In Huaibei, the first day of October on the lunar calendar is the Ghost Festival, which is also a festival for remembering ancestors.
[Tomb Sweeping]
Farming has been completed, the grain to the warehouse, the weather has been gradually cold, people miss their deceased relatives, to add the cold clothes, usually cut and paste the paper into a winter coat, buy some paper money, paper money, paper, and so on, to the ancestral graves before the burned and bowed and prayed for, in order to show filial piety. Yixian County, South Anhui Province, around this day, has been married to the girl to go back to her mother's home for the deceased relatives to burn money and paper. There is a folk saying: "Ching Ming burn before, after October 1 burn". October 1 of the lunar calendar to start sweeping graves, until October 15, the next Yuan Festival. Therefore, it is said that "after burning". In some places, this day, but also to the ancestral temple incense burning ancestor.
[Out of the meeting]
Yixian County in southern Anhui Province, there are "out of the meeting" of the folklore. The "meeting" is dominated by the "local god" (White Impermanence). From September 1, to the county south gate Zhou, Hou and other surnames of the "Lohan sweep the streets" began. Then is the South Gate head of the "local god" (White Impermanence King) night patrols, daytime every three, five, eight, ten days "local god" are to enter the city parade. Until the first day of October, the townships "local gods" all concentrated in the city "out of the meeting". In addition to the "local god" on the "meeting" to sing the main role, there are still performances "total armor", "medium difference", "Lohan", which is performed in the form of cultural theater on stilts. Four villages of able-bodied young men also perform "throwing fork" and other martial arts.
Second, October half
October 15 of the lunar calendar, also known as the "October Chao", known as the "Festival of the lower yuan", but also the worship of the ancestors of the festival. This day focuses on paying tribute to distant ancestors without a master, burning paper and incense. Some places, but also invited Taoist priests to do an hour of magic, set up incense, lighting candles and incense, ringing the bell and chanting, sprinkle tea leaves. It is called "stopping the door relief".
Third, to celebrate the harvest
October of the lunar calendar has been the end of farming, the masses of rural areas and towns around the western Anhui Province, in order to celebrate the harvest, often according to the natural village (or joint several villages), the street, to engage in a number of recreational activities, both to pay the gods and self-entertainment.
[Peace Club]
Simply "do peace", once a year or once every two years, the funds raised by the masses by household, more money is called "correct the head", less money is called "the faithful The funds are raised by the masses on a household basis, and those who contribute more money are called "head of correction", those who contribute less money are called "believers", and those who contribute the least money are called "attached incense". "Ping An Hui" is generally three days, there are as many as four or five days. All the activities are performed by Taoist priests or monks, with a wide variety of names, such as "fetching water", "placing swans", "releasing river lamps", "burning river lamps", and "burning incense". "Candle Burning", "Running Square", "Ringing", "Pushing Gourd", and so on. There are 70 to 80 programs and activities. There are superstitious legends about karma and retribution of gods and ghosts, as well as folk singing, dancing, martial arts and other entertaining activities. When the "Peaceful Meeting" was held, people from far away collectively came to watch it, and the meeting place was very lively.
[Singing community theater]
Mainly invited folk opera troupe singing Beijing opera or local opera, the time is generally three days and three nights, "Singing community theater to pay God". To build two platforms in the square, one platform is for actors and actresses to perform, and one platform is to set up a variety of idols, is the "invitation to the gods to watch the play" of the God stage. Singing social theater has its own unique rules, that is, the first play the stage, followed by jumping God, namely, "Heavenly Officials Provide Blessings", "jumping God of Fortune", "jumping Kuixing", these are mute dances. Then is out of a "big blessing", that is, raw, Dan, net, ugly, the end of all the actors and actresses Qi disguise on the stage, singing in unison high voice blessing. Finally, the official program, before the end of the two additional "end of the play". This kind of rural recreational activities after the fall harvest, the masses from near and far rushed to watch the play, both to celebrate the harvest, but also after the rest and enjoyment of labor.
Fourth, the winter solstice festival
"Winter Solstice" comes the day, where the larger clans, all in the winter solstice festival day in the ancestral ancestral ancestral hall, in front of the ancestral tablets on the chicken, meat, fish, fruits, pastries and other kinds of offerings, by the clan in the elderly elders officiating and Ren "ritual life". The elderly elders of the clan will officiate and serve as "rites of passage". After the ceremony, a meal is held in the ancestral hall. Those who attend the meal in the clan are old men who have passed the age of majority, the head of the clan, the head of the house, and scholars, etc., which is called the "Winter Solstice Festival". The general family should also do a few meat dishes at noon to add a meal. Some places, in the early morning of the winter solstice, the masses are to eat pumpkin, pumpkin poop, fried eggs. Elderly people in order to prevent cold, in the winter solstice drinking sesame oil