the eight sedan chair to meet the bride.

The sedan chair people must be physically strong, meet other people's sedan chair, absolutely can not meet with them, must go around. Welcome back, but also the most a road back, to take the meaning of not going back. If the way through the temple, shrine, grave, well, river, etc., must be married by the man's hand Zhang red felt will sedan chair cover, as "avoid evil" meaning.

If you meet a funeral procession on the way, the person welcoming the bride will say, "Today is auspicious, meet the treasure wealth! Why is this so? Is it a treasure to meet a funeral procession? In fact, this is because the coffin of the harmonic for "Guan Cai", that is, to see the meaning of the treasure, this is said mainly for the sake of good luck.

Crossing the threshold

Crossing the threshold means that the bride goes out from the woman's house and then formally enters the man's house to pay her respects to her aunt and the other elders of the man's family.

Legend has it that the aunt is not allowed to see the bride and groom directly in the hall, as this would be a clash. So when the woman enters the man's house, the aunt will come out from her room to meet the new couple in the hall.

Then the bride and groom will pay homage to heaven and earth first, and then to their ancestors. The bride and groom will offer tea and kneel down to the Weng Gu. The aunt will say some blessings and give jewelry and gifts to the bride. The bride is required to wear the jewelry immediately after receiving it as a token of appreciation. Then the bride and groom will offer tea to other elders and relatives.

Waiving

Waiving, also known as "worshiping heaven and earth," is a very important ceremony in a wedding. Interestingly, the "worship" is not part of the ancient rituals of the "three books and six rites".

The custom was popularized after the Song Dynasty, when the woman officially became a member of the man's family.

During the ceremony, the master of ceremonies would say loudly:

"Bow to heaven and earth, bow to the hall of heaven and earth, bow to the husband and wife, and enter the bridal chamber."

In fact, worshiping heaven and earth represents honoring the gods of heaven and earth; while worshiping the high hall is the embodiment of filial piety; and as for husband and wife worshiping, it represents that husband and wife respect each other as guests. To a certain extent, conjugal worship was one of the few times in ancient times when women could be put on the same footing as men.

Homecoming, is to return to the bride's home to parents to report the meaning of peace. In ancient times, transportation was not as convenient as in modern times, so if a woman's husband's family was far away from her mother's family, she might not have the chance to return to her mother's family after she was married to her husband's family, according to the so-called "marrying from husband".

So the return may be the last chance for a woman to set foot in her mother's home. Because of this, people attach great importance to this wedding custom.

In a modern wedding, the man's family needs to prepare: a roasted pig (to show the bride's chastity)

two boxes of biscuits

a pair of wines

two sticks of bamboo canes (for a high level of success)

a pair of chickens

lettuce (for a good start)

two baskets of fruits

onions (for a good start)

two boxes of noodles

a couple of boxes of Chinese noodles

a pair of Chinese noodles

a pair of Chinese noodles

Chicken with lantern gold

Pork belly and pork, two catties each