Full moon

A full moon is seen over Beijing, capital of China, Sept. 29, 2023. Friday marks this year's Mid-Autumn Festival. Chinese people have a tradition to celebrate the festival by admiring the full moon. ( tasteallchina /Wang Jianhua)A full moon is seen over Beijing, capital of China, Sept. 29, 2023. Friday marks this year's Mid-Autumn Festival. Chinese people have a tradition to celebrate the festival by admiring the full moon. ( tasteallchina /Wang Jianhua)A full moon is seen over Beijing, capital of China, Sept. 29, 2023. Friday marks this year's Mid-Autumn Festival. Chinese people have a tradition to celebrate the festival by admiring the full moon. ( tasteallchina /Wang Jianhua)A full moon is seen over the Hutuo River grand bridge in Shijiazhuang, north China's Hebei Province, Sept. 29, 2023. Friday marks this year's Mid-Autumn Festival. Chinese people have a tradition to celebrate the festival by admiring the full moon. (Photo by Chen Qibao/ tasteallchina )People view a full moon by the seaside of Zhoushan, east China's Zhejiang Province, Sept. 29, 2023. Friday marks this year's Mid-Autumn Festival. Chinese people have a tradition to celebrate the festival by admiring the full moon. (Photo by Xing Shoumiao/ tasteallchina )A full moon is seen…

Today marks the 15th day of the first month of the Chinese lunar calendar, the day when the Lantern Festival is celebrated. Dating back over 2,000 years, the festival commemorates the first full moon night of the Chinese lunar New Year. As an essential Lantern Festival delicacy, glutinous rice balls stuffed with a sweet or salty filling, known as yuanxiao or tangyuan, are the stars of Chinese dining tables during this celebration. In northern China, people usually enjoy yuanxiao, which is rolled in a flat basket, while those in the southern regions prefer tangyuan, which is made by wrapping a glutinous rice flour skin around the filling. Resembling the round moon, both yuanxiao and tangyuan symbolize the Chinese people's wishes for family reunion and happiness despite their different preparation methods. The Lantern Festival is renowned for its lively and joyous atmosphere. In China, a country with a vast territory and a large population, Lantern Festival customs vary by region. On the night of the Lantern Festival, people gather to admire beautiful lanterns, enjoy the view of the full moon, solve lantern riddles, and savor yuanxiao or tangyuan. The conclusion of the Lantern Festival marks the end of the Chinese Lunar…

China, a large country with 1.3 billion people boasts a 5,000-year history and glorious culture. Thus the Chinese festivals are old and numerous, embodying Chinese culture and greatly enriching people's lives. The Chinese observe a wide variety of traditional festivals based on the lunar calendar, which was set by a lunar cycle - dates following the regular appearance of the full moon. Almost every traditional festival has its own unique origins and customs which reflect the traditional practices and morality of the whole Chinese nation and its people. All these festivals include common elements such as a desire for happiness and well-being, the warding off of misfortune, experiencing a connection between man and heaven, and family reunion. And, of course, festivals are an opportunity for celebration and relaxation. The grandest and most celebrated festivals in China are the Spring Festival, the Lantern Festival, the Tomb Sweeping Festival, the Dragon Boat Festival, the Double Seventh Festival, the Mid-Autumn Festival, the Double Ninth Festival, and the Winter Solstice. The Spring FestivalAlso known as the Chinese New Year, it is the most important festival for the Chinese people when all family members get together, just like Christmas in the West. The Spring Festival…

The Mid-Autumn Festival, the second-largest folk festival in the Chinese festival system next to the Spring Festival, has spawned countless legends and poems over the centuries. “明月几时有，把酒问青天。不知天上宫阙，今夕是何年？” "How long will the full moon appear? Wine cup in hand, I ask the sky. I do not know what time of the year 'Twould be tonight in the palace on high." In fact, the Mid-Autumn Festival is essentially the "Chinese Ritual Moon Festival", and the worship of the moon by the Chinese people has started since ancient times. "The lonely moon goddess, spreads her ample sleeves, To dance for these loyal souls in infinite space." "Chang'e is dancing in the long sky for ten thousand miles." From Chang'e Flying to the Moon to the lunar exploration program, for more than 2,000 years, people have never paid less attention to the moon. Mid-Autumn Festival was popularized during the Han Dynasty, a period of economic and cultural exchange and integration, when cultural exchanges across the country led to the fusion and spread of festival customs. The term "Zhong Qiu (mid-autumn, 中秋)" was first written down in Han Dynasty literature, and the Zhou Li between the two Han dynasties recorded that during the pre-Qin period,…