What is the current status of the Mid-Autumn Festival

This Mid-Autumn Festival has just passed, although the country has given a holiday, in fact, there is no feeling. Now this Mid-Autumn Festival, in addition to eating a moon cake, what else is there? As if nothing, its traditional cultural flavor still have? No more! It is said that this Mid-Autumn Festival is one of the most important traditional festivals in China, but now we really can't experience anything.

Historically, the Mid-Autumn Festival on August 15 was indeed a very lively, grand and poetic festival. Because that period was the era of set up plowing, the ancients were relatively much more free, so the atmosphere of the festival may be a little thicker!

There are many stories about the origin of the Mid-Autumn Festival. Legend has it that the ancient Qi ugly girl Wuyan, when she was young, used to worship the moon religiously, and when she grew up, she entered the palace with a superb character, but she was not favored. One year, on the 15th day of the 8th moon, the Son of Heaven saw her under the moonlight and found her beautiful and outstanding, and later made her the Empress, from which the Mid-Autumn Moon Worship came to be. Chang'e in the moon, known for her beauty, so young girls worship the moon, wishing "look like Chang'e, face like the moon".

In the Tang Dynasty, Mid-Autumn Moon Festival, playing with the moon is quite popular. In the Northern Song Dynasty. On the night of August 15, people all over the city, rich or poor, old or young, have to put on adult clothes, burn incense and worship the moon to say their wishes and pray for the blessing of the moon god. In the Southern Song Dynasty, people gave moon cakes to each other, taking the meaning of reunion. In some places, there are also dancing grass dragons, building pagodas and other activities. Since the Ming and Qing dynasties, the custom of Mid-Autumn Festival has become more prevalent; many places have formed special customs such as burning incense, tree mid-autumn, lighting pagoda lamps, releasing sky lanterns, walking on the moon, and dancing with fire dragons.

Today, the custom of playing under the moon, setting up a banquet to enjoy the moon, and asking for the moon with a glass of wine have all disappeared. This is also a great pity.

Anciently, the Mid-Autumn Festival has many customs and different forms, but all of them are sent to the people's infinite love of life and the desire for a better life.

The Mid-Autumn Festival has a long history, and other traditional festivals, is also the slow development of the formation of the ancient emperors had the spring festival of the sun, the autumn festival of the moon ritual system, as early as in the book of the "Zhou Rites", there has been the word "Mid-Autumn Festival" recorded. Later, the aristocrats and scholars also followed suit, in the mid-autumn festival, to the sky and bright and round round moon, ornamental worship, to send feelings, this custom is so spread to the people, forming a traditional activity, until the Tang Dynasty, the custom of the moon festival more people attach importance to, the Mid-Autumn Festival has become a fixed festival, "the Book of the Tang Dynasty - record of the Emperor Taizong," recorded in the "15th of August, the Mid-Autumn Festival "Tang Book - Taizong Records" recorded "August 15 Mid-Autumn Festival", this festival was prevalent in the Song Dynasty, to the Ming and Qing Dynasties, has been on a par with the New Year's Day, become one of the major festivals in China. The legend of the Mid-Autumn Festival is very rich, Chang'e Runs to the Moon, Wu Gang False Cinnamon, the Jade Rabbit pounding medicine and other mythological stories are widely spread.

Speaking of Chang'e to the moon, here's a story, according to legend, in ancient times, there are ten suns in the sky at the same time, sunburned crops withered and died, the people do not want to live, a hero named Houyi, great strength, he sympathized with the suffering people, climbed to the top of the Kunlun Mountains, transported enough power, pull open the bow, shot down more than nine suns in one breath, and strictly ordered the last sun rise and fall in a timely manner, for the people's well-being. Hou Yi was thus honored and loved by the people, and he married a beautiful and kind wife named Chang'e. Hou Yi in addition to the art of hunting, all day long and his wife together, people are envious of this couple of love.

Many people came to learn from Hou Yi, and the evil-minded Peng Meng also came in.

One day, Hou Yi went to the Kunlun Mountains to visit friends and seek Taoism, and coincidentally met the Queen Mother passing by, so he asked the Queen Mother for a packet of immortality medicine. It was said that by taking this medicine, one could instantly ascend to heaven and become immortal. However, Hou Yi could not leave his wife behind, so he temporarily gave the immortality pill to Chang'e to treasure. Chang'e hid the medicine in the treasure box of the dresser, but was unexpectedly seen by the villain Peng Meng, who wanted to steal the medicine to become immortal himself.

Three days later, Houyi led a group of disciples to go out hunting, and Peng Meng pretended to be sick and stayed behind. Shortly after Hou Yi left, Peng Meng broke into the backyard of the mansion with a sword in his hand and forced Chang E to hand over the immortality pill. Chang'e knew that she was no match for Peng Meng, and in a moment of crisis, she made a snap decision, turned around, opened the treasure box, and took out the Pill of Immortality and swallowed it in one gulp. Chang'e swallowed the medicine, her body immediately floated away from the ground, rushed out of the window, and flew to the sky. As Chang'e was attached to her husband, she flew down to the closest to the earth on the moon and became immortal.

In the evening, Hou Yi returned home and his maids cried about what happened during the day. Houyi both shocked and angry, drew the sword to kill the villains, Peng Meng early escape, Houyi angry chest thumping, grief, looking up at the night sky calling his wife's name, then he was surprised to find that today's moon is exceptionally bright and bright, and there is a swaying figure resembles Chang'e. He desperately chased towards the moon, and the moon is the closest to the earth. He desperately chased the moon, but he chased three steps, the moon back three steps, he retreated three steps, the moon into three steps, no matter how can not catch up with the front.

Hou Yi had no choice but to send someone to Chang'e's favorite garden, set up incense, put on her favorite fruit and honey, and sacrificed to Chang'e, who was fond of her in the Moon Palace. When the people heard the news that Chang'e had run to the moon and become an immortal, they set up incense under the moon and prayed to the kind-hearted Chang'e for good luck and peace. This is the story of Chang'e's journey to the moon.

There is another legend: According to legend, the laurel tree in front of the Guanghan Palace on the moon grows luxuriantly, with a height of more than 500 zhang, and there is a man who often cuts it down, but every time he cuts it down, the place where he cuts it down immediately closes up again. For thousands of years, it was cut down and closed up in this way, and the laurel tree could never be cut down. It is said that the man who chopped down the tree was named Wu Gang, a man from Xihe in Han Dynasty, who had followed the immortals to the heavenly realm, but he made a mistake, and the immortals relegated him to the Moon Palace, where he was punished by doing this kind of futile and hard work day after day. Li Bai's poem, "I want to carve the laurel in the moon, and hold it as a salary for the cold".

Mid-Autumn Festival, people's main activity is to enjoy the moon and eat moon cakes.

In the Mid-Autumn Festival, China since ancient times, there is the custom of enjoying the moon, "the Book of Rites" recorded in the "autumn sunset moon", that is, to worship the moon god. By the Zhou Dynasty, every Mid-Autumn Festival night is held to welcome the cold and moon sacrifice. A large incense burner was set up and seasonal fruits such as mooncakes, watermelons, apples, plums, grapes, etc. were placed on the table, among which mooncakes and watermelons were absolutely indispensable. The watermelon is also cut into lotus shapes.

During the Tang Dynasty, it was quite popular to enjoy and play with the moon during the Mid-Autumn Festival. In the Song Dynasty, the mid-autumn moon festival is even more prevalent, according to the "Tokyo Dreaming Records" records: "Mid-autumn night, the noble family decorative platforms and pavilions, the folk compete to occupy the restaurant to play the moon". Every this day, the capital of all the stores, restaurants are to redecorate the facade, the pagoda on the tie silk hanging color, the sale of fresh fruits and refined food, the night market is bustling, the people more than on the platform, some rich families in their own pavilions and pavilions to enjoy the moon, and set up food or arrange a feast, reunion of the children, * * * with the moon and talk about it.

After the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the Mid-Autumn Festival Moon Festival customs remain the same, many places have formed a burning incense, tree Mid-Autumn Festival, point tower lamps, sky lanterns, walk the moon, dance fire dragon and other special customs.

China's urban and rural masses over the Mid-Autumn Festival have the custom of eating moon cakes, as the saying goes: "August 15 moon is round, Mid-Autumn Moon Festival moon cakes fragrant and sweet". Mooncake is initially used to worship the moon god's offerings, "mooncake" word, first seen in the Southern Song Dynasty Wu Zimu's "Dream Liang Record", at that time, it is just like the diamond flower cake like cake-shaped food. Later, people gradually combined the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival with mooncakes, a symbol of family reunion.

China is a vast country with a large population and different customs, so the Mid-Autumn Festival is celebrated in a variety of ways, with strong local characteristics.

Now is the age of economic society, really not as in the past, this Mid-Autumn Festival is nothing to speak of, each busy, how many people in the festival? How many people put down their work on this day for the sake of reunion? Except for civil servants who enjoy national holidays, how many ordinary people celebrate the festival in a decent manner? With the development of communications and the popularization of the network, blessings and greetings are also to SMS, telephone, network, mostly, between relatives and friends are less and less, between people also seems to be a lot of indifference to the affection. I remember in the past in the Mid-Autumn Festival before there is always take "half of August" custom, now seems to be less. It seems that the people are always busy, can not care about those customs. I don't know if I'm happy or sad.

Facing the moon, adding some thoughts that is true! Because the full moon, hanging in the sky, when you look at it, really have a lot of imagination.

What else is the true meaning of the modern Mid-Autumn Festival? Who can give a very satisfactory answer? In addition to vacation, in addition to rest, in addition to eating moon cakes, other really nothing! This kind of festival has actually "exist in name only"! Although CCTV still organizes one or two parties every year, it makes people feel very foolish! For example, this year's Mid-Autumn Festival National Concert held in Fujian, four places on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, due to the impact of the typhoon there is no moon, but the hosts still pretend that there is a moon, from time to time to look up at the sky, pretending to be very much like!

The Mid-Autumn Festival is a folk festival, and it is up to the people to decide whether it is prosperous or not. The state gives a day off or not, at least there is a symbolic meaning!