New year folk custom symbolizing the prosperity of the whole family: building a prosperous fire?

In Shanxi, Inner Mongolia and other regions of China, there is a custom of lighting a fire every year during the Lunar New Year, that is, when the New Year comes, people light torches, bonfires or charcoal pots in their own yards. This is a traditional folk culture with a long history and has a beautiful meaning of praying for the prosperity of the whole family in the new year. So today's traditional festivals will introduce this custom of having a strong fire since ancient times.

In ancient times, they were called Tingliao, shovel basin, burning brazier, burning pine basin (recorded in the ancient book Scenery of Imperial Capital) and homesickness, but today, they are called "Ascending Wanghuo", "Dianfa Baochai" and "Burning Qin Gui" among the people, generally in the tradition. In ancient times, this custom was to drive away evil spirits, or to worship gods and ancestors; Later, Wanghuo gradually developed into a new year celebration and blessing form that symbolizes the prosperity of the whole family and expresses good wishes.

Some people say that Inner Mongolia, as one of the areas where nomadic people live, should have a certain relationship with the custom of flourishing fire, which may have originated from bonfires. Local folklore experts believe that Wanghuo originated in ancient times, which is a kind of worship of fire by the ancients. The legend began in the Zhu Rong era.

In another popular area, Shanxi, there is a saying that Shanxi is rich in coal resources, and according to the historical inference of coal development and utilization, the modern flourishing fire can be traced back to the Han Dynasty at the earliest, and it has penetrated into customs and people's feelings in ancient times, so the northwest region has formed the custom of flourishing fire. Wanghuo Pagoda may be influenced by the introduction of Buddhist culture.

When people look back on history, they will find that there were some activities similar to flourishing fire in ancient times, such as "Tingliao" and "collecting pots", which were considered as early flourishing fires. It is mainly used to pay homage to ancestors or to drive away evil spirits. At that time, firewood and charcoal were mostly burned: it was recorded in Hanyi and Sui Shu, and it was stipulated in the National Etiquette of the Yuan Dynasty that "the court mourned". In the Spring and Autumn Period, there was a story about Qi Huangong's seeking for sages (Biography of Hanshu Poetry).

In the Chronicle of Jingchu written by Zong Gu in the Southern Dynasty, it is recorded that the purpose of court meteors is to exorcise evil spirits and avoid disasters, while in the Outline of the Four Seasons, it is said: "In addition to collecting firewood in the court at night, burn fire to avoid disasters." However, another way of saying it is to worship ancestors and gods. See Zhou Rucheng's "Joy of Xi Dynasty" in Ming Dynasty: "On New Year's Eve, people first worship the gods, set up a pine woodshed and set it on fire, which is called a basin. The smoke belongs to Zhu Tian and it is rotten. "

In the Qing Dynasty, the custom of burning paper in the court was also changed to charcoal basin. 1738, Lang Shining painted a picture of Li Hong's Snow Scene, showing the scene of Emperor Qianlong and his children celebrating the New Year. There is a brazier in front of Emperor Qianlong, and a little prince is relaxing the branches of cypress in the brazier. This kind of court burning is called "burning pine pots". "Records of Datong Prefecture" (thirty-three volumes published in the forty-seventh year of Qing Qianlong) reads: "On the first day of New Year's Day, acetylene charcoal was laid on the door, which looked like a floating painting, and it was called' Wanghuo'."

In 1960s and 1970s, influenced by the movement of "Breaking the Four Classics", the custom of making a fire involving offering sacrifices to gods was regarded as an activity and an old custom, which restricted the tradition of making a fire in some areas. However, in the early 1970 s, the belief in divinity was still very common. Until the end of 1970s, with the widespread popularization and infiltration of scientific and technological knowledge, people gradually "saw through" the skill of "Heaven".

Now people in our country often light firewood or charcoal piles. The more the fire, the better. It symbolizes the prosperity of the whole family in the new year. Burning pine, cypress, peach and apricot branches is also useful. In the brazier, the family will cross the fire, symbolizing the old disaster and welcoming the new atmosphere. The custom of lighting a fire in the Spring Festival celebration gradually got rid of color and became a way for people to express their longing for a better life, from the strong color of exorcism to the prosperity of the whole family.

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