英語雜志原文:Spring Festival Celebrations in Neixiang County

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By WANG XIAOJIE

THE Spring Festival marks the first day of the Chinese lunar calendar and is the most festive of all Chinese holidays. The origin of this festival can be traced back many centuries to ancient Chinese ceremonies of sacrifices and prayer rituals to usher in the new year. During the development and evolution of history， some of the customs became established and have been preserved to this day. New Year celebrations that were based on offering prayers and sacrifices to the heavens are rich in variety， such as letting go of the old and taking hold of the new， welcoming happiness， worshipping ancestors， and praying for abundant harvests， all of which create rich festive atmosphere and embody the essence of the Chinese traditional culture.

Back in the feudal society， county magistrates， the officials who faced the ordinary people directly and administered all aspects of government on behalf of the emperor at the local level， became extremely busy every year during the Spring Festival. In addition to observe the folk customs， they were also responsible for organizing major festive activities including ceremonies for announcing their office was closed or reopened， visiting the poor， plowing the field ceremonially， whipping the spring ox （made of clay and paper） for a good harvest， offering sacrifices， and his wife meeting the folks. All these activities actually became part of regularly observed rituals the county governments organized annually.

Neixiang County Government Office， located in Nanyang City， Henan Province， is a county-level government office complex of feudal China which has been kept most intact. It has survived the rise and fall of the Yuan （1271-1368）， Ming （1368-1644）， and Qing （1644-1911） dynasties， extending about 700 years， with most of the preserved architecture being built during the Qing Dynasty. With its unique， complete， artistic， and cultural features， it has been called a “l(fā)iving history.”

The government complex covers an area of 60，000 square meters， having 18 courtyards， 280 rooms， and around 1，000 preserved cultural artifacts. The buildings and cultural heritage represent various aspects of government operations at the primary level and living style of magistrates who lived during the era of Chinas feudal social structure. The area has become a valuable “historical database” for researching the society of ancient times， winning it the title， “unique historical specimen in China.”

The architectural design of the complex adheres to the building regulations recorded in the History of the Ming Dynasty and Law of the Qing Dynasty， with the magistrate office facing the south， civil officials seated on the magistrates left and military officials on the right， the front part serving as the court while the rear part being the residential area， and the prison located in the south. Its main hall， second hall， and third hall were modeled after the Hall of Supreme Harmony， Hall of Central Harmony， and Hall of Preserving Harmony — the three major halls of Beijings Forbidden City — respectively. These concepts propagated the idea of etiquette and the golden mean in ancient Chinese society. At the same time， the building complex， under the influence of its geographic location and of Zhang Bingtao， a native of southeast Chinas Zhejiang assigned by the Ministry of Works to take charge of the construction project， is a product of integrating the architectural styles from both the southern and northern sides of the Yangtze River， therefore， fully demonstrating the architectural artisanship of ancient Chinese working people.

Putting Away and Reusing Official Seals

According to the Qing Dynasty regulations， each level of feudal officials were to select an auspicious day between the 19th to 22nd day of the 12th lunar month every year to put away their official seals，signaling the stop of handling official affairs， as well as an auspicious day between the 19th to 21st of the first lunar month to reopen their seals， signaling the resumption of work in government offices. Both ceremonies were held in the main hall， to exhibit the seriousness of the management of official seals and the openness of their use， in addition to announcing the official start and end of the New Year holidays. According to historical records， each Neixiang county magistrate appointed by the Qing court hosted the ceremonies in the main hall of his office complex within the stipulated time， and during the holidays they could refrain from handling official affairs except when there was a serious case involving homicide or theft.

After the ceremony of putting away official seals， most of the magistrates would go around and visit the poor and the suffering in their respective counties and convey their sympathy to them.

In the Neixiang County Government Office， there is a couplet on the wall of its third hall， which goes：“Eat the food from common people， wear the clothes from common people， and do not deceive common people， for you are just one of them. Becoming an official is not a glory， being out of power is neither a shame， and do not say an official is useless， for the county depends on him.” Its author， Gao Yiyong， was an exemplary magistrate especially in visiting the poor. During the Reign of Emperor Kangxi （1654-1722） in the Qing Dynasty， Gao was assigned to work in Neixiang County as its magistrate. It was a time when the war in the early years of Qing rule had just finished. Many people had fled war， resulting in the loss of crops and a damaged economy. Feeling concerned for the local people and the great responsibility that rested on his shoulders， Gao Yiyong responded to the call of duty and did all he could to help the people. He often visited the poor and helped victims of natural calamities. After holding the ceremony for putting away the official seal every year， he would lead some of his aides to visit people in their homes and solved their problems. When he was later promoted to a higher position in the government， the local people were reluctant to see him leave.

Farming Ceremony

On the day which marks the Beginning of Spring， the first of Chinas 24 solar terms which usually falls on February 4 or 5 each year， the Qing emperor dressed in formal robes mounted his carriage and traveled to the Altar of Agriculture in the southern part of the capital city Beijing. After performing sacrifices， the emperor would hold a prayer ritual to his ancestors before the Altar for Watching the Plowing， during which he stood facing the south， his minister of finance would kneel down， and the city mayor would offer a whip to the emperor while kneeling. The emperor would then perform the farming ceremony： Holding the handle of the plow in his right hand and the whip in his left hand， and with two elderly people leading the farming ox in front of him， and two farmers taking charge of the plow on both sides， he pushed the plow forward to the other side of the field， with the city mayor carrying the box of seeds and the financial minister sowing the seeds in the rear， and escorted by six other high ranking officials. He needed to finish three rounds （forth and back） of ploughing to the accompaniment of music and drumbeats. The move was aimed at showing that the emperor valued agriculture and encouraged the folks to engage in farming.

At the county level， the day before the Beginning of Spring， the magistrate who was also dressed up would lead a parade comprising officials and local residents to welcome the spring， with a government staff member holding high a placard with the Chinese character for spring on it. They worshipped the spring ox and the god of farming. After the ceremonies of worship were over， the magistrate would go to plow one or two rows in a field nearby， wishing for a good harvest in the coming year. After this was all finished， the spring ox and the god of farming were carried back to the county government office and enshrined in front of the main hall for whipping-thespring-ox ritual the next day. The owners of the field and farming ox which the county magistrate used in the farming ceremony were entitled to tax exemption for the whole year.

Whipping the Spring Ox

On the day that marks the start of a new spring， the main gates of the county government office were open to the public. In front of the main hall， a long alter was set up for placing incense burners and sacrificial offerings. People came in large crowds， holding colored flags while beating drums and gongs.

When the ceremony began， the county magistrate led the officials and local people to kneel down facing north， to worship the spring ox and the god of farming. The spring ox was usually made of clay and paper. After the sacrifices were offered， the county magistrate beat a drum three times， and then the rest of the officials walked around the spring ox three times holding colored sticks. When the official in charge of rites hollered out， “Beat the spring ox！”the county magistrate would beat the symbolic ox stuffed with all kinds of grains， dried fruit， dates， and nuts until the ox was shattered with all the stuff inside falling out. All the officials and common people would then compete in grabbing the scattered food and look forward to abundant harvests and good luck in the coming year.

Once this ceremony was finished， the officials would join the crowd in a parade through the streets， during which there were a variety of folk arts performances such as drum dance， lion dance， walking on stilts， land-boat dance， dragon dance， and suona performance. All the people， officials and ordinary folks alike， got caught up in the festive atmosphere.

According to ancient records， the tradition of whipping the spring ox has been passed down to the present day from the Han Dynasty （202 BC–AD 220）. Today， a large-scale traditional spring ox beating celebration is held in Neixiang County annually on the day when spring begins on Chinas lunar calendar. In 2016， Chinas “24 solar terms” was inscribed on the UNESCOs Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity， and the “Neixiang County Magistrate Beating Ox Folk Custom，” as a ritual for the beginning of spring， is closely associated with the 24 solar terms. It was added to the Fifth National List of Intangible Culture Heritage in 2020.

Lunar New Year Celebrations

Every year on the first day of the Chinese lunar New Year， the county governments official in charge of rites would organize folk artists to perform in county town to celebrate the Spring Festival. That day the main gates of the county government were open for people to come and go freely. Teams of folk musicians and dancers played drums or suona instruments， performed lion， land boat and dragon dances， and walked on stilts at the county government premises to deliver New Years greetings to the county magistrate. The magistrate， together with his wife and staff， would stand on the raised platform of the main hall to wish the folks Happy New Year. Amid exchanges of greeting and laughs， the whole town was in a festive mood.

According to historical records， Zhang Bingtao， the magistrate of Neixiang County， organized a largescale New Year event every year during his nine years in office， enhancing his relations with local residents. In the Spring Festival of 2008， Neixiang County reproduced this performance event based on recorded details. Wanbang opera on the National Intangible Cultural Heritage list is a kind of drama very popular in the area. The Neixiang Wanbang Opera Troupe produced a large-scale play called New Year Celebrations at County Government based on the records and often perform it for visitors.

During the Lantern Festival which falls on the 15th day of the first lunar month， the county government would organize activities to make， watch， and compete with paper lanterns. According to local customs， everyone was urged to go out and enjoy themselves on the 16th day of the first lunar month， watching lion dances， going boating， riding bamboo horses， or enjoying other folk entertainment.

Another interesting activity organized by the county government on that day was called “Visiting the magistrates wife.” The county government complex would be decked out with lanterns and colorful decorations. All women and children were allowed to enter the third courtyard to see the magistrates wife. The county official and his wife would sit under the eaves of the third hall early in the morning to meet and talk with visitors. Their maids and servants distributed peanuts， red dates， walnuts， and other dried fruits among onlookers， who competed to get the most goodies， making for a very lively and joyous moment. That was also the most honored and happiest day of the year for the magistrates wife. The activity was also regarded as a move to keep in touch with ordinary people.

Today， the Neixiang county government has restored this tradition based on historical records. In 2006， it was included in the “Nanyang City Intangible Cultural Heritage” list.

After the founding of the Peoples Republic of China in 1949， Spring Festival celebrations have become even more colorful. Not only has the country preserved the folk customs after removing those associated with feudal-era superstitions but also added a lot of new contents， giving the traditional festival more touches of the new era.

Countdown to the Spring Festival often starts on the eighth day of the 12th lunar month. It is customary on this day to eat Laba porridge. As soon as people have Laba porridge， they get excited and go shopping to prepare for the New Year.

The Spring Festival celebrations generally kick off on the 23rd day of the 12th lunar month， commonly referred to as the “Little New Year.” People make offerings to the kitchen god on this day. The festivities for the following week involve cleaning homes thoroughly on the 24th day， grinding beans to make tofu on the 25th， brewing meat stew on the 26th， slaughtering chickens on the 27th， making bread dough and leave it to rise on the 28th， making steamed buns on the 29th， and then making dumplings and stay up late on the New Years Eve. On the Lunar New Years Day， people would visit their friends and neighbors to wish them well for the new year.

Other Spring Festival traditions and customs include pasting Spring Festival couplets above and to both sides of the front door， having a New Years Eve dinner with family， staying up to bring in the new year， giving out New Years Eve lucky money， watching dragon and lion dances， worshipping various deities and ancestors， setting off fireworks， praying for happiness， visiting temple fairs， and enjoying lantern shows.

以上英語雜志原文:Spring Festival Celebrations in Neixiang County的內(nèi)容，節(jié)選自《chinatoday》雜志！