Lean belonged to Si Long, Ding Huang and Nanhai counties in ancient times. The lanterns in Le 'an originated in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties and have a history of more than 300 years. At that time, Foshan Town, one of the four famous towns in China, was rising rapidly and its business activities were booming. The surrounding villages have developed various handicrafts around this huge market. Lean Market, located in the upper reaches of Fenjiang River, has become a famous commercial distribution center in Xilongbao, where merchants gather and the market is prosperous, especially lanterns. During the Spring Festival every year, the street stalls are always covered with lanterns of various colors and flowers, which gradually makes Le 'an Market known as the "hometown of lights".

However, the Lantern Festival was formed in Guangxu period. The origin of Lantern Festival comes from a magical legend.

According to legend, there was a man named Mai who got married many years ago but failed to have children. His wife persuaded her husband to marry a concubine to continue the incense, but the man named Mai resolutely refused. On the ninth day of the first month of Guangxu's first year, a man named Mai took his wife to Le 'an Fair and bought a "Guanyin Lotus Lantern" there. When he was tired, he sat on a stone to have a rest. Unexpectedly, my wife gave birth to a son in the second year after returning to China. Since then, the couple have to go to Le 'an Fair every year on the ninth day of the first month, and then buy a lotus lantern to make a wish.

This story is widely circulated, and women who have been married for many years and have no children are competing to follow suit. It is said that the effect is very good, which makes Le An Wei famous. Smart businessmen saw the business opportunity and began to mass-produce lanterns mainly for children's lotus lanterns, which went on sale on the ninth day of the first month. Many newly married women buy a lotus lantern every day, hoping to have a boy next year. The custom of "lighting the ground on the ninth day of the first month" was handed down in this way, forming a century-old traditional "Lantern Festival". "Nanhai County Records" says: "On the Lantern Festival, on the ninth day of the first lunar month every year, the streets in Le An Wei 1 km are covered with paper lanterns of various shapes, and tourists from all over the world come in an endless stream. "

Second, the Lantern Festival on the ninth day of the first month.

"Lantern Festival", the traditional Lantern Festival in China is mostly on the fifteenth day of the first month, but why did Le 'an choose the Lantern Festival on the ninth day of the first month? This is related to the folk beliefs and customs of Le 'an.

The folk belief of Le 'an is Taoism, and the Jade Emperor of Taoism is regarded as the master of heaven and has extraordinary dignity. His birthday is the ninth day of the first month, and people in Le 'an are commonly known as "Shensheng". Rural customs pay more attention to "natural fate" than Chinese New Year. On the eighth night of every year, on the eve of a new day, the atmosphere in Le 'an Fair is warm. Every household lights lanterns and hangs them in front of the door, and prepares more fragrant fruits, candles and vegetarian bowls to pray for heaven.

There are still many taboos on the day of "Tianshou": don't pour the washing water on the ground after washing your face in the morning, so as not to pollute God's face; If you don't sweep the floor in the open air that day, you should put away the garbage swept in the house and take it out the next day. Women's underwear is not allowed to be hung outside, but indoors to avoid insulting the weather; It is not allowed to slaughter raw animals, because God has the virtue of being good at living.

Since there is a virtue of good life in heaven, the Lantern Festival related to fertility will naturally be chosen on the ninth day of the first month.

Third, lanterns with arrowhead mushrooms.

In China's traditional concept, "there are three unfilial, and no heir is the most important", which makes the society attach great importance to the custom of praying for heirs. Bi Xia Yuan Jun, Songzi Guanyin and Lady Jinhua are all highly respected gods. Some mascots with the meaning of having many children are also very popular, such as arrowhead mushroom, because its shape is similar to a boy's penis, and people compare it to a man. In rural customs, most newly married women's mothers give mushrooms to each other, wishing: "Give birth to a mushroom in the coming year."

Throughout the ages, colored lights have always been regarded as auspicious ornaments for festivals. The lantern in Le 'an is different from the lantern in Yuanxiao, because it is the "Guanyin Lotus Lantern" that dominates the world. Lotus lanterns are made of bamboo strips, iron wire, silk, lace and colorful spikes. , composed of various paper cuts and patterns. It is beautifully shaped, magnificent, delicate and colorful, like a blooming lotus. Although the lotus lamp seems simple, its production is purely manual, and it takes nearly 100 processes to complete a lamp. Without exception, there are always two arrows on each lotus lamp, which is commonly called "baby lamp" by locals. Some lanterns are also decorated with pomegranate lotus roots tied with paper, which is called "wealth and legacy".

At the bridgehead of Le 'an Bridge, there are vendors selling lettuce, oranges and arrowheads. It is said that if you buy arrowheads, you can have children earlier. Fourth, the Lantern Festival under the bridge

Because the bridge has the communication function of connecting the two sides of the strait, its symbolic meaning naturally extends to life etiquette in many folk customs. For example, in our daily spoken language, it is often called "matchmaking" to help men and women meet and intersect. As the bridge is the medium of interpersonal communication, it is of great significance in expressing the metaphor of men's and women's negotiations and related events. Lean is a water town in Lingnan, with many bridges. People are convinced that every bridge has a bridge god, and the Lantern Festival is held under the bridge because the bridge has the function of praying for heirs.

There is also a story about Le 'an Bridge. An old man rested on a bridge, finished smoking a bag of cigarettes and knocked over the hookah on the bridge. He didn't want the bridge to suddenly shrink, and he himself fell into the river. So the bridge is a male root. As soon as the ashtray was hot, it shrank back. Here, the bridge is likened to male genitalia, and the worship of male genitalia is also an ancient reproductive worship.

When the parturient in Le 'an encounters dystocia, they often run to the bridge to burn incense for the parturient, pray for mercy and get rid of the bridge.

Five, there is a stone.

Locals believe that there is another stone that plays an important role in the happiness of the Mai couple at the Le 'an Lantern Festival. It's an upside-down mound (a tool used to grind rice in rural areas in the old society). The couple got pregnant because they were resting on a stone. People call this kind of stone "sacred stone".

In folklore, many things are widely sought after because of their homophonic meaning, such as "jujube" as "early birth", "lotus seed" as "secondary birth" and "chopsticks" as "fast birth" (there is a small street named "Chopsticks Road" in Foshan, which is the only way for the newly-married float). The "stone" where Mr. and Mrs. Mai are sitting is translated as "picking up the child" here, that is, "picking up the child". Therefore, women who are looking forward to adding more lanterns early will go to the legendary "original stone" and try to make good luck after buying lanterns on the ninth day of the first month.

As for the original "original stone", it disappeared because it was repaired during the Cultural Revolution and used for other purposes. 200 1 after the restoration of the Chiang ancestral hall not far from the Lantern Festival, a replica of the original stone was placed in the back garden as a souvenir, and the people who came to pray for the heirs remained enthusiastic.

Sixth, the traditional way of inheritance.

The annual Lantern Festival was held as scheduled, and more than 700 booths were very lively. With more than 65,438+ten thousand people, Le 'an has become a world of lights and a sea of people. Although the "Le 'an Lantern Festival" is still attractive, it attracts folks from Foshan, Guangzhou, Hong Kong and Macao and foreign tourists. However, behind the prosperity, it seems that people can't help but sigh the changes and helplessness of the times. It seems that tying lanterns is an emotional sustenance for the elderly to miss the old days, while more and more young people are interested in watching lanterns but have no intention of making them. How many years later, on the ninth day of the first month, will there be a pleasing lotus lantern to inherit the habit of enjoying the lantern left by a century-old tradition?

Foshan, with its profound traditional folk crafts, should not be a problem. As the first demonstration base of cultural industry in China, Foshan Quyi Society is fully capable of inheriting this traditional craft. The crux of the problem is what kind of background and theme the lantern should be passed down.

Engels once said that human production includes material production and human reproduction. As long as human beings live endlessly, the customs related to fertility will not die out. In a broader cultural perspective, explore the cultural connotation of the Le 'an Lantern Festival, that is, its good wishes for future generations. In Le 'an, such customs are still widely preserved, such as drinking lanterns and wine: if a man is born, lanterns will be hung on the ancestral temple on the ninth day of the first month of next year and his name will be written; Parents also need to take a spoonful of wine, cook some mushrooms, clams and pickled radishes and put them in the ancestral hall. Villagers celebrate by drinking, which is called "drinking". There is also a saying in Le 'an that "golden flowers can only be added after worship": There is a golden flower temple in Le 'an, and everyone who wants to add golden flowers goes to worship. In the past, children were greedy and asked for more after eating. The old man joked and asked him if he had ever worshipped the golden flower, that is, "it is only after worshipping the golden flower that you get more"; When a businessman is bargaining, if the seller asks for a higher price, the buyer will say, "If you want to add more, you must go to worship gold flowers first." There is also a plaque in the ancestral hall of the Jiang family near the Lantern Festival, which reads "The origin of generations is long and the branches and leaves are long".