The Mid-Autumn Festival falls on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month. This is the middle of autumn, so it is called Mid-Autumn Festival. In the Chinese lunar calendar, a year is divided into four seasons, each season is divided into first, middle, last month as three parts, so the Mid-Autumn festival is also known as the midautum.
The moon on August 15th is rounder and brighter than in other months, so it is also called “Yuexi”, “middle-autumn Festival”. At this night, the people look up at the sky for the bright moon which similar as jade and plate, the natural session hopes the family reunion. People who leave far away from home also take this to repose his feelings of yearning to hometown and relatives, so Mid-Autumn Festival is also called “Reunion Festival”.
In ancient times, Chinese people had the custom of “Autumn evening moon”. To the Zhou Dynasty, every autumn night will be held to greet the cold and sacrifice to the moon. Set up a big incense table, put on the moon cake, watermelon, apple, red dates, plums, grapes and other offerings, among which the moon cake and watermelon is absolutely not less. Watermelon is also cut into lotus shape. Under the moon, the moon god on the direction of the moon, red candle highly burning, the whole family worship the moon in turn, and then the housewife will cut reunion moon cakes. She should calculate in advance how many people in the whole family, no matter at home or far from home, should be counted together, and can not cut more nor cut less with cutting size should be the same.
In the Tang Dynasty, it’s very famous to watch the moon in mid-autumn festival. In the Northern Song Dynasty, August 15th night, the city people, whether rich or poor, old or young, all want to put on adult clothes, burn incense to worship the moon and say wishes, and pray for the moon god bless. In Southern Song Dynasty, people give moon cake as gift, which takes the meaning of reunion. In some places people dance with grass dragon, and build a pagoda and other activities.
Nowadays, the custom of playing under the moon is far less prevalent than in the old days. But feasting on the moon is still popular. People drink the wine looking at the moon to celebrate a good life, or wish distant relatives health and happiness, and stay with the family to watch the beautiful moon.
The Mid-Autumn Festival has many customs and different forms, but they all show people’s infinite love for life and yearning for a better life.
The story of Mid-autumn festival
The Mid-Autumn Festival has a long history like other traditional festivals, which developed slowly. Ancient emperors had the ritual system of offering sacrifices to the sun in spring and to the moon in autumn. As early as in the book “Rites of Zhou”, the word “Mid-Autumn” has been recorded.
Later, aristocrats and scholars followed suit. In the Mid-Autumn festival, they would watch and worship the bright and round moon in front of the sky and express their feelings. This custom spread to the people and became a traditional activity.
Until the Tang Dynasty, people paid more attention to the custom of offering sacrifices to the moon, and the Mid-Autumn Festival became a fixed festival. It is recorded in the Book of Taizong of Tang dynasty that the Mid-Autumn Festival on the 15th day of August was popular in the Song Dynasty. By the Ming and Qing Dynasties, it had become one of the major festivals in China, along with the New Year’s Day.
The legend of the Mid-Autumn Festival is very rich, Chang ‘e fly to the moon, Wu Gang cut laurel, rabbit pound medicine and other myths spread very widely.
The story of the Mid-Autumn Festival — Chang ‘e flies to the moon
According to legend, in ancient times, there were ten suns in the sky at the same time, which dried up crops and made people miserable. A hero named Houyi, he was so powerful that he sympathized with the suffering people. He climbed to the top of Kunlun Mountain and drew his bow with full strength and shot down the nine SUNS in one breath. He ordered the last sun to rise and set on time for the benefit of the people.
Because of this, Hou Yi was respected and loved by the people. Hou Yi married a beautiful and kind wife named Chang ‘e. In addition to the hunting, he stayed with his wife together all day, which makes people are envious of this pair of talented and beautiful loving husband and wife.
Many people of lofty ideals came to learn art, and Peng Meng, who had a bad mind, also got involved. One day, Hou Yi went to the Kunlun Mountains to visit friends and asked for a way, coincidently meet the queen mother passed by and begged her for a pack of elixir. It is said that if someone takes this medicine, he can instantly ascend to heaven and become an immortal. Three days later, Hou Yi led his disciples to go hunting, but peng Meng pretended to be sick and stayed there. Soon after hou Yi led the people to go, Peng Meng went into the backyard of the house with a sword, threatening Chang e to hand over the elixir. Chang e knew that she was no match for Peng Meng, so she made a quick decision, opened the treasure box, took out the elixir and swallowed it. Chang e swallowed the medicine, the body immediately floated off the ground and out of the window, and flew to the sky. Since Chang e is concerned about her husband, she flew to the nearest moon from the world and became a fairy.
In the evening, Hou Yi returned home, the maids cried about what had happened during the day. Hou Yi was surprised and angry, draw sword to kill the villain, but Peng Meng had fled. Hou Yi was so angry that he beat his chest and cried out his beloved wife’s name. Then he was surprised to find that today’s moon is particularly bright, and there is a shaking figure like chang ‘e. Hou Yi could do nothing but miss his wife, so he sent someone to chang ‘e’s favorite backyard garden to place an incense table with her favorite sweet food and fresh fruits and offer a remote sacrifice to chang ‘e, who was deeply attached to him in the moon palace.
The people heard the news of chang-e running to the moon into immortal, then arranged the incense table under the moon, to pray for good luck and peace to the good Chang e in succession. Since then, the custom of worshiping the moon on the Mid-Autumn Festival has spread among the people.
Post time: Sep-19-2021