Harvest Display
The Double Ninth Festival is the best time to enjoy autumn. In some mountainous villages in southern China, there is still the custom of "harvest display". Visiting the countryside to experience folk customs and watch the harvest display has become a fashion in rural tourism. "Harvest display" is a typical agricultural custom with strong regional characteristics. In provinces like Hunan, Guangxi, Anhui, and Jiangxi, villagers living in mountainous areas have limited flat land due to complex terrain. Therefore, they use their front and back yards, window sills, and rooftops to dry and hang crops. Over time, this practice evolved into a traditional agricultural custom. This special way of life and scene of villagers drying their crops has gradually become a source of inspiration for painters and photographers, shaping the poetic term "harvest display".Wearing Dogwood
It was a common custom in ancient times to wear dogwood on the Double Ninth Festival, hence it was also called the Dogwood Festival. The ancients believed that climbing mountains and wearing dogwood on the Double Ninth Festival could repel insects and dampness, and remove wind evils. Thus, people wore dogwood on their arms or ground it up and put it in a small bag, or even placed it in their hair. It was mostly women and children who wore it, while some places also had men wearing it. Dogwood is medicinal and can be used to make wine to maintain health and prevent diseases. Wearing dogwood and wearing chrysanthemums was already very common in the Tang Dynasty. The ancient custom of wearing dogwood was a behavior of the people going up the mountain to drive away wind evils. On the Double Ninth Festival, the clear air rises and the turbid air sinks, and people used natural medicines like dogwood to adjust their physical condition, making it adapt to the natural climate changes.Mountain Climbing
The custom of mountain climbing on the Double Ninth Festival has a long history. In ancient times, the folk had the custom of mountain climbing on the Double Ninth Festival, so the festival was also called the "Mountain Climbing Festival". The custom of mountain climbing originated from the climate characteristics at that time and the ancient people's reverence for mountains. "Mountain climbing to bid farewell to greenery" also came from the natural seasonal changes. The tradition of "mountain climbing for blessings" was already popular during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods. The location for mountain climbing had no unified regulations, and the places usually included climbing high mountains, tall buildings, or high platforms.Chrysanthemum Viewing
It has always been a custom to view chrysanthemums on the Double Ninth Festival, so it was also known as the Chrysanthemum Festival. The custom of viewing chrysanthemums originated from chrysanthemum culture. Chrysanthemums are naturally beautiful flowers, and because of their colorful blossoms and their ability to bloom proudly against the cold, they formed the culture of viewing and praising chrysanthemums. The ninth lunar month is commonly known as the "chrysanthemum month", and during the festival, large chrysanthemum gatherings are held, drawing crowds from the entire city to attend. Since the Three Kingdoms period of Wei and Jin dynasties, gathering for drinks and viewing chrysanthemums and composing poetry has been a trend. In Chinese traditional customs, chrysanthemums symbolize longevity. Chrysanthemums are the flowers of longevity, and they are also praised by scholars as symbols of unyielding resilience against frost.Ancestral Worship
The Double Ninth Festival is one of the four major traditional festivals for ancestral worship in China. The folk tradition of ancestral worship and seeking blessings has been prevalent since ancient times. The traditional custom of ancestral worship on the Double Ninth Festival is still popular in the Lingnan area. People hold ancestral worship activities every year on the Double Ninth Festival. Whether it is ancestral worship or mountain climbing, the most fundamental purpose is to enhance people's cultural identity and strengthen the cohesion of the family and society.Bidding Farewell to Greenery
Ancient people often regarded the Double Ninth Festival and Shangsi (the Qingming Festival) as corresponding major spring and autumn festivals. If Shangsi (Qingming Festival) is a festival where people, after a long winter, go out to enjoy themselves, then the Double Ninth Festival is a meaningful autumn outing when the autumn chill begins and people are about to retreat into seclusion. Therefore, the folk custom is "going out to enjoy the greenery" on Qingming Festival and "bidding farewell to greenery" on the Double Ninth Festival.Flying Kites
Flying kites is a main custom of the Double Ninth Festival in the south. The folk customs of the Double Ninth Festival mainly focus on flying kites. The Guangxu "Huizhou Prefecture Annals" also records this. Kites are today's kites. In traditional customs, besides mountain climbing, flying kites is also a feature of the Double Ninth Festival.Do you want to know your birth elements? Want to find out where your golden marriage is? Click the 【Premium Calculation】 below to calculate your birth elements and fortune!
