The traditional Chinese New Year custom of simplicity is emphasized,

Eating dumplings, sticking lucky charms on the windows, putting pressure money on the New Year's Day, sticking window decorations, setting off firecrackers, worshipping, receiving the God of Fortune, and eating New Year's Cake

Watching New Year's Day

Watching New Year's Day on New Year's Eve has been documented in Wei and Jin dynasties, where the whole family stayed up to watch the New Year's Eve and gathered together for a sound drink.

On New Year's Eve, the whole family reunited and ate the New Year's Eve dinner, which is the prevailing custom of New Year's Eve celebration in China. According to historical records, this custom first began in the North and South Dynasties, and then gradually flourished, to the early Tang Dynasty, Tang Taizong Li Shimin wrote a "New Year's Eve" poem

: "Cold resigned from the winter snow, the warmth into the spring wind." Until today, our people are still accustomed to the New Year's Eve vigil, firecrackers outside the house, indoor sitting around watching TV, laughing and talking.

Eating dumplings

Every New Year's Eve, dumplings become a kind of indispensable delicacy. According to the book "Guangya" written by Zhang Yi of the Three Kingdoms Wei Dynasty, there was already a crescent-shaped food called "Hundun", which was basically similar to the shape of dumplings nowadays. By the time of the North and South Dynasties, wontons were "shaped like a crescent moon and were commonly eaten throughout the world." It is assumed that after the dumplings were cooked, they were not fished out and eaten separately, but were mixed with the soup and served in a bowl, so the people at that time called the dumplings "wontons". This way of eating is still popular in some areas of China, such as Henan, Shaanxi and other places, people eat dumplings, to put some cilantro, green onion, shrimp, chives and other small ingredients in the soup. Around the Tang Dynasty, dumplings had become exactly the same as today's dumplings and were fished out and put on a plate to be eaten separately.

The folk custom of eating dumplings at the Spring Festival was quite prevalent in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Dumplings are usually wrapped before 12:00 pm on the night of the thirtieth year, to be eaten in the middle of the night, when it is the beginning of the first day of the first month of the lunar calendar, eating dumplings to take the meaning of "more years of the cross," "son" for "son of the time!

There are many legends about eating dumplings on New Year's Day, one of which says that it is in honor of Pangu's opening of the heavens and the earth, and the other is to take its "Hun Hoard" sound, meaning "grain full of hoards". In addition, the folklore of eating dumplings is also rumored to be related to Nuwa's creation of man.

Dumplings have become an indispensable part of the Spring Festival program, the reason for which is that dumplings are shaped like Yuanbao, and eating dumplings at the Spring Festival takes the meaning of "inviting wealth into the treasure", and dumplings have a filling, which makes it easy for people to put all kinds of auspicious things into the filling to send people's prayers for the new year. In some areas, people eat dumplings with some side dishes for good luck. For example, tofu is eaten to symbolize the happiness of the whole family; persimmon cake is eaten to symbolize the success of everything; and three fresh vegetables are eaten to symbolize the prosperity of three suns. Taiwanese people eat fish dumplings, meat dumplings and hairy vegetables to symbolize reunion and wealth.

Posting the word "Fu"

The Chinese New Year is a long-established folk custom in China. According to the "Meng Liang Records" records: "the New Year's Day in the near and far, the mat store department store, painting the door god peach symbols, welcome the spring card child ......"; "the common people's home regardless of the size of the family, are cleaning the door to go to the dust and filth, the net family, change the door god, nail the peach symbols, sticking the spring card, worship ancestors. Sacrifice to the ancestors." The text of the "sticker" is written on red paper, "Fu" character.

The word "Fu" is now interpreted as "happiness", while in the past it meant "good fortune" and "good luck". "

"Fu" word upside down in folklore there is a legend. Zhu Yuanzhang, the founder of the Ming Dynasty, used the word "Fu" as a code word to prepare for murder. Kindness of Queen Ma to eliminate this disaster, the size of the city's families must be in the morning before the door in their own home posted a "Fu" word. Naturally, no one dared to disobey Empress Ma's order, so every house put up the word "Fu" on its door. One of the families could not read or write, so they put the word "Fu" upside down. The next day, the emperor sent people on the street to check, and found that all the families have posted the word "Fu", and there is a family to put the word "Fu" upside down. The emperor was furious at the report and immediately ordered the imperial guards to decapitate that family. Queen Ma saw that things are not good, busy to Zhu Yuan Zhang said: "that family knows that you visit today, deliberately put the word of blessing upside down, this is not the meaning of 'fortune'? When the emperor heard that it made sense, he ordered the release of the family, and a big disaster was finally eliminated. Since then, people have been posting the fortune word upside down, first for good luck, and second to honor Empress Ma.

Posting Window Flowers

During the Chinese New Year, people in many areas like to put all kinds of paper cuttings --- window flowers --- on their windows. Window flowers not only set a festive mood, but also bring people the enjoyment of beauty, decorative, appreciative and practical in one.

Paper-cutting is a very popular folk art, has been loved by people for thousands of years, because it is mostly pasted on the window, so people generally call it "window flowers". The content of the window decoration is rich and the themes are wide-ranging. Since most of the buyers of the window flowers are farmers, there are quite a lot of window flowers showing the life of farmers, such as farming, weaving, fishing, shepherding, feeding pigs, raising chickens, etc. In addition, there are also myths and legends. In addition, there are myths and legends, opera stories and other subjects. In addition, birds, flowers, insects and fish and the twelve signs of the zodiac and other images are also very common.

Firecrackers

Chinese folk "open door firecrackers". The first thing to do in the New Year is to set off firecrackers to get rid of the old and welcome the new.

Firecrackers for China's specialty, its origins are very early, so far there are more than two thousand years of history. Nowadays, we generally believe that setting off firecrackers can create a festive atmosphere and is a kind of entertainment during festivals, which can bring joy and good fortune to people.

According to the "Divine Principle", in ancient times, people camped in the mountains, and at night they would light bonfires to cook food and keep warm, and to prevent wild animals from attacking them. However, there is a kind of animal in the mountain "mountain shame" is not afraid of people and not afraid of fire, and often take advantage of people not prepared to steal food. In order to deal with it, people thought of burning firecrackers in the fire, with the cracking sound of bamboo to make it far away from the approach. By the beginning of the Tang Dynasty, the plague, a man named Li Tian, the saltpeter in a bamboo tube, lighted so that it makes a louder and more intense smoke, the results dispersed? As a result, the smoke was dispersed, and the people were able to take care of the disease by lighting it in a bamboo tube, which made a louder and stronger sound. Select your favorite color (18) and choose infinite variety of products. Infinitely, they are very popular.

Paying New Year's greetings

In ancient times, the original meaning of the term "paying New Year's greetings" was to pay respects to the elders for the new year. On the morning of the first day of the new year, the younger generation should first pay tribute to the elders. After the elders were worshipped, the "New Year's money" prepared in advance was distributed to the younger generation. When people go out to meet each other should also say "congratulations on wealth", "Happy New Year" and other auspicious words. In ancient times, the upper class scholarly officials had the custom of congratulating each other with name cards. At that time, the scholar-officials traveled widely, if around the door to pay tribute to the New Year, both time-consuming, but also energy-consuming, so some of the relationship is not close to the friends do not go in person, but to send a servant to take a kind of paper with plum blossom paper cut into two inches wide, three inches long, written above the name of the recipient of the congratulations, address and congratulations on the words of the card to go to on behalf of New Year's Eve. Ming Dynasty people to visit instead of New Year's Eve. "Name prick" and "name visit" is now the origin of the New Year's card. About the time from the Qing Dynasty, the New Year's Eve and added a "group worship" form.

With the development of the times, the custom of New Year's greetings has been adding new contents and forms. Now people in addition to the inheritance of the past New Year's Eve, and the rise of the ritual telegram New Year's Eve, telephone New Year's Eve and cell phone text message New Year's Eve, network QQ New Year's Eve and so on.

New Year's Eve money

The Spring Festival to pay tribute to the New Year's Eve, the elders will be prepared in advance of the New Year's Eve money to the younger generation, it is said that the New Year's Eve money can be pressed to stop the evil spirits, because the "age" and the "Sneaky" harmonic, the younger generation to get the New Year's Eve money can be peaceful and safe through the A year. There are two kinds of New Year's money, one is a colorful rope threaded into a dragon, placed at the foot of the bed, which is recorded in the Yanjing Yearly Records; the other is the most common, that is, wrapped in red paper by the parents of the money given to the children.

Folk believe that by giving their children the money, when evil spirits, demons or "years" go to harm the children, the children can use the money to bribe them to turn evil into good luck. Qing people Wu Man Yun "New Year's Eve money" poem in the cloud: "a hundred and ten money through the color line long, divided again pillow from the collection, the discussion of firecrackers to talk about the price of xiaojiao, added to the delicate child a night busy." Now the elders for the younger generation to send the custom of the New Year's money is still prevalent, these New Year's money is mostly used by the children to buy books and school supplies and daily necessities, the new fashion for the New Year's money to give a new content.

Picking up the God of Fortune

Folklore has it that the fifth day of the first month of the lunar calendar is the birthday of the God of Fortune, and families organize banquets to celebrate the God of Fortune.

On the God of Wealth, there are many folk legends: Song Dynasty Cai Jing rich, folk legend has it that he is the God of Wealth, he was born on the fifth day of the first month of the year, so the people take him as the God of Wealth to sacrifice to put. After Cai Jing was deposed, the folk another god of wealth, when the Song dynasty's family name for Zhao, Xuan word for "Lan" a part of the word, they gave the god of wealth a Zhao Xuan altar name to be worshipped.

On the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, Zhao Xuan Tan is the most honored. In addition to Zhao Xuan Tan is honored as the "God of Fortune", the folk also have the "God of Partial Fortune" Wuxian Fortune God, the "God of Literary Fortune" Zaibao Xingjun and the "God of Martial Fortune" Guan Sheng Di Jun. "Guan Shengdi Jun's sayings. Wuxian Zaizhen beliefs popular in Jiangxi Dexing Greed source area. Outside the Andingmen Gate in Beijing, there is a temple to the God of Fortune Wuxian. The "God of Wealth" is the Star God of Wealth and Poverty, also known as the "God of Fortune", whose portrait is often accompanied by the three stars of "Fortune" and "Luck", "Shou" three stars and the God of Happiness listed together, together for the blessing, fortune, life, wealth and happiness. The Star God of Wealth has a white face and long hair, holding a treasure bowl, from which the words "inviting wealth and treasures" are derived.

The God of Wealth, Guan Shengdi Jun, is Guan Yu Guan Yunchang. Legend has it that Guan Yunchang has been in charge of a military station, is good at counting, invented the day of the clear thin, and trustworthy, righteousness, so for the businessmen to worship, the general businessmen to Guan Gong as their patron saint, Guan Gong at the same time is regarded as the God of Fortune, the God of Fortune. On the fifth day of the first month of the year, the stores open the market, early in the morning on the gongs and firecrackers, livestock and sweet wine, to meet the god of wealth. Qing Dynasty Gu Tieqing "Qing Jia Record" cited a Cai Yun's bamboo stick lyrics, depicting the situation of Suzhou people on the fifth day of the first day to welcome the God of Wealth: "five days of wealth five days to seek, a year's wish for a moment to pay; Beware of other places to welcome the God early, the next night in a hurry to hold the road head". The "holding of the head of the road" is also known as "welcoming the God of Wealth".

Eating rice cakes

It is said that the earliest rice cakes were used to offer sacrifices to the gods on New Year's Eve and to the ancestors on New Year's Day, and only later did they become part of the Spring Festival diet.

Northern Wei JiaSiFo's "QiMinYaoJutsu" in the rice milling powder cake making method: the glutinous rice powder with silk Luo sieve, add water, honey and become a little bit of hard dough, will date and chestnut, etc. pasted in the powder, with Ruo leaf wrapped up steamed that is become. This kind of glutinous rice cake is quite characteristic of the Central Plains. Rice cakes made of glutinous rice powder, and glutinous rice is a specialty of Jiangnan, in the north there is glutinous rice as viscous grains, the ancient first sticky millet (commonly known as small yellow rice). This kind of millet shelling powder, add water after steaming, and yellow, and sticky, but also sweet, is the Yellow River Basin people to celebrate the harvest of food. There are many kinds of rice cakes, the difference between the north and the south flavor, representative of the north of the white cake, the yellow rice cake of the farmers in the northern part of the Serbian, the Jiangnan water town of the water mill rice cake, Taiwan's red tortoise cake and so on. (Life News)