2016年CRI Carnival Spirit Lights Up Through Generations During Spring Festival

 

Miaohui is an event that dates back to ancient times, when farmers would offer New Year sacrifices to their village gods.

As time progressed, the event later saw marketplaces spring up, with villagers peddling¹ their wares² and performers putting on shows.

The temple fairs, they are known today, grew in prominence³ throughout the Ming and Qing dynasties from 1368 to 1911.

But after the founding of the People's Republic in 1949, temple fairs disappeared.

However, they began re-emerging in the 1980's.

Jin Mao, an expert on traditional Chinese culture and history, says the revival⁴ of temple fairs in China began in Beijing.

"The country's first official temple fair after 1949 was in 1985 at Beijing's Ditan, or Temple of the Earth. Now, they are once again an important part of the Spring Festival and they continue to evolve. The carnivals⁵ in parks such as Ditan and others with a long history largely remain true to tradition, and they evoke⁶ imperial⁷ times and folk memories."

Miaohui has become a festival filled with food and activities that are enjoyed by every generation.

Each generation remembers temple fairs differently.

However, every generation views them as a joyful⁸ place to go during the Spring Festival.

Children in China have been referred to as the "God of Happiness."

As such, during temple fairs, the "Gods of happiness" pass "lucky cards" to visitors at the temple fair.

Whomever receives the "lucky card" is considered blessed for the whole year.

This is one of a number of activities children enjoy during the temple fairs.

"I love temple fair because I can buy kites and candy haws."

"This year I want to blow sugar figurines when I go to temple fair."

"My younger sister and I can watch traditional plays, such as dragon dance show."

People, born in the 1940's or 50's have seen significant changes made in temple fairs through the decades.

Yan Yunxian is "laobeijing" -- a term for those who were born and raised in the capital city.

Yan says she remembers children with red cotton-padded jackets running out of their hutongs to join the temple fairs and see traditional folk art that now can rarely be seen, such as the creation⁹ of sugar figurines.

"When I was young, there was only the Changdian event, which was not an official temple fair. But we called it Miaohui anyway. One of the things I remember dearly is the sugar figurines that were popular in traditional stories. I really enjoyed watching and eating afterwards."

He Yunwei and Li Jing, two famous cross-talk actors, have used the creation of sugar figurines as part of their act.

The two tell a funny story of a grandchild and grandfather making blow sugar figurines during the Spring Festival.

Yan Yunxian says while temple fairs have changed through the decades, the spirit of them hasn't.

"In recent years, temple fair has not been like the ones when I was little because of the rapid change in society. However, I think Beijing has preserved a lot of the old traditions and blended it with the new trends. It offers a chance to immerse¹⁰ ourselves in life in ancient China. It's also an opportunity for Chinese parents to show their children facets¹¹ of Chinese tradition. In the end, it's simply a great way to spend quality time with the family."

Younger generation who were born in the 80's or 90's have also come to know Miaohui as part of the Spring Festival tradition.

Wang Zhe recently finished her undergraduate and graduate studies in the United States.

She says she's really excited to go to this year's temple fair in Beijing, as its been a while since she's been back at this time of year.

"I remember the last time I went to a temple fair was six years ago since I always returned to China during the vacations. I like the traditional Beijing snacks so much. The best traditional Beijing snacks are the candied haw, the Sweetened Fried Flour balls and Beijing Sausage. Although sometimes you can find these snacks in other places, they always taste the best during a temple fair because of the atmosphere. "

This year's temple fairs have different themes, and have adopted today's modern entertainment trends.

For example, the Longtan Park is adding ice-related games to celebrate China's successful bid to host the Winter Olympics in 2022.

And Ditan Park will put on show the connection in traditional culture and customs of Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei to hail¹² the central government's integrated¹³ development plan of the northern Chinese region.

Organizers say a total of 124 temple fairs have been arranged in Beijing for this year's week-long Spring Festival holiday with over 2.5 million visitors anticipated.

For CRI, this is Huang Yue.

1 peddling   

忙于琐事的，无关紧要的

参考例句：

• He worked as a door-to-door salesman peddling cloths and brushes. 他的工作是上门推销抹布和刷子。
• "If he doesn't like peddling, why doesn't he practice law? "要是他不高兴卖柴火，干吗不当律师呢？

2 wares   

n. 货物, 商品

参考例句：

• They sold their wares at half-price. 他们的货品是半价出售的。
• The peddler was crying up his wares. 小贩极力夸耀自己的货物。

3 prominence   

n.突出；显著；杰出；重要

参考例句：

• He came to prominence during the World Cup in Italy.他在意大利的世界杯赛中声名鹊起。
• This young fashion designer is rising to prominence.这位年轻的时装设计师的声望越来越高。

4 revival   

n.复兴，复苏，（精力、活力等的）重振

参考例句：

• The period saw a great revival in the wine trade.这一时期葡萄酒业出现了很大的复苏。
• He claimed the housing market was showing signs of a revival.他指出房地产市场正出现复苏的迹象。

5 carnivals   

狂欢节( carnival的名词复数 )； 嘉年华会； 激动人心的事物的组合； 五彩缤纷的颜色组合

参考例句：

• The Venice Carnival is one of the oldest and most famous international carnivals in the world. 威尼斯嘉年华是世界上最古老、最富盛名的国际嘉年华会之一。 来自常春藤生活英语杂志-2006年2月号
• A few exceptions would be made, he said, such as for carnivals. 他说一些免责条款将被制定出来，例如嘉年华会。

6 evoke   

vt.唤起，引起，使人想起

参考例句：

• These images are likely to evoke a strong response in the viewer.这些图像可能会在观众中产生强烈反响。
• Her only resource was the sympathy she could evoke.她以凭借的唯一力量就是她能从人们心底里激起的同情。

7 imperial   

adj.帝王的，至尊的；n.特等品

参考例句：

• They made an objection to the imperial system with resolution.他们坚决反对帝制。
• The Prince Imperial passed away last night.皇太子昨晚去世了。

8 joyful   

adj.欢乐的，令人欢欣的

参考例句：

• She was joyful of her good result of the scientific experiments.她为自己的科学实验取得好成果而高兴。
• They were singing and dancing to celebrate this joyful occasion.他们唱着、跳着庆祝这令人欢乐的时刻。

9 creation   

n.创造，创造的作品，产物，宇宙，天地万物

参考例句：

• Language is the most important mental creation of man.语言是人类头脑最重要的产物。
• The creation of new playgrounds will benefit the local children.新游戏场的建立将有益于当地的儿童。

10 immerse   

v.使沉浸在，使深陷于；使浸没在

参考例句：

• Immerse the cloth in the dye for twenty minutes.把布浸在染料里20分钟。
• Don't immerse yourself in the infliction too long.不要长时间沉浸在痛苦经历中。

11 facets   

n.（宝石或首饰的）小平面( facet的名词复数 )；（事物的）面；方面

参考例句：

• The question had many facets. 这个问题是多方面的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• A fully cut brilliant diamond has 68 facets. 经过充分切刻的光彩夺目的钻石有68个小平面。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 hail   

n.雹，一阵；vi.下雹；vt.高呼，为...喝彩

参考例句：

• Hail fell with such violence that it broke windows.冰雹猛落，把玻璃窗也砸破了。
• The people lined the streets to hail the returning heroes.人们夹道欢迎凯旋的英雄们。

13 integrated   

a.整合的，完整的

参考例句：

• A fully integrated low phase noise LC voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) is presented.介绍了一种全集成的LC压控振荡器(VCO)的设计。