立冬，通常在每年陽歷11月7日或8日。它是二十四節(jié)氣中的第十九個，冬季的第一個節(jié)氣。“立”，建始也，冬季自此開始；“冬”，終也，萬物收藏也，動物穴藏，規(guī)避寒冷，秋收作物，收庫入倉，人類也開始“藏”起來。

The Beginning of Winter, or Lidong in Chinese, is usually marked on November 7 or 8. It is the 19th solar term of the 24 Solar Terms and the first solar term in winter. Li, the beginning of winter and Dong, the end of the year, send everything into hiding: animals hibernate to avoid coldness, autumn crops are harvested and stored, and even humans find their ways to hiding.

第一“藏”，保暖。立冬過后，冷空氣活動日漸頻繁，氣溫驟降，此時(shí)養(yǎng)生，重在保暖。中醫(yī)認(rèn)為，寒為陰邪，侵傷陽氣，所以要注重保暖，不可貪涼。此外，適當(dāng)晚起，保證睡眠，有助陽氣潛藏。

The first is hiding from cold as cold winds sweep and temperatures drop sharply after Lidong. The focus of health preservation at this moment is to keep warm. According to traditional Chinese medicine, cold is harmful to one's Yangqi, or life energy in English. Therefore, special attention should be paid to keeping warm. People can don multiple layers or choose to stay in bed late to nurture their Yangqi.

第二“藏”，食補(bǔ)。天寒地凍，驅(qū)寒食物，常備家中。中國南方，人們會食用滋陰補(bǔ)陽、熱量較高的食物，如雞鴨魚肉等。中國人非常重視“交替”時(shí)節(jié)，謂之“交”，即就是陰陽交替之際，如日月之交、季節(jié)之交等。立冬為秋冬之交，故為重要的交替時(shí)節(jié)，因此在北方，此時(shí)就要吃與“交”諧音的餃子。

The second is hiding from illness. Foods that drive away cold should be stocked in the kitchen. In the southern part of China people tend to eat high calorie foods such as chicken, duck, fish, and so on. The Chinese attach great importance to nodes, or Jiao in Chinese. Jiao is the period in time when two contradictory elements come together, such as the times when the day burns into dusk and seasons melt into another. Lidong is when autumn is giving way to icy winds, so it's an important time node. During this time, in the northern part of China, people will feast on Jiaozi, which is pronounced as Jiao, to celebrate Lidong .

立冬，秋冬交替，故在古代，被認(rèn)為是一個重要的節(jié)日，極為重視?；实勐暑I(lǐng)文武百官到京城北郊祭祀，賞賜大臣過冬棉衣，施舍鰥寡孤獨(dú)，昭告天下百姓，準(zhǔn)備過冬。民間百姓也紛紛制作冬衣，并有為逝去的親人“燒寒衣”的習(xí)俗。這些儀式，給寒風(fēng)乍起的初冬，帶來陣陣暖意。

The transition from autumn to winter was an important festival in ancient times. The emperor would hold a ceremony in the countryside, when ministers were awarded winter clothes, widows and orphans were subsidized and subjects were reminded of the coming winter. Winter clothes were prepared, and even there was a tradition of burning paper clothes as an offering for ancestors to help them ward off cold. The festivities warmed hands as well as hearts of communities as they geared up for a bitter battle against cold.

立冬時(shí)節(jié)，草木凋零，蟄蟲入土，鳥雉入水，但卻擋不住人們的生活熱情。適量運(yùn)動，強(qiáng)身健體，抵御寒冬。今天，人們用新的方式來“迎冬”——比如冬泳，不僅鍛煉身體，也增加了生活的樂趣。

With winter in full swing, vegetation withers, insects fall into slumber and animals hibernate. But the human spirits do not wane. A certain degree of sporting activities enhances the human body's resistance to cold winter. So today, people use new ways to welcome winter, such as winter swimming, which not only benefits the body, but also increases the fun of life.

立冬，冬天來到，萬物潛藏，積蓄能量，為來年春天的生發(fā)做足準(zhǔn)備。

Winter is thus a time of resting, rehabilitating and nourishing while getting ready to welcome the next season.?