Why did the ancients fold willows when they bid farewell?

The word "broken willow" means "farewell";

In ancient China, once relatives and friends were separated, people who saw them off always gave their willows to travelers. The word "broken willow" means "farewell forever". The custom of "sending willow" in China was first seen in Xiaoya. Cai Wei: "I have been there, Yangliuyiyi; Today I think it's raining. " In ancient times, willow was also called Xiao Yang or Liu Yang. Because "Liu" and "Liu" are homophonic, they can mean to stay. First, this poem comes from the Book of Songs, which is a famous sentence and is familiar to all readers. Secondly, "Willow Yiyi" expresses the parting feelings of soldiers before going out to war, which lays the cultural tone for later farewell poems; Thirdly, The Book of Songs, as one of the Five Classics, has a profound and extensive cultural background. The ancients paid attention to "no words and no place" in their poems, which of course came from classics.

In a word, there should be three reasons for "farewell": homophonic feeling, philosophical enlightenment and cultural inheritance.