Double Ninth Festival Customs
The Double Ninth Festival brings refreshment in the golden autumn and the fragrance of osmanthus. The Double Ninth Festival on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month is full of activities and fun, including climbing mountains, admiring chrysanthemums, and drinking chrysanthemum wine. , eat Double Ninth Festival cake, plant dogwood and so on.
Climbing
In ancient times, people had the custom of climbing during the Double Ninth Festival, so the Double Ninth Festival was also called the "Climbing Festival". According to legend, this custom began in the Eastern Han Dynasty. Literati in the Tang Dynasty wrote many climbing poems, most of which were about the customs of the Double Ninth Festival. Du Fu's seven-character "Deng Gao" is a famous poem about climbing on the Double Ninth Festival. There are no uniform rules for climbing wherever you go. Generally, you climb mountains and towers. There is also the custom of eating "Double Ninth Cake".
Eating Double Ninth Cake
According to historical records, Double Ninth Cake is also called flower cake, chrysanthemum cake, and five-color cake. There is no set method for making it and it is relatively random. At dawn on September 9th, people put a piece of cake on their children's foreheads and muttered something, wishing their children all the best. This was the original intention of the ancients to make cakes in September. The special Double Ninth Festival cake should be made into nine layers, like a pagoda, with two lambs on top to match the meaning of Double Ninth Festival (sheep). Some people also put a small red paper flag on the Double Ninth Festival cake and light candles. This probably means replacing "climbing high" with "lighting up lamps" and "eating cakes", and replacing dogwood with small red paper flags. Today, there is still no fixed variety of Double Ninth Cake. The soft cakes eaten on the Double Ninth Festival in various places are called Double Ninth Cake.
Appreciating chrysanthemums and drinking chrysanthemum wine
The Double Ninth Festival is the golden autumn season of the year, when chrysanthemums are in full bloom. It is said that appreciating chrysanthemums and drinking chrysanthemum wine originated from Tao Yuanming, a great poet of the Jin Dynasty. Tao Yuanming was famous for his seclusion, his poetry, his wine, and his love of chrysanthemums. Later generations followed suit, and the custom of appreciating chrysanthemums during the Double Ninth Festival was established. In the old days, literati and officials would combine chrysanthemum appreciation with banquets in order to get closer to Tao Yuanming. In Kaifeng, the capital of the Northern Song Dynasty, the practice of chrysanthemum viewing on the Double Ninth Festival was very popular. At that time, there were many varieties of chrysanthemums in various shapes and forms. Folks also call the ninth month of the lunar calendar the "Chrysanthemum Moon". During the Double Ninth Festival when chrysanthemums are in full bloom, viewing chrysanthemums has become an important part of the festival. After the Qing Dynasty, the custom of appreciating chrysanthemums became particularly prosperous, and it was not limited to September 9, but it was still most prosperous around the Double Ninth Festival.
Inserting dogwood and hairpin chrysanthemums
The custom of planting dogwood on the Double Ninth Festival has been very common in the Tang Dynasty. The ancients believed that planting dogwood on the Double Ninth Festival can provide refuge and eliminate disasters; it can be worn on the arm, used as a sachet with the dogwood inside and worn, and some can be placed on the head. Most of them are worn by women and children. In some places, men also wear them. Wearing dogwood on the Double Ninth Festival is recorded in Ge Hong's "Xi Jing Za Ji" in the Jin Dynasty. In addition to wearing dogwood, some people also wear chrysanthemums on their heads. This was already the case in the Tang Dynasty and has been popular in all dynasties. In the Qing Dynasty, the custom of the Double Ninth Festival in Beijing was to stick chrysanthemum branches and leaves on doors and windows to "remove evil and filth and attract good luck." This is the custom of hairpin chrysanthemum on the head. In the Song Dynasty, there were people who cut colored silk ribbons into dogwoods and chrysanthemums and gave them to each other as gifts.
Drink Double Ninth Wine
"Double Ninth Wine" is a sweet wine brewed from high-quality glutinous rice. It is sealed and stored in small ceramic jars during the Double Ninth Festival. Perhaps because the temperature and humidity are relatively suitable, the wine produced is particularly mellow and is the top grade of rice wine. It is sweet and pure, suitable for both men and women, old and young. It originated from the ethnic minorities in the northwest.
"Chongyang Wine" is "Chrysanthemum Wine". Every year during the Double Ninth Festival, the earliest chrysanthemum buds have grown and are about to bloom. This is the best material for making "Double Ninth Festival" wine.
Double Ninth Festival in various places
In addition to the more common customs mentioned above, there are also some unique ways of celebrating the festival in various places.
The Double Ninth Festival is the official harvest season in northern Shaanxi. There is a song that goes: "On the Double Ninth Festival in September, we are busy harvesting the autumn. Millet, millet, etc. are coming to the field." In northern Shaanxi, the Double Ninth Festival is celebrated at night, and during the day there is a whole day of harvesting and hunting. At night, when the moon rises above the treetops, people like to enjoy buckwheat noodles and mutton. After dinner, people walk out of their homes in twos and threes, climb to the top of a nearby hill, light fires, chat, and return home only when the rooster crows. When hiking at night, many people pick a few handfuls of wild chrysanthemums and put them on their daughters' heads when they get home to ward off evil spirits. In Puxian, Fujian, people follow the old custom of steaming nine layers of rice crackers during the Double Ninth Festival. In ancient my country, there was a custom of "eating bait" during the Double Ninth Festival. "Bait" is today's cakes, rice crackers and the like. The "Jade Candle Collection" of the Song Dynasty says: "Those who eat bait and drink chrysanthemum wine for nine days should collect millet and millet together at that time, so as to taste the new ones due to the delicious flavor of sticky rice, and this has become a long-standing habit." Song Zuqian, a Puxian poet in the early Qing Dynasty, said in his "Fujian Wine Song": "I was surprised to hear that the Double Ninth Festival was approaching, and I carried a basket with my slim hands to pick up wild fragrance.
Pound the jade pestle into green powder and wet it, and the pearls will invite you to taste them." In modern times, people have transformed rice crackers into a very distinctive nine-layer rice cracker. Wash the high-quality late rice with clean water, soak it for 2 hours, and scoop it out. Drain, add water and grind into a slurry, add alum (dissolve in water) and stir, add red sugar (mix with water and boil to make a sugar concentrate), then place the steamer on the pot, cover it with a clean cooking cloth, and divide it nine times , scoop in the rice cracker pulp, steam it for a while and then it will be cooked. Apply peanut oil on the rice cracker surface. This rice cracker has nine overlapping layers, which can be uncovered and cut into water chestnuts. The four sides are clearly layered and translucent. It is sweet and soft to eat. It is delicious and does not stick to your teeth. It is the best gift to honor the elderly during the Double Ninth Festival.
People in some places also take advantage of the Double Ninth Festival to visit their ancestors' tombs and commemorate their ancestors. There are more people than Qingming Festival. There is a saying that the third month is the Little Qingming Festival and the Double Ninth Festival is the Great Qingming Festival. Since Puxian is located along the coast, the ninth day of September is also the death day of Mazu’s ascension to heaven. Many villagers go to Meizhou Mazu Temple or Hong Kong. After the founding of New China, the activities of the Double Ninth Festival were enriched with new content. In 1989, the Double Ninth Festival in our country was designated as the Elderly Day. On September 9th, various places organize autumn outings for the elderly to broaden their horizons, exchange feelings, exercise, and cultivate people's noble character of returning to nature and loving the great mountains and rivers of the motherland.
On September 9th, there were people in Xianghe County, Hebei Province. Families related by marriage will give each other gifts, which is called "chasing the festival". Yongping Prefecture uses the weather of Double Ninth Festival to predict whether it will rain in the future. If it rains on Double Ninth Festival, it will also rain on these days. There are no mountains in Dianzhou County, and many people in the county go up to the city tower on the Double Ninth Festival.
People in the northern part of Changyi, Shandong Province eat spicy radish soup on the Double Ninth Festival. There is a proverb: "Drink the radish soup. The whole family will not suffer." Folks in Juancheng call the Double Ninth Festival the birthday of the God of Wealth, and every family bakes coke cakes to worship the God of Wealth. Zouping worships Fan Zhongyan on the Double Ninth Festival. In the old days, dyehouses and wineries also celebrated the God of Wealth on September 9th. In Teng County, you can't get married. A daughter who is three years old is not allowed to go back to her parents' home to celebrate the festival. There is a saying that "if you go home to celebrate the Double Ninth Festival, your mother-in-law will die".
On the Double Ninth Festival in Xixiang County, Shaanxi Province, relatives and friends give gifts of chrysanthemums and chrysanthemum cakes. They enjoyed each other with poems and wine. It is said that women picking dogwood by mouth on this day can cure heartache.
On the Double Ninth Festival in Jiangsu Province, people in Nanjing cut five-color paper into a bevel shape and put it in the courtyard. . Changzhou County eats a kind of pasta called "Camel's Hoof" on the Double Ninth Festival. Shanghai Yuyuan holds a chrysanthemum party on the Double Ninth Festival. It is judged by three criteria: novelty, nobleness and rareness. Wuxi County eats Double Ninth Cake and Nine Ninth Festival. Enjoy soup.
On the Double Ninth Festival in Shaoxing Prefecture, Zhejiang Province, people visit each other. Unless there is a funeral in the family of a relative or friend, they will go to mourn their ancestors. On September 9th, Tonglu County prepares pigs and sheep for ancestors, which is called the Autumn Festival. At the same time, rice dumplings are tied and given to each other during the Double Ninth Festival.
Dexing County in Jiangxi Province harvests late rice on September 9th.
Tongling County in Anhui Province celebrates the Double Ninth Festival. It is a Dragon Candle Festival to welcome the mountain gods. It is said that it can drive away the plague.
Wuchang County in Hubei Province makes wine on the Double Ninth Festival. It is said that the wine brewed here is the clearest and lasts for a long time. . The Double Ninth Festival in Yingcheng County is a day to fulfill vows. On this day, every family worships the god of Fangshe Tianzu.
Farmers in Changting County, Fujian Province give gifts of edamame from their fields, which is called the edamame festival. Flying kites on the Double Ninth Festival in Haicheng County is a show called "Fengcha".
On the Double Ninth Festival in Lianchuan, Guangdong Province, boys and girls gathered outside the city to sing songs, and people from the state gathered around to watch. On September 9th, Nanxiong Mansion invited Taoist priests from Maoshan to establish the Queen Mother Association. Young women who want to have children will come to participate. On the Double Ninth Festival in Yangjiang County, paper kites are released and rattan bows are tied to them. The sound is very loud in mid-air. The people of Lingao County got up early on the Double Ninth Festival and shouted "Catch the Bobcats" in unison, taking this as a good omen for peace, prosperity and prosperity.
Huaiji County in Guangxi Province regards the Double Ninth Festival as the day when Emperor Yuan attained enlightenment. Men, women, old and young, all came out to compete with the gods to fulfill their wishes, all using cannons. In Long'an County, cattle and sheep are allowed to forage on their own on September 9th. As the saying goes: "On September 9th, cattle and sheep keep their own guard."
In old times, scholars in Nanxi County, Sichuan Province gathered at Censhan Tower in Longteng Mountain on this day to commemorate the poet Cen Shen, which was called the "Cen Guild". According to the old folk custom, glutinous rice should be steamed to make wine before and after the Double Ninth Festival. As the saying goes: "Wine steamed during the Double Ninth Festival is sweet and delicious."
The Jinnan area of ??Shanxi Province has had the traditional habit of climbing on September 9 since ancient times. Enjoying the view of the great rivers and mountains and admiring the scenic spots and historic sites has become a grand event of the festival. To this day, famous sayings such as "The universe is about to open up and we can climb high together", "The east wind cannot hold back, we are slowly rising to the top", "September welcomes the new sky, and agriculture, rural areas and farmers celebrate autumn" are still recited among the people.
The Nanyang Mountain Calling Contest in Henan Province mainly focuses on beautiful words such as "I wish you a long and healthy life", "Longevity together", "Happy family", etc. Of course, you can also shout out your unique heart according to your own wishes. talk. At that time, 99 elderly people will participate in the mountain climbing competition together. After reaching the top, there will be a mountain shouting competition. The staff will use a decibel meter to determine the ranking of the contestants based on the loudness of their voices.