The Midle Autum Festival
1. What time is the Middle Autum Festival ?
The 15th of the eighth month according to the Chinese lunar calendar(农历)
2、 Why do we celebrating(庆祝) the festival ?
During that time ,the moon is at its fullest and brightest.
3、Is the Mid-autumn important for Chinese?
It is one of the two important festivals in Chinese calendar( the other one is Spring Festival ) It is an official ( 法定的) holiday. It is time for families to be together, so people far from home will gaze longingly at the moon and think about their families.
4、What is the traditional (传统的)food for Mid-autumn festival ?
The moon cake which is round is the traditional food for Mid-autumn festival ?
5.What is the history (历史) and origin( 来源) of Mid-Autumn Festival?
The Mid-autumn is the moment of harvest (收获)。It is possibly of telling the coming of autumn. Since ancient( 古代)times, people would drink,dance, and sing on that day , Celebrating( 庆祝) the harvest .
6. Legends(神话故事) of Mid-autumn Festival .
The most well-known(广为流传的)stories of the Mid-Autumn festival is Chang’s flying to the moon, Jade Rabbit making heavenly(天上的) medicine (药),and Wu Gang chopping (砍) the cherry bay( 月桂树) 。Those stories have been passed down from generations( 一代) to generations. Today for young children , listening to the stories is still an important part of their way to celebrate the Moon Festival.
7.Customs of Mid-autumn Festival.
Gazing at the moon
Gazing at the moon is an ancient tradition from the Zhou Dynasty( 朝代) when people held ceremonies(仪式) to welcome the full moon,with huge outdoor feast( 宴请) of moon cakes, watermelons ,apples, grapes and other fresh fruits. . During Tang and Song Dynasties , people drank fine wine(美酒) ,wathched the moon and listened to music.Common people(百姓) would lay some food such as moon cakes and fruits on a table in the countyard(院子里) and pray (祈祷) to the moon for a good harvest. (好收成).
Eating moon cakes
Eating moon cakes while watching the full moon is an important part of the mid-autumn festival in China.At the very beginning , the mooncakes were served as a sacrifice(贡品)to the moon. The moon cakes were not round in the Southern Song Dynasty. Nowadays, moon cakes are given as presents to loved ones amd it represent (代表着) people’s wishes to be gether during the mid-autumn festival.