There are many sports in Xuzhou, and the folk customs have always been martial. Peng Zu Qigong originated in Da Peng 4000 years ago. During the Spring and Autumn Period, swimming activities were quite prosperous. There are vivid sculptures such as weightlifting, wrestling, hunting, Liubo and martial arts. These activities have been handed down from generation to generation and are enduring. Xuzhou 1958 won the title of "National Red Flag City of School Sports". Peixian County and Tongshan County were rated as national advanced sports counties, and Xuzhou City was rated as the "hometown of track and field" twice, which trained 650 athletes for the national and provincial teams. Gong and Xing Ailan participated in the 24th Olympic Games. Ancient football activities basically stopped in the middle of Qing Dynasty, but it still existed in Pei County, Xuzhou. Xuzhou also won the title of "Football City". Pei County is known as the "hometown of martial arts", with many schools of martial arts and traditional martial arts activities. There is a Qijia village in the northwest of the old town of Pizhou. Because people in this village have loved playing chess for generations, it is called "Chess Village".
◆ Enjoy the lanterns on the fifteenth day of the first month.
On the fifteenth day of the first month, lanterns are lit, firecrackers are set off and "golden drops" are lit in Xuzhou. To the east of Gupi and Pixian, there are fewer firecrackers and lanterns, but there are more games of "throwing broom" torches. Further east to Xinyi, the activity is similar to Pixian, but the time to play the torch is on the second day of February.
◆ Wedding custom
On the wedding day, the woman in Xuzhou must arrive at the man's home before noon 12, while in several towns in the northwest of Fengxian County and several towns in the southeast of Xinyi, the time for the woman to arrive at the man's home must be after sunset.
◆ Begging for rain custom
In case of drought and rain, to the west of Xuzhou, I went to the Longwang Temple to burn incense, carrying Wang Long as if I were parading to pray, thinking that "the Dragon King has a mouth and there is water everywhere". Going east to Pixian County, in addition to seeking the Dragon King, it also added the content of seeking kindness. Going east to Xinyi, asking for the dragon king is only the first step. As the drought intensified, we invited Yuan De Gong, the Holy Emperor and the Bodhisattva in turn.
On February 2nd, the dragon looked up.
On the second day of February, the dragon looked up and went to the city of Xuzhou to worship the God (the Land Lord). Popcorn and fried jelly beans express surprise and thunder. Circle the warehouse with firewood ashes, put copper coins in the warehouse to pray for wealth, and curse poisonous insects by knocking on the bed and lighting candles. In Pixian County, warehouses are surrounded by plant ash, and whole grains are buried in the warehouses to pray for a bumper harvest. To fry rice flowers and candied beans is to fry pests to death. Further east to Xinyi area, put fried miscellaneous grains in the warehouse of plant ash circle to attract birds to peck, which is called "insect eater", thinking that crops can be protected from pests.
◆ Living customs
Men wear gowns and mandarin jackets, while women wear jackets, tops, long skirts and trousers.
The color of the elderly is mostly black, the young and middle-aged love to wear blue, and children's clothes are mostly red, green and bright.
Shoes Xuzhou people wear shoes, and "double-sided" is popular.
Hat men often have felt hats, melon hats, tall hats, straw hats, blue cloth towels or table towels for women, and children have "blessing towels" and "old people's hats".
Traditionally, people pay attention to living in "four bedrooms", and most city residents live in the same yard.
◆ "Laba porridge"
According to folklore experts, eating Laba porridge in December of the lunar calendar is as important as eating moon cakes in Mid-Autumn Festival, zongzi in Dragon Boat Festival and cakes in Chongyang. On Laba Day, people eat unique saddles? Porridge has been a custom for thousands of years. The so-called Laba porridge is porridge made of glutinous rice and dried fruits of miscellaneous grains such as red beans, red dates, longan, lotus seeds and peanuts. Folklore calls this day "off-year". It is said that "Laba porridge" (also known as laba rice) has such ingredients to meet the farmers' desire for a bumper harvest in the coming year.
There is another saying about the origin of Laba porridge, namely Laba is a Buddhist festival. According to legend, the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month is the day of Sakyamuni's enlightenment, so the Buddhist temple held chanting on that day, and imitated the legend that the shepherdess offered chyle before the Buddha's enlightenment, and made porridge for the Buddha with fragrant valley and fruit, named "Laba porridge". Later it evolved into a folk custom. Eating Laba porridge on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month means a bumper harvest.