Traditional Culture Encyclopedia - Weather forecast - What's the festival on April 8th? Niuwang Festival Dong Nationality Festival

What's the festival on April 8th? Niuwang Festival Dong Nationality Festival

Niuwang Festival is a festival for the Dong people. This festival falls on the eighth day of the fourth month of the lunar calendar every year. Do you know how the Dong people celebrate the Festival of the Ox King?

The Dong people in Jiuzhai call April 8th Ox King's Day. Niuwang Festival, called Tuoshengni in Dong language, means Niuwang's birthday, and also called Niuwanghui, which means Niuwang's birthday party in Dong language. On this day, all women cook white rice and stir-fry oil tea for cows at home, and cook eggs for cows when conditions are good, to show people's deep sympathy and warm return to it before spring ploughing. After lunch break, people roll up their sleeves and go home, put their hands in wooden pots to see if the rice and oil tea in the pots are hot, then pick up the wooden pots and bake the wine in the cowshed with eggs, so that the cows can fully enjoy it.

At this time, the owner often wants to hold the bull's head and caress it, saying, Niu Er, you are my baby, you are my baby. If I love you all the year round, then eat and drink well. I wish you no trouble, no miracle, no plague to work with me, in exchange for harvest and prosperity in all aspects, and I will treat you well again next year. At this time, the cow seems to understand human nature. It sticks out its tongue to lick people and squints at people.

When the cow is full, the baby on the side will take it out to eat tender grass, wash its body and comb its hair. Wash and dress very carefully. People despise a cow with unclean body and dull hair and say others are lazy. After the cows go out, the owner cleans the cowshed, and then spreads dry and fluffy straw or thatch on it, so that the cows can spend their holidays comfortably.

During the Ox King Festival, people in the village are not allowed to let cows fight, let alone kill them to eat meat. In a word, on the day of Cow King's Day, even if Lei Gong went to the fields, it would be difficult to move a finger on it. On this day, the owner will spend the birthday with the cow. After the cow is pulled back to the cowshed, it will wander around the cowshed and mend it, for fear of being thoughtless and sorry for its beloved cow. Some people take cows out to eat fresh grass in the mountains and enjoy the natural joy of mountains and rivers.

On Cow King's Day, people will also observe the weather and predict the success of the year. Generally speaking, the best hope is sunny. First, pack up for the cow, let it have a happy holiday, save your strength and meet the pear rake; Secondly, it still indicates that next year is expected to have a bumper harvest. Folk saying is that this day is of great significance to farmers and the world. If the day is really sunny, it means a good harvest. People may even think that this is the good luck given to the world by Grandpa Niu Wang, so all the men, women and children in the village get together to celebrate and revel in the festive atmosphere.