During the Chinese New Year, one of the celebrations is that of the lantern festival. Come let us find out the myth behind it.
One of the vital sign of the Chinese New Year is the lantern. During the time of New Year, there is a festival celebrated known as the Chinese lantern festival. The Chinese people refer it to as Yuan Xiao festival. The word Yuan comes from the first month in a lunar year and the second comes from the word that is referred to by the Chinese people as the 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 joyful 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 involve with Chinese lanterns. These are no ordinary 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 beginings of the lantern tradition
There are many Chinese traditions that are performed by the Chinese people and there are a lot of legendary stories behind the Lantern New Year festival. Apparently, the lord known as Taiyi was worshiped during this festival and he was the ruler of the heavens in ancient history. He had
Being the god of heaven it was supposed that he controlled the entire fortune of the human world. The power 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 sponsored 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 side 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 fondness for Chinese entertainment. So the Chinese people took to the streets performing all sorts of entertainment services to please Tianguan.
The origin of the day of lighting lanterns was apparently discovered by King Mingdi, as a different story says. This story explains that he was under Buddhist influence and one dream had led to the extraordinary selection of the fifteenth day of the New Year as the day to celebrate the event 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.
One of the vital sign of the Chinese New Year is the lantern. During the time of New Year, there is a festival celebrated known as the Chinese lantern festival. The Chinese people refer it to as Yuan Xiao festival. The word Yuan comes from the first month in a lunar year and the second comes from the word that is referred to by the Chinese people as the 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 joyful 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 involve with Chinese lanterns. These are no ordinary 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 beginings of the lantern tradition
There are many Chinese traditions that are performed by the Chinese people and there are a lot of legendary stories behind the Lantern New Year festival. Apparently, the lord known as Taiyi was worshiped during this festival and he was the ruler of the heavens in ancient history. He had
Being the god of heaven it was supposed that he controlled the entire fortune of the human world. The power 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 sponsored 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 side 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 fondness for Chinese entertainment. So the Chinese people took to the streets performing all sorts of entertainment services to please Tianguan.
The origin of the day of lighting lanterns was apparently discovered by King Mingdi, as a different story says. This story explains that he was under Buddhist influence and one dream had led to the extraordinary selection of the fifteenth day of the New Year as the day to celebrate the event 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.
About the Author:
The Chinese new year astrology depends on a series of a dozen different animal-based signs . If you want to learn how to make your own Chinese new year lanterns click on the preceding link.
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