(Source: blog.photo.sina.com.cn)

According to records of the Zhou Dynasty, people worshipped the gods on the day of the Winter Solstice, and on the Zhou calendar, on which there were only ten months per year, the Winter Solstice was also the first day of the new year. Since the Han Dynasty, the lunar calendar has been used instead of the Zhou one, and the year has been divided into twelve months. The Winter Solstice became a winter festival during the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD), and thrived during the Tang and Song dynasties (618-1279).

Even the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) has records of the Winter Solstice in Qing Jia Lu, a very significant book of records about Jiangsu conventions in the middle period of the Qing Dynasty, including the proverb that "Winter Solstice is as significant as the Spring Festival," showing the great importance attached to this day. People of that period believed that the Winter Solstice marks the natural oscillation between yin and yang, an auspicious day. The Han people regarded Winter Solstice as a "Winter Festival,” and the celebratory activities were organized officially. On this day, both officials and common people would have a rest. According to History of the Later Han Dynasty, around the Winter Solstice, men of honor would take a break from their work, and officials would cease their administrative duties until a proper time. Thus, on that day, the army was stationed in, frontier fortresses closed and business and traveling stopped. Relatives and friends served each other delicious food.

In the Tang and Song dynasties, the Winter Solstice was a day to offer scarifies to Heaven and the ancestors. Emperors would go to the suburbs to worship Heaven, while common people offered sacrifices to their deceased parents or other relatives.

Source: baike.baidu.com

Translated by Zhang Min

Editor: Wen Yi & Zhang Min