What is the Lesser Heat solar term? What does the Lesser Heat time and its meaning mean?

Lesser Heat is the eleventh solar term of the twenty-four solar terms. It is also the end of the Wu month and the beginning of the Wei month in the Ganzhi calendar. The Lesser Heat is when the sun reaches 105° of the ecliptic longitude on July 7 or 8 of the Gregorian calendar. Heat means hot, and Lesser Heat is a little hot, not very hot. It means that the weather is starting to get hot, but it is not the hottest yet, which is basically the case in most parts of the country. Crops across the country have entered a stage of vigorous growth, and field management needs to be strengthened. So what is the solar term of Lesser Heat? What does the time of Lesser Heat mean?

Contents of this article

1. What is the solar term of Minor Heat?

2. The time of Lesser Heat and its meaning

3. What food should be eaten during the Lesser Heat?

What is the Lesser Heat solar term?

It comes from the "Collection of Explanations of the Seventy-two Seasons of the Lunar Calendar": "The sixth month... heat is hot, and the heat can be divided into small and large. The beginning of the month is small, and the middle of the month is large. The heat is still small now." That is, the ancients believed that the period of Lesser Heat was not the hottest time of the year, so it was called Lesser Heat. There are customs such as eating summer lamb, eating new food, fasting, and eating Fu noodles during Lesser Heat.

The time and meaning of Xiaoshu

The time of Minor Heat is around July 6 to July 8 of the Gregorian calendar every year, which means that the weather is about to get hot. Minor Heat is the eleventh solar term of the twenty-four solar terms. When the Big Dipper points to Xin, the sun reaches 105 degrees of the ecliptic longitude. "Shu" means hot, so Minor Heat is a little hot, not very hot, which means that the weather has not yet reached its hottest time.

What food to eat in Xiaoshu

During the period of Lesser Heat, people usually eat eels, bean sprouts, lotus roots, dumplings, mutton, etc. Eating eels can strengthen the bones and muscles, replenish the middle and benefit the qi. Lotus roots have the effect of clearing away heat and nourishing yin. Mutton and bean sprouts can clear away heat and detoxify, and can promote gastrointestinal motility and have a laxative effect.