? Before answering the question "the origin of biting spring", I think I'd better introduce-
What exactly is "biting spring"? ? The saying of "biting spring" is still very poetic. It is said to be taken from the ancient meaning of "biting grass roots and doing everything". A "bite" word, the artistic conception really came out. "Spring" is an abstract concept, but it uses a vivid word "bite", which is the "analogy" in literary techniques.
? As a major custom in beginning of spring, "biting spring" refers to the custom of eating spring plates, spring cakes, spring rolls and chewing radishes in beginning of spring. Of course, among these foods with the word "spring", the most crucial one is "radish". Therefore, in the past literature, many people directly said that "biting spring" means that beginning of spring ate radish that day. For example, "Shi Jing Fang Xiang Zhi Draft" said that "beginning of spring is born with radishes every day, called biting spring"; "Miscellanies of Jinmen" said that "in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, in the early spring in Beijing and Tianjin, there was a custom of eating fresh radish every day, which was called biting spring". The Story of Yanjing's Age is rather slick, saying that "rich people eat more spring cakes and women buy more radishes to eat, which is called biting spring".
? In short, the most important thing for "biting spring" is to eat radish, in addition to spring rolls and other foods containing "spring".
? I understand what "biting the spring" is, and then I will come back-
Answer the question "The origin of biting spring in beginning of spring, Beijing". ? At present, there is no exact statement about the origin of "biting spring". But what is clear is that this custom appeared at least in the Jin Dynasty, when there were "five coriander", which was equivalent to the later "spring dishes". The so-called five spices refer to five spicy vegetables: onion, garlic, pepper, ginger and mustard.
? It is also clear that the custom of "biting spring" comes from people's need to keep fit, that is, human beings are formed for their own health needs. For example, eating spiced food can sterilize and drive away the cold. The main folk custom of biting spring is to eat big radish, which is also because radish is spicy and has the effect of "eating it to sleep in the spring", as well as the functions of nutrition, fitness and illness. This may be the real intention of the ancients to advocate beginning of spring to eat radishes.
? There is another legend about the origin of "biting the spring". One year in ancient times, the day before spring, an old Taoist came to a village. He was surprised when he saw that everything in the village was quiet.
? When the old Taoist priest inquired, he knew that all the villagers nearby were infected with a strange disease. The infected villagers were all weak and dizzy, and they could only lie in bed all day.
? So, the old Taoist went into the villagers' homes, observed the symptoms of the patients, and then sat under a big tree, mumbling something. After a while, the old Taoist stood up, went to the villagers' home and gave them a prescription.
? There is no magic herb in the prescription prescribed by the old Taoist priest, but an ordinary food, namely radish. The villagers found radishes and tried to eat them. Unexpectedly, the villagers who eat radishes are much better. After that, the villagers told the people in the nearby village about this folk prescription, and the villagers began to eat radishes one after another.
Since then, people have started to eat radishes every spring, and their good wish is health. This beautiful moral has been passed down to this day.