According to Chinese lunar calendar, today is the day of Lìchūn/立春, signifies the beginning of spring, and it's only one week away to Spring Festival/春节, the Chinese New Year!
According to Chinese lunar calendar, a year has 24 solar terms. Lìchūn/立春 is the 1st solar term, which begins when the Sun reaches the celestial longitude of 315° and ends when it reaches the longitude of 330°. Lìchūn/立春 more often refers in particular to the day when the Sun is exactly at the celestial longitude of 315°.
Lìchūn/立春 means East wind thaw/ 东风解冻: when winter ice meets the spring wind, it melts in the spring breeze, and that farmers shall start seed plowing.
Traditionally, Chinese farmers celebrate the beginning of Lìchūn/立春 with special village events. For example, welcome Goddess of Spring/迎春. The Goddess of Spring has a human face and bird body, praying for a blissful and prosperous new year.
A typical food for Lìchūn/立春 is Spring Roll / 春卷Chūnjuǎn，a very popular Asia finger food that you can find in any Asia restaurant in western countries.
Another ceremony is whipping the ox in early spring鞭春牛. Farmers generally make statute of ox with earth in advance, stuff it with various cereals. On the day of Lìchūn/立春, farmers would gather together, whip the ox statute, and bring back the broken piece of statute and cereals to their farm as lucky charms for a year. Today, this tradition has evolved more as cultural event than an agriculture ceremony, farmers simply dress up their own ox and hold a parade in the village for a happy gathering.
Let's watch The Story of Baby ox. The Year of Metal Ox is arriving!
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