What are the customary activities for the End of Heat?
Ancestral Worship and Welcoming Autumn
The folk customs around the End of Heat are mostly related to ancestral worship and welcoming autumn. Before and after the End of Heat, there are folk activities to celebrate the Zhongyuan Festival, commonly known as "Making the Mid-Seventh Month" or the "Ghost Festival".
In the past, from the first day of the seventh lunar month, the ceremony of opening the Ghost Gate would begin, lasting until the end of the month when the gate was closed. During this period, universal salvation and almsgiving activities were held. It is said that the salvation activities start with opening the Ghost Gate, followed by raising lamp poles and releasing river lanterns to summon lonely souls. The main part involves setting up a salvation altar, erecting a soul-sheltering shed, and events like "snatching the solitary poles", and finally ends with closing the Ghost Gate. To this day, this period has become a major time for ancestral worship. Additionally, after the End of Heat, the autumn atmosphere gradually thickens, making it an excellent season for people to roam the countryside to welcome autumn and enjoy the scenery. After the End of Heat, the summer heat subsides, and even the clouds in the sky appear scattered and at ease, unlike the dense, blocky clouds of the Great Heat. There has always been a folk saying, "In the seventh and eighth months, gaze at the clever clouds," which carries the meaning of "going out to welcome autumn."
Releasing River Lanterns
River lanterns, also known as "lotus lanterns", generally have a lamp or candle placed on a base and are released into rivers, lakes, or seas on the night of the Zhongyuan Festival, left to drift freely. Releasing river lanterns is to provide salvation for drowned ghosts and other lonely souls in the water. A passage from Xiao Hong's "The Tales of Hulan River" is the best footnote to this custom: "The fifteenth day of the seventh month is the Ghost Festival. The vengeful ghosts who have died cannot be reincarnated and are trapped in a bitter hell. If they want to be reincarnated, they cannot find the way. On this day, if a dead ghost holds a river lantern, they can be reincarnated."
Fishing Festival
For coastal fishermen, the period after the End of Heat is the time for fishing harvest. Every year during the End of Heat, a grand annual Fishing Festival is held along the coast of Zhejiang Province. The opening ceremony is held on the day the fishing ban in the East China Sea ends, to celebrate the fishermen's departure to sea. The ninth China Fishing Festival was held on September 6, 2006, in Xiangshan County, Zhejiang Province.
Because; at this time, the sea temperature is still relatively high, fish schools will still stay in the surrounding waters, and fish, shrimp, and shellfish have matured. Therefore, starting from this time, people can often enjoy a wide variety of seafood.
Eating Duck during the End of Heat
Old duck is sweet in taste and cool in nature, so there is a folk tradition of eating duck during the End of Heat. The cooking methods are diverse, including white-cut duck, lemon duck, ginger duck, roast duck, lotus leaf duck, and walnut duck. Beijing still preserves this tradition today. On the day of the End of Heat, people in Beijing will go to shops to buy "Chushu Lily Duck" and other dishes.
Water Splashing Custom
In Japan, during the month from the Great Heat to the End of Heat, there is a custom of organized water splashing to cool down in various parts of the country.