What is the form of the ancient wedding?

Ancient people believed that the continuation of the family and lineage, is to do the younger generation can not shirk the heavy responsibility, that is, the so-called "unfilial three, no later for the big", therefore, to the intersection of the male and female yin and yang, produce the heir to the marriage of the ceremony on a very important position.

The wedding and marriage system has a close connection, from one side reflects the degree of civilization of the people's indoctrination. Han as the main body of the ancestors of the Chinese people and the world's peoples, in the primitive period experienced a messy marriage, group marriage stage, after entering the civilized society is basically to take a monogamous form of marriage.

The original form of the wedding began at the end of primitive society, from the rumor that began in the Fu Xi era of the betrothal "to Li Pi (pairs of deerskin) as a gift" gradually evolved to the summer and Shang Dynasty, "pro welcome in the hall", and then to the Zhou Dynasty with a complete "Six Rites", has initially laid the foundation of China's traditional wedding. And the development of successive generations, so that a variety of wedding rituals more elaborate, warm.

Broadly speaking, China's traditional wedding is divided into pre-wedding ceremony, the wedding, after the wedding ceremony three stages.

The pre-wedding ceremony is held in the marriage planning, preparation stage of some rituals.

In the pre-Qin era, there were five types of ceremonies, including the ceremony, asking for the name, asking for good luck, asking for signs, and inviting for a period of time (together with the wedding ceremony, that is, the so-called "six ceremonies"), and the later generations gradually evolved into the rituals of urging the makeup, delivering the makeup, and laying out the house.

In the ancient feudal society, marriage depends on "parents' orders, words of matchmakers", so all the rituals before the wedding, including a series of links from the choice of spouse to the preparation of the official wedding, almost all by the parents of both parents, the real parties to the marriage is excluded.

And because the man's social status is more honored than the woman's, therefore, the proposal is also more to the man as the initiative. Male parents want to marry for their sons, first asked the matchmaker to the woman's family to propose marriage (called "under the"), if the woman's family accepts the marriage, the beginning of a series of rituals and ceremonies, such as nacai, ask the name.

Nacai: is the first step in the formal marriage proposal of the man to the woman.

In the two sides agreed to carry out the "Nacai" ceremony on this day, the male family sent the matchmaker holding a live goose as gifts (initially live geese as gifts, that is, take the geese as migratory birds, autumn south and spring return to the north, come and go from time to time, from the letter to as a symbol of men and women to keep the faith; and take the geese fly into line, stop into a column, to show that the marriage must be the order of the eldest and youngest. The meaning of the marriage must be in order and cannot be exceeded.

Later, also used lambs, geese, acacia, glue lacquer, etc. as Zhi Li), came to the female family outside the door, the female family united (auxiliary salute people) said: "your master is very generous, rewarded so-and-so (son-in-law name) a wife, so-and-so (son-in-law father or brother) according to the provisions of the ancestral legacy, let me come to your master to request to hold the selection of the rituals of the young lady of your house. "

The lady's master was informed and came out of the gate to meet him, and after the guests and masters made a bow to each other, the matchmaker again expressed to the lady's master the meaning of coming to perform the rite of nacai. The master of the house replied by accepting the live geese and making a humble offer. The matchmakers saw that the marriage had been formally approved by the parents, so they took their leave and went back to their work.

Calling makeup Send makeup store: these three rituals are not recorded in the pre-Qin literature, is the evolution of later generations in the evolution of the wedding developed.

The urge to make up, is the male family to send people with gifts to urge the female family to make up for the bride as early as possible rituals. In the Song Dynasty, three days before the welcome, the male family to send makeup flower buns, pin gold cover, flower fan and other things to the female family, the female family replied to the gold and silver double victory in the Royal, Luo Hua Pu head, green robe, boots and other things.

Send makeup, is a few days before the welcome, the female family will send the dowry to the male family rituals. The dowry is often packed in boxes and cages, and there are also families to show off the dowry, the dowry with a square table spread one by one, lined up in a long line to the male family. The dowry usually has boxes, bedding, jewelry, clothing, silk, literature and silverware, etc., there are fields and houses, stores, pawnshops as a dowry. Zhejiang area, there is a dowry called "children and grandchildren bucket" (a large bucket with a large lid, for the bride to give birth to use), the bucket with red eggs, happy fruit, called "send children", there is a blessing. Shaoxing area, there is a "daughter wine" as a dowry, that is, in the daughter's full moon or several years old, that is, brewing several altars buried in the ground, to be married to a daughter on the day, take out as a dowry gift sent to the male family.

Shop, is the female family sent to the male family to lay a new room rituals, sometimes and send makeup at the same time. Song Dynasty, the day before the welcome, the female family sent to the new room to lay the tent, bedding and other house utensils, and prepare gifts to warm the room. Then to close women or from the marriage of women to guard the room, no outsiders are allowed to enter, in order to wait for the newcomer. The person who paves the room must be a "good wife" who has good fortune and longevity and is from a wealthy family, so as to take good luck. This custom is still popular in some modern places.

Pro welcome: is the bridegroom personally to the bride's home to welcome the bride of the rituals, but also ancient and modern weddings in the most elaborate and solemn rituals.

As noted in "Yi Li. Shi wedding" records, the evening of the wedding day, the bride put on a wedding dress - tied with light red lace pure clothes (silk clothes), wearing a "second" (braided wig set), standing in the room to the south, the body of the nanny stood on the right, the bride's female entourage was draped in white and black tunic, stood in the room, and the bride was wearing a black tunic, stood in the room. black tunic, and the bride's female attendants, clad in white and black, stand at the back. When the groom wearing a dress, leading the ink car (the groom in a car), color car (the bride in a car, with curtains), from the car, servants and other welcoming team to the bride's home outside the door, the female master personally come out to meet, after some greetings, the two sides came to the hall, the groom to his father-in-law to perform the ritual of kiribati (the heaviest of all ancient kneeling rituals, need to kowtow to the ground for many hours) of the rituals, the bride from the room went to the east step on her father Her father admonished her, saying, "In the future, always be careful, respectful, and prudent, and do not go against the wishes of your in-laws." At the same time, a garment is given to her as a proof of the admonition. Then the bride comes again to her mother on the west step, who ties a sash around her waist and attaches a pei-scarf, and then admonishes her, saying, "Be diligent, respectful, and fulfill well the chores which your father-in-law and mother-in-law have commanded you." The bride then accompanies the groom down the hall to the gate, where she puts on a coat of royal dust to mount the colorful chariot and receives the driving sash from the groom. Thereupon the bridegroom drove the colored car forward, and after the wheels had turned three weeks, the bridegroom gave the car to the driving one, and himself went ahead in the ink cart, for he had to go to the door of his own house to meet the bride.

The pro-welcome handed down to later generations, more sedan chair, car, color boat, etc. to marry the bride, the bride's wedding dress is embroidered with dragon and phoenix patterns and colorful decorations of the phoenix phoenix crown, hanging down the silk spike to cover the face, but also a red scarf with a handkerchief, a fan to cover the face of a paper fan. When the bridegroom pro ushered into the female home, the bride often cried and refused to get on the sedan chair, the bride's friends and relatives to test the talent in public - the groom was asked to poems, the groom on the spot recited a "poem to promote makeup", the bride began to get up on the sedan chair. Before the sedan chair, the female family first make a woman holding a lamp or mirror to the sedan chair to shine a little, known as the "light sedan chair", that this can suppress the evil. In recent times, the sedan chair after the sedan chair, the female family splashed a pot of water at the door, the original intention is that the water can wash away the filth, of course, you can also press the evil spirits, which later evolved into the "marrying out of the daughter splashed out of the water" - pray that the daughter after the marriage and in-laws and good relations, do not be The first is to pray that the daughter will have a good relationship with her in-laws after her marriage and not be repulsed back.

Sedan chair on the way to welcome back to the male family, before and after the embracing, very grand: the front is to open the way, followed by deacons, lamps, drums and music, and then the bride's sedan chair. Along the road blowing, presenting a festive scene. Sedan chair welcome to the male family, neighbors and townspeople also want to ask for auspicious money, called "stop the door": the bridegroom to the copper money to the air to spread, children scramble to grab, called "scattered stars", another hand-held flower buckets, will be held by the grains, beans, and money, fruits and other things to see Another hand holding a flower bucket will be filled with grains, beans, money, fruit and other things to look at the door and scattered - said to be used to avoid the gods that prevent the bride from entering the door - called "sprinkle grain beans". The bride to get out of the sedan chair, but the feet can not track the ground, only track green cloth, felt mat or sack. Because the ancients believed that the earth and the sky are sacred realms that must not be violated, and once the bride's feet come into contact with the land, it is inevitable that she will offend the gods of the earth, and therefore, must be covered with felt or mats to avoid it. Bai Juyi's poem "Spring Deep Marrying a Woman's Home" in the Tang Dynasty recounts this custom: "Green clothes to felt mattress, brocade a slant." The Song Dynasty changed the felt into a mat, called "passing the mat" or "passing the bag", that is, to the mat or sacks passed over and over until the cave before the mat resonates with "interest" (i.e., children, offspring), the bag resonates with "generation", the bag resonates with "generation", the bag resonates with "generation", the bag resonates with "generation", the bag resonates with "generation". "generation", are the meaning of succession. Later, there are also female relatives in the force of the larger hold the bride under the sedan chair boarding bed, evolved to date, has become the maternal brother-in-law hold the bride on the sedan chair, under the sedan chair.

When the bride came to the door of the new house, but also from the saddle across the past, in order to show peace, but also across the fire to suppress the evil.

Worship: is the bride after the door to see the gods and goddesses of heaven and earth, male ancestors, in-laws and relatives and son-in-law rituals.

In the pre-Qin era, the bride's visit to the in-laws was in the early morning of the second day of the wedding. After bathing, the bride was led by the praisers to meet the in-laws. The bride holds a bamboo tray with jujube and chestnut in both hands, walks to the front of her father-in-law's seat, makes a bow with her face to the east, and then steps forward, kneels down and places the bamboo tray on the seat, the father-in-law touches the tray with his hand and stands up to make a return bow, and the bride makes a bow again, and then goes down to the hall, takes the bamboo tray with dried meat from the female attendant, walks to the front of her mother-in-law's seat, and carries on the same ceremonies as just now.

Then, in place of the in-laws, the praiser performs the ritual of giving sweet wine to the bride, and then the bride performs the "food gift" to the in-laws with food prepared according to the rules to show that the in-laws will be taken care of by her in the future. On the third day, the in-laws return to the daughter-in-law with the "gift of one offering".

After the in-laws and the daughter-in-law toasted each other, the in-laws descended from the west steps and the new daughter-in-law descended from the east steps, which was the master's direction, to show that the new daughter-in-law was qualified to take over from her mother-in-law as the housewife. On an auspicious day in the third month after she has met her in-laws, the new daughter-in-law goes to the ancestral temple of her husband's family and performs the "ritual of seeing the temple", i.e., she pays her respects to her husband's family's ancestors to console the spirits of her ancestors in heaven. After this series of ceremonies, the new daughter-in-law is officially a member of her husband's family.

From the Han Wei to the Tang Dynasty, the northern area, worship in the "Green Hut" held. The so-called "green hut" is in the southwest corner of the residence "auspicious", set up a tent in the open air, the bride stepped into the green hut from the special felt mat, in-laws stepped on the bride's footprints and then into the pressure on the daughter-in-law's sharpness. After the bride entered the door, the first worship pigsty and stove, and then married couples worship, the next day to see the in-laws and relatives.

Later, the ceremony was gradually changed to the wedding night. Groom welcome the bride into the door, each holding an end with a red and green satin knot made of concentric knots, and stood in front of the hall burning red dragon and phoenix candles, and ask the man's wife of the family's fortune, with a scale or machine comb to pick off the bride's masked scarf.

The bride and groom pay homage to heaven and earth first, and then to their in-laws and respected relatives in turn. At this time, the two sides of the worship and worship often want to give each other gifts. Finally, the couple worship, after the ceremony, the new couple by friends and relatives sent to the new room

Wine feast wine: Throughout the ages, wine feast is almost every newlywed couple wedding ceremony is essential, passed down to today, "to eat wine" has become a folk wedding abbreviation.

Of course, there are Artemisia and Jane, the size of the banquet varies, but the main significance is that the bride and groom's marriage has been recognized by friends and relatives. Therefore, the banquet is also the most socially significant part of the wedding. The pre-Qin era, the bride and groom's banquet is not together with the crowd, but in the new room set up a seat, the bride and groom in the master of ceremonies under the command of the bride and groom, sitting opposite each other, in accordance with certain procedures to take some meals and wine, that is, after the withdrawal of the seat, the time is not very long. At the banquet, the most meaningful ceremony is the "wine".

"Wine", is connected to the line, the bride and groom each held one, relative drinking ceremony. The wine cup is divided into two, symbolizing the original couple for the two bodies; with the line connected to the handle, it symbolizes the two people through marriage and connected; together, it is a symbol of the couple, although two bodies are still a heart. Newlyweds at the feast **** eat a tripod prepared dishes, drink a cup, symbolizing mutual respect and love between husband and wife, intimate. Because of the far-reaching significance of this ceremony, so later in the wedding are less of this program, of course, with the change of the times, the name is different ("drinking cup wine"), utensils have also changed, the form of drinking is not the same.

After the Qin and Han Dynasties, before and after the wedding banquet, and added the "spread tent", knotting and other ceremonies. When the groom will welcome the bride into the new room, the two together in the wedding bed tent female left and male right to sit, and then come to participate in the wedding of the female guests or master of ceremonies while singing to the tent sprinkled with money colorful fruits, that is, the so-called "Spreading tent". Next, some of the hair from the groom's head in advance to the bride, so that she and his hair combed together, known as the "knot hair".

After this, the groom gets out of bed and goes to the outer room to receive congratulations from friends and relatives, and entertains the crowd at the feast, while the bride remains seated in the tent until the end of the feast, when the groom returns to his room again.

Room: in modern times, this is the newlyweds in the wedding night in the new room to accept the congratulations of friends and relatives, playful rituals, the folk have "three days after the wedding no size", "haunted by the happy happy, the more the more happy," said.

In the pre-Qin era, the end of the bride and groom feast, marking the basic end of the wedding night ceremony, followed by the bride and groom to sleep.

About the Han Dynasty, to participate in the wedding guests are not willing to stop, so there is a "listening to the room" practice: the wedding night, love to watch the people quietly come to the new room outside the window, eavesdropping on the bride and groom's words and actions, as a laugh.

Derived to the Jin Dynasty, the folk have been teasing the bride's custom: in public, before the public, to a variety of strange questions to the bride, and even on the bride to play all kinds of mischief.

The popularity of the later "haunted room", may be the evolution of this custom. Around the "room" has a different way, the method, the extent of the problem is also elegant and vulgar points, sometimes over the top, often to the host and guest of the two sides to bring embarrassment and unhappiness, but because it adds a warm atmosphere to the wedding, so the wedding is often less often in this program.