Today is the beginning of summer丨Since we can’t keep the spring breeze, don’t waste the summer time

Lixia, the festival of April. The meaning of Li is the same as that of spring. Xia means fake. Everything is fake at this time.

——"Collected Explanations of the 72 Lunar Calendars"

"Li" means "beginning" and "xia" means "big". After the energy accumulated throughout the entire spring, by the time of Lixia, all things have grown and begun to mature and bear fruit.

"When the Big Dipper points to the southeast, it is the beginning of summer. All things grow at this point, so it is called the beginning of summer."

——Almanac

When the sun reaches 45 degrees of ecliptic longitude, the first solar term of summer - Lixia arrives.

Beginning of Summer - Three Signs

In ancient times, the beginning of summer was divided into three phases: "The first phase is when crickets chirp; the second phase is when earthworms emerge; the third phase is when melons grow."

A cricket chirps

What is a mole cricket? There have been many different opinions: The "Collection of Explanations of the 72 Seasons of the Lunar Calendar" believes that mole crickets are mole crickets, while the "Book of Rites: Lunar Calendar" believes that mole crickets refer to frogs. There is also a view that "mole" refers to mole crickets and "katydid" refers to frogs. Judging from the growth patterns of the two types of animals, the chirping of mole crickets at the beginning of summer seems to be more appropriate.

In fact, this small insect that hides during the day and comes out at night does not chirp. Its chirping sound is produced by the friction of its wings. Only male mole crickets can make this sound, and its purpose is to attract female mole crickets to mate and reproduce offspring.

The chirping of mole crickets indicates that the smell of summer is getting stronger, and it also begins to remind farmers that the temperature is rising and "pests that harm crops" such as mole crickets are becoming active. Please take precautions to protect the harvest of crops.

Second phase: earthworms emerge

In the eyes of the ancients, earthworms live deep underground and are the last to feel the warm summer sun. Only at this time do they end their hibernation, slowly emerge from the ground, and begin to dig the soil.

At the Beginning of Summer Solstice, the underground temperature continues to rise, and when the Yang energy is at its peak, earthworms also come out to join in the fun.

Three-horoscope Wang Guasheng

The Book of Rites, Monthly Ordinances, states: "In the first month of summer, the king melon grows." The king melon is a vine plant of the genus Trichosanthes in the Cucurbitaceae family, mostly growing wild. The king melon is a medicinal climbing plant native to North China. It grows rapidly at the beginning of summer and bears red fruits in June and July.

Although "Wang Gua Sheng" refers to king melon, it actually represents the prosperous scene of melons, fruits and vegetables growing vigorously all over the mountains during the beginning of summer.

Does the Beginning of Summer really mean the beginning of summer?

The arrival of the Lixia solar term does not mean the arrival of summer in the meteorological sense. According to the national standard "Climate Season Division", if the 5-day sliding mean temperature sequence of a certain place is ≥ 22℃ for 5 consecutive days, the first date in the corresponding daily mean temperature sequence that is ≥ 22℃ will be taken as the start date of summer in that place.

Due to the vast territory of my country and the large north-south span, the natural rhythms of different places are different. At the beginning of summer, the areas south of the line from Fuzhou to Nanling usually enter the real summer, while some areas in the northeast and northwest just have the breath of spring. Therefore, the beginning of summer is the transition period between late spring and early summer, and can be regarded as the "trailer" of summer.

Beginning of Summer - Health Preservation

In ancient China, the Beginning of Summer was given great importance. According to historical records, during the Zhou Dynasty, on the day of the Beginning of Summer, the emperor would personally lead all civil and military officials to the suburbs to hold a grand "welcoming summer" ceremony, and instruct officials to go to various places to encourage farmers to work hard. During the ceremony, the emperor and his ministers all wore red formal clothes and red jade pendants. Even the horses and carriage flags had to be red to express respect for the God of Summer and pray for a good summer harvest. The Ming Dynasty's "A Brief Account of the Scenery of the Imperial Capital" records: "On the day of the Beginning of Summer, the ice was opened and the civil and military officials were rewarded." On the day of the Beginning of Summer, the officials in charge of ice policy in the court would dig out the ice stored in the cellars in winter, cut it into pieces, and reward the officials by the emperor.

At the beginning of summer, many crops and fruits and vegetables gradually enter the maturity period. Some early-maturing varieties can be harvested or picked, which is a good time for people to try new things. There are many customs around eating on the day of the beginning of summer. In most parts of the north, there is a custom of making and eating pasta to celebrate the wheat harvest.

In some places, there is a custom of "eating eggs at the beginning of summer" and "egg fighting". Eggs symbolize perfection, and "eating eggs at the beginning of summer will prevent summer heatstroke" (summer heatstroke refers to the symptoms of loss of appetite, fatigue, irritability and qi deficiency in the old and young due to the heat of summer), which means to ward off disasters, pray for blessings, and relieve summer heat and cure diseases.

In some places, people eat "five-color rice" (made of white rice with red beans, yellow beans, black beans, green beans and mung beans), which symbolizes "happiness, health and a good harvest."

Some regions also have the custom of tasting "three new things" at the beginning of summer. In some southern regions, it is also called "tasting three new things at the beginning of summer" or "seeing three new things at the beginning of summer". "Three new things" can also be called "three fresh things". In some places, people taste "three fresh things from the land" such as amaranth, broad beans, and cucumbers; in some places, people taste "three fresh things from the water" such as sea snails, shad, and pufferfish; in some places, people taste "three fresh things from trees" such as cherries, apricots, and loquats.

It is the time of transition from spring to summer, and these living habits cannot be ignored:

1. Take good care of your "spiritual" health

To maintain good health during the Beginning of Summer, one must first nourish the heart. Among the four seasons, summer belongs to fire, and fire energy flows to the heart. Therefore, summer is connected to the heart energy, and people tend to feel irritable and restless, and are prone to insomnia, oral ulcers and other symptoms of getting angry.

The dietary principle for the Beginning of Summer is "nourishing Yang in spring and summer". Nourishing Yang focuses on nourishing the heart. To nourish the heart, you can drink more milk, eat more soy products, chicken, lean meat, etc., which can not only supplement nutrition, but also strengthen the heart.

2. Don’t be greedy for coolness

As summer approaches, the temperature gradually rises. Be careful not to be too cool. Although there is a custom of drinking cold drinks at the beginning of summer, remember not to be too greedy! Also, do not take off your clothes too early, pay attention to the temperature difference between day and night, and prevent colds.

3. Adjust your work and rest schedule

Compared with winter and spring, people can go to bed later and get up earlier to adapt to the changes, but they should take more naps, especially the elderly, who often have unrefreshing sleep and need naps more. People who don't have the habit of taking naps at noon can listen to music or close their eyes to relax.

No wonder Lu You praised early summer as being more beautiful than spring: "Early summer is more charming than spring."

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Comprehensive sources: Xinhuanet, Guangmingnet, etc.