两岸七夕情味浓

台湾和闽南的七夕节最富人情味。台湾同胞的先辈不少是古代福建漳州的移民，两地的七夕节俗基本相同，共同的节俗活动使两岸的距离拉得更近了。在台湾，七夕节又叫“情侣节”、“女儿节”，是“时年八节”中最富浪漫色彩的节日。《天仙配》中牛郎织女争取婚姻自主，盼望早日团聚，以及对夫妻恩爱、耕织自足生活的强烈向往和勇敢追求。在台北近郊的北投照明寺和淡水情人庙，每年七夕前后总是人声鼎沸，一对对情侣从各地涌向情人庙朝觐，立下他们的山盟海誓：“在天愿作比翼鸟，在地愿结连理枝”。信徒们祭拜月下老人等神明时，将自己的住址、姓名、出生年月日，以及对象的基本情况一并奉告。若还没有对象，也可以把“理想情人”的条件一一列出，以期有个美满姻缘。许多男女情人喜欢来到情人庙，举行交换婚戒的神圣仪式，让月下老人为他们的浓情蜜意做见证。

台湾人习惯称织女为“七星娘”、“七娘妈”，用花、粉、香、果、酒、肉、鸭蛋七枚，干饭七碗奉祭。读书人以这一天为“魁星会”，大都在学校里备酒聚饮，求得吉利。民间十分盛行崇拜七娘妈这一被奉为保护孩子平安和健康的偶像。台湾著名学者林再复所著《闽南人》中记叙，闽南人过去越峡跨洋到台湾或异国他邦经商、谋生，大都多年未能归，妇女们只好把所有的希望，都寄托在孩子身上，有了希望才有生活下去的勇气。所以，七夕这一相思传情的节日又演变成对保护孩子的“七娘妈”神的祈祷。每年这天，人们三五成群像北方人赶庙会似的，到七娘妈庙供奉花果、脂粉和牲礼。这一天，台湾民间还习惯举行“成人礼”，当子女长到16岁时，父母就会在七夕节这天领着他们带着供品到七娘妈庙，答谢“七娘妈”护佑孩子安度幼年、童年和少年时代。

台湾人认为，小孩在未满16岁前，都是由“七娘妈”照护大的。“七娘妈”俨然是未成年孩子的保护神。婴儿出生满周岁后，虔诚的母亲或祖母会抱着孩子，带上丰盛的供品，另加鸡冠花与千日红，到寺庙祭拜，祈愿七娘妈保护孩子平安长大，并用古钱或长命锁串上红包绒线，挂在颈上，一直到16岁那年的七夕节解下锁牌，并到寺庙答谢七娘妈多年的保佑。有的家长除了在七夕节这天祭谢“七娘妈”之外，还专门为孩子举行成人礼而宴请亲友。台湾七夕拜七娘妈之外，往往也另备小碗油饭到房中拜“床母”。“床母”是儿童的保护神，七月七日是床母的生日，家中有儿童的家庭，在七夕节傍晚时，在儿童睡的床边拜床母，为的是希望孩子快快长大。相传，七月七日为魁星诞。清代台湾风俗，妇女忙于拜“七娘妈”，而男子则忙于祭魁星，魁星是道教中掌管文运之神，即文昌帝君。魁星为点取状元之神，祭拜它以求科举高中。清代郑大枢《台湾竹枝词・七夕》诗云：“今宵牛女度佳期，海外曾无鹊踏枝。屠狗祭魁成底事，结缘煮豆待何时。”钱琦《台湾竹枝词・拜文昌》诗云：“五彩亭前祝七娘，三家村里拜文昌。桥填乌鹊星联斗，天上人间各自忙。”

当今台湾一些地方政府还举办“七夕16岁艺术节”，让身处现代文明下的台湾人，度过一个如同古人一般浪漫、唯美、有意境的七夕节。

“七夕今宵看碧霄，牛郎织女渡河桥。家家乞巧望秋月，穿尽红丝几万条。”这是唐代文人林杰写的《乞巧》风情诗。七夕乞巧反映了劳动人民向勤劳手巧的织女学习劳动技能的强烈愿望。但在闽南和台湾，乞巧活动并不很盛行，这是为何？据《台湾风物志》记载，台湾七夕节并不重视“乞巧”这一节俗。原来，台湾和闽南不产棉，妇女少问女红事。而七夕节前后正是夏收夏种，农事最忙的时候，没有工夫去乞巧。闽南和台湾民间七夕虽不很重乞巧，却很看重保健食俗，这在其他地区是极其少见的。每年临近七夕时，多数人家习惯购买中药“使君子”和石榴。到了七夕节这天晚餐，就用买来的使君子煮鸡蛋、瘦猪肉、猪小肠、螃蟹等。晚饭后，一家老少分食石榴，这两种食物均有驱虫功能，因而很受欢迎。说来有趣，七夕节的晚餐许多家庭习惯煮食红糖干饭，这对诱虫吃药也起了辅助作用。

因何有此独特节俗？相传出自海峡两岸同胞尊奉的北宋名医“保生大帝”吴（央视曾经热播电视连续剧《神医大道公》主人公）。相传，宋代景元年夏令，吴看到家乡闽南许多贫困百姓面黄肌瘦，知是患了虫疾之故，便劝说民众在七夕节食用使君子和石榴。使君子入脾胃经，杀虫、消积，而石榴也是驱虫消积良果，七夕期间正是石榴旺产季节，民众遵照吴的吩咐去做，竟然起到意想不到的驱虫效果，治好了虫疾。据清代《龙溪县志》中载，唐代以前，福建漳州人多嚼食槟榔，因为槟榔是一种预防虫疾的中药材，主治绦虫、蛔虫、姜滴虫及食滞腹满等症，在古代缺医少药的“瘴疠之地”，自然受到应用。但口嚼槟榔染得满嘴紫黑色，且其味苦涩，这种习惯慢慢消失。自从吴介绍吃使君子和石榴后，人们便在七夕节这天煮使君子熬肉汤吃，晚饭后食用石榴。这种有益的节俗后来相沿成俗，并随着漳州移民去台湾而沿袭至今。吴医术高超，医德高尚，上自皇家，下至贫民，都尊崇他为医神。宋代乾道年间，皇帝封他为“忠显侯”、“大道真人”。明成祖永乐十七年，又追封吴为“医灵妙道真君”、“万寿无极保生大帝”。在台湾，祭祀保生大帝的庙宇竟多达162座，可见为民救死扶伤、排忧解难的好人，人们世世代代都不会忘记他的。

在台湾和闽南民间，关于七夕的传说：一是牛郎织女的故事，一是七仙女与董永“百日缘”的故事，但后来人们把这两个传说混为一谈，说织女是天帝的第七个女儿，并尊称为“七娘妈”，并且把七月初七这天界定为七娘妈的诞辰，每年这一天民间要举行祈祥活动。传说天帝原来的旨意是允许织女每七日与牛郎相会一次，但喜鹊“报错喜”，错传为一年一度即七月七日相会，这是个不能原谅的过失。因此，过去人们在七夕这天清早把胭脂花粉用红绳子捆扎起来，抛上屋檐顶，责罚喜鹊衔送到天河边，让织女梳妆打扮，以会牛郎。传说牛郎会织女，喜鹊会纷纷飞至大河上，为之搭桥，名曰“鹊桥”。人们说，七夕过后，喜鹊头部皆秃顶，就是因为牛郎牵牛过鹊桥时，牛蹄子踩踏所致。台湾和闽南人传言，七夕这天晚上如果下小雨，人们则谓这是牛郎和织女于分手之际，彼此依恋不舍，告别时流下的泪滴。有关七夕的民间传说极富人情味，牛郎织女这对恩爱夫妻，每年须至七夕时才得以一会，是个悲喜交集的日子，台湾和闽南人却把它演化为织女的诞辰，并举行相应的祈祥活动，这就大大地冲淡了“七夕”节原来所具有的悲伤气氛。当地人还把原为天帝孙女的织女的辈份提升一级，说成是天帝的第七个女儿。台湾和闽南有一句谚语说：“父母疼尾仔。”这就缩短了天帝与织女之间的感情距离，而天帝为使女儿不因婚后而荒废生产，原意让她每七日与牛郎相会一次，尚不致于太绝情。喜鹊虽有报错喜的过失，但它那种将功补过，任劳任怨的精神，也确实令人感动。这些故事情节的安排，充分体现了两岸民俗文化中所蕴涵的“中庸”的儒家伦理思想。

在台湾和闽南，每年七夕的中午，人们习惯敬祀七娘妈，旧时人们要备瓜果菜肴七盘，胭脂花粉七件，剪刀七把，燃香七炷，酒盏七个，筷子七双，小型纸桥七乘。热情好客的台湾人和闽南人，把七娘妈的六位姐姐也全部请来了，供品以“七”为数，与中国传统文化中数的思维模式有关，即“数七”为阳数之一，是吉祥之数。台湾和闽南人将“七”视为蒸蒸日上，奋发向上的吉利数字。如：“七上八下”、“七成八败”、“有七无八”等。

台湾人和闽南人还把七娘妈奉为护佑少年儿童茁壮成长的女神，因此在“七夕”还表现出一种关心下一代的氛围。新生婴儿在第一个“七夕”拜七娘妈为“契母”（即干妈），称“新契”，这天胸前要挂“天官锁”，到虚岁16岁解除契约时才收藏起来纪念，这个风俗也叫“洗契”，都要举行一定的仪式。

七夕是个最能撩拨情缘思绪的节日。在与台湾隔海相望的闽南东山岛，年年七夕，离人写下不少充满悲与欢、情与恨的七夕诗。去台人员蔡波先生的《离乡人》写道：“离乡人愁难归根，愁难归根自伤神。自伤神黯然无奈，黯然无奈离乡人。”到了台海涌动祥和的暖流时，两岸离人方有阔别半世纪后的拥抱，闽南艺术家黄静谷有感而发，写下一首时代气息浓烈的七夕诗，抒发了人间牛郎织女跨越天河般的台湾海峡的欣喜之情：“银河七夕情星恋，海峡放行离人欢……”

传统的七夕节俗文化是一种最具亲和力、人情味的大众文化。在同风同俗同方言的台湾和闽南，自古至今七夕节不但古风未泯，而且过得有情有味，多彩多姿，这是两岸血缘亲、俗缘深的节俗见证。

Chinese Valentine’s Day in July

By Lin Changhua

Though the big day celebrations for young people in love across China are now called Chinese Valentine’s Day by some people, it is more conventionally called Double Seven Day, for it falls on the seventh day of the seventh month on the Chinese lunar calendar. Though the festival has other names as different people celebrate different elements, it is all based on the same folk legend that dates back to immemorial times.

According to the Chinese folklore, the weaving maid, a fairy from the heaven, comes to a village and gets married with the cowherd. The angry queen mother separates the couple by creating the Milk Way but allows the two to meet once a year on the seventh day of the seventh month. On that day, all the magpies in the world fly into the sky to form a bridge across the Milk Way so that the two can meet.

In southern Fujian Province in eastern China and Taiwan Province across the straits, the day is celebrated in various ways. In Taiwan, it is celebrated largely as Valentine’s Day and Daughters Day. On the day the Zhaoming Temple in Taipei and Lovers’ Temple in Danshui receive the largest groups of visiting young people in love. They make pledges of eternal love in front of gods. Those who haven’t found the other half will report their individual information such as birth data, address, name so that matchmakers in heaven know how to make appropriate arrangements. Some people come to the temples to exchange marriage rings as witnessed by divine matchmakers.

The weaving maid is considered a versatile goddess in Taiwan. On the day, sacrifices are offered to the goddess. Young scholars offer wine to the goddess for blessing their future academic tests. The goddess is also considered the guardian of all the young children. In old times, a lot of men in southern Fujian Province went overseas for opportunities. Their women placed hopes in children and they saw the need for a patron god to protect and bless their children. The tradition formed and is observed even today. On the day, people go to the temple and pray to the goddess. In Taiwan, on their first July Seventh Festival, babies will attend a ceremony designed to put them officially in the care and blessing of the goddess. They will be in the protection of the goddess until they enter the 16th year of their lives.

16-year-olds and their parents go to the temple and offer sacrifices to the goddess in gratitude for the protection all these years.

For those who were separated by politics across the straits after 1949 up to the 1980s, July 7th used to be a day when the separated couples missed each other most. On May 12, 1950, nearly 5,000 men on Dongshan Island in southern Fujian Province were press-ganged by the KMT troopers on their way to retreat to Taiwan. The forced conscription on the island with a population of about 60,000 created 800 wives separated from their husbands. For decades, they were regarded as widows even though their husbands were still alive in Taiwan. These men were only a small part of the people who went to Taiwan but left their families behind on the mainland.

In those years, numerous poems were written on the day to express the sentiments of the separated families. It was not until the early1980s that the separated were able to cross the straits to visit each other and families got reunited for the first time after a separation of decades.