The Tang Xianzu Memorial Hall in Fuzhou is a comprehensive cultural venue built to commemorate Tang Xianzu, one of the world’s hundred great cultural figures and a master of Ming‑dynasty drama in China. It is also one of Jiangxi Province’s ten major memorial halls dedicated to historical luminaries.
The Twenty-Four Solar Terms at the Soup House | Great Cold
Author:
Source:
Tang Xianzu Memorial Hall Official Account
Time:
2024-02-05
Da Han is the last of the twenty-four solar terms. It occurs when the Big Dipper points to the constellation Chǒu, and the Sun reaches a celestial longitude of 300°; it typically falls around January 20 on the Gregorian calendar. Like Xiao Han, Da Han marks the degree of cold weather, with Da Han signifying that the cold has reached its extreme.
The “Shoushi Tongkao: Tian Shi” cites the “Sanli Yizong,” which explains: “‘Great Cold’ is called ‘great’ because it follows ‘Minor Cold’ in the seasonal cycle; hence the name… It signifies that the cold has reached its utmost intensity.” This vividly underscores the extreme chill of Great Cold. Occurring during the third and fourth nines of the lunar calendar, this period sees frequent southward surges of cold air, making it the coldest time of the year—and also the driest.
As the folk saying goes, “During Xiaohan and Dahan, cold comes even without wind.” Dahan marks the peak of winter’s chill—a time when vitality lies dormant and all things lie in repose. Situated at the year’s end, Dahan heralds the transition from winter to spring; once it has passed, a new cycle begins anew.
Da Han is the last of the twenty-four solar terms; once it has passed, the Beginning of Spring arrives, marking the start of a new cycle of seasonal changes. With the Lunar New Year falling around this time, the festive atmosphere grows stronger as Da Han sets in. Often coinciding with the year’s end, the customs and traditions of this period take on an added sense of bidding farewell to the old and welcoming the new.
During this solar term, people begin busily discarding the old and welcoming the new, curing meats and preparing festive dishes, as China’s most important holiday—the Spring Festival—is just around the corner. As the last solar term of the year, Great Cold may mark a lull in agricultural work, yet every household is still “busy”—preparing for the New Year—a custom known as “Welcoming the New Year in Great Cold.”
In some parts of southern China, from the period between Great Cold and the Beginning of Spring, numerous significant folk customs and festivals take place, such as the “Wei Ya” ritual. The Wei Ya tradition originates from the custom of paying homage to the Earth God, known as the “Ya.” The Earth sustains all things, nurtures them, and cultivates the five grains to provide for the people—this is why people revere and offer sacrifices to the Earth.
The Great Cold solar term falls squarely within the depths of the “Sanjiu” cold period. “Counting the Nine” is a widely practiced folk custom in China: starting from the day of the Winter Solstice that coincides with the Ren day (though some begin at the Winter Solstice itself), each nine-day interval is counted as one “nine,” and this counting continues for a total of eighty-one days—“when the ninth nine has passed, peach blossoms bloom.” By then, the bitter cold has largely abated, and the weather turns mild.
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