Why do people drink chrysanthemum wine on Double Ninth Festival? The different opinions on the custom of drinking chrysanthemum wine

Why do we drink chrysanthemum wine on Double Ninth Festival? Drinking chrysanthemum wine on the Double Ninth Festival is an important custom in ancient my country. Next, let’s take a look at the relevant content about drinking chrysanthemum wine on the Double Ninth Festival.

Why do we drink chrysanthemum wine on Double Ninth Festival?

Popular folk customs

The Double Ninth Festival is when chrysanthemums are in full bloom. Drinking chrysanthemum wine on the Double Ninth Festival was also a popular folk custom in ancient times. Jiujiu is homophonic with "long", which means "long" and "wine", hence the saying that Jiujiu should drink chrysanthemum wine. There are many different opinions about the origin of chrysanthemum wine. One theory is that it originated in ancient times and was created by Du Kang, while another theory is that it originated in the early Han Dynasty and originated from the palace. But no matter which statement is true, it was Tao Yuanming of the Jin Dynasty who closely linked chrysanthemum and wine, gave them cultural connotations, and had a far-reaching influence. Tao Yuanming is famous for his seclusion, his poetry, his wine, and his love of chrysanthemums; later generations followed his example, and thus the custom of drinking chrysanthemum wine and appreciating chrysanthemums on Double Ninth Festival was formed.

The status of chrysanthemum wine

"Continued Records of the Strange Things in the Western Han Dynasty" says that Huan Jing of the Eastern Han Dynasty studied Taoism with Fei Changfang for many years. One day, Fei Changfang told Huan Jing that on September 9th, a disaster would happen to his family. He should rush back home and ask everyone in the family to make a bag filled with dogwood and tie it on their arms, then go up to a high place and drink chrysanthemum wine to ward off disaster and avoid disaster. Huan Jing followed his advice, and his whole family was spared from the epidemic. This almost mythical story reflects people's earnest desire to avoid plague and seek health, and also illustrates the status of chrysanthemum wine in the hearts of ancient people.

What is Chrysanthemum Wine

What kind of wine is the chrysanthemum wine that the ancients drank? One theory is that the wine made from chrysanthemum is called "chrysanthemum wine". Another way of saying it is that all the newly brewed wine on the Double Ninth Festival is called "chrysanthemum wine" because this festival is the season when chrysanthemums are in full bloom. It seems that as long as the wine is brewed on the Double Ninth Festival, its raw material does not necessarily have to be chrysanthemum. Wines brewed from other grains such as rice, wheat, and sorghum can all be called "chrysanthemum wine." By analogy, the Double Ninth Festival banquet can also be called the "Chrysanthemum Banquet". However, most people say that only wine brewed with chrysanthemums can be called chrysanthemum wine. Gao Lian's "Zunsheng Bajian" describes the method of brewing chrysanthemum wine as follows: "Chrysanthemum wine, pick sweet chrysanthemums in October, remove the stems, and only take two pounds of flowers, select the clean ones and put them into the mash (uncured wine) and stir them evenly. If you squeeze it the next morning, it will taste fragrant and refreshing."