Section name meaning
In ancient times, the vernal equinox was also known as the "middle day", "day and night equinox", and "the moon of mid-spring". "Fen" has two meanings, one is "equinox", the traditional spring is between the beginning of spring and the beginning of summer, and the spring equinox is in the middle of the two solar terms, which happens to divide the spring, so the spring equinox; Another meaning is the "equinox" of day and night, when the sun shines directly on the equator on the day of the spring equinox, and the day and night in the northern and southern hemispheres are equal in length, and day and night are equally divided. Since the vernal equinox, the direct position of the sun continues from the equator to the northern hemisphere, and the days begin to be longer than the night in the northern hemisphere, and vice versa in the southern hemisphere. Wu Cheng explained in the "Seventy-two Candidate Explanations of the Lunar Order": "In the middle of February, half of the divider is also, and this should be half of the ninety days, so it is called the divide. ”
Phenological phenomena
In ancient times, the "spring equinox" was divided into three phases: "one is the Xuanniao to", the Xuanniao is the spring swallow, whenever the spring returns to the earth, the willows contain green, the swallows return from the south, bring the spring blossoms, bring the spring breeze and green banks; "The second wait for the thunder is to make a sound", the spring broke through the ground, and showed people with a thunderstorm; "Three waits for the first electricity", and the rain after that will be accompanied by lightning and thunder, rather than "moisturizing things silently".
Traditional customs
Standing eggs. "When the spring equinox arrives, the eggs are pretty", standing eggs is a traditional custom during the spring equinox, choosing a smooth and uniform fresh egg, standing upright on a smooth plane, and not letting go until it does not fall.
Kite flying. As soon as the spring equinox arrives, the grass grows and the warbler flies, which is a good time to go green and fly kites. In ancient times, there was also the custom of drinking hairpins during the spring equinox, and on this day, both men and women of all ages would have hairpins.
Diet. In the Lingnan area, there is a habit of eating spring vegetables on the spring equinox. Spring vegetables, that is, spring vegetables, is a kind of wild amaranth, and the villagers call it "spring artemisia". Spring vegetables are generally "boiling soup" with fish fillets, and the name is "spring soup". You slipped and said: "Spring soup is filled with dirt and liver sausages are washed." The whole family is safe and healthy. "Eating spring vegetables means that the family is peaceful and strong. In some areas in the north, there is a custom of eating donkeys and rolling on the spring equinox, and there is a saying that "you have to eat donkeys and roll on the spring equinox, in order to avoid evil and pray for blessings". Eating sun cake on the spring equinox is the spring equinox custom in old Beijing, and on the day of the spring equinox, you should worship the sun god and "please" eat the sun cake. Sun cake is not only a tribute to the spring equinox festival, but also a seasonal food, meaning "the sun is high". Hubei attaches more importance to the spring equinox, on the day of the spring equinox, the adults in the family will get up very early to fry the oil field, and then cook the garlic and tofu together, and then put it into the oil field, the adults and children in the family must eat a big bowl, it is said that there will be no long bag on the head after eating this.