April 5 is one of China's four traditional festivals, the Qingming Festival. Do you know what festival is the day before the Qingming Festival? The day before the Qingming Festival is the cold food festival. The cold food festival also has a very important position in ancient China. The small editor of this article will tell you what is the cold food festival and the origin, formation and development of the cold food festival. Let's have a look.
The cold food festival, also known as the "no smoking Festival", "cold Festival" and "hundred and five Festival", is one hundred and five days after the summer solstice and one or two days before the Qingming Festival. At the beginning of the day, fireworks are forbidden and only cold food is eaten. In the development of later generations, customs such as sacrificial sweeping, outing, swing, Cuju, hook pulling and chicken fighting have been gradually added. The cold food festival lasted more than 2000 years, which was once known as the largest Memorial Day among the people. Cold food festival is the only traditional festival of Han nationality named after food customs. Later, because cold food and Qingming were close, people combined cold food and Qingming, and only celebrated Qingming Festival. The cold food festival is usually the 105th day after the winter solstice. It is similar to the Qingming Festival. Before Tang ruowang's calendar reform in the early Qing Dynasty, the Qingming Festival was set two days after the cold food festival; After Tang's reform, the cold food festival was set one day before the Qingming Festival. The modern 24 solar terms follow the Tang family, so the cold food festival is the day before the Qingming Festival. After the founding of new China, many areas equated the cold food festival with the Qingming Festival and celebrated it on the same day.
Origin of cold food festival
According to historical records, in the spring and Autumn period, Prince Chong'er of the state of Jin lived in exile in other countries for 19 years in order to avoid disasters and chaos. The minister Jie Zitui always followed around and never left; Even 'cut shares and eat you'. Chong Er worked hard to become a famous King 'Duke Wen of Jin'. However, Jie Zitui didn't ask for Lilu and retired to Mianshan with his mother. Duke Wen of Jin ordered to set fire to the mountain in order to force him out of the mountain. Jie Zitui resolutely refused to go out of the mountain and was eventually burned to death. Duke Wen of the Jin Dynasty felt the loyalty of his loyal officials, buried him in Mianshan, built a temple, and ordered to ban fire and cold food on the day of Jie Zitui's death in order to send mourning. This is the origin of the "cold food festival".
From the spring and Autumn period to now, the cold food festival has a history of more than 2600 years. Shanxi, China, where the story took place, set the cold food festival as the day before Qingming Festival. On this day, the customs of eating cold food, offering sacrifices, outing and so on have been handed down and accepted by the whole country. With the passage of years, the cold food festival has quietly integrated into the Qingming Festival. The feudal thought of foolish loyalty represented by Jie Zitui has also sunk into the long river of history. However, the praise of people represented by cold food for loyalty, integrity and political clarity is the same for thousands of years.
Qingming Festival and cold food festival
Qingming Festival and cold food festival are often compared in many ancient poems and modern sayings. However, the difference and connection between the two make many people feel cloudy and foggy.
Folklorists believe that the Qingming Festival and the cold food festival have experienced a long historical period from the incompatibility of wind, horses and cattle to the integration of each other. The cultural basis of their evolution is the Chinese nation's habit of pursuing stability in inheriting the New Year Festival.
Folklorists believe that the evolution of the relationship between Qingming Festival and cold food festival has experienced three stages:
One is the irrelevant stage. Before the Sui and Tang Dynasties, 'Qingming Festival' only refers to one of the twenty-four festivals that distinguish between seasonal alternation and agricultural operation. The main project of the cold food festival is to ban smoking and eat cold food at home, and the time is in the cold winter season.
The second is the stage of mutual blending. During the Sui, Tang and Five Dynasties, the time of the cold food festival was determined on the '150' day after the winter solstice, only one or two days before the Qingming Festival, and the content of "cold food going to the tomb, gradually becoming a custom, it is advisable to go to the tomb and pay a visit to the tomb together" was added.
During the Liao, song, Jin and Yuan Dynasties, the main activities of the cold food festival gradually changed from banning smoking, eating cold food and sweeping tombs to outing and other recreational activities. At this time, the cold food festival activities were sometimes called "cold food" and sometimes "Qingming". The cold food festival and Qingming Festival were in the period of "you have me" mixed with each other.
Third, the Qingming Festival gradually replaced the cold food festival. With the passage of time, as the main item of the cold food festival - no smoking and cold food, was gradually weakened, the cold food festival gradually began to be replaced by the Qingming Festival. By the Qing Dynasty, some popular items of cold food festival were no longer popular, and folk tomb sweeping, official altars and royal tombs became the main activities of the festival. During this period, although the name "cold food" still appeared from time to time in some documents, local chronicles and literati works, the title "Qingming" became the mainstream.
The difference between Qingming Festival and cold food festival: cold food has been closely related to Qingming since the Tang Dynasty
Before the Tang Dynasty, cold food and Qingming were two successive festivals with different themes. The former was nostalgic and mourning, while the latter sought new nursing students; One Yin and one Yang, one breath for a lifetime, the two have a close cooperative relationship. Banning fire is to make fire, and sacrificing death is to protect life. This is the internal cultural relationship between cold food and Qingming. During the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, the imperial court fixed the custom of folk tomb sweeping in the form of a decree on the cold food festival before the Qingming Festival. Because the cold food and the Qingming Festival were closely linked in time, the cold food festival custom had long been associated with the Qingming Festival, and tomb sweeping was also extended from the cold food to the Qingming Festival. With the passage of time, as the main item of the cold food festival - smoking and cold food, was gradually weakened, the cold food festival gradually began to be replaced by the Qingming Festival.
Cold food festival formation
The festival formed early
It originated in the spring and Autumn period when Jie Zhitui was burned in Mianshan, Jiexiu. Duke Wen of Jin ordered to ban fire and cold food on the death day of Zitui and send mourning with cold food. By the Tang Dynasty, it had formed a national legal festival, which was the earliest among Chinese traditional festivals.
Long history
Dating back to 2640 years ago, the duration of each historical period and festival varies. There are five days, one hundred and five days, January and three days, two, five and seven days, and finally become one day.
Deep cultural connotation
It is an important festival to gather the hearts of the people, condense the national soul and embody the root culture of the Chinese nation. And form a series of cold food for health and longevity, such as oyster, green refined rice and so on.
There are many festival activities
Visiting tombs, banning smoking, offering sacrifices to ancestors, cold food, inserting willows, outing, Cuju, swing, enjoying flowers, cockfighting, feeding banquets, chanting poems, etc.
Spread widely
From Jiexiu, Taiyuan county to all parts of the country and even overseas (for example, Gao Changguo has designated March 9 as the cold food festival since the Tang Dynasty).