In the profound universe of traditional Chinese culture, the seventh day of the first lunar month is regarded as the sacred moment when Nuwa created man. This traditional notion is rooted in ancient legends and paints a vivid picture of creation.
Since the beginning of the first month, Nuwa has given life to the earth with endless creativity, shaping the chicken that announces the dawn of Sichen on the first day, giving life to a loyal and reliable dog on the second day, giving a simple pig body on the third day of the first month, creating a gentle and kind sheep on the fourth day of the first month, and then letting the industrious and tenacious ox come into the world on the fifth day of the first month, and by the sixth day of the first month, the galloping horse also came into being.
After six consecutive days of animal creation, on the seventh day of the first lunar month, Nuwa skillfully blended loess and water with herself as the prototype to carefully shape the image of human beings, thus establishing the concept of "human day", which is also regarded as the collective birthday of human beings, that is, "Nuwa's creation of human day".
Prior to this, that is, in the time span from the first day of the first lunar month to the sixth day of the first lunar month, compared with the birth of human beings, Nuwa had completed the creation of the six animals in advance, and these days were undoubtedly an important node in the timeline earlier than the "Creation Day".
One eat:
Time has passed to the twentieth day of the first lunar month, and another festival with profound cultural significance, the Heavenly Piercing Festival or the Mending Heaven Festival, has arrived. This festival is to recall the great exploits of Nuwa to mend the sky and save the world, and to think back to the ancient times, in the face of the collapse of heaven and earth and the rampant floods, Nuwa bravely refined the five-color stone to repair the sky and save all living beings. At this moment, the folk will hold a variety of celebrations and rituals, such as hand-made and throwing the "mending cake" that symbolizes the act of mending the sky, conveying the good hope of smooth weather, peace and auspiciousness in the new year, and at the same time, it also reflects people's incomparably high respect and deep nostalgia for Nuwa, the ancestor of the Chinese nation and the goddess of creation.
Second, fill in
Wear it on the twenty days of the first month, and wear it on the twenty-first day of the first month
Every year on the twentieth day of the first lunar month, an ancient celebration known as the "Heavenly Wear Festival" or "Mending the Heavenly Wear" is widely spread in the Guanzhong area and many Hakka groups, and even some places choose to hold this ceremony on the 23rd day of the first lunar month. This day carries a deep nostalgia for ancient myths, it is to commemorate the heroic feat of the goddess of creation Nuwa, and it is also a unique interpretation of the symbolic meaning of natural phenomena by the ancients - when spring returns to the earth and the rain season comes, the continuous rain seems to show the "heavenly wear" of the sky.
At that time, the ancestors believed that the rain in the sky was due to cracks in the heavenly dome, so they creatively borrowed the legend of Nuwa mending the sky as a spiritual sustenance, and expressed their hope for the harmony of heaven and earth and the abundance of water with this allegorical performance art. On this special day, families make a traditional delicacy with deep symbolic meaning, the "mending cakes", which are plump and round, golden and crispy pancakes, or white and soft steamed cakes.
According to custom, the elders of the family will throw this huge cake against the roof of their house, as if recreating the sacred scene of Nuwa soaring to the sky. At the same time, a piece of bread is solemnly placed in the courtyard or covered with a well, symbolically completing the ritual of "replenishing the land" and praying for the abundance of land and water.
3.Fill in
Warehouse filling section
At the same time, the twentieth day of the first lunar month is also known as the "small Tiancang" day, marking the arrival of the warehouse filling festival. During this festival, people use the ashes of daily life to delicately sketch a circular pattern symbolizing grain hoarding in the courtyard, during which grains are sown and compacted with bricks and stones, a series of vivid rituals called "filling the warehouse". This move is intended to convey the abundance of the granary, which heralds a year of abundant grain and abundant life.
Further, the 25th day of the first lunar month is regarded as the "Great Tiancang" day, which also carries the same beautiful vision, that is, praying for a full grain warehouse, a bumper harvest of crops, and a good life for people to live and work in peace and contentment.
4" does not move"It is the twentieth day of the first month that does not move needlework, needlework is a necessary skill for women in ancient times, usually needlework is a part of life, the clothes and shoes of the four seasons of the family rely on women to make a needle and thread, but when it comes to the New Year, you can't move needlework, one is that the needle is a sharp weapon, the New Year's needlework is unlucky, and the other is that the New Year should be properly relaxed, otherwise it is hard work.
So what is the saying that you can't move the needle and thread on the twentieth day of the first month?
The twentieth day of the first lunar month is the day of "Nuwa mending the sky", and the needle will puncture the fabric when doing needlework, which has the meaning of piercing the sky, so it is forbidden to use needlework on this day.
In modern folk culture, the celebrations on the 20th day of the first lunar month and the following days not only reflect the wisdom and creativity of the ancients, but also express their gratitude for the generous gifts of nature and their deep expectations for a prosperous and stable life in the future. Whether it is the mending the sky and piercing the festival that repairs the sky, or the filling of the warehouse festival that means a good harvest, it carries the ideal pursuit of harmonious coexistence and agricultural prosperity of the Chinese nation.