How many years of history does the Spring Equinox egg-standing have? When did the Spring Equinox egg-standing originate?

On the day of the Spring Equinox, there is a custom of standing eggs upright in many places in my country. What this means is to put a fresh raw egg on the table and then carefully stand it upright. In addition to standing eggs upright on the Spring Equinox, some people also like to play the game of standing eggs upright. So, how long does the tradition of standing eggs upright during the Spring Equinox have?

How long has the tradition of standing eggs on the spring equinox been around?

The tradition of standing eggs upright during the Spring Equinox has a history of more than 4,000 years. The Spring Equinox Egg Standing Game, also known as the Spring Equinox Egg Standing Game, refers to the "egg standing game" popular among the people in various places on the Spring Equinox day every year. This Chinese custom has long been spread abroad and has become a "world game." 4,000 years ago, the ancestors of the Chinese nation began to use this to celebrate the arrival of spring, and the saying "When the spring equinox arrives, the eggs will be prettier" has been passed down to this day.

The origin of the spring equinox egg

As early as 4,000 years ago, China had the tradition of standing eggs on the Spring Equinox to celebrate the arrival of spring. Some say that standing an egg on top of another has nothing to do with the Spring Equinox. According to ancient legend, it is easiest to stand an egg upright on the Spring Equinox. According to historical records, the tradition of standing eggs on the Spring Equinox originated in China 4,000 years ago to celebrate the arrival of spring.

Why do we stand eggs upright on the Spring Equinox?

It is said that the Spring Equinox is in the middle of spring, when it is neither too cold nor too hot, with red flowers and green grass. People feel relaxed, their minds are quick, their movements are agile, and it is easy to successfully stand an egg upright. In spring, the earth warms up and all things grow. "Standing an egg" not only means standing an egg upright, but also means "immediately" and "adding a child", which means people pray for a prosperous family and inheritance from generation to generation.

Interesting folk customs during the Spring Equinox

1. Fun of standing eggs

On the vernal equinox every year, tens of millions of people around the world will do the "egg standing up" experiment. It is still difficult to verify how this game, which is called a "Chinese custom", became a "world game". However, the gameplay is simple, easy and fun: choose a smooth and symmetrical fresh egg that has been laid just four or five days ago, and gently stand it upright on the table. Although there are many failures, there are also many successes. The Spring Equinox becomes the best time to play the egg-standing game, hence the saying "When the Spring Equinox comes, the eggs are pretty." The upright egg looks so beautiful.

2. Eat spring vegetables

The Xie family in Cangcheng Town, Kaiping, one of the former Four Counties (including Heshan as the Five Counties), had a custom that was not a festival, called "eating spring vegetables on the Spring Equinox". "Spring vegetable" is a kind of wild amaranth, which the locals call "Spring Green Artemisia". On the day of the Spring Equinox, the whole village goes to pick spring vegetables. When searching in the fields, most of the plants you see are light green, thin, about the length of a palm. The harvested spring vegetables are usually boiled with fish fillets in a soup called "spring soup". There is a saying that goes: "Spring soup cleanses the internal organs and washes the liver and intestines. The whole family, young and old, is safe and healthy." Since spring, people pray for peace at home and good health.

3. Sending Spring Ox

The Spring Equinox is about to arrive, and people will send pictures of the Spring Ox to every household. The picture is made of red or yellow paper with the lunar calendar dates of the whole year printed on it, as well as a picture of a farmer plowing the fields. It is called the "Spring Ox Picture". The people who sent the pictures were all folk singers who were good at speaking. They mainly talked about spring ploughing and auspiciousness in accordance with the farming season. Every time they went to a house, they would be inspired by the scene and say whatever they saw, until the owner was happy and gave them money. Although the words come out casually, every sentence is rhythmic and pleasant to the ear. Commonly known as "Shuochun", people who talk about spring are called "Chunguan".

4. Sticky bird mouth

On the day of the Spring Equinox, farmers have a holiday according to custom. Every family eats rice dumplings, and they also cook a dozen or twenty or thirty rice dumplings without fillings, stick them with thin bamboo forks and place them on the edge of the field outdoors. This is called "catching the sparrows' beaks" to prevent them from destroying the crops.

5. Kite flying folk custom

The spring equinox is also a great time for kids to fly kites. Especially on the day of the Spring Equinox. Even the adults get involved. There are many types of kites, including the Wang-shaped kite, the silver carp kite, the squinting moth kite, the thunder worm kite, and the moonlight kite. The biggest ones are two meters high, and the smallest ones are two or three feet high. There are kites for sale in the market, most of which are relatively small and suitable for children to play with, but most are made by themselves and are larger. When flying them, people compete with each other to see who can fly the highest.

6. Spring Festival

On the Spring Equinox in February, people start sweeping tombs and worshipping ancestors, also known as the Spring Festival. Before tomb sweeping, a grand ceremony of ancestor worship is held in the ancestral hall, with pigs and sheep being slaughtered, drummers playing music, ritual students reading sacrificial texts, and leading the three offerings ceremony. When tomb sweeping begins on the Spring Equinox, the first things people do are to sweep and offer sacrifices to the tombs of the founding ancestors and distant ancestors. The entire clan and the entire village are mobilized, and the procession is large, with often hundreds or even thousands of people. After sweeping the tombs of the founding ancestor and distant ancestors, each room will then sweep and offer sacrifices to the tombs of their ancestors, and finally each family will sweep and offer sacrifices to the family's private tomb. In most Hakka areas, spring ancestor worship and tomb sweeping begin at the Spring Equinox or earlier and are completed by Qingming Festival at the latest. There is a saying in various places that the tomb doors will be closed after Qingming Festival and the heroic spirits of the ancestors will no longer be able to benefit from it.

7. Worship God

Folk festivals around the Spring Equinox include the birthday of King Kaizhang on February 15th: King Kaizhang, also known as "King Chen", was a military scholar in the Tang Dynasty, Chen Yuanguang, who made great contributions to Zhangzhou and became the patron saint of Zhangzhou after his death. February 19th is the birthday of Guanyin Bodhisattva. On every birthday, many believers eat vegetarian food and go to various Guanyin temples to worship. February 25th is the Sanshan King Memorial Day: The Sanshan King refers to the mountain gods of Dushan, Mingshan and Jinshan in Jieyang County, Chaozhou Prefecture, Guangdong Province. In the early years, they were regarded as patron saints by Chaozhou Hakka immigrants, so their believers are mainly Hakka people.