Commonly called “Old Age”, it is the most solemn celebration of the year.
On December 23 or 24, worship the God of cooking, then sweep up the dust, buy New Year products, prepare rice cakes, etc. For rice cakes, sweet fruits, fatty nuts and pine cones are cooked in most areas, and water glutinous rice balls are prepared in Xiaomi, Ebu and elsewhere.
New Year’s Eve is commonly known as “Thirty Nights.” On this day, every household publishes couplets and updates New Year images, and some even place citrus fruits and flowers. In the afternoon, they prepare sacrifices to worship the sky, the earth and the ancestors, and in the evening, the whole family gathers around the fire. After dinner, the elders of the family give their children "New Year's money." In Dahu and elsewhere, elders also give their children “beard extensions.” When he ist time to hand over the child, they open the door, say “open the door, good luck” and light firecrackers, which is supposed to “release the cannon”. Chikeng also has the habit of setting off "safety firecrackers" at eight or nine in the evening on New Year's Eve to show that the year has passed safely and smoothly. After the cannons are fired, in most places people still go to temples to order "incense" to pray for peace and prosperity in the new year.
On the first day of the first lunar month, people get up early, worship their ancestors, wear new clothes and eat two, two or three vegetarian meals, which vary from place to place. After breakfast, relatives and friends gather, greet each other and bring a few pairs of tangerines as gifts. When guests come to the door, the host offers them candy and other treats to show their complacency.study and their gentleness. If there are children, give red envelopes. In Meilong, Houmen and other places, when guests say goodbye, the host returns the same gift with the same gift, saying "a big (lucky) orange is coming, a big (lucky) orange is going", which means to send each other good luck.
From the second to the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, people visit relatives' homes in various places to greet the New Year, commonly known as "Xiangxun". The host entertains the guests with a gift. big banquet.
The third day of the Lunar New Year (sometimes the fifth day of the Lunar New Year) is a "poor day" in Hakka regions. People clean up dirt and debris in the house and send it to the fields and other places to burn. At the same time, they burn a few sticks of incense, bow down and say a few auspicious words, thinking that they can "escape". poverty and becoming laughedche".
During the Spring Festival, activities such as tiger and lion dances, troupes and singing, guessing and chess (ball) competitions are held in various locations .
2. Day of Ren
The seventh day of the first lunar month was called "Day of Ren" in ancient times. This day, "seven kinds of vegetables" are eaten, namely vegetables, celery, garlic, onions, leeks, radishes, spring vegetables, etc., along with the ingredients, and cooked together It is believed that eating this dish can keep away the. evil spirits, cure all kinds of illnesses or bring good luck and wealth
3. Lantern Festival
The fifteenth day of the first lunar month was called Shangyuan in ancient times, and the night was called Xiao, hence the name. From the tenth day of the first lunar month, some places will "turn on the lights" one after another, "make lantern tea" and orga.will have banquets among themselves, most places will only “turn on the lights” on the 13th day; the first lunar month, and children make “caitou lanterns” to parade through the streets. Nowadays, lighting fireworks has become a fashion. On the night of the Lantern Festival, there are parades, lantern festivals and other activities in Haicheng and other places; those who want to have a baby will go to the river to "collect lanterns" (which are not currently passed on) and "put lanterns on their legs" in front of the temple. On the 16th night, men and women play, which This is called "walking around with all the diseases"; unmarried girls go to the vegetable garden and sit on the big vegetables, which is called "sitting on the big vegetables that they can choose a good husband." .
4. The 20th day of the first lunar month
The 20th day of the first lunar month is particularly lively in Meil.ong. It is another big festival after the Spring Festival. It is said that on this day in the 12th year of Yongzheng's reign in the Qing Dynasty (1734 AD), King Meilong's church was completed and Meilongwei moved to a new location. There are now folk activities such as performances, lantern festivals and riddles. In the past, there was also the custom of “Qing Shen”. The host receives relatives and friends with a feast on this day. Shanwei, Jiesheng and other places also have the habit of holding banquets to entertain relatives and friends on this day.
5. Qingming Festival
It is around April 5 in the Gregorian calendar. There is a popular custom of sweeping graves, called “ancestor worship” or “paper hanging.” The Qianlong edition of "Chronicles of Haifeng County" reports: "When there are ancestors involved in the Qingming Dynasty, if there are many prime ministers, iThey will be transmitted by the ancestors and all the sacrifices will be made. on the grave, with red and white all over the mountain, called "hanging paper". be burned, and in some places, clam shells must be offered. Government agencies and schools visit the Martyrs' Cemetery one or two days before the Grave Cleaning Day to visit the martyrs' graves and commemorate the revolutionary martyrs;
6. Dragon Boat Festival
Commonly called “May Festival”, it falls on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month. Before the festival, we send each other rice balls to pay homage to the festival. During the festival, there are customs such as eating rice balls, peaches and plums, placing mugwort, calamus and banyan leaves on the door to ward off evil spirits, fetching water at noon and go dragon boat racing (the back door isopened). the ninth day of the lunar month). To collect water at midday, we generally take a basin or bucket, add water, put calamus, mugwort, banyan leaves, etc. and we place it at the side of the road. After noon, it is said that water can be kept for a long time. without rotting and can be used to prepare medicines in the future; and calamus, etc. Put it in a pot to boil water and use it to bathe and dry yourself. It is believed that it can cure illnesses and remove evil spirits. The dragon boat race is said to have been gradually established to commemorate Qu Yuan (in fact, it originated from the ancient Yue people's religious ceremony to drive away the plague god). Forms of competition include "ox walking on rice" in Haicheng, "cutting". “ropes” in various towns and “cutting ropes” in the back door. Green is inserted into a ca shaperrée, called "Four points of gold"; Those who win the first prize, accompanied by suona, swim in rivers (sea), parade in the streets and perform a "head prize drama" to celebrate.
July and June 6
Commonly known as “the sun is born”. In ancient times, there was a custom that rich families would dry their money and poor people would display their books and clothes. Nowadays, most people dry their clothes on this day. It is believed that the water can be used to prepare medicine at noon that day.
August 7 and July
Commonly called “Po Sheng”, it is said to be the night when the cowherd and the weaver gather together. It is customary to prepare rice noodles every day, fetch water at noon, play "floating needles on the water" at night, "listen to the whispers" under the grape trellis, to “collect the tears of cows and girls”, then "wash flowers with water" at dawn.
9. Hungry Ghost Festival
Commonly called "July 15", it falls on the 15th (or 13 or 14) of the seventh lunar month Originally a Buddhist birthday celebration, it was organized to honor the souls of ancestors and was called "Obon Festival". In the past, a memorial ceremony was held to honor the orphans, and after the sacrifice, all the sacrifices were taken away, which was called "orphan flight". held every three years It is now customary to worship ancestors on this day
10. Mid-Autumn Festival
Commonly known as “August and a half”, It falls on the lunar calendar on August 15, people come to the door with mooncakes and other items to congratulate them, which is called "paying homage to the festival."On this day, we worship our ancestors, and at night, we worship the moon, admire the moon, peel taro with crystal cakes, and listen to the old man tell the story of "Killing the Yuan Dynasty on August 15th" . Days, there were witchcraft activities such as "Guan Xiangu" and "Guan Hazai". It is fashionable for young people to set off fireworks at night. The Hakka have the custom of sweeping graves on this day.
11. Double Ninth Festival
It falls on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month. There is a custom of rock climbing in Haicheng and other places. On this day, young men and women prepare food and go to Lianhua Mountain, Yinping Mountain and other places to climb; banquets are held in various mountainous regions to entertain relatives and friends. On this day, kite flying activities take place in most places. The proverb says: “On September 9, therfs-volants fly for half a day.” old people.
Dynasty of the Twelve and October
It falls on the first day of the tenth lunar month. Meilong, Houmen and other places make powdered food; Various locations in the mountainous region entertain guests with sumptuous meals. As the saying goes, "the mountain people eat in the October Dynasty." In rural areas, cattle are hung on their horns with powdered food as a reward for their hard work.
Thirteenth Winter Solstice Festival
Commonly called the “Winter Festival”, it takes place around December 22 of the Gregorian calendar. On this day, families gather, prepare delicacies and worship their ancestors. Most days for the Hokki people, it is in the morning, while for the Hakka people, it is at noon. In most places, people eat “Dongjie He” (Dongjie cake) the day beforewinter festival, which is supposed to protect against the cold; eating “Dongjie pills” during the Winter Festival means they will be a year older. There is a saying that "there is no ancestor in the Qingming Festival, and there is no wife in the Winter Festival." Farmers must wrap glutinous rice balls with Laiye and put them in the cow's mouth as a "reward."