Taking a liking to the custom, he ordered that lanterns be lit throughout the imperial palace and all the temples during Yuan Xiao. Common people also began hanging lanterns outside their homes on that night and gradually this religious festival grew into a folk custom. Another explanation is tied to Taoism, in which the holiday is known as the Shangyuan Festival. The 15th day of the first lunar month is the birthday of Tianguan, the god of the sky.
Legend has it that Tianguan was fond of entertainment, so people would light colorful lanterns on his birthday to amuse him. Over the centuries, the Lantern Festival went through numerous changes during different dynasties. The festival period was extended to three days during the Tang Dynasty , to five days during the Song Dynasty , and further extended to 10 days during the Ming Dynasty During the festival, people attend fairs during the day and appreciate colorfully made lanterns at night.
It is one of the busiest events that are part of the overall Spring Festival holidays. During the Qing Dynasty acrobatic performances such as the Dragon Dance, the Lion Dance and stilt walking were added. Festival treats Tangyuan and yuanxiao are balls of glutinous rice flour often made with different fillings eaten during the Lantern Festival. But on the 15th, everyone—regardless of age or gender—go out onto the streets to celebrate.
But on this night, they can stroll freely, lighting lanterns, playing games and interacting with men. On a more serious side, the Lantern Festival also has religious aspects. It was important in ancient Chinese paganism, and also modern day Buddhism and ethnic minority cultures. The general consensus is that the festival began more than years ago in the Western Han dynasty.
Intense power play and unrest came after his reign. To celebrate the return of peace, he made the 15th a national holiday. Every household would light candles and lanterns. Emperor Ming of the later Eastern Han was a devout Buddhist. He heard that on the 15th, monks would light candles for the Buddha. He ordered the palace and temples to light candles, and for the citizens to hang lanterns.
The duration of celebrations varied throughout history. The best period for Lantern Festival lovers would be the Ming dynasty. It lasted around 1 month!
The Torch Festival began in ancient times to chase away insects and pests and pray for a good harvest. Children gather firewood and tree branches.
Adults then light them. Holding these torches, entire communities dance in fields from dusk to dawn. Even now, it is still celebrated in some parts of Southwestern China.
This is celebrated by the Miao ethnicity in China. The Lantern Festival is also the first full moon night in the Chinese calendar, marking the return of spring and symbolizing the reunion of family.
However, most people cannot celebrate it with their families at a family reunion because there is no public holiday for this festival so long-distance travel isn't feasible. He heard that some monks lit lanterns in the temples to show respect to Buddha on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. Therefore, he ordered that all the temples, households, and royal palaces should light lanterns on that evening.
According to China's various folk customs, people get together on the night of the Lantern Festival to celebrate with different activities. As China is a vast country with a long history and diverse cultures, Lantern Festival customs and activities vary regionally including lighting and enjoying floating, fixed, held, and flying lanterns , appreciating the bright full moon, setting off fireworks , flying drones , guessing riddles written on lanterns, eating tangyuan , lion dances , dragon dances , and walking on stilts.
The most important and prevalent customs are enjoying lanterns, guessing lantern riddles, eating tangyuan , and lion dances. Lighting and appreciating lanterns is the main activity of the festival. When the festival comes, lanterns of various shapes and sizes traditional globes, fish, dragons, goats! Children may hold small lanterns while walking the streets.
The lanterns' artwork vividly demonstrates traditional Chinese images and symbols such as fruits, flowers, birds, animals, people, and buildings.
Therefore lighting lanterns there means illuminating the future and giving birth. Lighting lanterns is a way for people to pray that they will have smooth futures and express their best wishes for their families. Women who want to be pregnant would walk under a hanging lantern praying for a child.
Lantern owners write riddles on paper notes and pasted them upon the colorful lanterns. People crowd round to guess the riddles. Guessing solving lantern riddles, starting in the Song Dynasty — , is one of the most important and popular activities of the Lantern Festival. If someone thinks they have the right answer, they can pull the riddle off and go to the lantern owner to check their answer.
If the answer is right, there is usually a small gift as a prize. As riddle guessing is interesting and informative, it has become popular among all social strata.
The lion dance is one of the most outstanding traditional folk dances in China. It can be dated back to the Three Kingdoms Period — Ancient people regarded the lion as a symbol of bravery and strength, and thought that it could drive away evil and protect people and their livestock.
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