There is no Beginning of Spring this year, so it’s not a good time to get married? Here’s what the experts say!

　　China News Service, Beijing, January 26 (Reporter Shangguan Yun) February 4 is the Beginning of Spring, and soon after, it will be the Lunar New Year. "The plan for a year lies in spring." Spring is full of vitality and hope. Among the twenty-four solar terms, the beginning of spring has always received much attention.

　　However, I don’t know when, but there is a saying quietly circulating among the people: This year is the Year of the Dragon, there is no "Beginning of Spring", so it is the 'Year of the Widow', and it is not suitable for marriage. This statement quickly aroused doubts, and many netizens said that it sounded unreliable.

　　In fact, the so-called "no spring year" is a normal phenomenon. The reason for its occurrence has a lot to do with the calendar and has nothing to do with good or bad luck, life fortune, marriage, etc.

Is it not suitable to get married in a "no spring year"?

　　First of all, we need to clarify a question, that is, what is the "year without spring"?

　　Tang Zhiqiang, director of the Agricultural History Research Department of the China Agricultural Museum, explained that the so-called "no spring year" generally refers to the period from the first day of the first lunar month to the New Year's Eve of that year when there is no "beginning of spring".

　　For example, the "Beginning of Spring" in 2024 is February 4, which is the 25th day of the twelfth lunar month in the Year of the Rabbit, and the next "Beginning of Spring" is February 3, 2025, which has entered the first month of the Lunar Year of the Snake, so There is a saying that there will be "no spring" in the 2024 lunar year.

　　Wang Juan, a professor at the Department of Chinese at Peking University, pointed out, "As far as ancient Chinese calendars are concerned, there are two main types. The solar calendar is determined based on the movement patterns of the sun, and the lunar calendar is mainly determined based on the movement patterns of the moon."

　　"Because there is a discrepancy in dates between the solar calendar and the lunar calendar, in order to match the two, people came up with methods such as leap months to make adjustments." She explained that after the "Taichu Calendar" was established in the Han Dynasty, the lunar calendar and the solar calendar were combined, adding On the twenty-four solar terms.

　　At the same time, dynasties in history also differed in which month they regarded as the first month of the New Year. For example, the Xia Dynasty regarded the first month of the lunar calendar as the first month, the Shang Dynasty regarded the twelfth lunar month as the "first month", the Zhou Dynasty regarded the eleventh lunar month as the "first month", and so on. This may also affect whether there is a "beginning of spring" solar term in a year.

　　"Due to the artificial setting of the calendar, it is easier to cause a 'no spring year' situation, which has nothing to do with luck, good or bad luck, etc." She emphasized that the so-called "widow year" and "no spring year are not suitable for marriage" have no scientific reason.

　　In addition, Wang Juan said that "spring does not appear at both ends of the year", commonly known as the "blind year". In some places, it is believed that children with "blind years" should either go to school early, or carry a lantern with candles when going to school, called "illumination", to pray for progress in learning.

　　"Actually, many of these statements don't make sense. They are just folk and local ways of interpretation. The so-called 'successful' and 'unsuccessful' times of the year are sometimes more of a psychological effect." she says.

A 100-meter giant dragon appears in the water town of southern Fujian, staging a Chinese-style romance. Photo courtesy of Longwen District Media Center

Zodiac signs are also calculated from the beginning of spring?

　　In addition, there is another controversial issue surrounding the "beginning of spring", which is when should the "zodiac sign" be calculated?

　　Some people believe that the zodiac signs are calculated from the beginning of spring; others believe that the zodiac signs are calculated according to the lunar calendar, starting from the first day of the first lunar month and ending on New Year's Eve. For example, in the Year of the Dragon in Jiachen, children born on or after the first day of the first lunar month can be classified as "Dragon".

　　In fact, the names "Guimao Year" and "Jiachen Year" are related to the chronology of the stems and branches. The so-called "stems and branches" are the general term for the heavenly stems and earthly branches. The order of the stems and branches is matched to represent the serial number of the year, month and day. The 60-year cycle starts over and over again.

　　In order to facilitate memory, the ancients also designed 12 kinds of animals, namely the twelve zodiac animals, to match the "twelve earthly branches". The zodiac sign corresponding to "Chen" is "Dragon".

　　Tang Zhiqiang said that a person's zodiac sign is determined by the earthly branches of the birth stem calendar. The 12 earthly branches correspond to the 12 zodiac signs, with the beginning of spring as the dividing line between the 24 solar terms. It does not start from New Year's Day, nor does it start from New Year's Day.

　　Therefore, from the perspective of the "Stem and Branch Calendar", the zodiac sign of the previous year is before the beginning of spring, and the next zodiac sign is from the day of the beginning of spring. Only those born on February 4th this year, the 25th day of the twelfth lunar month, or after are born in the year of the Dragon.

What does "Biao Chun" eat?

　　The various discussions surrounding the Beginning of Spring actually reflect the importance of this solar term from the side.

　　A farmer's proverb says, "Everything begins at the beginning of the year, and the plan for the year is at the beginning of spring." The arrival of the beginning of spring symbolizes that the year's farming is about to begin. People are accustomed to making production plans at this time, preparing for plowing and planting, and making a good start for farming activities. ,Lay the foundation.

　　In the long years, customs such as sticking spring, wearing spring, floating spring, biting spring, stepping in spring, outing in spring, exploring spring and hiding in spring have been spread among the people. Tang Zhiqiang believes that the pictures of biting spring, whipping spring and awarding spring cows are the three most valuable legacies.

　　On the day of "Beginning of Spring", people are accustomed to eating radish, leeks, ginger, green onions and flour cakes, which is called "Biuchun". According to records, "Five pungent vegetables are onions, garlic, leeks, Polygonum, mustard, pungent and tender vegetables mixed with onions, garlic, leeks, mustard, and eaten on the first day of the year and the beginning of spring to welcome the new year."

　　In ancient times, whipping the spring ox was also a traditional ceremony hosted by the government. The "spring ox" whipped was a fake cow made of clay or paper, with the purpose of heralding a good harvest and encouraging farming.

　　The Spring Ox Picture is an ancient Chinese illustration used to predict the weather, branches, crops and harvests of the year. The picture depicts a cow and the "mang god" who is morning glory. There are poems on the left and right sides, predicting the weather and harvest of the year, and guiding the farming season of the year.

How important are the twenty-four solar terms?

　　Tang Zhiqiang believes that the beginning of spring, as the end of the four seasons, marks the end of winter when the cold wind and all things are hidden, and the coming of spring, which is sunny and full of vitality, is full of hope.

　　To this day, the twenty-four solar terms, including the Beginning of Spring, still have an important impact on people's daily lives.

　　For example, the twenty-four solar terms are still an important reference for people’s basic necessities of life. Almost every solar term has rich and colorful customs, especially in terms of health preservation. The wisdom accumulated over thousands of years guides people to adjust their diet and daily life in time to make their body and mind healthier.

　　"The twenty-four solar terms have a scientific nature and contain the ecological philosophy of 'harmony between man and nature'. It contains many agricultural climate change laws and agricultural production knowledge, which can still be followed and applied by modern agriculture." He concluded road. (over)