What are the differences in customs across the country on the Dragon Raising Festival on February 2, 2018?

What are the differences in customs across the country on the Dragon Raising Festival on February 2, 2018?
There are many traditional festivals in my country, and corresponding to them are a large number of customs and habits. Each traditional festival corresponds to many customs and habits. Because my country has a vast territory and significant cultural differences among different regions, the customs of different regions vary greatly. For more details about the lunar calendar for February 2018, please visit the Fortune Teller website for consultation!

Beijing area

Beijing folk food, a kind of very thin pancake, also known as pancake. Every year on the beginning of spring, Beijingers eat spring pancakes, which are called "Yaochun". The second day of the second month in the lunar calendar is the day when the dragon raises its head as stated in an ancient Chinese proverb ("February 2, the dragon raises its head"). On this day, Beijingers also eat spring rolls, which is called "eating dragon scales." Spring rolls are larger than the pancakes used for roast duck, and are tougher (Beijingers call this "bone-standing strength") because they are made to hold a lot of vegetables. In the past, when eating spring rolls, people would go to a box shop and order "Su Pan" (also known as box dish). A box shop is a shop that sells braised meat, and the store sends people to deliver the food to your home. Beijingers pay attention to adding a few side dishes to their spring rolls: cold bean sprouts, scrambled eggs, and Tianfuhao's braised pork elbow. The box is divided into compartments to hold smoked pork belly, pork belly with pine nuts, oven-roasted pork, clear sauce pork, smoked pork elbow, sauced pork elbow, sauced pork strips, smoked chicken, sauced duck, etc. These need to be cut into thin strips when eaten, and served with a few homely stir-fried dishes (usually shredded pork with leek sprouts, shredded pork with spinach, vinegar-cooked mung bean sprouts, stir-fried vermicelli, scrambled eggs, etc. If there is the newly-launched "pheasant neck leek" stir-fried with lean pork and served with scrambled eggs, it will be even more fresh and refreshing), and roll them together in spring rolls and eat. The condiments include shredded green onions and yellow sauce (roast duck with sweet noodle sauce) drizzled with sesame oil. When eating spring rolls, the whole family sits together, puts the baked spring rolls in the steamer, and takes them out as they eat, so that they can eat them while they are hot. If spring pancakes are eaten on the second day of the second lunar month, Beijingers also pay attention to bringing married girls back home. In Beijing, there is also a kind of bean flour cake, which is a Beijing halal snack. Steamed yellow rice (or glutinous rice) is kneaded into a ball, sprinkled with fried soybean flour, and then added with red bean filling. Rolled into long strips, sprinkled with sesame, osmanthus and sugar before eating. In the Qing Dynasty, when food stalls were operating, "Lu Da Gun" was made and sold on the spot, and bean flour was sprinkled as it was made, just like a donkey rolling on the ground in the countryside and covered with yellow soil, hence the humorous name. According to the old Beijing custom, people always like to buy "Ludagun" to taste in the second month of the lunar calendar, so there are many vendors and cart vendors operating this food. The most famous ones are the Bai surname food stall in Tianqiao Market and "Nian Gaohu" (Hu Zhanfu).

Shandong area

In Shandong and other areas of my country, during the Spring Dragon Festival, a dragon is drawn on the ground with stove smoke, commonly known as the money-attracting dragon. There are two purposes for the popular belief in attracting dragons: one is to invite the dragon back to create clouds and rain and pray for a good harvest; the other is that the dragon is the god of all insects, and when the dragon comes, all insects will hide, which is beneficial to human health and crop growth. People in Nantong, Jiangsu Province make longevity peaches and livestock with flour, steam them, and insert them on bamboo sticks, which they then put in the fields at night. They believe that these are foods for offering to the god of insects and worshiping their ancestors. They pray to their ancestors to drive away insect plagues and also hope that the god of insects will not harm the crops.
On this day, people all over the country generally add the title of "dragon" to the names of foods. Eating dumplings is called eating "dragon ears", eating spring pancakes is called eating "dragon scales", eating noodles is called eating "dragon whiskers", eating rice is called eating "dragon seeds", eating wontons is called eating "dragon eyes", etc.
Women are not allowed to do needlework on this day, because the Azure Dragon will raise its head to watch the world, and using needles may prick the dragon's eyes. Before getting up, women would first recite "On the second day of the second month, the dragon raises its head. If the dragon doesn't raise its head, I will." After getting up, people would hold a lantern and shine it on the beams, reciting "On the second day of the second month, shine it on the beams, and scorpions and centipedes will have nowhere to hide." In some places, women stopped washing clothes for fear of damaging the dragon's skin, etc.
The third day of February is the birthday of Wenchang (the god who dominates fame and honor). On this day, scholars and literati worship Wenchang and pray for success in the imperial examinations. According to the old custom, children would perform a ceremony to start writing on the second day of the second lunar month, marking the beginning of their formal studies. In the past, scholars had to perform four ceremonies, namely the ceremony of opening a pen, the ceremony of advancement, the ceremony of thanksgiving and the ceremony of becoming the top scholar. Among them, the ceremony of opening a pen is the first major ceremony in life. Kaibi means starting to write an article. The ceremony mainly includes worshiping the statue of Confucius, teaching the most basic principles of life, and presenting the four treasures of the study.

Shanxi region

In some places in northwestern Shanxi, the money-attracting dragon chooses a big tree or a big stone and sprinkles a circle of gray line around it. Then tie a copper coin with a red string, place the coin in the gray coil first, pull the string back home, and cover it with a container.

Shaanxi Province

In Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, it is common for the grandmother (uncle's family) to give popcorn and steamed buns to the nephew (daughter) on this day. My mother would fry the beans the day before and prepare them for the family. Qizi beans are made by mixing oil, water and flour, then cut into small cubes and fried in oil. In some places, peanuts and beans are fried together.

Central and northern Guangxi

The Zhuang areas in central and northern Guangxi also have traditional customs for the second day of the second lunar month. The Zhuang people in central and northern Guangxi have a saying that goes "On the second day of the second lunar month, worship the village community; the dragon raises its head, and pray for a good harvest; on the second day of the eighth lunar month, offer sacrifices to the village hall; the dragon ends its tail, and we send the dragon home." The nature of the celebrations on the second day of the second lunar month and the second day of the eighth lunar month is the same. Before the festival, a purchasing team will be appointed as the celebration leader. The leader will take turns in groups, with each group consisting of 5 people. Every time the festival comes, the "leader" who is in charge will go door to door to collect money and rice. On the festival day, the "leader" is responsible for buying groceries, cooking and other tasks. "Blood sausage" is an indispensable offering for the Dragon's Head Rising and the Dragon's Tail Ending. "Blood sausage" is called "bong" in Zhuang language, which means fast growth of seedlings and a good harvest of grains. After the worship ceremony, a representative from each household goes to the village community for a collective meal. After the collective meal, the "leader" is responsible for evaluating and assigning a piece of blood sausage and braised pork to each villager.

Ruicheng Hehe area

There is an ancient festival that has lasted for more than a thousand years and can be called a strange custom. It is said to have started during the reign of Emperor Guangwu of the Han Dynasty, and has been around for more than 1,800 years. It is also called the "Three Societies Ceremony" because the three societies held a joint ceremony to commemorate the great emperor Huang Feihu's contribution to flood control. On this day, the mountain people celebrate and display the most precious treasures in their homes. This is also known as the "Treasure Display Meeting" among the people. They believe that the treasures can ward off evil and avoid disasters, and they hope that the year will be good with good weather and a good harvest. At that time, women will wear colorful costumes and sing traditional folk songs and operas, while men will play the rough and strong gods of heaven and earth, military generals and civil officials, the Eight Immortals, folk gods, etc. Some of them may ride horses, sedan chairs, oxen, or carry poles; some may be naked with wild cloth tied around their waists; some may wear homespun cloth shorts and carry guillotines, icicles, rough rafters, or stone mills on their backs, showing their masculinity. Locals jokingly call it "Hehe Ergan". The atmosphere of the community fire is composed and created by gongs and drums. The beating method is simple and primitive, commonly known as "pie gongs and drums". Other traditional programs include lion dance, land boat racing, stilt walking, carrying people on the back, etc. The entire event started from outside the village and ended at the former site of Mount Tai Temple.

Coastal Areas

The custom of "cutting the dragon head" on the second day of the second lunar month has been passed down. On this day, both adults and children have their heads shaved, which is called "shaving the happy head." Boys in particular all have to have a haircut, which is called "cutting the dragon's head". It is said that getting a haircut on this day can bring good luck for the whole year, and it also means that if you want good luck, you should get a haircut.

Yellow River Delta

There is a custom of "releasing dragon lanterns". Many families make small boats with reeds or sorghum stalks, insert candles or put small oil bowls made of radishes on them, put them in the river or bay and light them to light the way for the dragon. The inland areas of Shandong pay more attention to the "February 2nd". One of the important folk activities is surrounding the granary. Early in the morning of the second day of the second month of the lunar calendar, the villagers get up early. Housewives take a basket of wood ash from under their stoves, take a small iron shovel to scoop some of the ash, and draw circles on the ground as they walk. The circles of the enclosure are big inside small, with at least three and at most five, and they surround odd numbers but not even numbers. After the granary is enclosed, the family’s grain is reverently placed in the middle of the granary and intentionally scattered around the outside of the granary, symbolizing a good harvest that year.

Southern Zhejiang

The Er Yue Er Temple Fair in Sixi is located in Sixi Town, Taishun County in southern Zhejiang Province. It is a famous town of covered bridges and the home of the world's most beautiful covered bridge "Sister Bridge". It has beautiful mountains and clear waters and fresh air. The February 2nd blessing temple fair in Baifenqiang Village, Sixi Town, has a history of nearly 300 years. Every year on the second day of the second month of the lunar calendar, Baifenqiang Village holds the February 2nd temple fair (blessing activity) at the "Chen Shisi Niangniang" temple in the village. This custom originated during the Yongzheng period of the Qing Dynasty, commonly known as "doing blessings" or "blessing wine". From the Qing Dynasty to the Republic of China, the "February 2" temple fair activities developed to its peak. In addition to the local villagers, more visitors who went to participate in the "blessing banquet" came from miles away, which was an unprecedented grand occasion. The temple fair has wonderful activities, among which the biggest local features are "Goddess Parade on the Street", "Fuyan" and Southern Zhejiang Puppet Show. [8]

Other areas

There is also a saying about eating pig's head on the second day of the second lunar month.
Since ancient times, offering sacrifices to gods have always required the use of three animals: pigs, cattle and sheep. Later, it was simplified to the heads of the three animals, and the pig head was one of them. Another story recorded in "Qiuchi Notes" of the Song Dynasty: After Wang Zhongling pacified Bashu, he felt very hungry, so he broke into a small village temple, but met a drunk monk. Wang Zhongling was furious and wanted to kill him, but the monk showed no fear. Wang Zhongling was very surprised and turned to ask him for food. Soon the monk presented a plate of "steamed pig's head" and wrote a poem for it: "It has a long mouth, short hair and fat, and has been eating medicinal seedlings in the mountains for a long time. It is wrapped in banana leaves when steamed, and poured with apricot juice when cooked. The red and fresh one is called Jinpanting, and the cooked and soft one is worthy of being picked with jade chopsticks. If there is no hair root to compare, the felt root should eat rattan sticks." Wang Zhongling was very happy while eating the steamed pig's head and listening to the witty and unique "pig head poem", so he named the monk "Purple Robe Master". It looks like the pig's head is really a delicious dish, and it is also an auspicious symbol of turning danger into safety and rising to a successful career. Nowadays there is a famous dish called "Braised Pig's Face", which goes through twelve steps including selecting ingredients, cleaning, spray roasting, washing, soaking, and sauce making, and takes more than ten hours of cooking before it can be served on the table. There are three kinds of "braised pig's face": one is to eat it plain; the second is to eat it with sauce; the third is to eat it rolled in pancakes. Each way of eating it has a different taste. "Braised Pig's Face" is fat but not greasy, the meat and bones are separated, and it is glutinous and delicious, bringing beauty and brain-enhancing effects to modern people. Eating modern "braised pig face" on the "Second Day of the Second Month" and reminiscing about the ancient catering history is truly a perfect experience blending the contemporary and historical customs. After the Qinglong Festival, the entire "New Year" is considered to be over.

Tangshan Qian'an area

The custom in Qian'an area is mountain climbing. Folklorists believe that "shaving your head will cause your uncle to die" was originally a rebellion of the Han people against the Qing Dynasty. After more than 300 years of word of mouth, it has evolved into another meaning. Today, it is more of a reflection of the Chinese nation's personality and cultural tradition of emphasizing blood ties and kinship. “As society progresses and folk customs develop, people should pay more attention to the cultural inheritance of folk customs.

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