Happy Moon Festival everyone 中秋节快乐!
Thank you for subscribing to Wu Fei’s Music Daily. This is episode #418 — The lunar maria 月海.
Today is the Moon Festival, also known as Mid-Autumn Festival 中秋节. I would like to share this post with all my subscribers. Hope you are with your loved ones on this day. If you can’t be together, please tell each other that you can watch the full moon tonight, and you will be connected by the moon.
The Moon Festival is a traditional Chinese festival celebrated by China and many East and Southeast Asian people. It is the second-most important holiday after Chinese New Year with a history dating back over 3,000 years.
Lanterns of all size and shapes, are carried and displayed – symbolic beacons that light people's path to prosperity and good fortune. Mooncakes (photo below), a rich pastry typically filled with sweet-bean, yolk, meat or lotus-seed paste, are traditionally eaten during this festival. The Mid-autumn festival is based on the legend of Chang'e, the moon goddess.
The festival celebrates three fundamental concepts that are closely connected:
Gathering, such as family and friends coming together, or harvesting crops for the festival. It is said the moon is the brightest and roundest on this day which means family reunion. Consequently, this is the main reason why the festival is thought to be important.
Thanksgiving, to give thanks for the harvest, or for harmonious unions
Praying (asking for conceptual or material satisfaction), such as for babies, a spouse, beauty, longevity, or for a good future
Traditions and myths surrounding the festival are formed around these concepts, although traditions have changed over time due to changes in technology, science, economy, culture, and religion. It's about well being together.
You can read more about the Moon Festival here.
Wu Fei 吴非
Wufeimusic.com
