Anciently held at dusk, taking its yin and yang alternation has the meaning of gradual, so called. Ancient wedding has six: Nacai, ask the name, Naji, Naji, please period, pro welcome.
In the book of "Li Ji - Fainting" chapter of the ancient Chinese form and significance of fainting ceremony has a more detailed description: "fainting ceremony, will be combined with the good of the two surnames, the upper in order to serve the temple and the lower to succeed the next generation, therefore, the ruler of the heavy. So, the gentleman is important. So, in the evening ceremony, ask for the name, Na Ji, Na Zheng, please period, all the masters of the feast in the temple, and worship and welcome at the door. Into, greet and rise, at the command of the temple, so respect prudent and serious rites of passage. Wedding is one of the essence of traditional Chinese culture, the red sedan chair, the vast welcoming honor guard, worship heaven and earth, lifting the head, dressed in "Feng Guan Xiapi, Scholar's clothing" Chinese wedding, "tracing the cultural roots of the importance of the traditional folklore" into the modern people's new "fashion", which is the Chinese style wedding.
Traditional Wedding
Six Rites of Marriage
Tang Wedding Dress
The Chinese wedding can be divided into three stages:
Pre-marital rites, i.e., "betrothal"
Positive Wedding, i.e., "Marriage "
Post-marriage rites, which are the rites of "becoming a wife", "becoming a woman", or "becoming a son-in-law", can be divided into three stages.
The post-nuptial rite is the rite of "becoming a wife", "becoming a wife", or "becoming a son-in-law", which denotes the roles played by a man and a woman after marriage
The pre-nuptial rite and the wedding rite are the main procedures of the traditional Chinese marriage ceremony, which are derived from the Six Rites of the Zhou Dynasty.
According to the Book of Rituals, the Book of Faintness records: "Faintness rites, will be combined with the good of the two surnames, the upper in order to serve the clan and temple, and the lower in order to succeed the future generations, so the man is heavy, so the Faintness rites of the nazai, ask the name, naji, nazhou, please period, are the master of the house a few outside the door, into the greetings and rise to the temple, at the command of the Temple, and the worship welcome in the door, into the greetings and rise to the Temple, at the command of the Temple, so the respect and caution of the positive Faintness rites as well. Therefore, it is said that the dim rites are also the basis of the rites."
And the so-called six rites, according to the records of the rituals, respectively, is the nacai, ask the name, naji, naji, please period, kiss welcome. The six rites are said to have been created in the Zhou Dynasty, and some scholars believe that the six rites were already in place during the time of King Wen of Zhou, although some people do not follow the six rites.
Three years of Han Pingdi Yuan Shi, Liu Xin and other miscellaneous wedding, four auxiliary ministers and doctors Chuanqian Lang Shi family members feasible to meet in person, the next year, the Queen is also Nacai, Buji. Wei Jin and North and South Dynasties, the crown prince to marry the crown princess wedding are not please welcome, since the Eastern Han Dynasty to the Eastern Jin Dynasty a lot of time are not in accordance with the six rituals of marriage.
After the Tang Dynasty, the Crown Prince began to welcome, and the Prince's wedding will follow the six rites. Later and "ask the name" in the "Na Cai" and "please date" in the "Na Cheng"; so although the concept is still according to the Therefore, although conceptually the six rites are still followed, in reality there are only four rites: "Nacai", "Naji", "Nacheng", and "Greeting". In fact, there are only four rites, namely, "Nage", "Naji", "Najing" and "Greeting". Zhu Zi's family rite combines "Naji" and "Najing" into one rite, so there are only three rites.
During the Yuan Dynasty, a wedding ceremony was added to the wedding ceremony.
During the first year of the Hongwu period of the Ming Dynasty, the Zhuzi family rituals were used as the standard for weddings.
The Qing Dynasty, according to the Tongli records, Han officials from the seventh grade above **** have nine rites, but are spelled out into a woman into a son-in-law of the rites, and the ancient six rites are only left to "discuss the marriage", "Na Cai", "Na Cai", "Invitation", "Invitation", "Invitation", "Invitation", "Invitation", "Invitation", "Invitation", "Invitation", "Invitation", and "Invitation". The six rites of the ancient times were only five rites, namely, "discussing marriage", "accepting marriage", "accepting money", "inviting the date" and "inviting the welcome". The marriage of the other soldiers and the common people is relatively simple, and the civil wedding is generally carried out in accordance with the Zhu Zi family law.
Three Books and Six Rites
Three Books
Three Books, i.e., the Book of Hire, the Book of Rites, and the Book of Welcoming:
The Book of Hire The Book of Hire, which is used for betrothal, is handed over to the woman's family by the man's family at the time of the "Naji" (passing of the Wending).
The Book of Ceremony The Book of Ceremony is the book used during the "Naji" (ceremony), and details the type and amount of gifts.
Welcome Book As the name suggests, the welcome book is the book used to welcome the bride, i.e., when the bride is being welcomed.
Six Rites
Na Cai is also known as "Cai Zai", which is equivalent to what is known in later generations as "marriage proposal" and "matchmaking". It is a decision made by the man after careful consideration. The Rites of the House of Wen Gong said, "The ceremony of choosing a bride is the same as what is known in this world as the "marriage proposal"." In ancient times, it was simpler and simpler, as recorded in the Rites of Passage for the Scholarly Class, the gift for the scholarly class, known as "Zhi" or "Zhi Zhi", was only "with a goose". The original should stick pheasant, but the pheasant is not easy to catch, mostly dead pheasant, wedding time is not appropriate, and the wedding is a major event in life, so the licensed newcomers have to cross their status level to wear and use clothing line.
Tang Du You Tongdian recorded thirty kinds of gifts:
Gifts Symbols
Yuan crimson, sheep Yuan, like the sky, crimson law of the earth, sheep and Xiang also, the group but not the party
Chinese wedding scene
Goose: geese with the sun
Sake: Sake descending blessing
Baijiu: Baijiu Huanzhi
Japonica rice. Japonica rice: Japonica rice nourishes the stomach
Jikimi: common millet millet
Pu: many bushes, soft in nature
Reed: long lasting reed
Cedarwood: cypresses with a curling habit
Jiahe: the harvest of the harvest is a source of wealth
Wispy: a wispy, seamless garment with a long life span, and a life-extending glue that binds the different kinds of people
Lacquer: lacquer with a good inner and outer finish
Five Colors of Silk: five-colored silk, which can be used for many purposes, including the collection and stretching of silk. The bells are harmonious in sound
Jiu Zi Mo: The nine sons of Mo will have long-lasting children and grandchildren
Money: The money is more than enough
Lu De and Herb: Lu De is good for luck
Phoenix: The phoenix is a combination of male and female
Sherry Beasts: The Sherry Beasts are cheap and modest
Mandarin ducks: Mandarin ducks need to be harmonized to fly
Receiving blessings: The ducks have to have good luck
The moon: The moon and ducks have to be harmonized to fly
The moon and ducks are good for the world.
Blessed Beast: Blessed Beast is kind in body and heart
Fish: Fish is in the abyss and has no shot
Deer: Deer is the source of wealth
Wu: Bird knows how to feed its mother and is filial to her husband
Nine Sons of Woman: Nine Sons of Woman has four gains
Yang Suu: Yang Suu is the source of fame and peace of life
Yeodan: Yeodan is the honor of king's color, and the green is the head of the color, which is the first color of the Orient
Questioning Name: Questioning Name means that a man's manhood is the result of a man's marriage to his wife. Name: asking for the name means that the male family asks the female family about the name of their daughter and the eight signs of the hour. If the female family accepts the male family's proposal of marriage, they will give the name of their daughter and the eight signs of the hour to the male family and put them in front of the gods or ancestors to divine the good or bad luck, and then decide to marry the female family's daughter if there is a good omen in the prediction.
Naji: Naji, that is to say, over Wen Ding, a little bit like the Westerner's betrothal, this is in fact the marriage has been initially agreed.
NaZheng: NaZheng, that is, to pass the big gift; "Na" is the meaning of hiring money, and "zheng" is the meaning of "into", that is to say, the man's family needs to pay the hiring gift before the marriage is completed. This means that the man's family needs to pay the bride price before the marriage can be consummated. During the ceremony, the man's family will invite two or four female relatives (who must be fully blessed) and a matchmaker to the woman's home with the bride price, gift money, and bride price; after the completion of the ceremony of bride price, the marriage contract will be formalized.
Please date: "Please date" means to "choose an auspicious date" for the marriage. The man's family chooses an auspicious date for the marriage and prepares a book on the auspicious date of the marriage and gifts for the woman's family, who accepts and agrees to the date of the marriage.
Personal welcome: The bridegroom will go to the bride's home with the matchmaker and friends and relatives to welcome the bride on the day of the wedding. Before the groom goes to the woman's home, he will first pay his respects at the ancestral temple of the woman's home, and then take the bride back to the man's home in a sedan chair. The bride and groom will then hold a ceremony at the man's house to worship heaven, earth and ancestors before being sent to the bridal chamber.
Exchanging genealogical records
Exchanging genealogical records is the exchange of genealogical records between the man's family and the woman's family as a proof of betrothal. After the matchmaker proposes a marriage, if the man's and woman's dates do not conflict with each other, the two sides will exchange their genealogies.
Wending
The man's family will choose an auspicious day and bring some gifts to the woman's family, which are usually three sacrifices, wine, etc., and formally present a letter of engagement.
The ceremony of "passing through the ceremony"
After the "passing through the ceremony" is held, the ceremony of "passing through the ceremony" will be held, which is the most solemn and important ceremony of the betrothal; because after this ceremony, it is as if the marriage contract has been formally established. As with the "Wending" ceremony, the man's family will choose an auspicious day and bring the bride price and various gifts to the woman's home, while the woman's family will also prepare gifts in return. Here are the gifts for both the man and the woman:
Gifts for the man's family
The gifts below are all even-numbered in order to symbolize "good things come in pairs," and the types of gifts vary according to the customs of each region.
The bride price: This is a token of the man's recognition and gratitude to the woman's parents for their daughter's upbringing.
Bride money: one quan (50 kilograms)
Seafood: four, six, or eight types, depending on the financial situation of the man's family. Each style is usually divided into two packages. Among them, hairy vegetable is a must for its meaning of wealth, while other seafood includes abalone, dried oysters, dried scallops, mushrooms, shrimp, squid, sea cucumber, shark's fin and fish maw.
Three animals: two pairs of chickens, two males and two females (if the parents are incomplete, then a pair is sufficient); pork three to five pounds of double fly (hi only fly), that is, a piece of connected to open the two, in order to show fruitful and sincere respect.
Fish: big fish or pangolins; meaning fishy; also means a lot of money in the year.
Coconut: two pairs (one pair for incomplete parents), meaning that there is a master (coconut) and a son.
Wine: four sticks, meaning love is strong.
Si Jing Guo: Dried longan, dried lychee, dried peach and peanuts in shell, to bless the prosperity of children and grandchildren, and also implies the meaning of complete happiness and endless life.
Sheng Guo: it means to be born alive
Four Colors of Sugar: it means icing sugar, orange cake, winter melon sugar and golden prickly pear, which means the elephant is sweet and dense, and the meaning of white head to old age.
Tea and sesame: Because seeds are necessary to grow tea, tea is used as a gift, implying that once a woman concludes a marriage contract, she must keep her word and never regret it, i.e., the "oil and sesame tea ceremony".
The post box (gift box): inside the lotus seeds, lilies, green wisps, cypress, betel nut two pairs, sesame, red beans, mung beans, red dates, dried peach, dried longan, as well as the red head rope, Li Shi, hiring gold, decorative gold, dragon and phoenix candles and a couplet
Incense gun bracelet gold: incense (boneless foot green), gun (big firecrackers and big firecrackers), bracelet (dragon and phoenix pair of happy bracelet).
Dou two rice: the male party to prepare twelve pounds of glutinous rice, three pounds of sugar, this is for the female family to do the dumplings, in order to take it to the fullest, sweet and full of meaning.
Gifts for the woman's family
Half of the gifts for the man's family or a number of tea leaves
Fruits
Lotus root, taro, pomegranate (a pair of each)
Helvet scarf
Long pants: that means a long life of wealth
Shoes (a pair of): that is, together with the (shoes) to old age
Benber, ginger, tea decoction stacks, muffins
The bride price
Benber, ginger, tea decoction stacks, muffins
The bride price
Benber, ginger, tea decoction stacks, muffins
Returning the bride price
Betel nut (receive one and return the rest to the man's family): it means that a man will live to a ripe old age
Setting up the bed
After choosing an auspicious date, the "man of luck" will move the new bed to the appropriate position a few days before the wedding. The location should be determined by the eight characters of the man and the woman, as well as the position of the gods, and the bed should not be placed in a position where it is opposite to the sharp corners of tables, cabinets and cupboards.
Then, a "grandchildren's lady" will be responsible for making the bed, and setting out various kinds of happy fruits, dried lychees, red and green beans, and lai sees.
After the bed is made, it is forbidden to let oneself or other adults sit or lie on it, especially for widows and the widowed; however, babies can be allowed to play on the bed first, which is a sign of adding to the family's wealth.
Dowry
The dowry must be delivered to the man's house at least one day before the wedding. The amount of dowry symbolizes the status and wealth of the woman's family. In addition to jewelry, the dowry is mainly auspicious:
Butterflies: scissors
Sweetness: sugar
Flower: vase
Fruitfulness: seventy-two sets of clothes
Crying for the marriage
According to the Book of Rituals, "Confucius said, "The family of the marrying woman will not rest the candle for three nights, thinking of the daughter's family, and will not stop for three nights. Three nights without resting the candle, thinking of separation."
Crying for marriage may be something difficult to understand today; however, in ancient times, because transportation was not as convenient as in modern times, it was difficult for daughters to have the opportunity to see their families after they were married off.
And in fact, it was not always possible for a woman to return to her mother's home to visit her family, as is the case today; returning to her mother's home required the approval of her husband's family.
There is also a theory that the weeping marriages originated from the fact that women could not have free marriages in ancient times, so they would use the songs of weeping marriages to accuse the unfair marriage system in ancient times.
Top
In ancient times, men performed the "crown rite" at the age of 20, indicating that they had reached adulthood. A woman who reached adulthood at the age of fourteen had her "marriageable age" (及笄禮). The ceremony is a symbol of the age of marriage. So the rite of passage is inextricably linked to weddings.
After the wedding, the woman needs to change her hair style to show that she is no longer a girl, but a bride to be married. The "top of the head" is not just the hair being combed and bunned, but the entire head being dressed, and the face being opened and the eyebrows drawn, and the fat and powder applied.
"Open face" refers to the use of fine fluff to remove the bride's sweaty face, so that the face is more polished.
"Hair combing" is a very elaborate ceremony. Comb hair to use a new comb, to help "on the head" of the person must be "full of blessings" (commonly known as "good life" and "good life woman"), that is, "good life" and "good life woman".
In addition to the above, the person must be a "full-blooded person" (commonly known as "good life man" and "good life woman"), that is, he or she is a person who has all six relatives and a full family.
Additionally, the mother's family will host a banquet and invite guests, and the grandness of the ceremony can be seen here.
"Good fortune" and "good fortune woman" for the bride and groom to comb the hair, one side comb, one side said:
A comb comb to the end, two comb comb to gray hair eyebrows, three comb comb to children and grandchildren all over the ground, four comb comb comb to the four silver bamboo shoots to all standard Qi
Covered head
The family will also hold a banquet and invite guests, "on the head" is also seen here.
The bride is usually covered with a square red scarf three feet long on one side of the head, which is called the red scarf called "cover scarf", commonly known as cover head.
There are two ways to describe the custom of covering the head: one is to say that the head is to cover up shame; the other is to say that it originated from the ancient marriage of plunder, which means that the bride can never find her way back after covering her head.
Going out
Going out means that the bride leaves her mother's house. When the auspicious time is reached, the woman must be carried by the eldest sister of the truth to the palanquin; it is said that the bride will bring bad luck if she lands on her feet.
When leaving the house, the bride's sister-in-law is not allowed to see her off, because the character for "sister-in-law" has the same sound as the character for "broomstick", so it is believed that seeing the sister-in-law off on her way out of the house will bring bad luck.
Nowadays, when the bride leaves the house, the bridesmaids (who accompany the bride to the man's house and must be unmarried) hold red umbrellas to protect the bride, in the sense of spreading the leaves of the family. As the bride and her sisters walk, they scatter rice in the air, on top of the umbrella and on top of the float to "feed the golden chickens," meaning that the chickens will not peck at the bride after pecking at the rice. Finally, before boarding the float, the bride bows to her friends and relatives to show her appreciation.
Welcome the bride
In ancient times, the man had to welcome the bride. The "welcome of the bride" was the most solemn of the six rites of passage. Without the groom to meet the bridegroom, there would be no bride to get married. In ancient times, there are on foot, there is also a car, the more common is to use the eight sedan chair to meet the bride.
The sedan chair people must be physically strong, meet other people's sedan chair, absolutely can not meet with them, must go around. Welcome back, but also the most a road back, to take the meaning of not going back. If the way through the temple, shrine, grave, well, river, etc., must be married by the man's hand Zhang red felt will sedan chair cover, as "avoid evil" meaning.
If you meet a funeral procession on the way, the person welcoming the bride will say, "Today is auspicious, meet the treasure wealth! Why is this so? Is it a treasure to meet a funeral procession? In fact, this is because the coffin of the harmonic for "Guan Cai", that is, to see the meaning of the treasure, this is said mainly for the sake of good luck.
Crossing the threshold
Crossing the threshold means that the bride goes out from the woman's house and then formally enters the man's house to pay her respects to her aunt and the other elders of the man's family.
Legend has it that the aunt is not allowed to see the bride and groom directly in the hall, as this would be a clash. So when the woman enters the man's house, the aunt will come out from her room to meet the new couple in the hall.
Then the bride and groom will pay homage to heaven and earth first, and then to their ancestors. The bride and groom will offer tea and kneel down to the Weng Gu. The aunt will say some blessings and give jewelry and gifts to the bride. The bride is required to wear the jewelry immediately after receiving it as a token of appreciation. Then the bride and groom will offer tea to other elders and relatives.
Waiving
Waiving, also known as "worshiping heaven and earth," is a very important ceremony in a wedding. Interestingly, the "worship" is not part of the ancient rituals of the "three books and six rites".
The custom was popularized after the Song Dynasty, when the woman officially became a member of the man's family.
In fact, worshiping heaven and earth represents honoring the gods of heaven and earth; while worshiping the high hall is the embodiment of filial piety; and as for husband and wife worshiping, it represents that husband and wife respect each other as guests. To a certain extent, conjugal worship was one of the few times in ancient times when women could be put on the same footing as men.
Homecoming, is to return to the bride's home to parents to report the meaning of peace. In ancient times, transportation was not as convenient as in modern times, so if a woman's husband's family was far away from her mother's family, she might not have the chance to return to her mother's family after she was married to her husband's family, according to the so-called "marrying from husband".
So the return may be the last chance for a woman to set foot in her mother's home. Because of this, people attach great importance to this wedding custom.
In a modern wedding, the man's family needs to prepare: a roasted pig (to show the bride's chastity)
two boxes of biscuits
a pair of wines
two sticks of bamboo canes (for a high level of success)
a pair of chickens
lettuce (for a good start)
two baskets of fruits
onions (for a good start)
two boxes of noodles
a couple of boxes of Chinese noodles
a pair of Chinese noodles
a pair of Chinese noodles
Chicken and lantern gold
Pork belly and pork, two catties each
Dress code for the newlyweds
The groom wears the Scholar's robe, and the bride is clad in the cape of a phoenix.
Wedding attire in the Zhou system
The Scholar's Robe is a variation of the red Ninth Grade official's uniform, and the hat is an ocelot with a palace flower.
The phoenix crown is decorated with a model of a phoenix in silver or other textures, and the cape is a red shawl. Generally, the bride wears a red silk jacket and pants, and embroidered shoes with auspicious designs such as mandarin ducks, plum blossoms, and lotus flowers.
Chinese clothing can be ordered or rented from dress stores, and Chinese clothing can also be booked for wedding photo shoots at studios, some of which will borrow wedding day clothing free of charge for the shooting suite.
Necessary props
Chinese wedding props
1, sedan chair: sedan chair as the core part of the traditional wedding is popular from the Southern Song Dynasty. It is divided into four people carry, eight people carry two kinds, and there are dragon sedan chair, phoenix sedan chair points. Sedan chair body red mantle Cui cover, above the insertion of dragons and phoenixes, the four corners of the silk spikes hanging. Rich people marrying for five sedan chair, sedan chair three times, marrying to go on the way to the female bride sitting in a ride, the rest of the two rides by the pressure sedan chair boy sitting; bride back to the bride, welcome the bride, send the bride to sit in a ride, there are two blue sedan chair, with blue tweed around the cover, the top of the insertion of the copper roof, by the bridegroom, groomsmen to sit in a ride.
2, flag and gong umbrella fan: it is located in the welcoming team, before the flowers, can make the whole ceremony to welcome the bride lively, spectacular.
3, firecrackers: welcome wedding car on the way, should firecrackers all the way to celebrate.
4, cape: marrying a daughter's family, rich or poor on the wedding clothes are very elaborate. Wearing a red jacket, foot embroidered shoes, waist tassel belt, under an embroidered skirt, wearing a pom-pom, beads, jade pendants and other decorations connected to the weaving of the "phoenix crown", and then draped over the shoulders of a variety of embroidered auspicious patterns of brocade - "cape". "
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5, cover the head: in ancient times, the bride with the cape at the same time with a red cloth cover the head, in order to cover shame and evil spirits, the red take the meaning of good luck.
6, saddle: "saddle" and "safe" homophone, take its "peace" long meaning. More on the threshold of the bridal chamber, said the bride across the saddle, a lifetime of peace. When the bride's front foot into the threshold, the back foot lift has not yet fallen when, at this time by the parents, under the children of the whole person to the saddle off, just in line with the "strong women do not marry two husbands, a good horse does not match the double saddle," the meaning of.
7, the fire bowl: it is placed at the gate of a pot of fire, so that the bride to step over, meaning that the days after the wedding red-hot.
8, heaven and earth table: placed in the courtyard, the table enlarged bucket, ruler, scissors, mirrors, abacus and scales, known as the "six evidence". Meaning: you can know how much food in the house, how much cloth, good or bad clothes, how to look, whether the accounts are clear, things light and heavy. Folk often have only "three media (matchmaker) six certificates" are complete, only that the new marriage is reasonable and legal. Waiting for the wedding ceremony held at an auspicious time, commonly known as "worship of heaven and earth", presided over by the Master of Ceremonies, a worship of heaven and earth, two worship hall, three is the husband and wife to worship.
9, scale culm: into the bridal chamber, the groom with a scale culm to pick off the bride's red head, meaning that the "heart as you wish".
10, flower candles: in the wedding ceremony, the use of large red pairs of candles, lit in the hall and the bridal chamber. Because of its more gold and silver dragons on the colorful decorations, it is called "flower candles.