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The Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368) scholar Wu Cheng compiled The Seventy-two Micro Seasons of the Moon Order, in which he succinctly and clearly defined the laws of the 24 solar terms and their seasonal characteristics, with each term divided into three micro seasons. The arrival of chushu, or End of Heat, signals that the sultry and scorching heat will gradually dissipate, and the weather will become cooler by the day.
Guo Wenbin, a scholar of the solar terms, says by examining the evolution of the oracle bone inscriptions and bronze inscriptions of the Chinese character chu, people can see that the original meaning of the word is "taking a break", that is, a person sitting next to a small table having a rest, and later it evolved into suggesting a place to live, to perch.
It is the 14th solar term and, this year, it falls on today when the sun reaches the ecliptic longitude of 150 degrees. Since it is close to the time of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the folk customs before and after this solar term are mostly related to worshiping ancestors or welcoming autumn.
During this period of time, observers of the Big Dipper in the night sky will find that its curved "handle" still points to the southwest. Although the temperature drops in the morning and evening, and there is already a strong sense of autumn, it is still inevitable that there will be occasional higher temperatures during the day, something people often call "autumn tigers".
As the saying goes, "one autumn rain leads to one colder day", every time a rain falls, the temperature will most likely drop; in addition, with the passage of the seasons, the time the northern hemisphere is exposed to the sun gradually decreases, the days get shorter, and the nights get darker and longer. Compared with liqiu, or Start of Autumn, chushu is a minor term that takes on the seasonal change from a more subtle perspective.
The first micro season of chushu is "the birds sacrifice to the eagle". In ancient times, some had the romantic misunderstanding that eagles, during the season, capture their prey and line them up on the ground, as if paying tribute to those who sacrificed their lives for them to survive. In the food chain, eagles hunt birds to survive, but the "sacrifice" provided personification for the ancients of animals seemingly in awe of nature's gift.
The world beginning to become solemn is the indicator of the second micro season. It is a gradual, chilling experience during which everything starts to wither. It also means that the vibrant and lush summer is about to leave. It might signal the end for many creatures, but the period also suggests the grains of millet, rice and sorghum are ripe for harvest－the third season indicator of this particular term.
Farmers hold various ceremonies to thank the land. Some plant flags in the middle of the field to express their gratitude, and some do not wash their feet when they come home from work in the fields on this day, for fear of washing away the harvest they have received.
Many do not know that ancestor worship is actually one of the most cherished customs during chushu. There will be folk activities to celebrate the overlapping Zhongyuan Festival, commonly known as "Ghost Festival", which takes place on the 15th day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar. In the old days, from the beginning of the seventh month, there was a ceremony to open the gate of hell, and until it was closed at the end of the month, there would be almsgiving activities.