“送祝米”习俗的原始意义与传统追溯

The Original Meaning and Traditional Custom of Sending Zhoumi

"送祝米"是我国一项流行地域广、涉及民族多的传统贺诞民俗。"送祝米"的原始意义包含宗教信仰和实用保健两个方面,它既与我国的巫文化传统特别是民间对"米"的崇拜有关,也与亲戚、邻里之间的互助有关。这项民俗的起源虽难考证但其传统略可追溯,魏晋时期出于实用和宗教的"送米"现象均已经出现,特别是"麻姑掷米"传说与"送祝米"的原始意义深相契合。

Sending Zhoumi is a traditional Chinese folk custom celebrating baby,s birth which is popular in wide areas and popular among ethnic groups. The original meaning of sending Zhoumi includes two aspects, the religious belief and the practical care. The wizard culture of China,especially the folk worship of rice is the religious basis of the custom formation. And the mutually supportive relationship between friends or relatives is the realistic basis of the customs formation. Nowadays, the textual research on the origin of the folk custom sending Zhoumi is very difficult, but tracing its tradition, we can find that the phenomena of sending rice has emerged from the Wei and Jin Dynasties. And, the meaning of the tales about Ma-Gu scattering rice is same as original meaning of the custom.