Summer Season - Tumblr Posts
i always say winter or fall is my favorite but then i remember those early spring days when the air is cold but there's not a cloud in the sky. so maybe spring is my favorite. but then i remember swimming in the river with my best friends and having picnics in the park and i think maybe summer is my favorite. but then i remember the smell of new rain on decaying leaves and fall seems like my favorite too! and then i think about how quiet the world is when it snows and how every breath feels like waking up and all of a sudden winter is my favorite. isn't it a wonderful world we live in?
Chinese Solar Calendar: 小暑 Minor Heat
You may have heard about the Chinese Lunar calendar, but what's the solar calendar?
The Lunar Calendar is based on the phases of the moon, divided into 12 months. It's used for determining festivals e.g. Spring Festival/Chinese New Year.
The Solar Calendar however, is based on the Earth's orbit around the Sun, and it's divided into 24 phases, each lasting around 15 days.
Historically, this has been used for agriculture and specific seasonal activities, as each new season would be an indicator of a change in the weather and allow farmers to plan and prepare accordingly.
Currently we're about to enter 小暑 (Xiǎoshǔ) Minor Heat, so here are some customs and interesting information about this upcoming time period!
小暑 Minor Heat is the 11th solar phase and it starts approximately from July 6-8. Minor Heat, like its' name, has relatively hot and humid weather, with thunderstorms and monsoons being quite common. The weather and rainfall may vary, as northern regions in China tend to be colder with their rainy seasons starting later.
Food:
Eel, Mung bean soup, lotus roots and lotus leaf porridge, watermelon rind dew.
Customs:
"Eating New Food Custom" 食新习俗 (Shíxīn xísú). This is an old custom where some regions would use newly harvested rice and wheat to make flour, from which they would make various breads and noodles and share them with friends and family for good fortune and a good harvest.
"Eating Dumplings" 吃饺子 (Chī jiǎozi). Relatively self-explanatory. This period of time is quite hot and people tend to be not as hungry, which is why dumplings are considered to be the best food to stimulate hunger. I for one can't think of an occasion where I would refuse dumplings, so this may indeed be true.
Drying things on the 6th day of the 6th lunar month. Drying paintings and clothes is believed to prevent them from being by insects
Proverbs:
雨打小暑头，四十五天不用牛 (Yǔ dǎ xiǎoshǔ tóu, sìshíwǔ tiān bùyòng niú): If it rains at the start of Minnor Heat, no cattle will be needed for 45 days.
小暑交大暑，热得无处躲 (Xiǎoshǔ jiāodà shǔ, rè dé wú chù duǒ): From Lesser Heat to Greater Heat, it's so hot that there's no place to hide.