The origin and evolution of the Lunar New Year
The Lunar New Year, also known as the Spring Festival, is the most solemn traditional festival of the Chinese nation.
Its origin has profound cultural significance. It originated from the sacrificial behavior performed at the beginning of the year to pray for good years in ancient times.
The ancient people performed sacrifices at the beginning of the year to repay the kindness given by the many gods and ancestors in the world, thereby driving away evil and eliminating disasters, and at the same time praying for blessings in the new year.
According to historical records, the Spring Festival has already begun to show some initial signs in the primitive society period, and has subsequently experienced continuous evolution and continuous development in various dynasties.
In the pre-Qin period, there were already relevant records about New Year sacrifices. During the Han Dynasty, the Spring Festival gradually built up a corresponding scale and became a festival of great significance nationwide. By the Tang Dynasty, the Spring Festival celebrations became more and more colorful, and the poems also contained many descriptions of people's happy New Year scenes.
Folk etiquette and festival procedures
There are many folk customs and etiquette regulations during the Spring Festival.
Starting from offering sacrifices to the stove on the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month, the New Year begins.
The purpose of offering sacrifices to the Kitchen God is to send the Kitchen God to heaven, and to pray to the Kitchen God that "Heaven will say good things and the lower world will be safe."
Immediately, people began to sweep the dust. This action contained the meaning of removing old things and ushering in new things, and sweeping all bad luck and bad luck out of the door.
Important customs of the Spring Festival include pasting Spring Festival couplets and hanging lanterns. Spring couplets use neat, concise and exquisite words to depict beautiful images and express good wishes. Red lanterns add a lively atmosphere to the festival.
On New Year's Eve, the whole family reunites to have New Year's Eve dinner and watch the New Year's Eve.
The New Year's Eve dinner is very sumptuous. The fish represents "more than enough every year" and the dumplings have the meaning of "new year's blessings".
Setting off firecrackers in the early morning of the first day of the Lunar New Year means "opening the door to firecrackers will save the year".
Then it’s time to visit relatives and friends to pay New Year greetings. The elders will give the younger ones New Year’s money, which has the meaning of warding off evil spirits and exorcising ghosts, and can bless peace.
Regional custom differences
There are certain differences in Spring Festival customs in different regions.
In other words, here in the north, there is a custom of eating dumplings during the New Year. Family members sit around and make dumplings, and the whole atmosphere is full of reunion.
In the south, people eat rice cakes in some places, which means "higher every year".
In Guangdong, people go to flower markets on New Year's Eve, which means that flowers will bloom in the coming year. In Fujian, dragon and lion dances are held during the Spring Festival to pray for good weather and abundant harvests.
Cultural spiritual core and value of the times
The Spring Festival contains a profound cultural spiritual core, which embodies the traditional values of the Chinese nation that value family, unity and harmony.
Families gather together during the Spring Festival to enhance family ties.
At the same time, the Spring Festival also carries people’s yearning and longing for a better life in the new year.
Entering the modern era, the Spring Festival has become more and more important in enhancing national cohesion. It is also a key content form in inheriting traditional Chinese culture, and therefore has become an important carrier.
It inspires everyone to be proactive and enterprising in the new year, to work hard and make unremitting efforts towards the goal of achieving a better life.
Contemporary inheritance and innovation
With the development of the times, the Spring Festival is also constantly inherited and innovated.
The Spring Festival has been given a new form by new technological means, such as online New Year greetings and electronic red envelopes, which make people's communication more convenient.
However, the various cultural activities held during the Spring Festival, such as temple fairs and folk exhibitions, attract more young people to participate in the inheritance of traditional culture, making the traditional festival of the Spring Festival successfully glow with new vitality.
Just like the expression "jumping with the rhythm of the music, if your heart feels happy during the New Year, you will naturally blink", the Spring Festival brings endless joy and happiness to everyone, and it will definitely continue to be passed down and developed in the new era.
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