Moon bathes festival in its glow

By LI YINGXUE | CHINA DAILY | Updated: 2020-10-02 07:47
Share
Share - WeChat
Lanterns is popular with children during Mid-Autumn Festival. ZHANG HAIBIN AND DING GENHOU/FOR CHINA DAILY

Origin debate

Zhang Bo, a folklore researcher at Beijing Union University, believes Mid-Autumn Festival originated in the Tang Dynasty, while other scholars, including Xiao, argue it became a folk festival during the Song Dynasty.

Both sides agree that the custom of paying tribute to the moon on the 15th day of the eighth month of the lunar year started in the Tang Dynasty.

However, they are split on when and how it officially became a public festival.

Zhang said in the Quan Tangshi (Complete Tang Poems), which was commissioned in 1705, scholars have counted 111 poems with references to Mid-Autumn Festival.

"Besides descriptions of the beauty of the moon and moonlit nights, many of the poets express emotions through the notion of the moon," Zhang said.

She said the poets were anxious and sad about life being short, and used the fleeting time of a full moon as a metaphor.

"They thought about life and death, and as a result they turned to the skies to encourage us to cherish the present," she said.

Zhang said during the Tang Dynasty there was an expression "to play with the moon" which implies pure entertainment, however, writers and thinkers used it as a metaphor to express deeper ideas.

Xiao believes Mid-Autumn Festival became an official folk festival during the Song Dynasty. Song Emperor Zhao Jiong (939-997) officially set the 15th day of the eighth lunar month as Mid-Autumn Festival.

Xiao said in the Song Dynasty it was common for people to compare phases of the moon to changes in human relationships. The importance of family reunions at this time of year also spread during the Song Dynasty.

|<< Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 Next   >>|
Top
BACK TO THE TOP
English
Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.
License for publishing multimedia online 0108263

Registration Number: 130349
FOLLOW US