Hansik / Hansik Charye (寒食茶禮) Dondolnari / Cold Food Day
Hansik is the 105th day after Dongji (冬至), and usually falls on April 5 of the solar calendar. Along with Seollal, Dano and Chuseok, Hansik is one of four major holidays in Korea. If Hansik falls in February of the lunar year, the weather will be finer and warmer, but if it falls in March, depending on the region, grass is not tended.

In Gangwon-do region, Hansik is known as "Gongmail" (空魔日), which means a day without evil spirits. People feel safe to tend their ancestors’ graves on this day because it is free of the wrath of the gods. Another folk legend has it that if seeds are sown on Hansik, they will dry out or be eaten by birds, so it is called "Gochoil" (苦草日), which literally means "the day when grass withers and dies." On Hansik, it is customary for families to perform an ancestral rite called "Hansik Charye" (寒食茶禮) at the ancestral shrine or graveyard. This rite is observed on holidays, or as a seasonal rite, and is thus called "Jeolsa" (節祀). Since a traditional ancestral rite is generally observed on major holidays like Seol, Dano and Chuseok, the rite on Hansik is called "Hansik Charye" or "Hansik Seongmyo" (寒食省墓).

논산 왕대리 한식절사 모습

Hansik Jeolsa in Wangdae-ri, Nonsan, Chungcheongnam-do

한식차례 모습

Hansik Charye Ritual

On Hansik, people predicted if the year would bring a good harvest or a good catch at sea by looking at the weather. In farming towns, if the weather on Hansik was clear and not too windy, it was believed the year would be good; however, if the weather was bad or very windy, the year would be also bad. If it was frosty, the year would see a terrible drought, a year of famine. Worse still, a thunder strike on Hansik would be understood as an evil omen for the entire year, full of bad and unfortunate news. In fishing towns, though, if it was rainy, stormy or windy on Hansik, the year would see a good catch, while thunder would bring only minimal hauls of small fry.