Cold Food Festival is an important holiday that has long existed in Vietnamese culture but is quite unfamiliar to the younger generation. This article will help young people understand more about Cold Food Festival, as well as its origin and significance to our country's cultural beliefs. Let's see it right here!
Offering tray for Cold Food Festival. Photo: Internet
What is Cold Food Festival? What day is Cold Food Festival in 2024?
Cold Food Festival, also known as Banh Troi Banh Chay Festival, is a popular traditional festival in Northern Vietnam and in the Chinese community. On this occasion, families will prepare Banh Troi and Banh Chay to respectfully offer to their ancestors, to show gratitude and commemorate deceased relatives.
Cold Food Festival takes place on the 3rd day of the 3rd lunar month every year. So in 2024, Cold Food Festival will fall on April 11, 2024 according to the solar calendar (ie March 3rd lunar calendar).
Is Cold Food Festival the same as Qingming Festival? Qingming Festival usually takes place from May 4 or 5 to May 21 or 22, so sometimes it coincides with the Cold Food Festival, so many people often confuse it. In fact, Cold Food Festival is not Qingming Festival, these are two separate holidays with different meanings. The Cold Food Festival takes place on the 3rd day of the 3rd lunar month every year, which is the day when descendants prepare banh troi and banh chay to offer to their ancestors. The Thanh Minh Festival is the occasion for descendants to visit, clean and tidy up their ancestors' graves, but there is no fixed date and it is determined based on the solar calendar. | |
Origin and meaning of Cold Food Festival
In addition to learning what Cold Food Festival is, you should know more about its origin and meaning to understand more about Cold Food Festival!
Origin of Cold Food Festival
The Cold Food Festival originated in China during the Spring and Autumn period (770 - 221). At that time, the king of Jin, Duke Wen of Jin, was in turmoil and had to live in exile, sometimes in Chu, sometimes in Qi. Later, he met Jie Citui and was supported by him wholeheartedly. Even when food supplies were running out, he secretly cut his own flesh and offered it to the king. When the king of Jin learned about this, he was very grateful to him.
However, when he regained the throne, King Jin forgot Jie Citui's contributions, but he did not resent them, and then he and his mother returned to Tianshan Mountain to live in seclusion. Some time later, King Jin came to find Jie Citui to receive his reward, but Jie Citui did not care about fame or money, so he refused the king's invitation.
In a moment of anger after being refused, the Jin king ordered the forest to be burned down to force him, but Jie Citui and his mother were determined to die in the sea of fire on the 3rd day of the 3rd lunar month. When he learned about this, the Jin king was very remorseful, immediately ordered people to build a temple, ordered them to only eat cold, pre-cooked food and abstain from using fire for 3 days to express his pain and regret.
Since then, the 3rd day of the 3rd lunar month is used to commemorate Jie Cihui, but in Vietnam this occasion is used to remember ancestors and the origin of the nation.
The meaning of Cold Food Festival
Cold Food Festival originated from China but when introduced to Vietnam, it took on a completely different meaning, bearing the strong imprint of our nation:
To show gratitude to ancestors and the nation's roots, descendants gather together to cook banh troi and banh chay and offer them to the family altar to show filial piety and gratitude for their upbringing and birth.
Demonstrating the good traditions and cultural beauty from thousands of years ago through the dishes offered to ancestors on this occasion, all are made from rustic ingredients, typical of our nation. For example, banh troi or banh chay are both made from rice grains, the main food that has fed many generations of Vietnamese people.
In addition, the Cold Food Festival is an occasion for people to express their religious beliefs, praying for a year of favorable weather, bountiful crops, and a happy and prosperous life.
The Cold Food Festival originated in China. After being introduced to our country, it became a day to honor our ancestors, the source of strong Vietnamese identity.
The meaning of banh troi and banh chay in Han Thuc festival you should know
Banh troi and banh chay are indispensable dishes on the ancestral altar on the Cold Food Festival, considered as the symbol of this holiday. However, many people still do not know the true meaning of banh troi and banh chay on the Cold Food Festival, below will explain to you its meaning:
Preserving national traditions: The ancestors of the Vietnamese people created banh troi and banh chay on the Cold Food Festival, symbolizing cold dishes (Han Thuc). The appearance of banh troi and banh chay on the offering tray through many generations has become a connecting thread that brings the tradition deep into the subconscious of the Vietnamese people, becoming a beautiful cultural feature of our people.
Towards ancestors and national origins: Banh troi and banh chay have a round white shell, used to neatly wrap the filling inside, carrying all the feelings wrapped into each cake, expressing deep gratitude towards the origin and deceased ancestors. Moreover, the image of the family gathering together to meticulously wrap each cake also shows the complete family affection, worthy of the sacrifice of our ancestors for the day of independence.
Wishing for favorable weather: The round shape of banh troi evokes the proverb "Mother is round, child is square", while banh chay has a white shell with a yin character, and a yang mung bean filling wrapped around it, representing the harmony of yin and yang, wishing for favorable weather and good crops.
Banh troi and banh chay are indispensable cultural symbols on the occasion of Han Thuc festival with the meaning of turning to ancestors' roots, praying for good things,...
What should be offered on Cold Food Festival?
A tray of offerings to ancestors on the Cold Food Festival is usually prepared with dishes such as:
Banh troi, banh chay: When offering banh troi and banh chay, you need to make sure the quantity is 3 or 5 bowls of banh chay and 3 or 5 bowls of banh troi, which is the most standard.
Fresh flowers and betel and areca nuts: When displaying, you should prepare flowers that bring lucky meanings such as gerberas, white lilies, etc. and people often choose to display chrysanthemums with the meaning of wishing for wealth and luck. As for betel and areca nuts, you should also choose fresh ones and display them in odd numbers of 3 or 5 plates.
Five-fruit tray: You can choose the type of fruit according to your family's preferences but still ensure 5 different types of fruit. In addition, to wish for more good things, the homeowner can choose 5 types of fruit with colors symbolizing the five elements such as yellow fruit symbolizing the Metal element, red fruit symbolizing the Fire element,...
Clean water: Meaning purity, implying the family's sincerity to ancestors.
In addition, the homeowner needs to prepare items such as incense, lamps, or boiled chicken, tea, sticky rice, wine, etc. (Depending on the conditions and needs of the family).
Things you should not do during Cold Food Festival
In addition to preparing a neat offering tray for the Cold Food Festival, you should pay attention to not do the following things to avoid encountering bad luck:
Do not move house or place of residence: According to folk beliefs, the souls of deceased relatives always follow and stay with the family. Therefore, it is believed that moving house or place of residence during this time will affect luck and work will not go smoothly.
Avoid offering five-color sticky rice balls and rice cakes: Offering five-color sticky rice balls and rice cakes is not recommended, because it will destroy the traditional beauty.
Limit lavish feasts: Han Thuc Festival is an occasion to remember the deceased, so the feast does not need to be elaborate or lavish. Just a basic, simple feast containing the sincere offerings of descendants to the ancestral altar is enough.
Do not offer fruits with thorns or bitter taste: This is to express the wish for family harmony, no more suffering coming to the family's life in the future.
Avoid offering flowers with bad meanings: Homeowners should not offer flowers such as lilies, frangipani, marigolds, etc. to limit negative things and pray for good things.
Limit salty food: Many people believe that on this day, one should not kill animals to use a pure soul to show respect and accumulate merit for the deceased.
Avoid saying bad things and behaving inappropriately: During this time, the soul of a deceased relative will return home to the family, so to show respect and reverence, you need to speak properly, not say harsh words and avoid saying unfortunate things.
Thus, the article has provided information, helping you have the answer to the question of what is Cold Food Festival, along with related knowledge to practice according to tradition. Wish you a warm Cold Food Festival with your family.
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