Before the Tang Dynasty, cold food and Qingming were closely linked. Before the Tang Dynasty, cold food and Qingming were two successive festivals with different themes. The former was nostalgic and mourning, while the latter was seeking new life. For many people, it's not very clear what's the difference between cold food festival and Qingming Festival? Today Xiaobian will take you to understand it.
What is qingming festival called
Qingming Festival, also known as the Tomb Sweeping Festival, ghost festival and Ming Festival, is related to the sacrifice of ghosts and gods, together with the mid-term festival of July 15 and the next Yuan Festival of October 15. And it's more than 2500 years old. At the same time, Qingming Festival, also known as the outing Festival, according to the solar calendar, it is between April 4 and 6 every year, which is the time when the plants and trees are green in the bright spring, and it is also a good time for people to spring outing (ancient called outing), so the ancients have the custom of Qingming outing and carry out a series of sports activities. There are tomb visits, no smoking, ancestor worship, tree planting, swing, flower watching, cockfighting, banquet, cold food, willow planting, outing, Cuju, poetry chanting and so on. (this article is compiled exclusively by WYH, editor of sihai.com. It contains thousands of knowledge and popular science skills. More highlights can be found in Sihai knowledge channel https://www.4hw.com.cn/zhishi/)
The difference between Qingming Festival and cold food festival: originally two festivals with different meanings
Cold food festival, also known as "no smoking Festival", "cold Festival" and "hundred and five Festival", is one hundred and five days after the winter solstice of the lunar calendar and one or two days before the Qingming Festival. It is the beginning of the day when the festival, no fireworks, only eat cold food. Before the Sui and Tang Dynasties, "Qingming Festival" only refers to one of the 24 seasons that distinguish between seasonal alternation and agricultural operation. The main item of the cold food festival is that families are not allowed to smoke and eat cold food, and the time is in the cold winter season. Due to the close time and influence of Qingming Festival, the customs of sacrifice and sweeping, outing, swing, Cuju, lead hook, fighting eggs and so on have been gradually increased in the development of later generations. The cold food festival stretches for more than 2000 years before and after, which is known as the largest folk day of sacrifice.
Cold food festival is related to the ancients' understanding of nature. In China, the rebirth of new fire after cold food is a transitional ceremony of saying goodbye to the old and welcoming the new, which reveals the information of season alternation, symbolizing the beginning of new season, new hope, new life and new cycle. Later, it had the meaning of "gratitude" and emphasized the memory and gratitude of "the past". Cold food, no fire, cold food, sacrifice to the tomb. During the Qingming Dynasty, take a new fire and go outing.
The difference between Qingming Festival and cold food festival: cold food and Qingming are closely related since Tang Dynasty
Before the Tang Dynasty, cold food and Qingming were two successive festivals with different themes. The former was nostalgic and mournful, while the latter was seeking new things to protect their lives; the two had a close relationship. The purpose of fire prohibition is to produce fire, and the purpose of sacrifice is to protect life. This is the internal cultural connection 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 decrees in the cold food festival before the Qingming Festival. Because the cold food is closely related to the Qingming Festival in time, the cold food festival custom has long been related to the Qingming Dynasty, and the tomb sweeping has also been extended from cold food to the Qingming Dynasty. With the passage of time, as the main item of cold food festival - no smoking and cold food, it has been gradually weakened, and cold food festival has gradually been replaced by Qingming Festival.