The annual Mid Autumn Festival is coming soon. When it comes to the Mid Autumn Festival, you have to enjoy the moon and eat moon cakes. Do you know why? The custom of eating moon cakes has been popular for a long time. It has become a tradition to worship the moon and enjoy the moon and eat moon cakes. Let's get to know why.
Why eat moon cakes on Mid Autumn Festival
It is a necessary custom to enjoy the moon and eat moon cakes on the Mid Autumn Festival in all parts of China. As the saying goes: 'August, October and may are round, and the moon cakes are sweet'. The term "moon cake" originated from the book menglianglu by Wu Zimu in the Southern Song Dynasty. At that time, it was only a kind of snack food. Later, people gradually combine moon watching with moon cakes, which means family reunion and homesickness. At the same time, moon cakes are also an important gift for friends to connect with each other during the Mid Autumn Festival.
In Xiamen, Fujian Province, there is also the custom of Bobing, which is listed as a national intangible cultural heritage project.
Why should the Mid Autumn Festival sacrifice, appreciate and worship the moon
In the book of rites, it has long been recorded that "the moon at the end of autumn" means to worship the moon god. At this time, a memorial ceremony will be held to welcome the cold and the moon. In the Zhou Dynasty, every mid autumn night will be held to welcome the cold and sacrifice the moon. Set up a large incense table, and put on the moon cake, watermelon, apple, red dates, plums, grapes and other sacrifices, among which moon cake and watermelon are absolutely indispensable, and watermelon should be cut into lotus shape. Under the moon, put the moon god in the direction of the moon. The red candle burns high. The whole family worships the moon in turn, and then the housewife cuts the reunion moon cake. The cutter shall calculate in advance how many people there are in the whole family. Those who are at home and those who are out of town shall be counted together. They shall not cut too much or too little. They shall be the same size. Among the ethnic minorities, the custom of sacrificing the moon is also popular.
It is said that the ugly women of the ancient Qi State had no salt. They worshipped the moon when they were young. When they grew up, they entered the palace with superior morality, but they were not favored. One year, on the 15th of August, the emperor saw her in the moonlight. He thought she was beautiful and outstanding. Later, he made her the queen. The Mid Autumn Festival came here to worship the moon. Chang'e in the middle of the moon is famous for its beauty. Therefore, a girl prays to the moon and wishes to look like Chang'e and face like the bright moon. On the night of the Mid Autumn Festival, the Dai people in Yunnan also have the custom of worshiping the moon.
The custom of appreciating the moon in the Mid Autumn Festival is very popular in Tang Dynasty. Many famous poems of poets have verses of chanting the moon. In the Song Dynasty, the mid autumn moon is more popular. On this day, 'your family decorates the pavilion, and the people compete for the restaurant to play the moon'. The activities of worshipping the moon and appreciating the moon in the Ming and Qing Dynasties are more extensive. There are many relics such as "worshipping the moon altar", "worshiping the moon Pavilion" and "moon tower" in China. Literati and officialdom are especially fond of moon watching. They either go to the building to look for the moon or go boating to invite the moon. They drink wine and write poems, leaving many well-known masterpieces. For example, Du Fu's "the 15th night moon in August" contrasts his wandering melancholy with the 15th moon symbolizing reunion; Su Shi, a literary giant in the Song Dynasty, drank the Dadan in the Mid Autumn Festival and wrote "the tune of the water" when he was drunk, which is a metaphor for people's separation and reunion. Until now, the family sit together and enjoy the bright moon in the sky is still one of the indispensable activities of the Mid Autumn Festival.