What are the customs of the winter solstice in 2017
Four seas network: the winter solstice is the coldest of the 24 solar terms. On this day, when the sun reaches the Tropic of cancer and the northern hemisphere enters into the longest night, the winter solstice also means the beginning of the real cold in the north. So do you know which day the winter solstice in 2017 is? Let's have a look!
After entering Jiulong, the cold air activities are frequent and the temperature fluctuates greatly. The public should pay attention to keeping warm and cold, especially the head and feet. It's better to wear a hat when going out and soak feet in hot water before going to bed.
Winter solstice is not only an important solar term, but also an important festival in ancient times. Columnist and Tianjin Folk Custom expert you Guoqing said that ancient people believed that the winter solstice solar term was the starting point for calculating China's 24 solar terms. Because as soon as the winter solstice comes, the new year is right in front of us. Later, there was a saying that "the winter solstice is as big as the new year". The court and the people have always attached great importance to it. Since the Zhou Dynasty, there have been sacrificial activities.
According to relevant records, the ancients believed that after the winter solstice, the days are longer and the Yang is rising, which is an auspicious day and worth celebrating. Therefore, the winter solstice is also known as "winter festival", "cross winter", "celebrate winter", "sub year", "one Yang Festival" and "cold elimination Festival", etc.
Today, although the importance of the winter solstice festival has been greatly reduced, there are still different customs in different parts of the country. In the north, there are the customs of slaughtering sheep, eating dumplings and eating wonton. In the south, there are the customs of eating rice balls and long noodles during the winter solstice. In addition, there are also rituals such as sacrifice, ancestor worship and tomb sweeping in some places.