Chinese Lantern Festival Facts
The Chinese Lantern Festival, called the Yuan-Xiao Festival in China, falls on the 15th day of the first lunar month (yuan meaning month and Xiao the ancient word for night), as this is the first night of the new year that the full moon can be seen. This festival occurs as the final festival of Chinese New Year celebrations. Does this Spark an idea?
Other People Are Reading
-
Description
-
Chinese tradition says that on the new year's first full moon night, Chinese people must hang thousands of lights to show their appreciation. Not only in China, but wherever they live, Chinese people celebrate the holiday by bringing the family together, hanging brightly lit lanterns, solving the puzzles written on the lanterns, attending special activities, eating Yuanxiao (a specially made rice flour ball) and promoting congeniality. Children go out at night carrying the lit lanterns.
History
-
The Lantern Festival began during the Han Dynasty, when, in 104 BC, Emperor Wudi proclaimed the importance of the event, which lasted all night. In the sixth century, during the Sui Dynasty, Emperor Yangdi invited foreign diplomats to China to observe the myriad multicolored lanterns and festive activities. The festival lasted three days by the seventh century when the emperor temporarily suspended curfew so the people could continue celebrating day and night. By the Song Dynasty, the bigger cities in China began to observe the Lantern Festival, which by then had increased to five days. Craftsmen began painting legendary characters onto jade and colorful glass lanterns. The longest Lantern Festival lasted for 10 days early in the 15th century when Emperor Chengzu created an area the middle of town especially for displaying lanterns. Eventually the area became a marketplace selling lanterns and offering a brilliant exhibit of lit merchandise at night. Today, Beijing still has a marketplace called Dengshikou (Deng meaning lantern and Shi meaning market).
-
Origins
-
No one knows for sure how the Lantern Festival started, but there are three explanatory legends. The first legend states that all the rulers since the first emperor to unite China dedicated this holiday to Taiyi, the God of Heaven, imploring him for good health and good weather for his people. The second legend says that Tianguan, the Tao god of good fortune, had his birthday in the first month, on the 15th, and in honor of his propensity for entertainment, that day became a holiday for people to pray to him for good fortune and to attend various amusements. The third legend says that during the first century, Emperor Mingdi proclaimed a holiday of lanterns to celebrate Buddha's ability to dispel darkness.
Traditional Food
-
Celebrators eat Yuanxiao or Tangyuan, small dumpling balls with either sweet or salty centers. Legends say that the custom of eating these glutinous rice flour balls originated in the fourth century during the Eastern Han Dynasty and increased in popularity during the Tang and Song eras. Traditionally, during the festival, although not for human consumption, gruel is cooked to feed to the rats so they will not eat the valuable silk worms.
Today
-
In the Southwest China Province of Sichuan, Chengdu has a yearly lantern fair in its Cultural Park, which becomes a sea of lanterns, including an 88-foot dragon pole with a brightly lit dragon winding up around it breathing out fireworks.
-
References
Resources
- Photo Credit the chinese lantern image by Leonid Nyshko from Fotolia.com
