您現(xiàn)在的位置: > Language Tips > Easy English > Festival > October  
 





 
Mid-Autumn Festival(歡度中秋)
[ 2006-10-05 09:00 ]

The 15th day of the 8th lunar month

The joyous Mid-Autumn Festival was celebrated on the fifteenth day of the eighth moon, around the time of the autumn equinox(秋分). Many referred to it simply as the "Fifteenth of the Eighth Moon".

This day was also considered as a harvest festival since fruits, vegetables and grain had been harvested by this time and food was abundant. Food offerings were placed on an altar set up in the courtyard. Apples, pears, peaches, grapes, pomegranates(石榴), melons, oranges and pomelos(柚子) might be seen. Special foods for the festival included moon cakes, cooked taro(芋頭)and water caltrope(菱角), a type of water chestnut resembling black buffalo horns. Some people insisted that cooked taro be included because at the time of creation, taro was the first food discovered at night in the moonlight. Of all these foods, it could not be omitted from the Mid-Autumn Festival.

The round moon cakes, measuring about three inches in diameter and one and a half inches in thickness, resembled Western fruitcakes in taste and consistency. These cakes were made with melon seeds(西瓜子), lotus seeds(蓮籽), almonds(杏仁), minced meats, bean paste, orange peels and lard(豬油). A golden yolk(蛋黃) from a salted duck egg was placed at the center of each cake, and the golden brown crust was decorated with symbols of the festival. Traditionally, thirteen moon cakes were piled in a pyramid to symbolize the thirteen moons of a "complete year," that is, twelve moons plus one intercalary(閏月的) moon.

The Mid-Autumn Festival is a traditional festivity for both the Han and minority nationalities. The custom of worshipping the moon can be traced back as far as the ancient Xia and Shang Dynasties (2000 B.C.-1066 B.C.). In the Zhou Dynasty(1066 B.C.-221 B.C.), people hold ceremonies to greet winter and worship the moon whenever the Mid-Autumn Festival sets in. It becomes very prevalent in the Tang Dynasty(618-907 A.D.) that people enjoy and worship the full moon. In the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279 A.D.), however, people send round moon cakes to their relatives as gifts in expression of their best wishes of family reunion. When it becomes dark, they look up at the full silver moon or go sightseeing on lakes to celebrate the festival. Since the Ming (1368-1644 A.D. ) and Qing Dynasties (1644-1911A.D.), the custom of Mid-Autumn Festival celebration becomes unprecedented popular. Together with the celebration there appear some special customs in different parts of the country, such as burning incense(熏香), planting Mid-Autumn trees, lighting lanterns on towers and fire dragon dances. However, the custom of playing under the moon is not so popular as it used to be nowadays, but it is not less popular to enjoy the bright silver moon. Whenever the festival sets in, people will look up at the full silver moon, drinking wine to celebrate their happy life or thinking of their relatives and friends far from home, and extending all of their best wishes to them.

Moon Cakes

There is this story about the moon-cake. during the Yuan dynasty (A.D. 1280-1368) China was ruled by the Mongolian people. Leaders from the preceding Sung dynasty (A.D. 960-1280) were unhappy at submitting to the foreign rule, and set how to coordinate the rebellion without being discovered. The leaders of the rebellion, knowing that the Moon Festival was drawing near, ordered the making of special cakes. Backed into each moon cake was a message with the outline of the attack. On the night of the Moon Festival, the rebels successfully attached and overthrew the government. Today, moon cakes are eaten to commemorate this legend and was called the Moon Cake.

For generations, moon cakes have been made with sweet fillings of nuts, mashed red beans, lotus-seed paste or Chinese dates(棗子), wrapped in a pastry. Sometimes a cooked egg yolk can be found in the middle of the rich tasting dessert. People compare moon cakes to the plum pudding and fruit cakes which are served in the English holiday seasons.

Nowadays, there are hundreds varieties of moon cakes on sale a month before the arrival of Moon Festival.

 
 

 

 

 
 

48小時內最熱門

     

本頻道最新推薦

     
  International Day of Peace(國際和平日)
  September 11
  An interview
  When is a bug not a bug?
  Professor and the editor






主站蜘蛛池模板: 怡红院亚洲色图| 欧美激情一区二区三区在线 | 日本免费网站视频www区| 小爱同学下载二三三乐园 | 国产真实伦对白视频全集| www.精品在线| 日本强伦姧人妻一区二区| 亚洲图片中文字幕| 福利视频一区二区牛牛| 国产亚洲午夜高清国产拍精品| 51影院成人影院| 女人被躁免费视频| 久久久久亚洲av成人网| 欧美日本一区二区三区道| 光棍影院y11111| 色偷偷91综合久久噜噜app| 国产最猛性xxxxxx69交| 91色综合久久| 好男人资源视频在线播放| 久久久久成人精品免费播放动漫| 欧美在线观看视频网站| 亚洲色大成网站WWW国产| 网址大全在线免费观看| 国产噜噜在线视频观看| 俄罗斯精品bbw| 国模欢欢炮交150视频| 一个人看的视频www在线| 日b视频免费看| 久草网视频在线| 欧美日本一道高清免费3区| 亚洲黄色免费在线观看| 精品人人妻人人澡人人爽牛牛| 国产亚洲欧美在线播放网站| 四虎影永久在线观看网址| 亚洲香蕉免费有线视频| 久久99精品久久久久久不卡| 一本大道一卡二大卡三卡免费| 97成人碰碰久久人人超级碰OO | 伊人情人综合网| 亚洲熟女少妇一区二区| 久久久久久久伊人电影|