寒食节
[闽南网]
寒食节 typically occurs 105 days after the Winter Solstice.
Customs associated with the Cold Food Festival include visiting ancestral tombs，郊游， rooster fighting， swinging，毯ing， and tug-of-war.
tomb visiting， in particular， is an ancient Chinese custom. In the past， all spring sacrifices were held during the Cold Food Festival until they were later moved to the Qingming Festival. However， in Korea， the tradition of holding spring sacrifices during the Cold Food Festival still persists. The Cold Food Festival is an important spring festival in Shanxi province， and Jiexiu in Shanxi is known as the “Hometown of Chinese Cold Food and Qingming Culture.” Every year， a grand Cold Food and Qingming sacrifice (to Jie Zhitui) ceremony is held there.
Tradition dictates that during the Cold Food Festival， people should 蒸寒 燕 to celebrate. This involves making small， thumb-sized birds， songbirds， animals， fruits， flowers， and other objects out of flour， which are then steamed and colored. They are inserted into the sharp thorns of sour jujube trees to decorate indoor spaces and are also given as gifts.
No Smoking or Cooking:
The Cold Food Festival was also known as the “No Smoking Festival” in ancient times， during which all households were forbidden from using fire and had to eat only cold food. However， due to the persistent devotion of Chinese people to their ancestors from the Eastern Han to the Northern and Southern Dynasties， it was banned repeatedly but continued to be revived until the Tang Dynasty， when it was finally recognized and participated in by the royal family. Su Shi’s poem “Wang Jiangnan Supernatural Terrace” contains the line “and with fresh fire try out new tea，” which describes the poet’s act of making tea after the Cold Food Festival.
Graveyard Cleaning and Ancestor Worship:
Visiting and worshipping ancestors during the Cold Food Festival was considered “wild sacrifice” from the Northern and Southern Dynasties until before the Tang Dynasty. During the Tang Dynasty， it was included in the “Volume 87: Officials and Below Visit Ancestral Tombs (Appendix: Cold Food Festival Grave Visiting)” of the “Principles of Openness” and became one of the auspicious ceremonies officially recognized and promoted.
. Post its evolution， the ritual evolved into imperial tomb worship， government officials’ sacrifices at the Confucius Temple and worship of ancestors by the common people.
At the time， one family or clan would gather at the graves of their ancestors to pay their respects， add soil and burn paper money， and then scatter the snake-shaped rabbit and子推燕 across the tomb. The paper offerings would be rolled down the grave and lifted back up with a willow branch or needle， then placed in a high place in the house to represent receiving the blessings of their ancestors.
Cold Food Diet:
Cold Food foods include cold food porridge， cold food noodles， cold food paste， green rice pudding， and rice cake. Cold Food offerings include swallow， snake， rabbit， jujube cake，細稞， and divine cake. Beverages include many varieties of spring wine， new tea， and fresh spring water.
Most of these items have deep symbolic meanings. For example， the snake-shaped rabbit sacrifice is said to represent “the snake盘兔， 必定 富，” or the hope for prosperity and national strength. The子推 燕 takes its name from the Jiexiu dialect “念念，” which means to remember Jie Zhitui’s lofty principles…
Willow Branches on the Cold Food Festival:
The willow is a symbol of the Cold Food Festival， originally to commemorate Jie Zhitui’s pursuit of political clarity.
As early as the Southern and Northern Dynasties， “Jingchu Age” recorded that “on the Cold Food Festival， households in the Yangtze and Huai River regions cut willow branches and inserted them into the door.”
In Anhui， Suzhou， and other places， the wearing of mustard flowers and麦叶 is also popular. To replace willow branches. According to historical records from various places: “inserting willows into graves，” “inserting willow branches into houses，” “inserting them into eaves and between the stove and bed，” “wearing them on their heads or tying them to belts，” “putting them in vases and presenting them to Buddha and gods，” and “inserting willows into every door.” Therefore， there is a folk saying， “Not wearing willow on the Qingming (or Cold Food) Festival， red faces will turn gray.”
Cold Food Qingming:
Also known as Walking in Spring， it became popular in the Tang and Song dynasties. Li Zhiyan’s “What I Saw in the East Valley” from the Song Dynasty records that “after the burial and memorial service， I went for a walk with my brothers， wife， relatives， and friends， had a good time and returned home.”
“The Records of Imperial Customs” from the Ming Dynasty tells of the Qingming outing scene in Beijing: “On the day of the Cold Food Festival， people come out to walk. There are countless pedestrians， horseback riders， and chariots.” It can be said to be very popular.
Cold Food Swings:
Originally， the swing was a form of entertainment for women of the palace during the Cold Food Festival.
Wang Renyu’s “Kaiyuan Tianbao Remnants” from the Five Dynasties records that “at the annual Cold Food Festival during the Tianbao Era， the imperial palace would set up swings for the concubines to play， which was called ‘half-immortal play’ by the emperor. The nobles in the capital followed suit.” In the Song Dynasty， Prime Minister Wen Yanbo wrote a poem “Passing by Longmen on Cold Food Day，” with the lines “On the bridge， the green willows hang like threads， and by the forest， colorful ropes for swings are strung.”
Cold Food Kicks:
Prospered in the Tang Dynasty. The book “Literature and History Comprehensive Examination” written in the Song Dynasty states: “Footballs started in the Tang Dynasty. Two tall bamboo poles were set up， each several feet high. When the net was attached at the top in the shape of a door， goal counts were used to determine the winner.” Historical records show that Emperor Dezong， Emperor Xianzong， Emperor Muzong and Emperor Jingzong of the Tang Dynasty all enjoyed football. “The Book of State and County Sacred Turtle，” states: “In the 12th year of Dezong’s reign during the Tang Dynasty， the emperor watched martial officials and the children of meritorious ministers play football in the east pavilion of the Qilin palace， an event that was attended by the prime ministers.”
There is also a painting of Emperor Taizu playing football in the Song Dynasty.
Cold Food Poems:
During the Cold Food Festival， various poets either miss their hometowns， miss their loved ones， express their emotions， or sigh with emotion， so much so that they come up with sudden inspiration and write moving poems.
According to research， in the “Complete Book of Tang Poems” alone， there are more than 300 famous verses by renowned poets such as Emperor Xuanzong of Tang， Zhang Shuo， Du Fu， Han Yu， and Liu Zongyuan. Additionally， there are about 100 songs from the Song， Jin， and Yuan dynasties， thus enriching the art of poetry in China.
In addition， the Cold Food Festival also hosts many activities， such as banquets， flower appreciation， cockfighting， painting eggs， pulling sticks (tug-of-war)， making fire by drilling wood， flying kites， participating in various competitions， and throwing terracotta objects， which greatly enriched the social life of ancient China.
Spring Bowel Cleansing:
In general， after hibernation， the first thing a wild bear does in spring is to find some grass to eat， because grass is high in fiber， which can make it easy to diarrhea after eating.
The bear clears out the waste it has accumulated from the winter in its intestines and stomach before it can eat food. Zoologists say that before a bear gets diarrhea in spring， it usually looks dull， but once it has been cleaned up， it will become more active. Is the arrangement of food during the Cold Food Festival similar to the bear’s diarrhea method， for example， cold skin? with lots of vinegar， lots of bean sprouts and cucumber shreds and the like. Rich in fiber， it is best suited for stomach cleansing.
Judging from the Chinese diet， a lot of meat and fish was eaten during the Spring Festival. When the weather started to warm up， it was time to clear the stomach and intestines like bears. It can not only strengthen the body， but also clear the mind and solve the problem of spring fatigue.
Gathering wild vegetables outside during the Cold Food Festival is not only a good exercise， but it also provides the necessary nutrients for the human body， thus killing two birds with one stone.
Finally， we must talk about the issue of mental health in