Nongliershisijieqi
01 · Historical Records
The ritual foundation of the Sanmen Winter Solstice Worship lies in clan settlement. In former times the Sanmen area was divided between the two counties of Ninghai and Linhai. Within Sanmen Bay, maritime and land livelihoods coexisted and multiple cultures intersected, while sea farming and fishing went hand in hand with farming and the transmission of learning within the family, so the relationship between humanity and nature and the ordering of relations within the clan were given particular weight, and the winter solstice worship became the occasion on which both were set in order at once. The documentary record is quite continuous. The Kangxi-era Linhai County Gazetteer, Volume 1, 'Customs', records that at the winter solstice glutinous broomcorn millet was ground into balls, called winter solstice balls, and that animal offerings and prepared food were set out to present them to the ancestors. The Guangxu-era Ninghai County Gazetteer records that at the winter solstice glutinous rice flour was ground to make tangyuan, stuffed with red bean paste, as an offering to the spirits and to deceased ancestors. The Draft Linhai County Gazetteer, Volume 7, 'Local Customs: Seasonal Records', and the genealogies of the Sanmen clans likewise contain records of the winter solstice worship. The traces of institutionalization are equally clear: the winter solstice worship had designated roles such as chief officiant, assisting officiants, boy and girl attendants, and ritual stewards, and the selection of the personnel was strict, all following clan regulations. By the Qing dynasty at the latest, this ritual sequence was already commonly performed in the villages of Sanmen on the day of the winter solstice. Among the people the sayings 'the winter solstice is as great as the New Year' and 'at Qingming eat bitter swallows, at the winter solstice eat sweet balls' are still transmitted today; the word 'sweet' in the sweet balls and the red-bean filling correspond exactly to the old written records of the cakes.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
Sanmen County lies on the shore of Sanmen Bay in central eastern Zhejiang, facing the East China Sea in the east, backed by Mount Tiantai in the west, adjoining Linhai in the south, and bordering Ninghai in the north; it is a region where maritime and land livelihoods coexist and multiple cultures intersect, and in former times it was divided between Ninghai and Linhai. The Sanmen Winter Solstice Worship has a long history, and among the people the sayings 'the winter solstice is as great as the New Year' and 'at Qingming eat bitter swallows, at the winter solstice eat sweet balls' are current. The Kangxi-era Linhai County Gazetteer, Volume 1, 'Customs', records: 'At the winter solstice, glutinous broomcorn millet is ground into balls, called winter solstice balls, and animal offerings and prepared food are set out to present them to the ancestors.' The Guangxu-era Ninghai County Gazetteer records: 'At the winter solstice, glutinous rice flour is ground to make tangyuan, stuffed with red bean paste, as an offering to the spirits and to deceased ancestors.' The Draft Linhai County Gazetteer, Volume 7, 'Local Customs: Seasonal Records', and the genealogies of the Sanmen clans all contain records of the winter solstice worship. Because Sanmen is settled by whole clans, the Sanmen Winter Solstice Worship has been transmitted down to the present through collective inheritance, and it has always been an important ritual and celebratory seasonal custom in the villages of Sanmen County. The Sanmen Winter Solstice Worship includes such steps as drawing long-flowing water, praying to heaven, worshipping the ancestors, performing longevity plays, paying respects to the elderly, and setting banquets for the elders, and it is accompanied by related folk culture. The participants in the winter solstice worship include the chief officiant, assisting officiants, boy and girl attendants, and ritual stewards, and the selection of personnel for these roles all follows strict clan regulations. At the hour of the tiger on the day of the winter solstice, all concerned take their places, and the winter solstice worship officially begins. First comes the ceremony of prayer to heaven, expressing reverence for and petitions to heaven; then follows the grand ancestral worship ceremony, following the traditional sequence of the three offerings and the reading of the sacrificial prayer. Throughout the proceedings, guests and clan descendants obey the directions of the master of ceremonies and kneel in the prescribed left-zhao and right-mu order, arrayed as regularly as flying geese. Once the ancestral rites are completed, longevity plays are performed, and finally a banquet is laid for the elders of the village, bringing the traditional custom to a full close in a warm and harmonious atmosphere. The Sanmen Winter Solstice Worship has distinctive local cultural characteristics and is a representative example of winter solstice seasonal folk practice preserved to the present day. It expresses gratitude toward heaven, earth, and nature and toward the ancestors, conveys the great ethical principle of honoring ancestors and gathering the clan, highlights the moral ideals of venerating ancestral virtue and respecting and loving the elderly, and achieves the aim of uniting the clan and living in harmony with kin. It is of important practical significance for carrying forward traditional virtues, strengthening clan cohesion, and promoting social harmony.
Drawing the long stream and praying to heaven
Before dawn the rite opens with drawing the long stream and a prayer to heaven.
Three offerings and the reading of the prayer
The ancestral rite follows the traditional sequence of three offerings and a read prayer.
Kneeling in ancestral order
Kneeling follows the prescribed order of the generations, like geese in line.
Performing the longevity play
After the ancestral rites a longevity play closes the day.
Honouring the elderly and the elders' banquet
A banquet for the village elders brings the rite to a close.
The winter solstice rice balls
Rice balls made for the solstice, as recorded in the local gazetteers.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
The local people farm the sea and herd fish while passing on their family line through farming and study, and so they hold nature in particular respect and attach great importance to family relations.
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04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
The Sanmen Winter Solstice Worship is a solemn and dignified folk custom of welcoming winter and worshipping the ancestors, held at the winter solstice festival in the clan-settled villages of the townships of Sanmen County, Zhejiang Province; the clan winter solstice worships of Yangjia Village in Tingpang Town, Shangkeng Village in Haiyou Town, and Xiaopu Village in Jiantiao Town are particularly large in scale, complete in procedure, and well preserved. Yang Xingya (recorded in the official file of the associated inheritor): Male, of the Han ethnicity, born in August 1931, a native of Sanmen County, Zhejiang Province. His family has lived in the area for generations, and he is thoroughly familiar with the ritual procedures and cultural traditions of the 'Sanmen Winter Solstice Worship'. In the work of protecting intangible cultural heritage, he has enthusiastically assisted cultural departments in conducting surveys and research and in collating materials. Since 1982 he has organized and taken part in winter solstice worship activities every year and has presided over the ceremonies. He is a representative inheritor of the Lunar Twenty-Four Solar Terms (Sanmen Winter Solstice Worship) item in the fifth national-level batch of intangible cultural heritage. He has spared no effort to protect the objects and historical documents related to the winter solstice worship and persists in practicing its rituals. He has devoted himself to training successors to the winter solstice worship and has already trained a group of young inheritors.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Yang Xingya 05-3004
- Wu Haishen 05-3005
- Feng Wanming 05-3006
- Feng Wu
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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