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Is Qingming Festival a cold food festival? What is the origin of Qingming Festival

Is Qingming Festival the cold food festival? The traditional Qingming Festival in China began in the Zhou Dynasty and has a history of more than 2500 years. Qingming Festival is a very important solar term at the beginning. As soon as the Tomb Sweeping Day arrives, the temperature rises. It is a good time for spring ploughing and spring planting. Therefore, there are "melons and beans planted before and after the Qingming Festival". There is an agricultural saying that planting trees is better than Qingming. Later, because the days of Qingming and cold food were close to each other, and cold food was the day of folk fire and tomb sweeping. Gradually, cold food and Qingming became one, and cold food became another name of Qingming, and also became a custom during the Qingming Festival. On the Qingming Day, there was no fireworks and only cold food.

There is a legend about cold food

It is said that in the spring and Autumn period and the Warring States period, in order to let her son Xi Qi succeed, Li Ji, the concubine of Duke Xian of Jin, set up a poison plot to kill the crown prince Shensheng, who was forced to commit suicide. Shen Sheng's younger brother Chong'er runs away in exile in order to avoid the disaster. During his exile, Chong'er suffered humiliation. It turned out that most of the courtiers who had followed him ran off to their own ways. Only a few loyal people remained, following him all the time. One of them is called meson Tui. Once, Chong Er fainted from hunger. In order to save Chonger, jiezitui cut a piece of meat from his leg, roasted it with fire and gave it to Chonger to eat. Nineteen years later, Chong'er returned home and became a monarch. He was one of the five famous spring and autumn rulers, Duke Wen of Jin.

After being in power, Duke Wen of Jin greatly rewarded those officials who shared weal and woe with him, but he forgot jiezitui. Some people in front of the Duke Wen of Jin for Jie Zi Tui. Duke Wen of Jin suddenly recalled the old story and felt guilty. He immediately sent someone to ask Jiezi to push him to the court to receive a reward. However, after several visits, the meson could not be pushed. Duke Wen of Jin had to invite him in person. However, when Duke Wen of Jin came to jiezitui's house, the door was closed. Jiezitui didn't want to see him, so he hid in Mianshan with his mother on his back. Duke Wen of Jin asked his army to search Mianshan mountain, but he couldn't find it. Therefore, some people came up with an idea that it would be better to set fire to the mountain on three sides and leave one side behind. When the fire broke out, Jie Zitui would come out by himself. Duke Wen of Jin ordered a fire to burn the mountain. Unexpectedly, the fire burned for three days and three nights. After the fire was extinguished, no Jiezi was pushed out. When they went up the mountain, Jiezi Tui and his mother were holding a burnt willow tree and were dead. Duke Wen of Jin looked at Jie Zitui's body and wept and worshipped for a while. Then he buried the body. He found a willow hole in the back of jiezitui. It seemed that there was something in the hole. Take out a look, it is a piece of skirt, on which is inscribed a blood poem:

I hope the Lord is always clean and bright.

Liu xiazuo ghost eventually disappeared, as if with the emperor as a counsellor.

If there is me in the heart of the Lord, remember my constant introspection.

The minister in Jiuquan heart is worthy of, diligent and clean and bright again.

Duke Wen of Jin hid the blood script in his sleeve. Then he buried Jie Zitui and his mother under the burnt willow tree. In order to commemorate Jie Zitui, Duke Wen of the Jin Dynasty ordered Mianshan mountain to be changed into "Jieshan" and set up an ancestral hall on the mountain. He also designated the day of setting fire to the mountain as the cold food festival. He told the whole country that fireworks were forbidden every year and only cold food was eaten.

When he left, he cut a section of burnt willow wood and made a pair of wooden clogs in the palace. He looked at it every day and sighed, "Alas, my feet. "Zuxia" is the ancient people's appellation of mutual respect between superiors or peers, which is said to be derived from this.

The next year, Duke Wen of Jin led his ministers to climb the mountain in plain clothes to offer a memorial service on foot. Walking to the grave, I saw the old willow tree dead tree revived, thousands of green branches, fluttering with the wind. Duke Wen of Jin looked at the revived old willow as if he had seen Jie Zitui. He walked up to him respectfully, pinched the branch and made a circle to wear on his head. After the sacrifice, Duke Wen of Jin named the revived old willow "Qingming willow", and designated that day as Qingming Festival.

Later, Duke Wengong of Jin often took the blood script sleeve around him as a motto to urge him to be in power. He is diligent and clear-cut, and strives to govern the country well.

Since then, the people of Jin lived and worked in peace and contentment. They missed jiezitui, who had made great contributions but did not seek wealth. On the day of his death, fireworks are forbidden to mark his death. He also uses flour and jujube mud to make it look like a swallow. It is strung together with willow sticks and inserted in the door to call on his soul. This thing is called "Zhitui" (also referred to as jiezhitui). Since then, cold food and Tomb Sweeping Day became a grand festival for the people of the whole country. When it comes to cold food, people do not make a fire to cook, only eat cold food. In the north, people only eat cold food prepared in advance, such as jujube cake, wheat cake, etc.; in the south, most of them are qingtuan and glutinous rice sugar lotus root. Every Qingming Festival, people weave willows into rings and wear them on their heads. They stick the willow branches in front of and behind the houses to show their nostalgia.