What activities are there for the Mid-Autumn Festival?
Put on a river lantern.
River lanterns are also called "lotus lanterns". Generally, lights or candles are placed on the base, and they are placed in rivers, lakes and seas during the Mid-Autumn Festival, allowing them to float. The function of river lanterns is to drown ghosts and other ghosts in Purdue water. Setting off river lanterns, especially in the Yellow River, is very spectacular.
Burn street clothes
This is a folk custom that has been preserved since the opening of Hong Kong. As soon as we step into the seventh month of the lunar calendar, people will bring incense sticks, gold and silver paper and some sacrifices, such as tofu and rice, to worship at the roadside after dark. The purpose of people "burning street clothes" is to let those helpless souls have clothes to keep out the cold and food to wrap their stomachs.
Make eggplant cake
People believe that eggplant cake can be used as dry food for the late ancestors to go to Lanpen meeting. Every Mid-Autumn Festival, every household in old Nanjing makes eggplant cakes, that is, shredding fresh eggplant, adding flour and frying in oil. In fact, eggplant cake is now a common home-cooked dish. If you want to eat, you can always make a plate to satisfy your hunger.
burn paper money for the dead
In Sichuan province, there is a custom of burning paper to worship ancestors in the Central Plains. That is, a stack of paper money is sealed in a small envelope, and the name and title of the recipient, the number of envelopes received, and the name and time of the silk changer are written on the envelope. It is said that the Gate of Ghost was closed on July 15, and all families had to "send their children to Shigu".
Eat rice noodles
On the Mid-Autumn Festival, there is a custom of eating Seto powder in Dongguan, which is almost common in Dongguan. Of course, different areas eat Seto powder in different ways.
Pray for a bumper harvest
Sacrificing lonely souls in the Mid-Autumn Festival is usually associated with praying for a bumper harvest. On the night of the stone drum, every household should burn incense and pray at home and put incense on the ground. This is called "planting rice" (transplanting rice). The more you plant, the better, which symbolizes the bumper harvest of rice in autumn.
Eat duck
On the Mid-Autumn Festival on the 15th day of the seventh lunar month, many places in China will choose to eat ducks. Why? It turns out that "duck" means "pressure", which is homophonic. Eating ducks is to crush ghosts. People in Dongguan usually eat duck stewed with lotus root. In Ling Du County, Shandong Province, the Mid-Autumn Festival is called "Drunk Festival" by the local people, and every household has the custom of eating simple tea and plain rice. In Dong Xian Town, Jiangsu Province, many villagers eat flat food (a kind of food made of flour and sugar) during the Mid-Autumn Festival. On the roof of Taizhou City, Zhejiang Province, they will eat "jiaozi", a kind of food similar to spring rolls, in the Mid-Autumn Festival.
offer sacrifices to ancestors
The festival of ancestor worship is on the fifteenth day of July in the lunar calendar, so it is called "July and a half" for short. Folk believe that ancestors will return home to visit their children and grandchildren at this time, so they need to worship their ancestors. Worship ceremonies are usually held in the evening before the end of July, and are not limited to a specific day.
Sacrifice land and crops
On July 15, offering sacrifices to land and crops is still a folk custom. Scatter sacrifices in the fields. After burning the paper, wrap it on the ears of crops with cut five-color paper. Legend has it that autumn can avoid hail and get a bumper harvest. At the same time, some places have to go to Houtu Temple to offer sacrifices. Hemp and valley are hung at the gate of Dingxiang county folk custom.
Dough modeling
Before July 15th, dough sculpture activities were very popular among folk women, especially in northern Shanxi. A steamed stuffed bun shop, neighbors came to help. First of all, according to the actual number of families (including married daughters, sons-in-law, grandchildren, other sons, daughters-in-law, grandchildren, etc. ), give everyone a big bag first. The steamed stuffed bun for the younger generation should be kneaded into a flat shape, which is called a noodle sheep. I hope that the younger generation will not forget the kindness of their parents. For the older generation of flower buns, it is necessary to shape the image of adults, indicating that children and grandchildren are full and live a long life; Steamed buns for peers should be shaped like fish, called noodle fish, which means more than one year.
Go to the temple to pray.
Prepare vegetarian food to go to temples, give Buddha to monks, read the scriptures and spells of the Tibetan king, repay the kindness of parents and pray for the deceased ancestors.
Put on the sky lamp
There are also two ways to put lanterns on Halloween. One is to put children in their own homes and take their bad luck away with sky lanterns as far away as possible, so that these children will never come back. At this time, it is very taboo for other people's sky lanterns to fall in their own places. If they fall, they must be released again. Secondly, every family wants their dead ancestors to enter the Elysium, and putting lanterns on Halloween is to light the way to heaven for the ancestors who are preparing to fly to Elysium in the underworld.
Matters needing attention in Mid-Autumn Festival
1, pay attention to your words and deeds, and don't slander ghosts and gods.
Although many people don't believe in ghosts and gods, they did in ancient times. Before and after the Mid-Autumn Festival, you can't say anything strange casually, which will easily cause others to panic and seriously affect the atmosphere.
2. Don't steal sacrifices and spend money indiscriminately.
In my family's custom, every year in July and a half, that is, a few days before the Mid-Autumn Festival, we will give out lucky money, such as paper and gold ingots. Then put it in a paper bag, write the names of the deceased ancestors on the paper bag, and then take it to their graves for burning. The money is for relatives of ancestors. We can't pick up money at the grave, or our ancestors will find you with resentment.
3. Avoid going out at night and don't turn around when walking.
The atmosphere of Mid-Autumn Festival is very strange. It feels like the road is full of dead souls at night. It's best not to walk at night on this day. When I have a little trouble, I scare myself, especially those whose birthdays are not so good. If you really have something to travel at night, you'd better take a few people with you to feel a little safe. After all, many hands make light work.
Never look in the mirror in the middle of the night and stay up late.
Around the Mid-Autumn Festival, the human body is rather yin. What if when you look in the mirror, a ghost suddenly appears in the mirror, just like in the horror movie, and then reaches out and strangles you? This is scary. In the middle of the night, the human body is weak and its vitality is weak. What if the ghost is possessed? In terms of health care, we are also told to go to bed as soon as possible.
What's the significance of burning paper in Mid-Autumn Festival?
First, when buying paste paper, don't buy piles of printed matter, you'd better buy yellow paper.
Second, draw a circle on the ground to be burned and leave a gap in the northwest corner, so that the relatives below can come in and get money.
Third, when burning paper, you should look serious, don't laugh and fight, and say something, such as _ _, I sent you money and flowers.
Fourth, we must insist on burning the paper before going, which can not only prevent fires, but also ensure that relatives can get money.
5. On the way to burn paper back and forth, try to avoid burning paper and don't step on it.
It doesn't matter how much you burn paper, but how much you spend on paper money, which is very particular. Just a word "money" consists of three "gold squares", so the amount of money on paper money should also be calculated by "gold, silver, iron and tin", one is gold, the other is silver, the third is copper, the fourth is iron, the fifth is tin, the sixth is gold and the sixth is tin.
Generally speaking, it is best to burn old paper for praying for God, making wishes, eliminating disasters, celebrating festivals and dying, and use a row of paper with six eyes (six dollars) and eleven dollars (eleven dollars). It is best to use seven eyes (seven money in a row) to worship God, enlighten the spirit and fast. It takes eight eyes (eight money) to give a ghost a plate and burn it in July and a half, which is the so-called "Seven Ghosts Ba Shen".
When burning paper, if it is non-combustible, don't mess up the money and paper, so it will be difficult for ghosts and gods to order it again, and the population of the owner's family who burns paper money will be difficult.