The ancient festivals in China are very romantic. For example, people often use "Lunar New Year's Eve" to describe beautiful scenery and good times, while "Lunar New Year" refers to the Mid-Autumn Festival, then "Flower Festival" refers to the Flower Festival.
Flower Festival is actually a very famous traditional festival. On this day, people worship the goddess of flowers, enjoy flowers, gather people to have a feast and recite poems. Unfortunately, people's lives gradually faded out after the Qing Dynasty.
In the Tang Dynasty, the Flower Festival, as a formal statutory festival, fell on February 15, and was called the "Half Moon Festival" together with the fifteenth day of the first month and the fifteenth day of August. If we look at the word "half moon" together, it's ok. After all, people in the Tang Dynasty also liked it.
According to legend, during the Tianbao period of the Tang Dynasty, there was a Chu Shi named Cui Xuanwei in Luoyang, who was a real flower fan. There is a big garden in the suburb of Luoyang, where famous flowers and plants are planted everywhere. One night in February, a group of beautiful women suddenly came to the garden. Cui Xuanwei gave a banquet to entertain them. During the dinner, there was a bad feeling somehow, which annoyed Aunt Feng, so other beautiful women wanted to ask Cui to rescue them and told him how to do it. Cui Xuanwei listened to the instructions and tore the colored silks into strips and tied them to the flower branches at 5 am on February 12. Sure enough, a strong wind blew that day. Fortunately, the flower buds in Cui Jiayuan's son were protected by colored silks, and none of them were blown off. Cui Xuanwei realized that those beautiful women turned out to be hundred flowers fairies, and Aunt Feng was actually Aunt Feng. Later, hanging colorful flowers to protect flowers attracted people who love flowers to imitate each other and gradually became a custom. Colorful flowers and silks will be hung with branches at five o'clock in the morning, so it becomes a "flower dynasty". This story was first seen in "Zhenyang County Records" and later included in "Taiping Guangji", which is considered as the origin of the Flower Festival.
In fact, as early as the Spring and Autumn Period, the book Tao Zhugong recorded the "Flower Dynasty": "February 12 is the birthday of a hundred flowers, and if there is no rain, the flowers will be ripe." Since Baihua has a birthday, it has its own "Flower God" in charge of Baihua. Who is the flower god? According to Huainanzi, the flower god is a disciple of Mrs. Wei, a Taoist priest in Nanyue, saying that she is good at gardening, managing the sky and planting flowers. Then the flower festival has an extra layer of meaning to welcome the flower god.
The book "Local Conditions and Customs" written in the early Zhou Dynasty of the Southern Dynasties said: "Zhejiang customs say that spring is in the middle and flowers are in full bloom. It is a common saying in the world that it is time to enjoy the tour and spend it in the morning and evening. " In the middle of the spring sequence is the fifteenth day of the second lunar month. Flower Festival has become a popular festival in the court.
The feelings of China people and flowers are inseparable. In the works of literati, flowers represent a kind of spirit, which can be friends or relatives. Tang people love flowers, endow them with spirituality, and have a special liking for flowers.
According to legend, Wu Zetian is also fond of flowers. During the Flower Festival, she ordered the maid to collect flower cakes made of petals and rice and distribute them to ministers. In this way, eating flower cakes at the Flower Festival has become a custom and spread among the people.
Speaking of Wu Zetian and Baihua, there is also a story that the queen ordered a hundred flowers to blossom. One winter, Wu Zetian saw that only plum blossoms were blooming in the garden, and she felt quite bored. Then she wrote four more poems: "I swam to the Ming Garden to report my spring knowledge quickly. Flowers must be released overnight, don't wait for the breeze. " The maid-in-waiting was ordered to burn it immediately, and the flower god knew it. The next day, the flowers in the garden were out of season and opened in an orderly way.
This legend was later written by Li Ruzhen of the Qing Dynasty into The Edge of Mirror Flowers. The fourth time, "Singing snow poems, warming pavilions, gambling on wine, getting drunk and driving flowers back to the garden" is a story. It is said that the flower fairy happened to travel that day, and the flower fairy was leaderless, so she dared not offend Wu Zetian and had to open it one after another, thus breaking the dogma and being demoted to the world.
However, the fifth time in the book is more interesting. It is said that all the flowers are in full bloom under the authorization of the Queen, and only the peony flowers are in bud. The queen was furious, thinking that peony was the most intimate in her life, and peony was so ungrateful, so she was demoted to Luoyang. "So, the most prosperous peony in the world is only Luoyang."
This story is only the artistic creation of the novelist. In the real history of Huang Wu, it was not the pressure of the flower god, but the Queen's men who burned charcoal fire overnight to change the temperature difference and let the flowers open ahead of time. The Tang Dynasty was in the warm season in the history of China, and the palace was irrigated by hot spring water. It is easy to change the flowering period. Wu Zetian's violation of the seasonal opening order only shows the majesty of her imperial power, which seems to have nothing to do with loving flowers and protecting them. In folklore, Wu Zetian ascended the throne, which delayed the rain of the Dragon King or made the flowers bloom ahead of time. It can be seen that her position in the hearts of China people is like a demigod.
But it is true that Wu Zetian loves peony best. There used to be a saying that there is no peony in the world, and peony is grafted with peony, and it is Wu Zetian who decides peony. In the Tang Dynasty, the court loved exotic flowers and herbs. Besides Wu Zetian, Tang Muzong is also a "anthomaniac" who wants to sleep among flowers every day. If a minister gets a prize of exotic flowers and plants, he will carefully take them home to offer sacrifices.
In the court, people's love and protection of flowers became a trend, so the flower market in the Tang Dynasty was extremely prosperous. At that time, the flower market was already very big. It has become a custom to buy flowers, enjoy flowers and hairpin flowers. Those exotic flowers and plants, or exotic flowers and plants, all became luxuries in the Tang Dynasty.
Then people in the Tang Dynasty also had vanity and wanted to "show off their wealth". Unfortunately, there was no WeChat in Weibo at that time, and the Gaomen Courtyard could not be opened to the public casually. What should we do?
This has to mention Yang who climbed into the phase by nepotism. He is very good at playing. "Ten Legacies of Kaiyuan Tianbao" and "Moving Spring Threshold" record that every spring comes, Yang's children ask to plant famous flowers and trees in the threshold, with the board as the bottom and the wood as the wheel, which makes people lead the rotation. No matter where you go, the threshold is in front of you and you can see it. The purpose is to move the threshold of spring. This is estimated to be the first time that China has invested heavily in floats. At that time, around the Flower Festival, this float was full of famous flowers and trees, wandering in Chang 'an, showing that the Yang family was rich and expensive. Yang is the originator of showing off wealth.
"The Legacy of Kaiyuan Tianbao" also recorded the flower market in Chang 'an, saying: "Chang 'an harem, fighting flowers in spring, wearing flowers with many exotic flowers wins, all of which are planted in the courtyard with famous flowers in Qianjin City for the use of spring. "At that time, the most famous flower market was probably the Peony Flower Market in Chang 'an. Calculating the price mainly depends on the number of flowers, "burn a hundred flowers and press five bundles of vegetarian food". In addition to the quantity, it is also divided into high and low colors, that is, Laiwu, a poet in the Tang Dynasty, wrote that "the price of purple and red buds is different, and the fragrance is everywhere." If the literati did not exaggerate, at that time, a bunch of elegant flowers could cover the tax of ten middle-class families, and most people could not afford it at all.
Xiaojiabiyu went to the flower market to buy flowers, and everyone was waiting for the express delivery. In spring, women go to the streets to enjoy flowers, compare with their neighbors and put on a buyer's show and a seller's show. This girl is wearing a Wei Zi today, and that lady's nickname is "Yao Huang". "A woman who has been compared may go back and tell the maid bitterly that there is a family in the east of the city who got Er Qiao. Why didn't I? In other words, the flowers were delivered late today, which is much weaker than other homes. This is not bad, bad review!
? For women, when the flowers arrive, they can eat flower cakes and wear hairpin flowers to their heart's content. Flower Festival is an elegant festival for men.
"Tang Wen Ji" once recorded: "On the Lunar New Year's Eve, silk and bamboo accompany each other to chase happiness, entertain guests with a big banquet, and often go to weddings."
? Ancient literati gathered together, or drinking, or asking elegant words, or living in pop music, and they were happy. In Wang Xizhi's Preface to the Lanting Pavilion, there is a "Lanting Club", which leaves the story of Qushui (this will be pulled to the last section).
In the Tang Dynasty, Xue Yongwei's collection of novels also left a story of a poet's gathering.
? According to legend, three famous poets in the Tang Dynasty, Wang Zhihuan, Wang Changling and Gao Shi, met in a restaurant when they were studying in Luoyang, the eastern capital. At that time, they were all famous for their poems, but they were unlucky and had a hard career. Just as the three of them were chatting happily, suddenly a pear garden official led a dozen singers upstairs. They quickly hid in a corner and listened to them sing. Wang Changling said to the other two people, "We are all famous in the world at least, but we have never been neck and neck. Listen to their songs today. Whoever sings more poems is the best. " The other two agreed.
I heard the first singer sing: "Cold rain enters the river in the middle of the night in Wu, and it is clear that Chushan is lonely. If relatives and friends in Luoyang ask each other, a piece of ice heart is in the jade pot. " Wang Changling drew a line on the wall with his finger: "One of my quatrains." Then a singer sang, "I opened my eyes with tears the day before yesterday and saw your book." Why is the night station lonely? It is still a cloud house. Gao Shi also drew a line on the wall: "One of my quatrains." Another singer appeared: "The broom opens the golden palace, forcing the round fan to wander. ".Jade is not as beautiful as western Western jackdaw, but it still bears the shadow of Zhaoyang. Wang Changling stretched out his hand and drew the wall again and said, "Two quatrains."
At this time, Wang Zhihuan, who was on the side, felt a little embarrassed on his face and said to the two people around him, "I don't know the first few, but they all sing the songs that the chin beauty listens to." Pointing to the most beautiful and outstanding singer, he said, "When this girl sings in the future, if it is not my poem, I will not argue with you in my life. But if you sing my poems, you will all worship me as a teacher. " The three men then agreed.
After a while, the most beautiful girl began to sing. She sang, "The Yellow River is far above the white clouds. It is an isolated city, Wan Ren Mountain. Why bother to complain about the willow, the spring breeze is only Yumenguan. " Wang Zhihuan was so proud that he said to Wang Changling and Gao Shi, "What do you think? You two are from the village. Am I right? (Tian She slave! Am I ridiculous? ) "Say that finish three people burst out laughing.
This story is called "Flag Pavilion Painting the Wall", which is a short story of three poets getting together. The banquet of tall literati in the Tang Dynasty was the "apricot garden flower-exploring banquet".
"Apricot Garden" is an important entertainment place in the Tang Dynasty, which is famous for planting apricot trees all over the city. According to textual research, the imperial examination in the Tang Dynasty was just before Shangsi (the third day of the third lunar month) and almost after the Flower Festival. At that time, it was the time when "red flowers were in full bloom, snowflakes were falling, and the overlapping heights were covered with small gardens". In the same year, the Jinshi and the Jinshi will meet in the apricot garden, which is called the "Flower Exploration Banquet". This is a high-standard banquet. In addition to being number one, some senior intellectuals from North Korea and even the emperor will attend. The most interesting thing is that at the party, we will choose two "small fresh meat" from the guests present and ride horses around the famous flower beds in the city to explore and enjoy the flowers. If someone picks the famous flowers first, they will be fined when they come back. At this time, we have to talk about a person who is famous for "Flower Exploration Banquet". By the way, it is Meng Jiao who "enjoys the spring breeze and horseshoe disease, and sees all the Chang 'an flowers in one day". Someone once criticized his poems, saying that "horseshoe disease" has seen all the flowers in Chang 'an, but it is not just a cursory look. How to appreciate it? And Meng Jiao was driving for the exam, this spring breeze, this poem was written by him riding a horse at the flower viewing banquet. It is conceivable that Meng Jiao, as a "flower lover" at that time, must be handsome and riding in Chang 'an, and I don't know how many fans he attracted. Later, people called the third place of later scholars "exploring flowers", which is from this allusion.
Apricot blossoms are in full bloom, banquets are held, scholars sing together and cross horses to find flowers. It has become a big custom for scholars to get together for a flower party since the flower-exploring banquet in Xingyuan.
In the Song Dynasty, people's enthusiasm for flowers increased, and the flower show became more lively.
Since the Song Dynasty, Zanhua is not only a patent for women, but also a preference for men. Zhou Bangyan's "Rose" said: "Although there are few remnants of English, it is powerful. Finally, it is not like a flower. The head of the hairpin is shaking and leaning towards people. " Well, he also knows that it is not as beautiful as a lady's hairpin, but it is still very strong on the headscarf. It can be seen that men's hairpin flowers have become a habit in the Song Dynasty. However, men's hairpin flowers are also limited to literati. In the imagination, the literati wearing hairpin flowers in the Song Dynasty should all be elegant and handsome, with well-proportioned figures and no problem with their face value. If it were Li Kui jy, the black whirlwind, or Wu Da, the cookie seller, the picture would be too beautiful for me to watch.
In some places in the Song Dynasty, the flower dynasty was advanced to February 12th, or the second day of February. Compared with the Tang Dynasty, people in the Song Dynasty longed for spring. Because the flowering period varies from place to place, the flower festival in the north is still in February, while the flower festival in the south is on February 12. Like the Tang Dynasty, people celebrate the Flower Festival with many new contents besides hiking, flower viewing, horseback riding and gathering, such as "butterfly catching party" and "Lantern Festival".
Moreover, the Song Dynasty continued the habit of buying exotic flowers and herbs from overseas in the Tang Dynasty, and built more gardens for ornamental flowers. Every flower dynasty, emperors and ministers will enjoy it together. Song Huizong, a versatile senior intellectual leader, once wrote a poem describing the scene of enjoying flowers. "The calyx, huan rotten in court. Zero dew is drunk, and the sunset seems to melt. Dan Qing is difficult to write, and naturally there is merit alone. Dancing butterflies and chasing the evening breeze. "
Compared with the imperial palace, folk collection of exotic flowers and herbs has become a common practice.
"Dragon and Eight Branches" said that Duan Yu had strayed into the villa of Mrs. Wang, Wang Yuyan's mother. Mrs. Wang loves camellias very much and has shipped a lot of them from Dali to her villa. It's a pity that she doesn't know much about the varieties of camellia, and what she likes is also ridiculed by Duan Yu. But even so, for the sake of "treasure", she not only built a guardrail with Hetian jade, but also buried the living under the tea tree as flower fertilizer. When it was discovered that Duan Yu knew camellia, Mrs. Wang made an exception and let him stay in the house.
Although Jin Yong's novels are not history, we can still find some historical clues. If we dig deeper, we will find them very interesting. For example, in the above-mentioned paragraph, where is Mantuo Villa? Anyone who has read books knows that Duan Yu was kidnapped by Jiu to find him, and Mu Rongfu lived in Yanziwu, which was in Suzhou, so it is also called "Gusu Murong", and Nanmantuo Villa is also in Suzhou. Thanks to the continuous efforts of Duan Yu, Mrs. Wang and their descendants, by the Ming and Qing Dynasties, Suzhou had become the largest camellia production and planting base in China, and more than half of the residents were camellia growers. Therefore, flower farmers in Suzhou sacrifice camellia every February 12. During the Daoguang period of the Qing Dynasty, a flower temple was also built in Huqiu area. The significance of the Flower Festival has changed from an initial outing to a festival for flower farmers to worship and pray for the prosperity of camellia in the coming year.
In addition, when it comes to the Flower Dynasty, we have to talk about the book A Dream of Red Mansions, because the Flower Festival happens to be Lin Daiyu's birthday. The sixty-second time in the book, Baoyu's birthday, we know from the attack population that Daiyu's birthday is February 12. When Zuo Gong was writing A Dream of Red Mansions, he liked to associate characters with some coincidences. For example, xiren knew that Daiyu's birthday was February 12, because that day was also her birthday, and her surname happened to be Hua. Although Qingwen is not the birthday of Huachao, she looks like Daiyu Lin and is as affectionate as Sister Lin. Xue Baochai and Jia Mu are the same person, but Jia Baoyu saw in his dream that Baochai and Daiyu were together. If a man meets one of these four women in his life, he may have a charming feeling, but if he meets four women at once like Jia Baoyu, the test between choices is the man's own mind.
If you read a dream of red mansions carefully, you will find many interesting things. Redology scholars have always been curious about why Cao Gong moved everything he did at the Flower Festival to the Ear Seed Festival. For example, the girl was tied to a branch with colored thread, and the embroidered ribbons fluttered in the garden. When Baochai saw a pair of jade butterflies, she followed them with a fan until the fragrance was dripping with sweat and the breath was fine. Watching the Red and Flying Butterfly are both programs of the Flower Festival, but the novel takes place in the Mango Festival. Redologists have verified that Baoyu's birthday is in the Mango Festival. The book specifically points out that the Miscanthus Festival is the day when flowers wither and the god of flowers returns to his place. Perhaps this arrangement is also a hint to Tsao Gong. Baoyu is the flower sender of the Grand View Garden, and the festival of Mangcao Festival also represents the gradual decline of Jia's family from prosperity to decline.
And the scene related to flowers in A Dream of Red Mansions, I believe that what impressed everyone most was that Daiyu buried flowers. Daiyu is arranged as a flower god in the book, so she loves flowers more than others and cherishes them more. In the Flower Festival, while people appreciate beautiful flowers, it is inevitable that they will cherish the time and hurt the spring. From the elegant collection of literati in the Southern Song Dynasty to the sporadic poems written for the Flower Dynasty in the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China, the voice of hurting spring became more and more fierce, and the Flower Festival also declined.
In modern times, we still enjoy spring outing, and a tree still affects people's joys and sorrows. It can be seen that the spirit of loving flowers is engraved in the bones of every China person. The Flower Festival is no longer the same year, but flower viewing is still flourishing. Taking advantage of the beautiful scenery, it is better to make an appointment with three or two friends and walk together in the beautiful spring time.