During the Chinese New Year, one of the celebrations is that of the lantern festival. Come let us find out the legend behind it.
The lantern is one of the most prominent symbols of the Chinese New Year. In fact there is an entire festival known as the Chinese lantern festival celebrated at the time of New Year. In local lingo the festival is known as Yuan Xiao. It gets its name from the first month of the year which is known as Yuan where as the second half of the name is what the ancient people used to refer to as night.
The lantern festival is celebrated fifteen days into the New Year on the sighting of the first full moon. The idea is to bring about a cheerful environment as the full moon shines bright in the sky and the masses of Chinese people gather at the place of the festival holding up colorful lanterns creating a completely lit up environment.
There are many complexities associated with Chinese lanterns. These are no mediocre lanterns rather they can be an extremely engaging item once you begin to indulge in the puzzles that are often featured on the lanterns. The eating of glutinous rice balls also goes along with the lantern celebrations which are shared amongst friends and families.
The origins of the lantern tradition
The legend that is most popular linked with the Lantern New Year event is that, God Taiyi who reigned over the heavens in the ancient era was prayedby the people in this festival. This is one of the many mythologies associated with the traditional New Year lantern festival.
Being the god of heaven it was believed that he controlled the entire fortune of the human world. The authority to impose punishment through natural disasters or medical epidemics was attributed to this god. The emperor who first started the tradition of holding a ceremony to please Taiyi was Qinshihuang. There ceremonies were held in order to gain the good pleasure of Taiyi and avoid the risk of natural disasters.
With time the ceremony gained money and was highly patronized during the Han dynasty. In fact it was during the rule of the emperor Wudi that the event became one of the most important ceremonies in China which would go on for the entire night.
There is however different edge to the story that claims the tradition actually innovated under the Taoist influence. The Tianguan is a Taoist deity believed to be responsible for fortune and good luck and had a special penchant for Chinese entertainment. So the Chinese people took to the streets performing all sorts of entertainment services to please Tianguan.
There is yet another tell story about the origins of the lantern festival that give the credit of the discovery to Emperor Mingdi. Under this story the emperor was influenced by Buddhism and a dream that he had which eventually led him to select the 15th day of the Chinese New Year as a day of lighting lanterns.
Irrespective of which of the legends are true the fact remains that the lantern festival is a prominent part of the Chinese New Year celebrations. Especially interesting are the decorative lanterns with different traditional Chinese motifs.
The lantern is one of the most prominent symbols of the Chinese New Year. In fact there is an entire festival known as the Chinese lantern festival celebrated at the time of New Year. In local lingo the festival is known as Yuan Xiao. It gets its name from the first month of the year which is known as Yuan where as the second half of the name is what the ancient people used to refer to as night.
The lantern festival is celebrated fifteen days into the New Year on the sighting of the first full moon. The idea is to bring about a cheerful environment as the full moon shines bright in the sky and the masses of Chinese people gather at the place of the festival holding up colorful lanterns creating a completely lit up environment.
There are many complexities associated with Chinese lanterns. These are no mediocre lanterns rather they can be an extremely engaging item once you begin to indulge in the puzzles that are often featured on the lanterns. The eating of glutinous rice balls also goes along with the lantern celebrations which are shared amongst friends and families.
The origins of the lantern tradition
The legend that is most popular linked with the Lantern New Year event is that, God Taiyi who reigned over the heavens in the ancient era was prayedby the people in this festival. This is one of the many mythologies associated with the traditional New Year lantern festival.
Being the god of heaven it was believed that he controlled the entire fortune of the human world. The authority to impose punishment through natural disasters or medical epidemics was attributed to this god. The emperor who first started the tradition of holding a ceremony to please Taiyi was Qinshihuang. There ceremonies were held in order to gain the good pleasure of Taiyi and avoid the risk of natural disasters.
With time the ceremony gained money and was highly patronized during the Han dynasty. In fact it was during the rule of the emperor Wudi that the event became one of the most important ceremonies in China which would go on for the entire night.
There is however different edge to the story that claims the tradition actually innovated under the Taoist influence. The Tianguan is a Taoist deity believed to be responsible for fortune and good luck and had a special penchant for Chinese entertainment. So the Chinese people took to the streets performing all sorts of entertainment services to please Tianguan.
There is yet another tell story about the origins of the lantern festival that give the credit of the discovery to Emperor Mingdi. Under this story the emperor was influenced by Buddhism and a dream that he had which eventually led him to select the 15th day of the Chinese New Year as a day of lighting lanterns.
Irrespective of which of the legends are true the fact remains that the lantern festival is a prominent part of the Chinese New Year celebrations. Especially interesting are the decorative lanterns with different traditional Chinese motifs.
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Chinese new year lanterns are fun and easy to make. If you want to read more about other Chinese new year customs follow the hyperlinks.
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