Chapter 32 Section 7 Double Ninth Festival

The ninth day of the ninth month in the lunar calendar is the Double Ninth Festival, also known as Chongyang Festival, Shangjiu, Climbing Festival, and Yangshu Festival.The ancients used nine as the number of yang, and the two nines are the same as "Chongjiu".Because "Jiujiu" and "Jiujiu" have the same pronunciation, the ancients believed that this is an auspicious day worth celebrating.The activities of the Double Ninth Festival are also relatively rich, including climbing high, appreciating chrysanthemums, eating chrysanthemum cakes, drinking chrysanthemum wine, planting dogwood and so on.

Regarding the origin of the Double Ninth Festival, it is generally based on the "Continued Qi Harmony" cited in the third and fourth volumes of "Sui Shi Guang Ji" by Chen Yuanliang in the Song Dynasty. related.However, according to the research of contemporary scholars, "the Double Ninth Festival seems to have its origin in the worship of heaven and earth in ancient times."Climbing high on the Double Ninth Festival originally evolved from the custom of the ancients climbing up to the high ground after hunting, riding and shooting, celebrating with banquets and drinking, and worshiping the sky.The implication of ascending is that the closer you are to the sky, the more sincere your worship will be.

Since about the Han Dynasty, the Double Ninth Festival has gradually become popular.During the Wei and Jin Dynasties, the Double Ninth Festival was given the theme of "longevity". "Xijing Miscellaneous Notes" records: "On September 9, wearing dogwood, eating bait (that is, Chongyang flower cake), and drinking chrysanthemum wine, the cloud will make people live longer." Cao Pi also said in "Nine Days and Zhongyou Book": "Sui Zhi The month came, and suddenly September 9th came. Nine is a yang number, and the sun and the moon are in harmony. It is popularly known as it is suitable for a long time, so it is used to have a feast." It also mentioned the long-lived old man in ancient legends as an example. Peng Zu.Until the Song Dynasty, when people ate flower cakes on the Double Ninth Festival, they still put a piece of cake on the head of the child, praying that "all things are high".

Since the Yuan and Ming Dynasties, the Taoist saying that the Double Ninth Flower Cake and Chrysanthemum Wine can avoid bad luck has gradually had a certain impact, so the Double Ninth Festival has added the meaning of "auspiciousness".In the Qing Dynasty, hawkers who sold Chongyang cakes wore auspicious characters on their heads and pushed carts along the street to sell them.The Chongyang flower cake is exquisitely made and has auspicious meanings. It became an indispensable seasonal gift for relatives and friends to give each other and enhance friendship.As Pan Rongbi of the Qing Dynasty said in "Ji Sheng at the Age of Emperor Beijing": "Flower cakes in the Double Ninth Festival of the capital are extremely good. There are oil and candy stoves, those who steam dough and fruit, and those who mash glutinous rice and yellow rice, all of which are cut into five colors. The colorful flags are used as a sign. People in the city compete to buy them for their families and relatives and friends.” Chrysanthemum wine is a brewed wine with medical effects. "Xijing Miscellaneous Notes" records that the brewing method is: "When the chrysanthemums are relaxed, the stems and leaves are picked, mixed with millet and rice to make it, and it will be ripe on September 9 of the next year, and you will drink it, so it is called chrysanthemum wine." During the period, a variety of Chinese herbal medicines were added to the chrysanthemum wine, which had the curative effect of "curing head wind, improving ears and eyes, removing impotence and numbness, and eliminating all diseases" ().It can be seen from the above that both Chongyang cake and chrysanthemum wine are good food products in ancient times.Therefore, it has been circulated for a long time and is still popular today.

In addition, in ancient times, on the Double Ninth Festival, there was also the custom of taking a married daughter back to her natal home for the festival.If the daughter cannot return to her natal family, "the mother will criticize [gouge], the daughter will complain, and the younger sister will cry" ("Scenery of the Imperial Capital"), and the whole family will lose the joy of the festival.Therefore, some places call the Double Ninth Festival "Daughter's Day".