What are the customs in Zijin County?

Superstitious customs

Asking gods to cure illnesses

In the old days, many people in Zijin County were superstitious about gods and ghosts. When their family members got sick, they would ask gods and witches for "divination" Immortal", giving medicine to cure diseases. There are also people who are sick and think that ghosts and gods are causing trouble, so they invite monks to perform talismans and perform magic to "drive away evil spirits and eliminate diseases." Some people missed the time for treatment and lost their lives because of their belief in ghosts and gods. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, no one believed in this custom. But now it has resurfaced in some places.

Fortune Telling

Before the founding of the People's Republic of China, some "fortune tellers" who traveled around the world used the "eight characters" of a person's birth date, using the heavenly stems and earthly branches, combined with the principle of the five elements to generate and restrain each other, and then try to figure out the other person's psychology and observe the other person's psychology. Yan Chasese uses ambiguous words to calculate a person's life expectancy, property, children and wives, honor and disgrace, good or bad fortune, etc., and defrauds people of property. Many people in Zijin County are superstitious about numerology and submit their birthdays, month, and day to "fortune tellers" for calculation, and many people are deceived. After liberation, this custom was abolished for a time. It has picked up again in recent years.

Asking for fortunes

Asking for fortunes was a way for monks and Taoists in old temples to borrow money from gods. A lotus tube was set up for superstitious people to ask for fortune. The person asking for a sign must first burn incense, light a candle, and pray silently in front of the table of gods, and then hold the sign tube and shake it continuously until a sign pops out. The temple Zhu draws out the same number according to the lot number, and the person who asks for the lot can explain the good and bad luck in the four-sentence text.

After liberation, temples throughout the county were destroyed, and the bad custom of asking for autographs was abolished.

Look at Feng Shui

In the old days, when people built houses, moved residences, built tombs, etc., they asked "Mr. Geography" to check Feng Shui. It is believed that the prosperity and decline of a family's wealth, as well as the virtuous and foolish descendants of a family, are all related to the mountains and waterways of the Yin and Yang houses. The Yin Yang family demands a lot of money, so many people spend a lot of money and materials. Some people even have disputes and fights due to superstitious Feng Shui, leading to years of litigation and causing both parties to lose their money. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, fewer and fewer people believed in this custom.

Jiaohui

Jiaohui is commonly known as "Jiaohui". The Jiao period usually lasts for five years, with one small Jiao ceremony, and with ten years, one large Jiao ceremony. There are two types of Jiao fairs in Zijin County: one is called "Shen Jiao", which is a temple fair held on the birthday of "gods" in various places. For the "Tianhou Empress" in the county, the funeral is on the 23rd of the third lunar month; for the emperor of Ximenguan, it is on the 13th of May. Both the Zhanggong Temple and Jingzi Temple have fixed temple fair dates. The other kind is called "Hemi Jiao", which is held in each township or joint township. It has no fixed date and is mostly held in winter. The duration of the conference is usually five days and six nights, but there are also seven days and eight nights.

When setting up a memorial ceremony, two people with "both wealth and honor" will be selected as "Fu Shou" and "Fu Quan" to preside over the ceremony. Then select 100 prime ministers and select some of them to be responsible for various specific tasks.

After the ceremony began, vendors gathered, pilgrims came in droves, casinos of various sizes were set up everywhere, and gamblers fought fiercely day and night. Men and women from all over the country came to the ceremony, dressed in brand new clothes, and flocked to the ceremony in an endless stream.

On the altar, a Buddhist hall was set up. The monks chanted sutras and prayed and repented day and night. Fu Shou, Fu Quan and the Prime Minister took turns to accompany them in worship. A stage is set up opposite the altar. Those who build the God's altar often perform Guangban Cantonese opera, and those who build the Hemi altar perform puppet shows. On the side of the altar is a paper-bound "Grand Master in White Clothes", who is called "Shan Master". Three flags were erected to signify "Yang Shi and Yin Shi". All beggars sit at the table and do not need to ask for food. On the last day of the ceremony, eight people carried the statue out for a tour. The gentry, elders and others followed religiously with incense sticks in their hands. Everywhere they went, they burned incense and lit candles and bowed their hands to show their sincerity. On the night of "Gaolong" (the last night), "paper money" and "paper clothes" as big as the hut are burned, which is called "giving aid to the ghosts".

During the Jiao ceremony, all people in the Jiao area must take showers and fast, refrain from killing animals, eat meat, and husband and wife should not live in different rooms.

After the founding of the People's Republic of China, the bad habit of holding wedding ceremonies has been eliminated.