#MIDAUTUMN FESTIVAL ORIGIN FULL#

#MIDAUTUMN FESTIVAL ORIGIN FULL#

The roundness of the full moon represents abundance and the joy of a family reunited and made whole. This is the origin of moon-worship on the 15th day of the 8th month. The people of the town, sympathizing with his sadness, soon joined him. When Hou Yi learned of this, he was so saddened that, on this day each year, he would display Chang’e favorite fruits and cakes out in the courtyard while gazing longingly at the moon. Because she loved her husband deeply and wished to stay nearby, she chose the moon as her heavenly residence. In the subsequent struggle, Chang’e swallowed the elixir out of desperation, and began floating away into the sky, transforming into a deity. On the 15th day of the 8th month, when Hou Yi was away on a hunt, his evil apprentice broke into their home and tried to force Chang’e to give up the elixir, but she refused. Yet the news of the gift of the elixir did not stay hidden for long.

However, Hou Yi had a wife named Chang’e whom he loved dearly, and couldn't begin to think of leaving her, so the couple hid it in their home instead. Taking the elixir would turn anyone immortal and they'd need to leave earth behind. As a reward for saving humanity, he granted Hou Yi an immortality elixir. And as the story goes, long ago, China suffered from terrible droughts because ten suns existed in the sky and the extreme heat made people’s lives very difficult. The Jade Emperor tasked a famed archer, Hou Yi, to shoot down nine of those suns. One of the most widely told Mid-Autumn Festival legends is the one of the moon goddess, Chang’e. Read on to discover the rich mythology, history, and food and wellness traditions of this important autumn festival. To show their gratitude for a bountiful harvest, rulers made offerings and sacrifices to the moon and its relevant folk deities-the goddess Chang’e above all others. This day boasts an incredible, bright full moon, earning its common name, the “Moon Festival.” The Mid-Autumn Festival is a time of family reunion and celebration, a major cultural event in China and many other East and Southeast Asian societies.įor millennia, Chinese rulers have worshipped the moon and celebrated the autumn harvest during the fullest moon of the 8th month. Today is the traditional Mid-Autumn Festival (Zhong Qiu Jie,中秋节), the 15th day of the 8th month in the Chinese lunisolar calendar.

Midautumn festival origin