Speaking Chinese Culture in English: The Origin and Customs of the Autumn Begins.
Autumn begins is the thirteenth solar term of the twenty-four solar terms. Every year on August 7 or 8, when the sun reaches the celestial longitude of 135 degrees, it's the beginning of Autumn.
立秋是二十四节气里的第十三个节气。每年 8 月 7 日或者 8 日，当太阳到达黄经 135 度的时候，就到了立秋啦。
Autumn begins usually means that the hot summer is coming to an end soon and autumn is approaching. After the Autumn begins (solar term), it gets cooler with each autumn rain. Therefore, there is a saying like "One autumn rain brings a spell of cold; ten autumn rains mean putting on cotton."
立秋通常意味着炎热的夏天马上就要结束，秋天就要来喽。立秋（节气）过后呀，每下一场秋雨就会凉快一些，所以就有了“一场秋雨一场寒，十场秋雨要穿棉”这样的说法。
In the very early Zhou Dynasty, on the day of Autumn begins, the Son of Heaven would personally lead the Three Dukes and Nine Ministers, as well as feudal lords and grand ministers to the western suburbs to welcome autumn and hold a sacrificial ceremony. This custom persisted until the Han Dynasty. According to relevant records, during the Song Dynasty, on this day of Autumn begins, the imperial palace would move the paulownia trees planted in pots to the hall. When the exact moment of "Autumn begins" arrived, the grand historian would announce loudly. Once the announcement was made, one or two leaves of the paulownia would fall, indicating the arrival of autumn.
在很早很早的周代，到了立秋那一天，天子会亲自带领三公九卿、诸侯大夫们到西郊去迎接秋天，还要举行祭祀的仪式呢。一直到汉代，这个习俗都还在。据有关记载，在宋朝的时候，立秋这天，皇宫里会把种在盆里的梧桐移到殿内。等到“立秋”的时辰一到，太史官就会大声地报告。报告完了，梧桐就会跟着落下一两片叶子，这是用来表示秋天到来的意思。
In ancient China, Autumn begins was divided into three pentads: The first pentad is the arrival of cool breeze; the second pentad is the emergence of white dew; the third pentad is the chirping of cold cicadas. The ancients referred to "five days" as "one pentad", and "three pentads" total fifteen days, which is one solar term, so a solar term is also called "three pentads".
中国古代把立秋分成了三候：第一候是凉风至；第二候是白露生；第三候是寒蝉鸣。古人把“5 天”称作“一候”，“三候”一共十五天，就是一个节气，所以一个节气也被叫做“三候”。
During Autumn begins, stewing large pieces of meat is interestingly called "gaining weight in autumn". During summer, due to poor sleep, excessive sweating, poor appetite and other reasons, the body becomes thinner and the physical condition declines. Therefore, after Autumn begins, one needs to regain the body's losses by eating.
立秋的时候炖大肉，有趣地被称为“贴秋膘”。在夏天的时候，因为睡不好觉、出很多汗、没什么食欲等等原因，身体会变瘦，体质也会下降。因此，立秋以后，就要通过吃东西把身体亏欠的补回来。
During Autumn begins, the principle for diet should be nourishing yin and moistening the lungs. One can eat more foods such as lotus seeds, fungus, Chinese yam, sesame, honey and pear. Spicy and greasy foods should be eaten less.
立秋在饮食方面要以滋阴润肺作为原则，可以多吃些莲子、木耳、山药、芝麻、蜂蜜还有水梨这类的食物，辛辣和油腻的食物要少吃哟。