古谣谚 卷二十五

韦杜二曲谚

岁华纪丽

城南韦杜。

去天尺五。

Words said about the style of two poets.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

腊日谚语

荆楚岁时记

腊鼓鸣。

春草生。

On the eighth of the lunar month December, people play drums to mark the beginning of the sprouting of spring grass.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

秦中谚

秦中岁时记

槐花黄。

举子忙。

When the yellow flowers of the locust tree are blooming, scholars who do not pass the civil service test will have to compose new works in order to find other ways of being recommended for government posts.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

二月二日小儿戏具谣

帝城景物略

杨柳儿活﹑抽陀螺。

杨柳儿青﹑放空钟。

杨柳儿死﹑踢毽子。

杨柳发芽﹑打拔儿。

A children’s song concerning the kind of games and toys they play with at different times of the year.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

都城小儿祈雨歌二则

帝城景物略

青龙头。

白龙尾。

小儿求雨天欢喜。

麦子麦子焦黄。

起动起

动龙王。

大下小下。

初一下到十八。

摩訶萨。

风来了。

雨来了。

禾场背了谷来了。

A children’s song propitiating the sky for rain.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

拜月叩星歌

帝城景物略

月月月。

拜三拜。

休教儿生疥。

参儿辰儿。

可怜溺床人儿。

A song propitiating the sun and moon for help in maintaining the health of children.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

武陵俗语

武陵竞渡略

打得船来。

过了端午。

When people are hitting the boats on shore, the time of the Dragon Boat Festival (the fifth of the lunar month of May) has passed.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

竞渡散船歌

武陵竞渡略

有也回。

无也回。

莫待江边冷风吹。

A song sung during the dragon boat race. The song is alluding to the origin of the festival, in which people were racing boats to see who could find Qu Yuan first. Qu Yuan was a poet in ancient times. He killed himself by jumping into the river after his advice to his king was not taken. The words of the song are: whether one finds him or not, one ought to come back before the cold wind on the shore of the river starts to blow.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

划船俗歌

武降竞渡略

花船贏了得时年。

If one wins the dragon boat race, one will have a good year.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

蓬叶谚

熙朝乐事

蓬开先百草。

戴了春不老。

The raspberry plants bloom before all other kinds of plants. If a woman wears raspberry leaves, she will remain young forever.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

薺花谚

熙朝乐事

三春戴薺花。

桃李羞繁华。

During the spring, people wear the flower of Qi plants. They are more attractiuve than peach or plum blossoms.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

戴柳谚

熙朝乐事

清明不戴柳。

红顏成皓首。

If a young person does not wear willow leaves during the early part of the lunar month of May, he or she will age quickly.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

上巳听蛙声占年谚

月令通考

上昼叫。

上乡熟。

下昼叫。

下乡熟。

终日叫。

上下齐熟。

If the frogs call in the morning, then some places will have an early harvest. If the frogs call in the afternoon, some other places will harvest first. If the frogs call all day long, then every place will harvest simultaneously.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

清明晴雨谚二则

月令通考

簷前插柳青。

农人休望晴。

簷前插柳焦。

农人好作骄。

午前晴。

早蚕收。

午后晴。

晚蚕收。

Two folk sayings concerning the implications of the weather on the day of Ching Ming in the lunar calendar. The first saying says that if it is a rainy day, the rain will not end for a while after that day. If it is a clear day, then farmers will have a good crop. The second song says that if it is a clear sky in the morning, people may harvest silk from their silk worms, and if it is a clear sky in the afternoon, then their harvest of silk from the silk worms will be late.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

卯庚占麦谚

月令通考

三卯三庚。

麦出低坑。

三庚三卯。

麦出坳巧。

A folk saying concerning how the farmers should plow their fields for planting wheat in the lunar month of August

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

秋分社日谚

月令通考

分社同一日。

低田尽叫屈。

秋分在社前。

斗米换斗钱。

秋分在社后。

斗米换斗豆。

If the autumnal equinox is the same day as the Chinese Thanksgiving Day, then all those low-lying fields will have a bad harvest. If the former comes before the latter, then a good harvest is ensured. If it is the reverse, then the harvest will be bad.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

骤雨谚

月令广义

骤雨不终朝。

迅雷不终日。

A severe rain storm does not last a whole morning, nore does lightening last all day.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

四月占年谚

月令广义

有利无利。

只看四月十四。

有谷无谷。

只看四月十六。

The weather on the fourteenth of the lunar April month alone can decide the year’s crop yield. The time for the sun and moon rising on the sixteenth day of the same month is a good indication of that year’s crop yield as well.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

立夏小满谚

月令广义

立夏不下。

田家莫耙。

小满不满。

芒种莫管。

If it does not rain on the day of the beginning of the summer according to the lunar calendar, then farmers cannot plow. If on the day of Xiao Man (around May 21 or 22 of the lunar calendar), it does not rain, then there is no hope of doing anything on the day of Mang Zhong (June 6th or 10th of the lunar calendar).

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

黄梅谚

月令广义

黄梅寒。

井底干。

If it is cold and does not rain during the plum rain season, then the wells will be dried up.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

秋分占年谚

月令广义

社了分。

米谷如锦\墩。

分了社。

米谷如苔鮓。

社了分。

米谷不出村。

分了社。

米谷遍天下。

A folk saying concerning the order of the dates of the autumnal equinox and the Chinese Thanksgiving day. If the former comes after the latter, then the crop yield for that year is bad.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

中秋上元谚

月令广义

云罩中秋月。

雨打上元灯。

If it is cloudy on the night of Mid-autumn festival, then the fifteenth day of the lunar January in the next year will have rain.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

庚甲占阴晴谚

月令广义

逢庚则变。

遇甲双晴。

A folk saying concerning the weather of certain days being affected by the way two calendar systems are matching.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

猫狗谚

月令广义

朝餧猫。

夜餧狗。

Cats should be fed in the morning and dogs should be fed at night.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

三月占桑谚

纪歷撮要

三月三日晴。

桑上掛银瓶。

三月三日雨。

桑叶无人取。

If it is a clear day on the third of the lunar March month, then people will be picking mulberry leaves for silk worms.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

正月占雨谚

农叉

难拜年。

易种田。

一日值雨。

人食百草。

一日晴。

一年丰。

一日雨。

一年歉。

If the first day of the new year is rainny, then farming will be an easy task that year.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

芒种占雨谚

农叉

雨芒种头。

河鱼泪流。

雨芒种脚。

鱼捉不著。

芒种端午前。

处处有荒田。

雨打梅头。

无水饮牛。

雨打梅额。

河底开拆。

迎梅一寸。

送梅一尺。

A folk saying asserting that the rain that falls before the date of Mang Zhong indicates drought, and that the rain that falls after that date indicates flood. This item also includes other sayings that relate rain on certain days to drought or flood.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

夏至占雨谚

农叉

夏至无雨。

碓裏无米。

夏至日个雨。

一点值千金。

If it does not rain on summer solstice, then there will be no rice in the barn. If it does rain, then a drop of rain equals to great profits.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

寒食占雨谚

四时占侯

雨打墓头钱。

今岁好丰年。

If it rains on the day of Han Shi, which is the day before Qing Ming, when people sweep the tombs of their ancestors, then that is a good crop year.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

夏甲寅占年谚

四时占侯

拗得过。

A folk saying to the effect that the year’s fortune can be determined by the weather of a certain two summer days.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

四月占雨谚

四时占侯

四月初一见青天。

高山平地任开田。

四月初。

满地涂。

丟了高田去种湖。

If it is a clear day on the first day of the lunar April month, then farming is a smooth job after that. If it rains on the first few days of the lunar April month, then there will be a major flood and no farming will be possible.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

四月占麦谚

四时占侯

小麦不怕神共鬼。

只怕四月八日雨。

Wheat does not care about day rain or night rain. However, if it rains at all on the eighth day of the lunar April month, the whole year’s crop will be ruined.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

四月八日占雨谚

四时占侯

四月八。

晴料焯。

高田好张钓。

四月八。

鸟漉瀆。

上下一齐熟。

四月八日雨。

鱼儿岸下死。

四月八日晴。

鱼而上蒿林。

If it is a clear day on the eighth day of the lunar April month, then there will be a major flood. If the birds are dry that day, then there will be a good crop yield. If it rains that day, the fish will die in the river. If it does not rain, the fish will be happy swimming in grass.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

时雨谚

四时占侯

夏至未过。

水袋未破。

It should not rain before the summer solstice has passed.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

重午占年谚

四时杂占

端午晴干。

农人喜欢。

It is to the farmers’ advantage if the fifth day of the lunar May month is dry and clear.