This year’s Laba Festival and “Great Cold”, the last of the 24 solar terms of China, both fall on January 20. They are regarded as the prelude to the Chinese Spring Festival.

Laba Festival falls on the eighth day of the twelfth month of Chinese lunar calendar. The twelfth month is called “La month” and eight is pronounced as “Ba” in Chinese. The festival is thus named.

Traditions & Customs

On this day, people will have Laba Porridge made from different kinds of rice, wheat, corn, dried dates, lotus seeds, peanuts, longan meat, red/black/green beans, peas, millet, raisins and some other ingredients. It is often made with eight kinds of food, so it’s also called Eight Treasure Porridge.

Laba Porridge is the essential food for the Festival since the Song Dynasty (960 - 1279 AD). During the Qing Dynasty (1644 - 1911 AD), emperors usually offered Laba Porridge to their officials, while common people made it for sacrificing to their ancestors.

It is also said that Laba is the day of the enlightenment day of the Buddha. Therefore, Buddhist temples offer Laba Porridges to the poor to show their faith to the Buddha. It is nowadays practiced yearly as a humanitarian and benevolent act which is accessible to the public, except for this year. Due to the coronavirus, which is still haunting the world, almost all temples cancelled the Laba Porridge offering activities.

But don't be upset. Please join us for a bowl of digital Laba Porridge.

Now it has been over one thousand years that the Chinese people eat Laba Porridge on Laba Festival. As is known to all, since ancient times Chinese people have attached great importance to growing crops, when the land bears a good harvest after a year of hard work, the farmers will show great appreciation by sacrificing to the ancestors, and heaven and earth. Laba Porridge is one way through which people celebrate their harvest.

Making Laba garlic is also a custom in northern China. It is very easy to make. The ingredients are garlic and vinegar. After peeling the garlic and putting it in a jar and filling it with vinegar (sugar can also be added), the rest time is to wait. Almost twenty days later, the garlic will become green. People usually eat it together with the dumplings on the Spring Festival Eve.

Great Cold

Great Cold, the 24th solar term, comes hand-in-hand with Laba Festival this year on January 20, and ends on February 4. Great Cold is the last solar term in the annual lunar calendar. As the Chinese New Year approaches, this solar term is filled with joy. It is a cheerful and relaxed solar term.

Again, this year is exceptional. But since winter is at its height, can spring be far behind?