Happy Laba Festival to you all!
Today is Laba Festival (臘八節). It is a traditional Chinese holiday celebrated on the eighth day of the month of La (or Layue 臘月), the twelfth month of the Chinese calendar. It is the beginning of the Chinese New Year period. The traditional food people eat on this day is Laba congee (臘八粥).
The Laba Festival's name represents its date on the Chinese calendar. La is the name of the twelfth and final month, and ba means "eight". In ancient China, the "eight" referred to making sacrifices to eight gods at the end of the year.
In its original form, the festival was celebrated by making sacrifices to gods and ancestors to wish for good fortune, health, safety, and a good harvest in the new year. The word la originally referred to these sacrifices.
The custom of congee eating has been well-known throughout history, from the royal court to common people. Laba rice congee (or porridge) contains glutinous rice, red beans, millet, Chinese sorghum, peas, dried lotus seeds, red beans and some other ingredients, such as dried dates, chestnut meat, walnut meat, almond, peanut, etc. There are many different kinds of Laba congee that contain different ingredients all around China. But the most popular has 8 ingredients (photo below).
The prelude for the Lunar New Year of the Wood Snake has begun! Hope you are having a fantastic week with lots of healthy foods!
Wu Fei 吴非
You can buy my album Yuan from Tzadik records or from Amazon. My albums A Distant Youth and Pluck are available for purchase on Bandcamp.
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