Added: 01/05/2006 |
Chinese Moon Festival: ask the Moon Fairy Lady for something specialDon't you think the moon is the best location for gods? In fact, the moon is one of the mysteries we are still unable to clue. We don't know the history of this celestial body and have even never seen its back side. Nobody knows whether it has any living beings on. Having this considered there is no better place for the mysterious life of gods than the moon. At least, Chinese people think so. The most popular festival in China is Moon Festival, or Mid-Autumn Festival, dedicated to the goddess Chang Er, who is believed to be the Moon resident.
The Moon Fairy Lady is a very popular hero of each Chinese Moon Festival performance. She is always beautiful and kind, and her smile brings happiness to people. Other living creatures believed to live on the moon are also performed in the holiday shows. There is a story about a Chinese fellow Wu Kang, who wanted to become undying. He came to the mountains where the Master lived, and asked him to teach how to make the dream of immortality real. But as he was very inconstant and fidgety, all books, talks and tasks made him bored very soon.
The woe learner asked the Master to make a little voyage to some new, more interesting place. The Master burst angry and banished the fellow to the Moon Palace to make the work, which could not be finished - to cut down a huge magical tree. Since that time Chang E is not alone on the moon. Wu Kang and the rabbit sacrificed itself for its friend, who brought the animal immortality, make her company - people say the dark spots on the moon to be their footprints.
Chinese Moon Festival is something like Thanksgiving in Europe and the USA. Some explorers of the Chinese culture and history think that the Festival was originally a token of gratitude to the gods for rich harvest. It is to mention that China is mainly an agricultural country, and rich harvest is very important for the people, so the version is highly admired.
The date of Moon Festival is also very appropriate. Having finished harvest reaping, people gathered in one place for merry dances, talks and songs. They prayed the Moon Lady that she blessed the next crop to be as good and thanked her for the present. The Harvest Moon Festival lasted a few days enabling people to have a rest from hard field work.
Nowadays this Festival is very popular not only as Thanksgiving holiday, but also - and this being principal - because it is a beautiful family holiday, when all family members forget their everyday errands and come to visit parents, relatives, and friends and have a good rest. Perhaps, Chinese Moon Festival is one of the most peaceful occasions in the world.
The main amusement of the day is eating delicious mooncakes, wishes baked into them, and looking at the moon, which is really at its roundest and brightest this night. There exists a popular belief that all acquaintances made through this day will bring happy moments and true friends in future. Meeting the old friends is a very good sign too. So, talk to your pals during the Festival day - and your relationship will become stronger.
The Chinese people feel much reverence for Moon Festivals always making a lot of preparations on the eve: bake tasty mooncakes and make colorful lanterns for the competition, decorate their homes and, of course, buy small gifts for their beloved and family members. Chinese Moon Festival is a very romantic holiday. Everybody tries to spend this time with the close people dreaming of the future, telling interesting stories, and eating round mooncakes, which symbolize the family union and integrity.
Mid-Autumn Festival has a good tradition to worship the moon. In the evening (for little children allowed not to go to bed till late this day it is the most pleasant part of the holiday) people go outside and look at the moon while sitting in the gardens, on riversides or in the parks. A real miracle of nature is that the weather is usually perfect this day: the air is clear, only light clouds drift slowly high in the sky, and a gentle wind moves the tops of the trees. What a peaceful night, the best time to declare love and propose.
If you go to China in September you are a lucky person. Not everybody gets a chance to see all the beauty of the main Chinese holiday with its peaceful dreams, bright hopes and fine dishes. And do not forget to ask the Moon Fairy Lady for something special when at Moon Festival, and your wish will surely come true.
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