Laba Festival, as a long-standing festival in China, arrives every year on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month as scheduled. Its origins are deeply rooted in the ancient tradition of "Wax Moon". In ancient texts, "wax" and "wax" are interconnected, and they represent a sacred sacrificial activity. At that time, at the end of the year, when people were busy farming, they would choose to hunt in the wild, and use their prey to worship their ancestors and gods, pray for good fortune and good fortune. This ritual is called "wax sacrifice". With the passage of time, December was specially named "Wax Moon" or "Wax Moon". Originally, there was no fixed date for the sacrifice, and it was not until the Liang Dynasty that the date of the sacrifice was determined, that is, the eighth day of the twelfth month. Since then, the people have called this day "Laba". In the past, in addition to sacrifices, there was also the custom of beating drums to ward off epidemics. However, these customs have now gradually disappeared, and the only thing that has survived is the custom of eating laba porridge. Laba porridge, also known as five-flavor porridge, seven-treasure porridge or parsnip porridge, occupies a special place in Chinese culture. Every year on the eighth day of the lunar month, regardless of status, Chinese people have the custom of eating Laba porridge. Emperor Daoguang of the Qing Dynasty not only liked to taste Laba porridge, but also wrote a poem to praise it. The Chinese's love for Laba porridge has deep historical roots. One theory holds that Laba congee originated in Buddhism. Legend has it that before the Buddha Shakyamuni attained enlightenment, he was a prince who was tired of living a life of luxury. He became a monk and devoted himself to spiritual practice, but he did not achieve anything after six years of asceticism. One day he fainted from hunger and exertion, and was awakened by the shepherd Suyeda with multigrain porridge. Shakyamuni woke up in high spirits, regained his vitality, and finally became a Buddha on December 8. Later, in order to commemorate this bowl of multigrain porridge with miraculous powers, Buddhists called it "Buddha porridge", which is now Laba porridge. 
Another theory is related to Ming Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang. When he was young, his family was poor, and he tended sheep for the rich man's family, and he often starved. One day, he found a mouse hole, dug out the mouse's stored grain, and boiled rice, corn, beans and other grains into a pot of porridge, which tasted very sweet. Later, Zhu Yuanzhang became the emperor, tired of eating the delicacies of the mountains and seas, and on the eighth day of the lunar month, he remembered the cereals porridge he had eaten before, so he ordered the imperial dining room to put the grains together to cook porridge and eat it, and gave it to the hundred officials. Because it is porridge cooked on the eighth day of the lunar month, it is given the name "Laba porridge". In addition, there are legends that associate Laba porridge with the national hero Yue Fei. According to legend, Yue Fei was framed by traitors, military rations were detained, and the people sent porridge and rice when they heard the news. Yue's army mixed and ate, and this day happened to be the eighth day of the lunar month. After Yue Fei was killed, in order to remember him, the people would cook Laba porridge every year on this day, and follow the custom.
In the old days, Laba porridge had to be served in several bowls and placed on the offering table to worship the ancestors. After the sacrifice is completed, the porridge is put in a suitcase for relatives and friends. Laba porridge must be given away early, not at the latest at noon. After the delivery, the whole family gathered in one place to eat laba porridge. The ancients believed that drinking porridge could prolong life. "The Diet Recipe of Living with Rest" said: "Porridge and rice are the first thing in the world to supplement people. According to the Qing Dynasty's "Yanjing Chronicles": "Laba porridge is cooked in yellow rice, white rice, millet, water chestnut, red cowpea, peeled jujube paste, etc.;Externally dyed red peach kernels, almonds, melon seeds, peanuts, sticks, pine nuts and white sugar, brown sugar, and trivial grapes for spot dyeing. Do not use lotus seeds, lentils, barley, longan, use it will hurt the taste. ”
Laba porridge is not only full of color and flavor, but also has the functions of strengthening the spleen, appetizing, replenishing qi, calming the nerves, purifying the heart, and nourishing the blood from the perspective of nutritional efficacy. Midwinter dieting has the effect of keeping out the cold and is a health food for important festivals. This may be the reason why Laba porridge is so loved by people and has been passed down for hundreds of generations. Search Topic Full Time Challenge December