There are many opinions about the origin of the Mid-Autumn Festival.
The word Mid-Autumn Festival was first seen in "Book of Rites". "Book of Rites·Yue Ling" says: "The moon of Mid-Autumn nourishes the elderly and promotes the diet of Mid-Autumn Festival porridge." It is said that it originated from ancient emperors sacrificial activities. The "Book of Rites" records: "The emperor faces the sun in spring and the moon in autumn." The eclipse moon is a sacrifice to the moon, which shows that as early as the Spring and Autumn Period, emperors had begun to worship and worship the moon. Later, noble officials and literati also followed suit, and gradually spread to the people.
The origin of the Mid-Autumn Festival is related to agricultural production. Autumn is the harvest season. The meaning of the word "Autumn" is: "Autumn is when the crops are mature." During the Mid-Autumn Festival in August, crops and various fruits mature one after another. In order to celebrate the harvest and express their joy, farmers use the "Mid-Autumn Festival" as a festival. "Mid-Autumn Festival" means the middle of autumn. The eighth month of the lunar calendar is the middle month of autumn, and the 15th is the middle day of this month. Therefore, the Mid-Autumn Festival may be a custom inherited from the ancients' "Autumn Announcement".
Some historians have also pointed out that the origin of the Mid-Autumn Festival should be the 15th day of August in the 13th year of Daye during the Tang Dynasty. Pei Ji of the Tang Dynasty successfully invented the moon cake based on the idea of ??the full moon and spread it widely in the army. Military pay successfully solved the military food problem caused by absorbing a large number of anti-Sui rebels. ?
The Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as Moon Eve, Autumn Festival, Moon Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, Moon Worship Festival, Reunion Festival, etc., is a traditional Chinese folk festival. The Mid-Autumn Festival originates from the worship of celestial phenomena and evolved from the worship of the moon on Autumn Eve in ancient times. Since ancient times, the Mid-Autumn Festival has included worshiping the moon, appreciating the moon, eating moon cakes, playing with lanterns, appreciating osmanthus flowers, drinking osmanthus wine and other folk customs, which have been passed down to this day and lasted for a long time. The Mid-Autumn Festival uses the round moon as a sign of people's reunion, expressing the feeling of missing one's hometown and relatives, and praying for a good harvest and happiness. It has become a colorful and precious cultural heritage.
Festival name
In ancient times, there was an activity of worshiping the moon on the eve of the autumnal equinox, so it was called "Yuexi" or "Moon Sacrifice Festival". According to our country's calendar, the eighth month of the lunar calendar is in the middle of autumn and is the second month of autumn, so it is called "Mid-Autumn Festival". The fifteenth day of August is in the middle of "Mid-Autumn Festival", so it is called "Mid-Autumn Festival". The Mid-Autumn Festival also has many other names: because the festival falls on August 15th, it is called "August Festival" and "August Half"; because the main activities of the Mid-Autumn Festival are all centered around the "month", it is also commonly known as "the moon". Festival"; the full moon on Mid-Autumn Festival symbolizes reunion, so it is also called "Reunion Festival".
Festival Customs
Walking on the Moon
There is also a special moon-appreciating activity on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival called "Walking on the Moon." Under the bright moonlight, people were dressed in gorgeous clothes, traveling in small groups, or going to the market, boating on the Qinhuai River, or climbing upstairs to watch the moonlight, chatting and laughing. In the Ming Dynasty, Nanjing built the Moon Tower and the Wanyue Bridge, and in the Qing Dynasty, there was the Chaoyue Tower under the Lion Rock. They were all popular moon-viewing spots for tourists to "walk on the moon." Going out to enjoy the moon on the Mid-Autumn Festival night is called "moon walking" by Shanghainese. In Wu region, there is a custom of walking on the moon and walking on three bridges, which means traveling under the moonlight and crossing at least three bridges (see Gu Lu's "Qing Jia Lu Volume 8"). This custom also exists in Shanghai (see "Haizouye Travel Records" by Yu Squid). The so-called people who walk on the three bridges obviously have the taste of surviving misfortune.
Moon Sacrifice
Moon Sacrifice is a very ancient custom in our country. It is actually a worship activity of the "Moon God" by the ancients. In ancient times, there was the custom of "autumn twilight and evening moon". On the eve of the moon, worship the moon god. In ancient times, people in some areas of Guangdong had the custom of worshiping the moon god on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival. To worship the moon, set up a large incense table and place moon cakes, watermelons, apples, dates, plums, grapes and other sacrifices. Under the moon, the "Moon God" tablet is placed in the direction of the moon, with red candles burning high, and the whole family worships the moon in turn and prays for blessings. Offering sacrifices to the moon, appreciating the moon, and remembering the moon express people's best wishes.
Moon Appreciation
The custom of appreciating the moon comes from offering sacrifices to the moon, and the solemn sacrifice has turned into a relaxed joy. It is said that the moon is closest to the earth on this night, and the moon is the largest, roundest and brightest. Therefore, there has been a custom of drinking and feasting to admire the moon since ancient times. Daughters-in-law returning to their parents' homes must return to their husbands' homes on this day to express perfection and good luck. According to written records, folk activities of appreciating the moon during the Mid-Autumn Festival began around the Wei and Jin Dynasties, but it did not become a custom. In the Tang Dynasty, admiring and playing with the moon during the Mid-Autumn Festival was quite popular, and many poets included verses praising the moon in their famous works.
Begging for the moon to shine on the moon
In the old days, some women in Dongguan believed that "Yue Lao is a matchmaker". Anyone who has an adult man or woman in the family and has fallen in love with someone unintentionally can do it under the moon at the third watch of the Mid-Autumn Festival. Burning incense and candles, begging Yue Lao to help him get married. It is said that on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, soaking in the moonlight can make women pregnant. In some areas, on the moonlit night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, some women who have been married for a long time and are infertile will go out of their homes to bathe in the moonlight, hoping to have a baby soon, which is called "shining the moon".
Tide watching
The custom of watching the tide during the Mid-Autumn Festival has been around for a long time. "I must know that the Jade Rabbit is very round, and it has been frosty and windy in September. I leave the key behind the important door, and look at the night tide in the middle of the moon." This is the poem "Looking at the Tide on August 15th" written by Su Shi, a great poet in the Song Dynasty. In ancient times, in Zhejiang, besides admiring the moon during the Mid-Autumn Festival, watching the tide was another Mid-Autumn event.
Eating mooncakes
Eating mooncakes has become a must-have custom for celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival across China. On this day, people eat mooncakes to express "reunion." Moon cakes, also called moon cakes, harvest cakes, palace cakes, reunion cakes, etc., were offerings to the moon god during the Mid-Autumn Festival in ancient times. Mooncakes were originally used as sacrifices to worship the moon god. Later, people gradually regarded appreciating the moon and tasting mooncakes during the Mid-Autumn Festival as a symbol of family reunion. Moon cakes symbolize reunion, and people regard them as festive food, using them to worship the moon and give them to relatives and friends.
Burning incense sticks
Jiangsu Province burns incense sticks on Mid-Autumn Festival night. The incense cup is surrounded by gauze and silk, and the scenery of the Moon Palace is painted on it. There are also incense buckets made of incense threads, with Kuixing and colorful flags tied with paper inserted on them. Shanghai folk still have the custom of burning incense and fighting with each other.
Lighting lanterns
Lighting lanterns to support the moonlight. On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, candles are burned in lamps and tied to bamboo poles, on tile eaves, on terraces and other high places, commonly known as "Tree Mid-Autumn Festival" or "Erect Mid-Autumn Festival".
Riddles
On the full moon night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, many lanterns are hung in public places. People gather together to guess the riddles written on the lanterns, because they are loved by most young men and women. At the same time, love stories are also spread in these activities, so Mid-Autumn Festival lantern riddle guessing has also been derived as a form of love between men and women.
Playing with Rabbit
Playing with Rabbit originated around the late Ming Dynasty and was popular in Beijing. Ji Kun of the Ming Dynasty (lived around 1636) wrote in "The Remaining Manuscript of Kao Pavilion": "On the Mid-Autumn Festival in Beijing, people often wear rabbit shapes with mud, wearing clothes and hats, sitting like people, and children worshiping them." By the Qing Dynasty. , the function of Lord Rabbit has been changed from offering sacrifices to the moon to being a Mid-Autumn Festival toy for children. Lord Rabbit is made of clay, with the head of a rabbit and the body of a rabbit, wearing armor, a flag on his back, a gold clay face on his face, and colorful paintings on his body. He can sit or stand, pounding a pestle or riding an animal. He has two big ears erect, which is both solemn and harmonious. "Yanjing Chronicles": "Every Mid-Autumn Festival, the clever people in the city use loess to make toad and rabbit images for sale, which are called Lord Rabbits." The court of the Qing Dynasty called the Jade Rabbit in the middle of the month the Lord of Taiyin. However, people in Beijing call it Lord Rabbit. According to the folk customs in Beijing, worshiping the Rabbit during the Mid-Autumn Festival is not solemn enough but more playful than anything else.
Playing with lanterns
There are many games and activities during the Mid-Autumn Festival. The first is playing with lanterns. The Mid-Autumn Festival is one of the three major lantern festivals in my country, and people play with lanterns during the festival. Of course, there is no large-scale lantern festival like the Lantern Festival during the Mid-Autumn Festival. Playing with lanterns is mainly done among families and children. As early as the Northern Song Dynasty, "Old Martial Arts" recorded the customs of the Mid-Autumn Festival, including the activity of "putting a "little red" lantern into the river to float and play." People who play with lanterns during the Mid-Autumn Festival are mostly concentrated in the south. For example, at the Foshan Autumn Color Fair mentioned above, there are various kinds of lanterns: sesame lanterns, eggshell lanterns, wood shaving lanterns, straw lanterns, fish scale lanterns, chaff lanterns, melon seed lanterns, bird and animal flower tree lanterns, etc. People admire.
In Guangzhou, Hong Kong and other places, Mid-Autumn Festival activities are carried out on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, and the trees are also erected, which means that the lights are put up high. With the help of their parents, children tie up rabbit lanterns, carambola lanterns or square lanterns with bamboo paper, hang them horizontally on short poles, and then erect them on high poles. When they are skilled, the colorful lights shine, adding to the Mid-Autumn Festival. A scene. Children often compete with each other to see who can erect taller, more lanterns and the most exquisite lights. There are also sky lanterns, that is, Kongming lanterns, which are made into large-shaped lanterns with paper. Candles are burned under the lanterns, and the heat rises, making the lanterns fly in the air, attracting people to laugh and chase. In addition, there are various lanterns carried by children to enjoy under the moonlight.
In Nanning, Guangxi, in addition to various lanterns tied with paper and bamboo for children to play with, there are also very simple grapefruit lanterns, pumpkin lanterns, and orange lanterns. The so-called grapefruit lamp is made by hollowing out the grapefruit, carving a simple pattern, putting it on a rope, and lighting a candle inside. The light is elegant. Pumpkin lanterns and orange lanterns are also made by removing the flesh. Although simple, it is easy to make and very popular. Some children even float grapefruit lanterns into the pond and river as a game. Guangxi has a simple household autumn lantern, which is made of six circles of bamboo strips tied into a lantern, with white gauze paper on the outside and candles inserted inside. Hang it next to the moon festival table to worship the moon, and it can also be played by children. Nowadays, many areas in Guangxi and Guangdong arrange lantern festivals on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival. Large modern lanterns illuminated by electric lights are made, as well as various new lanterns made of plastic for children to play with. However, the simple beauty of the old lanterns is missing. .
Fire Dragon Dance
Fire Dragon Dance is the most traditional custom of Hong Kong Mid-Autumn Festival. Starting from the 14th night of the eighth lunar month every year, a grand fire dragon dance event is held in the Tai Hang area of ??Causeway Bay for three consecutive nights. This fire dragon is more than 70 meters long, with a 32-section dragon body made of pearl grass and filled with longevity incense. On the night of the grand event, the streets and alleys of this district were very lively with winding and undulating fire dragons dancing happily under the lights and dragon drum music.
Listening to incense
Listening to incense is an ancient Mid-Autumn Festival custom spread in Taiwan. In ancient times, girls who wanted to find a good partner would first burn incense and worship in front of the gods at home, tell their thoughts, and pray to the gods to show them the direction in which to listen to the incense. Then, they would keep the first words they heard unintentionally or overheard on the road in the direction according to the directions, and keep them in mind until they returned home. Throw wild rice to judge and interpret the fortune or misfortune of the divination. For example, if you predict life-long events and hear words such as eating sweet cookies, blooming flowers, or a full moon, it means a good omen and a happy event is approaching.
Stealing Moon Vegetables
According to legend, if an unmarried girl steals vegetables or onions from other people’s vegetable gardens on Mid-Autumn Festival, it means that she will meet a happy man in the future. There is a saying in Taiwan that "steal onions, marry a good husband; steal vegetables, marry a good son-in-law" refers to this custom.
On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival in Dong Township, Hunan, an interesting custom of "stealing moon vegetables" is popular. According to legend, in ancient times, on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the fairies in the Moon Palace would descend to the lower world and spread nectar all over the world. The fairy's nectar is selfless, so people can enjoy the fruits and vegetables sprinkled with nectar together that night.
Pagoda lanterns
Mid-Autumn Festival lanterns are different from Lantern Festival lanterns. Pagoda lanterns are lit on the Mid-Autumn Festival night, and they are mainly popular in the south. Pagoda lamps are lamps built in the shape of pagodas by village children picking up rubble. In the Qing Dynasty, Suzhou villagers built a seven-level pagoda out of tiles in the wilderness, with Ksitigarbha in the middle and lanterns burning around it, which is called "pagoda lantern". Children in Guangzhou burn "fan tower lanterns" made of broken tiles; there are also pomelo peel lanterns, which use red pomelo peel to carve various characters, flowers and plants, with a glass lamp placed in the middle, which emits red light. In addition, the game of burning tile lamps (or burning flower towers, burning tile towers, burning fan towers) is also widely spread in the south, and is spread in Jiangxi, Guangdong, Guangxi and other places. For example, Volume 5 of "China National Customs" records: Jiangxi "On the night of Mid-Autumn Festival, ordinary children pick up tiles in the wild and pile them into a round tower with many holes. At dusk, they burn them in a tower of firewood under the bright moon. Once the tiles are red-hot , then pour kerosene on the fire and add fuel to the fire. In an instant, the fields are as red as the sun, and it shines like daylight until late at night, when no one is watching. This is called burning a tile lamp. The tile-burning pagoda in Chaozhou, Guangdong is also a hollow pagoda built with bricks and tiles, filled with branches and set on fire. At the same time, smoke piles are also burned, which is to pile firewood into piles and burn them after the moon worship. The burning of fanta in the border area of ??Guangxi is also similar to this kind of activity. There is also a "tazai burning" activity in Jinjiang, Fujian.
Throwing handkerchiefs to attract relatives
In some areas of Fujian, my country, there is a custom of "throwing handkerchiefs to attract relatives" on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival. Generally, a colorful platform is set up in the square and arranged like a moon palace, with jade rabbits, osmanthus trees, etc. Some unmarried girls dress up as Chang'e and throw handkerchiefs embroidered with different colors to the audience. If someone receives a handkerchief with the same color as "Chang'e", they can go on stage to receive the award. If "Chang'e" likes some unmarried guys when they return the handkerchief, they can make friends, and those who like it can get married.
Stealing melons to pray for children
In Hengyang, Hunan, "On the evening of the Mid-Autumn Festival, there is a thing about giving melons."
"Whenever Xi Feng Lu Yuan's family marries a woman who has been infertile for several years, relatives and friends will organize a gift of melons. A few days ago, a winter melon will be stolen from the vegetable garden. The owner of the garden must not be aware of it, and his face will be painted in colors, and his clothes will be wrapped around him. It looks like a human being. It is held by those who have a long life, and it is sent to their home by blasting a firecracker. He would prepare a grand feast for her, and if things happened again, she would cut up the melon and eat it. According to popular legend, "In Hengyang, any family who is married and has no children, as long as they are popular, will eat it." Someone will give them a "child".
Drinking osmanthus wine
People often eat moon cakes to appreciate the osmanthus during the Mid-Autumn Festival, and eat various foods made from the osmanthus, with pastries and candies being the most common.
Stealing food to beg a man
In Taiwan, there is a custom of unmarried women "stealing food to beg a man" on Mid-Autumn Festival night. A beautifully dressed woman walks under the moonlight and secretly picks green onions and vegetables from other people's vegetable gardens. Picking them secretly indicates that she will meet the right husband. Therefore, there is a proverb in Taiwan: "Steal onions, marry a good husband; steal vegetables, marry a good son-in-law."
Eating snails
Folks believe that snails in the Mid-Autumn Festival can improve eyesight. After investigation, it was found that the vitamin A contained in the snail meat is an important substance for the visual pigment of the eyes. It can be seen that this statement is reasonable. But why must we go on a diet during the Mid-Autumn Festival? Some people point out that around the Mid-Autumn Festival, it is the time when the snails are empty and there are no small snails in the abdomen, so the meat is particularly plump. Nowadays, among the people in Guangzhou, many families have the habit of frying snails during the Mid-Autumn Festival.
Appreciating Osmanthus
Every Mid-Autumn Festival night, people look up at the osmanthus in the moon, smell the fragrance of osmanthus, drink a glass of osmanthus honey wine, celebrate the sweetness of the family, and gather together happily , has become a beautiful enjoyment during the festival.
Mid-Autumn Festival Legend
Chang'e's Flight to the Moon
According to legend, in ancient times, ten suns appeared in the sky at the same time, which caused the crops to wither and the people to live in dire straits. A man named Hou Yi was a hero with infinite strength. He sympathized with the suffering people, drew his magical bow, and shot down more than nine suns in one go. He also strictly ordered the last sun to rise and set on time to benefit the people. So he got a fairy medicine from the Queen Mother of the West and gave the medicine to his wife Chang'e for safekeeping. Unexpectedly, Pengmeng found out about this. When Hou Yi was not at home, he took a sword and forced Chang'e to hand over the medicine. Chang'e swallowed the medicine and her body immediately became weak. He floated off the ground, rushed out of the window, flew to the sky, and landed on the moon closest to the human world, becoming an immortal. Hou Yi had no choice but to send people to Chang'e's favorite back garden, set up an incense table, put her favorite sweetmeats and fresh fruits, and offer sacrifices to Chang'e who was nostalgic for him in the moon palace. After the people heard the news that Chang'e flew to the moon and became an immortal, they arranged incense tables under the moon and prayed for good luck to the kind-hearted Chang'e.
Wu Gang cut down the osmanthus
It is said that there are osmanthus trees in the moon. "Huainanzi" already said "there are osmanthus trees in the moon". Later legends were more specific, and another osmanthus tree was added next to it. Wu Gang, a man who conquered Guangxi. The legend of the osmanthus tree and Wu Gang in the moon is most detailed in the first volume of "Youyang Zazu" written by Duan Chengshi of the Tang Dynasty. The book says that the laurel tree is five hundred feet high, and there is a man who often chops it down. His name is Wu Gang, a native of Xihe, and he had a history of learning from immortals. He was banished and ordered to cut down trees. "This means that Wu Gang once followed the immortals to practice Taoism and went to heaven. , but he made a mistake, the immortal sent him to the moon and ordered him to cut down the tree of immortality - laurel. The laurel tree is five hundred feet high and can be cut back together. Emperor Yan used this endless labor to punish Wu Gang. There is a record in Li Bai's poem "If you want to cut the laurel in the moon, you will hold the salary of those who are cold".
The white rabbit pounded the medicine
This legend was first seen in "Han Dynasty Yuefu·Dong Jingxing": "The Jade Rabbit knelt down to pound the medicine into a toad pill, presented the majesty with a jade plate, and took the medicine. "It is said that there is a rabbit in the moon, which is as white as jade, so it is called "Jade Rabbit". This kind of white rabbit holds a jade pestle and kneels down to pound medicine into toad pills. Taking these pills can lead to immortality.
The development of the Mid-Autumn Festival
The Mid-Autumn Festival originated from the worship of celestial phenomena and evolved from the worship of the moon on Autumn Eve in ancient times. Moon worship has a long history. It is an activity of worshiping the "Moon God" by the ancients in some places in ancient my country. The "Autumn Equinox" of the 24 solar terms is the ancient "Moon Festival".
The Mid-Autumn Festival was popularized in the Han Dynasty. The Han Dynasty was a period of economic and cultural exchanges and integration between the north and south of my country. The cultural exchanges between various places led to the integration and spread of festivals and customs.
The word "Mid-Autumn Festival" was first recorded in the literature of the Han Dynasty. It was written in "Li of Zhou" between the two Han Dynasties (it is said to be written by Zhou Gongdan, actually written between the two Han Dynasties). It is said that the pre-Qin Dynasty During this period, there were activities such as "Welcoming the Cold on Mid-Autumn Night", "Sending Good Furs to the Mid-Autumn Festival", and "Moon Worshiping at the Autumnal Equinox". According to records, in the Han Dynasty, there was also an activity to respect and support the elderly by giving them thick cakes on the Mid-Autumn Festival or the Beginning of Autumn. There are also written records of the Mid-Autumn Festival moon appreciation in the Jin Dynasty, but it is not very common. In the Jin Dynasty, the custom of Mid-Autumn moon appreciation was not very popular in the north.
The Mid-Autumn Festival became an officially recognized national festival around the Tang Dynasty. "Book of Tang·Taizong Ji" records the "Mid-Autumn Festival on August 15th". The custom of admiring the moon during the Mid-Autumn Festival was very popular in the Tang Dynasty, and many poets included poems praising the moon in their famous works. And the Mid-Autumn Festival was combined with mythological stories such as Chang'e flying to the moon, Wu Gang cutting laurels, the Jade Rabbit pounding medicine, Yang Guifei becoming the moon god, Tang Minghuang's visit to the moon palace, etc., making it full of romance, and the trend of playing with the moon became popular. The Tang Dynasty was an important period when traditional festival customs were integrated and finalized, and the main part of them has been passed down to this day.
During the Northern Song Dynasty, the Mid-Autumn Festival had become a common folk festival, and the fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month was officially designated as the Mid-Autumn Festival. In literary works, the seasonal food "small cakes are like chewing the moon, with crispy and sweet fillings". For example, Meng Yuanlao's "Tokyo Menghua Lu" said: "On the Mid-Autumn Festival night, noble families decorated their pavilions, and people competed for restaurants to play in the moonlight." Moreover, "strings were heavy and cauldrons were boiling, and residents nearby heard the sound of sheng and taro in the middle of the night. Outside the clouds, children perform night-long wedding dramas; the night market is full of joy." By the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the Mid-Autumn Festival had become one of the major folk festivals in China. As the years go by, the secular interest in the festival becomes more and more intense. Utilitarian worship, prayers and secular emotions and wishes constitute the main form of the Mid-Autumn Festival customs of ordinary people. In the moon-appreciating activities of the Ming and Qing dynasties, "the fruit cakes must be round", and each family must set up a "moonlight position" and "offer offerings to the moon" in the direction of moonrise.
Lu Qihong's "Beijing Suihua Ji" records: "On the Mid-Autumn Festival night, people set up symbols of the Moon Palace, and the symbols on the symbols stood like people; they put melons and fruits in the courtyard, and the moon palace toads were painted on the cakes; men and women worshiped in solemnity "Burn incense and burn it at dawn." "The Scenery of the Imperial Capital" also says: "On the fifteenth day of the eighth month, the cakes will be round, the melons will be broken, and the petals will be carved like lotus flowers... Those who have wives will be in peace." He must return to his husband's house on the day, which is also called the Reunion Festival."
Since ancient times, the Mid-Autumn Festival has included worshiping the moon, appreciating the moon, eating moon cakes, playing with lanterns, appreciating osmanthus flowers, and drinking osmanthus wine. These customs have been passed down to this day and are enduring. During the Mid-Autumn Festival, there are few clouds and fog, and the moonlight is bright and clear. In addition to holding a series of activities such as admiring the moon, offering sacrifices to the moon, eating moon cakes, and blessing reunions, some places also have activities such as dancing grass dragons and building pagodas. Up to now, eating mooncakes has become a must-have custom for celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival in all parts of the north and south of my country. In addition to mooncakes, various seasonal fresh and dried fruits are also delicacies on Mid-Autumn Night.
The legend of appreciating the moon during the Mid-Autumn Festival:
Houyi shot down nine suns and was respected and loved by the people. Many people with lofty ideals came here to learn from him. The treacherous and evil-minded Peng Meng also sneaked in. Hou Yi asked the Queen Mother of the West for a packet of elixir and gave it to Chang'e for safekeeping.
Hou Yi's villain Peng Meng (it is said that Hou Yi later died under this man's arrow) took advantage of Hou Yi's outing to force Chang'e to hand over the elixir. When Chang'e was in danger, she swallowed the elixir, and soon she floated away. Lifted from the ground, flew down to the moon and became an immortal. Hou Yi returned home and was unable to find a wife. He beat his chest and stamped his feet, looked up at the moon and called Chang'e's name thousands of times.
His call alarmed the sky, and as expected, Chang'e's figure appeared on the bright moon. Hou Yi hurriedly set up the incense table, put on her favorite sweetmeats and fresh fruits, and offered sacrifices to Chang'e in the moon palace. After the people heard the news that Chang'e flew to the moon and became an immortal, they also set up incense tables under the moon to worship Chang'e from a distance.
Later, the Moon Mother was moved by Yi's true love and allowed Chang'e to meet Yi under the laurel tree on the day of the full moon. From then on, the custom of worshiping the moon during the Mid-Autumn Festival spread among the people.
The Mid-Autumn Festival has many nicknames
According to the Chinese calendar, the eighth month of the lunar calendar is in the middle of autumn and is the second month of autumn. It is called "Mid-Autumn Festival", and the fifteenth day of August It is also in the "Mid-Autumn Festival", so it is called "Mid-Autumn Festival".
The Mid-Autumn Festival has many nicknames: because the festival falls on August 15th, it is called "August Festival" and "August Half"; because the main activities of the Mid-Autumn Festival are all centered around the "month" , so it is also commonly known as "Moon Festival" and "Moon Eve"; the full moon on Mid-Autumn Festival symbolizes reunion, so it is also called "Reunion Festival". In the Tang Dynasty, the Mid-Autumn Festival was also called the "Duanzheng Month".