Who is Laba Festival commemorating and what is the meaning of Laba porridge?
There are many different stories about the origin of Laba Festival. Some legends say that Laba Festival is the day when Buddha Shakyamuni attained enlightenment. So who is Laba Festival commemorating? What is the meaning of Laba porridge? Shui Mo Xiansheng website provides you with more articles about the twelfth month of the lunar calendar in 2018. Come and follow us on Shui Mo Xiansheng website.Who is Laba Festival commemorating?There are many versions of the legend of Laba Festival, and each legend commemorates different people . Below, the editor will organize the various versions of the legend for everyone.1. Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming Dynasty established Laba Festival. Laba Festival is on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month. It originated in the late Yuan Dynasty and early Ming Dynasty. It is said that when Zhu Yuanzhang was in prison and suffering, it was a cold day. Zhu Yuanzhang, who was cold and hungry, actually dug out some red beans, rice, red dates and seven or eight kinds of grains from the rat hole in the prison. Zhu Yuanzhang cooked these things into porridge. Because that day was the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, Zhu Yuanzhang named this pot of multi-grain porridge "Laba porridge". Enjoyed a delicious meal. Later, Zhu Yuanzhang pacified the world and became the emperor. In order to commemorate that special day in prison, he designated that day as Laba Festival and officially named the multi-grain porridge he ate that day as Laba porridge. 2. Commemorating the founder of Buddhism, Sakyamuni . The founder of Buddhism, Sakyamuni, was originally the son of King Suddhodana of Kapilavastu in northern ancient India (in present-day Nepal). Seeing that all living beings were suffering from birth, old age, sickness and death, and being dissatisfied with the theocratic rule of the Brahmins at the time, he gave up the throne and became a monk. He achieved nothing at first, but after six years of asceticism, on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, he attained enlightenment under the Bodhi tree and became a Buddha. During these six years of asceticism, he only ate one grain of hemp and one grain of rice every day. Later generations did not forget the suffering he endured, and ate porridge on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month every year to commemorate him. "Laba" became the "Buddha's Enlightenment Day". "Laba" is a grand festival in Buddhism. Before liberation, Buddhist temples across the country held Buddha bathing ceremonies and chanting sessions, and imitated the legend of the shepherdess offering gruel to Sakyamuni before he attained enlightenment. They cooked porridge with fragrant grains and fruits to offer to the Buddha, which was called "Laba porridge." Laba porridge was given to disciples and believers, and it later became a folk custom. It is said that before the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, monks in some temples would hold bowls and beg for alms on the streets. They would cook the collected rice, chestnuts, dates, nuts and other ingredients into Laba porridge and distribute it to the poor. It is said that after eating it one can get the blessing of Buddha, so the poor call it "Buddha porridge". 3. Red beans to beat ghosts Laba Festival comes from the custom of “red beans to beat ghosts”. Legend has it that Zhuanxu, one of the Five Ancient Emperors, had three sons who turned into evil ghosts after their death and specifically came out to scare children. In ancient times, people generally believed in superstitions and were afraid of ghosts and gods. They thought that strokes, illnesses, and poor health among adults and children were all caused by plague ghosts. These evil ghosts are not afraid of anything in the sky or on the earth, but they are afraid of red beans, hence the saying "red beans can fight ghosts". Therefore, on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, people cook porridge with red beans and adzuki beans to get rid of epidemics and welcome good luck. 4. Commemoration of the loyal minister Yue Fei . In those days, Yue Fei led his troops to fight against the Jin army in Zhuxian Town. It was the coldest time of winter, and Yue's army was poorly fed and suffered from hunger and cold. The people sent them porridge one after another. Yue's army had a hearty meal of "Thousands of Family Porridge" sent by the people, and returned with a great victory. That day was the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month. After Yue Fei's death, in order to commemorate him, people would cook porridge with grains, beans and fruits on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month every year, and it eventually became a custom. 5. Laba Festival comes because of the construction of the Great Wall When Qin Shihuang built the Great Wall, migrant workers from all over the world came here on orders. They could not go home for many years and relied on their families to send them food. Some migrant workers were separated from their homes by thousands of miles and could not receive food, which resulted in many of them starving to death at the Great Wall construction site. On the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month one year, the migrant workers who had no food to eat gathered together a few handfuls of grains, put them in a pot and cooked them into porridge. Each person drank a bowl of it, but in the end they still starved to death at the foot of the Great Wall. In order to mourn the workers who starved to death on the Great Wall construction site, people eat "Laba porridge" on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month every year to commemorate them. So the legend of Laba Festival is spread among the people. The origin of this festival is very early, it has existed in the pre-Qin period, and it has been influenced by Buddhism in history . Therefore, each statement can only be used as a reference. The most credible one is that Laba Festival comes from the ancient custom of "wax worship" . What is the meaning of Laba porridge?Laba porridge is a kind of porridge cooked with a variety of ingredients during the Laba Festival, also known as seven-treasure and five-flavor porridge. Eating Laba porridge is a tradition to celebrate the harvest and has been passed down to this day. In ancient times, on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, there was a custom among the Chinese people to eat "Laba porridge" (or "Laba rice" in some places). In Henan, Laba porridge is also called "Da Jia Fan"."Laba Congee" in Yanjing Sui Shi Ji states: "Laba Congee is made with yellow rice, white rice, glutinous rice, millet, water chestnut rice, chestnuts, red beans, peeled jujube paste, etc., cooked in boiling water, and then dyed with red peach kernels, almonds, melon seeds, peanuts, hazelnuts, pine nuts, white sugar, brown sugar, and grapes for coloring." Laba porridge, like Laba rice, is a relic of the ancient wax festival. Since the pre-Qin period, Laba Festival has been used to worship ancestors and gods and pray for a good harvest and good luck. The custom of drinking Laba porridge in China was already very popular in the Song Dynasty . On the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, people from the imperial court, government offices, temples and ordinary households all make Laba porridge. In the Qing Dynasty, the custom of drinking Laba porridge became more popular. In the palace, the emperor, empress, princes, etc. would give Laba porridge to civil and military ministers, attendants and palace maids, and distribute rice, fruits, etc. to various temples for the monks to eat. In the folks, every household also makes Laba porridge to worship their ancestors; at the same time, the family gathers together to eat it and give gifts to relatives and friends. According to Buddhism, eating Laba porridge not only commemorates the Buddha's enlightenment when he saw a star at night, but also has the meanings of warmth, perfection, harmony, auspiciousness, health, cooperation, nutrition, indifference, convenience, gratitude, joy (eating porridge instead of tea), and making connections . According to Tianjin folk custom, on the night before Laba Festival, devout men and women make porridge out of beans. Each bean they pinch is called a bean for forming a bond. Therefore, I composed a poem: "I am happy to see the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month. It is a custom to give beans in front of the door. Believers and disciples cook porridge at night. The sound of chanting Buddha brings good karma." |
>>: Is there a holiday for Laba Festival in 2018? Laba holiday arrangements
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