What are the customs of Xiaoshu? What are the forgotten customs and legends of Xiaoshu?

The Lesser Heat solar term of 2017 is coming soon. Are there any customs and activities during the Lesser Heat? Are there any folk legends about Lesser Heat? Next, let’s take a look at the customs and legends about Lesser Heat.

What are the customs of Xiaoshu?

1. Tianfu Festival: According to historical records, the Tianfu Festival is on the sixth day of June around the beginning of the Lesser Heat. “Feng” means “gift”, which means the festival given by heaven. This is because the emperors of the Song Dynasty gave "ice noodles" and "fried noodles" to their subjects during the dog days of summer, so it was called Tianfu Festival.

2. Worshiping the God of Grains: It is said that in some places there is a custom of worshipping the God of Grains, and the purpose is the same as worshipping the heaven and the earth. This reflects our ancestors' fine tradition of gratitude: a good harvest is certainly the result of their own hard work, but it is also made possible by the favorable weather conditions of nature and the blessings of their ancestors.

3. Drying books, paintings and clothes: On the day of Lesser Heat, temples will dry scriptures and religious instruments, while ordinary people will dry books and clothes and so on. There is a folk saying that goes, "On June 6th, people dry their clothes and dragons dry their robes" and "On June 6th, every family dry red and green." "Red and green" refers to all kinds of colorful clothes.

4. Tasting New Food during Lesser Heat: On this day, people will taste the latest harvest of grains and hold a series of important sacrificial ceremonies to express their gratitude to nature and their ancestors. It is said that "eating new food" means "eating spicy food", and it is the first spicy day after the Lesser Heat Festival. Therefore, there is a saying among the people that millet should be eaten during the Lesser Heat and grain should be eaten during the Greater Heat.

5. Improve the diet of cattle: In Shandong area, there is a custom of cooking wheat kernel soup for cattle on the dog days. It is said that cattle will be strong, able to work and not sweat after drinking it. Folk song: Spring ox whip, licking bull, wheat kernel soup, licking cow rice, licking cow and not sweating, and it will happen again in June.