The Flow of Food and Community Support during Song Dynasty Festivals

Abstract

The custom of gifting food before and on the day of festivals was widespread during the Song Dynasty. The practice included gifts received from official and monastic institutions as well as exchanges between commoners, literati, and scholar-officials. In a sense, the circulation of food embodied the community support spirit. The attention people paid to food during the Song Dynasty, the correlation between food and social status, and the emotional value of “sharing joy” in the flow of food form the social foundation of “community support.” Festival food serves the additional functions of seeking good luck and warding off evil, plays an important role in sacrifice and blessing ceremonies, and celebrates joyful reunions, all of the cultural psychology underpinning “community support.” From the perspective of the literati and scholar-officials, the exchange of festival food in the Song Dynasty reflects the traditional ideal of “cultivating oneself, regulating the family, governing the state, and bringing peace to the world.” The literary depictions of Song Dynasty festival food reflect a vibrant, mysterious, secular, and elegant Song culture that echoes the spiritual essence and aesthetic charm that says: “In the world, light and dust mingle, while in the heart, clear distinctions are made.”

Keywords

traditional festivals / food / awarding and exchange / community support / Song Dynasty

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2024 Higher Education Press