二十四節(jié)氣之大雪和冬至

大雪是二十四節(jié)氣中的第21個(gè)節(jié)氣，通常在每年公歷的12月6日—8日之間。此時(shí)，中國(guó)北方大部分地區(qū)的最低氣溫會(huì)降到0℃以下，甚至可能會(huì)下大雪，所以這個(gè)節(jié)氣被稱(chēng)作“大雪”

Daxue， or Major Snow， is the 21st of the 24solar terms， usually falling between December6th and 8th on the Gregorian calendar. Duringthis time， the lowest temperatures in mostparts of northern China drop below 0 °C， andheavy snowfall is possible， which is why thisperiod is called “Major Snow.”

大雪時(shí)節(jié)，天氣寒冷。人們會(huì)減少戶外活動(dòng)，選擇“窩”在家里休養(yǎng)生息，于是有了“窩冬”的說(shuō)法。此時(shí)也是進(jìn)補(bǔ)的好時(shí)節(jié)，民間有一種說(shuō)法，叫作“冬天進(jìn)補(bǔ)，開(kāi)春打虎”，意思是這個(gè)時(shí)候補(bǔ)充一些營(yíng)養(yǎng)豐富的食物，能促進(jìn)體內(nèi)陽(yáng)氣的生發(fā)，幫助人們抵御寒冷。

The Daxue season is marked by cold weather.People tend to reduce outdoor activities and stay athome to rest， giving rise to the phrase “nesting forwinter.” It is also an ideal time for nourishment，with a traditional saying： “Supplement in winter，fight a tiger in spring.” It means that eatingnutrient-rich foods during this period will helpboost the body’s yang energy， aiding in resistanceto the cold.

中國(guó)有些地區(qū)有“大雪腌肉”的習(xí)俗，人們?cè)谶@個(gè)時(shí)節(jié)用鹽巴和大料等腌制牛羊雞魚(yú)等各種肉類(lèi)，為即將到來(lái)的新年盛宴增添美味。

In some regions of China， there is a custom ofcuring meat during the Daxue period. People usesalt， spices， and other seasonings to preserve beef，lamb， chicken， and fish， adding delicious flavors tothe upcoming New Year’s feast.

春種，夏長(zhǎng)，秋收，冬藏，天地萬(wàn)物皆遵循四季輪回的自然法則。冬季雖是農(nóng)民們的農(nóng)閑時(shí)間，但大雪時(shí)節(jié)的降雪可為農(nóng)事提供水量的儲(chǔ)備，所謂“瑞雪兆豐年”便是這個(gè)意思。人們祈愿冬日里的降雪能滋潤(rùn)土地，帶來(lái)一年的豐收。

The cycle of nature follows the seasons： springplanting， summer growth， autumn harvest， andwinter storage. While winter is a time of rest forfarmers， snowfall during the Daxue period helpsstore water for the fields. This is the meaningbehind the saying， “A timely snow promises agood harvest.” People hope that winter snowfallwill nourish the land and lead to a bountiful yearahead.

其實(shí)，大雪時(shí)節(jié)不一定就會(huì)下雪，更不一定就會(huì)下大雪。二十四節(jié)氣的命名主要以中國(guó)黃河流域的氣候?yàn)橐罁?jù)。在中國(guó)的南方，冬天沒(méi)那么冷，有的地方幾乎從不下雪，更別提大雪了。南方人只能羨慕“大雪地區(qū)”的人們能享有冬日特別福利——賞雪景、滑雪、滑冰、堆雪人、打雪仗……大雪時(shí)節(jié)獨(dú)特的“禮物”為北方蕭索的冬日帶來(lái)了樂(lè)趣。

That said， Daxue doesn’t alwaysbring snow， and it certainly doesn’talways bring heavy snow. The 24 solarterms are primarily based on theclimate of China’s Yellow River Basin.In southern China， winters are muchmilder， and some areas hardly eversee snow， let alone heavy snow. Peoplethere can only envy those in snowyregions who get to enjoy winter’s specialtreats — admiring snowy landscapes，skiing， skating， building snowmen， andhaving snowball fights. These unique“gifts” of the Daxue period bring joyto the otherwise bleak northern winterdays.

冬至是二十四節(jié)氣中的第22個(gè)節(jié)氣，通常在每年公歷的12月21日—23日之間。這一天，太陽(yáng)光直射南回歸線，是北半球各地白晝最短、黑夜最長(zhǎng)的一天。然后，太陽(yáng)直射點(diǎn)就開(kāi)始向北返回，北半球的白晝將會(huì)一天天增長(zhǎng)。

Dongzhi， or the Winter Solstice， isthe 22nd of the 24 solar terms， typicallyoccurring between December 21st and 23rdon the Gregorian calendar. On this day，the sun shines directly over the Tropic ofCapricorn， making it the shortest day andlongest night of the year in the NorthernHemisphere. After the day of Dongzhi， thesun begins its journey back north， and thedays in the Northern Hemisphere graduallybecome longer.

中國(guó)的古人很早就發(fā)現(xiàn)了這個(gè)規(guī)律。他們將冬至看作陰陽(yáng)轉(zhuǎn)折的節(jié)點(diǎn)，認(rèn)為從這天起，天地間的陰氣開(kāi)始衰退，陽(yáng)氣日漸興盛，所以，冬至是個(gè)大吉的日子。因此，冬至自古就是中國(guó)最重要的節(jié)氣之一，民間一直有“冬至大如年”的說(shuō)法。人們會(huì)在這天換上新衣服，準(zhǔn)備豐盛的食物，祭祀祖先和神靈，希望來(lái)年一切順利；古代帝王還會(huì)到天壇舉行祭天大典。

Ancient Chinese people discoveredthis pattern early on and viewed the WinterSolstice as a turning point between yinand yang. They believed that from this dayonward， the yin energy in the world beginsto wane， and the yang energy starts to growstronger. For this reason， the Winter Solsticewas considered a highly auspicious day. Ithas long been one of the most importantsolar terms in China， with a commonsaying， “The Winter Solstice is as significantas the New Year.” People would put onnew clothes， prepare elaborate meals， andmake sacrifices to ancestors and deities inthe hope of a smooth and prosperous year ahead. In ancient times， emperors would also holdgrand worship ceremonies at the Temple of Heavenon this day.

中國(guó)各地過(guò)冬至節(jié)的習(xí)俗不盡相同。在北方，人們必定要在冬至吃餃子，所謂“冬至不端餃子碗，凍掉耳朵沒(méi)人管”。餃子的形狀和耳朵的形狀相似，因此在冬至吃餃子就有“消寒”的意思。而在南方，人們通常會(huì)在冬至吃湯圓，“圓”意味著圓滿、團(tuán)圓，一顆顆軟糯的湯圓下肚，代表了“團(tuán)團(tuán)圓圓”的美好祝愿。冬至?xí)r節(jié)的飲食習(xí)俗，承載著中國(guó)獨(dú)特的飲食文化。但無(wú)論天南地北，這些食品中都隱含著人們對(duì)生活、對(duì)家人的美好愿景。

The customs for celebrating the DongzhiFestival vary from region to region in China. In thenorth， it’s a tradition to eat dumplings on this day.There’s a saying： “If you don’t eat dumplings on theWinter Solstice， your ears will freeze off and no onewill care.” Since dumplings are shaped somewhatlike ears， eating them on the day of Dongzhisymbolizes warding off the cold. In the south，people usually eat tangyuan （glutinous rice balls），as the round shape represents unity and reunion.With each bite of these soft， sweet rice balls， peopleexpress their wishes for togetherness and harmony.These culinary traditions reflect China’s uniqueDongzhi Festival food culture， and whether in thenorth or the south， these foods embody the love andwarmth that people have for life and their families.

冬至?xí)r節(jié)萬(wàn)樹(shù)寒無(wú)色，唯有冰姿仙風(fēng)的梅花凌霜傲雪。人們賞梅、詠梅、畫(huà)梅，漸漸衍生出冬日里最詩(shī)意的“日歷”——梅花形制的“九九消寒圖”。冬至那天，人們先繪制一支梅花，枝上有花九朵，每朵上面有九片花瓣。每過(guò)一天，便根據(jù)不同的天氣為一片花瓣畫(huà)上不同顏色，晴染紅、雨沁綠、陰點(diǎn)藍(lán)、風(fēng)畫(huà)黃、雪落白，隨著不同天氣給花瓣畫(huà)上不同的顏色。在最寒冷的季節(jié)中，人們望著點(diǎn)綴寒枝的繽紛梅花，仿佛已逐漸嗅到春日的氣息。冬至?xí)r節(jié)過(guò)后，白晝的時(shí)間也逐漸變長(zhǎng)，寒冬即將過(guò)去，人們看到了春天的希望。地下的陽(yáng)氣也漸漸復(fù)蘇，人們開(kāi)始期待春天的到來(lái)。

During the Dongzhi period， when thetrees are bare， only the plum blossomsstand proudly against the frost andsnow， exuding an ethereal beauty. Peopleadmire them， write poems， and createpaintings， giving rise to the most poeticwinter tradition — the “Nine by NineDiagram” calendar. This diagram featuresa plum branch with nine blossoms，drawn on the very day of Dongzhi，each blossom bearing nine petals. Eachday， one petal is colored based on theweather： red for sunny days， green forrain， blue for cloudy skies， yellow forwind， and white for snow. As the colorfulpetals begin to adorn the cold branches，it feels as if the scent of spring is alreadyin the air. After the Dongzhi period， thedays grow longer and the harsh winterbegins to fade， offering a glimpse ofthe coming spring. As the yang energybeneath the earth awakens， people lookforward to the arrival of spring withrenewed hope.