1, originated from the sacrificial activities of ancient emperors.

The Confucian classic Book of Rites in the pre-Qin and Western Han Dynasties recorded: "The sun rises in the spring and the sun rises in the autumn, and the moon falls in the evening", which means that as early as the Spring and Autumn Period, emperors began to worship the moon and Yue Bai. Later, aristocratic officials and scholars followed suit and gradually spread to the people.

2. Originated from agricultural production

China has been a farming nation since ancient times, and autumn is the harvest season. Especially in the Mid-Autumn Festival in August, when all kinds of crops, fruits and vegetables are maturing one after another, people take "Mid-Autumn Festival", that is, the middle day of autumn, as a festival in order to celebrate the harvest and express their joy. Therefore, the Mid-Autumn Festival may be a custom inherited by the ancients.

3. Moon cakes say

Some historians have pointed out that the origin of Mid-Autumn Festival should be Tang Jun in the late Sui Dynasty on August 15th, 13th year of Daye. Peiji, Tang Jun, with the idea of a full moon, successfully invented moon cakes and distributed them to the army as military pay, which successfully solved the problem of military food derived from absorbing a large number of anti-Sui rebel troops, and derived the Mid-Autumn Festival celebration.

Second, legends and stories

Among the legends of Mid-Autumn Festival, "the Goddess Chang'e flying to the moon" is undoubtedly the most talked about.

This is a fairy tale in ancient times, which originated from the worship of stars by the ancients. According to the existing written records, it first appeared in the Warring States Period. Chang 'e, a fairy of the Moon Palace in China mythology, was immortalized by taking the immortal medicine obtained by Daxie from the Queen Mother of the West, and lived in the Guanghan Palace above the moon.

Chang 'e was forced by Feng Meng. In desperation, she ate two pills of immortality given to her husband Hou Yi by the Queen Mother of the West and flew to the Moon Palace. The myth of "the Goddess Chang'e flying to the moon".

The myth and legend about Heng 'e can be found in the classic Gui Zang from Shang Dynasty to Warring States Period, in which it may be explained as husband and wife by comparing the divinatory images, and the annotation Huai Nan Zi by Gao You in the Eastern Han Dynasty clearly pointed out that Chang 'e was the wife of Hou Yi. Heng 'e, Hou Yi's wife, changed her name to Chang 'e because the Han people avoided the taboo of the then emperor Liu Heng.

Extended data:

"Mid-Autumn Festival" has existed since ancient times, so it has also become an excellent theme written by many literati:

I. Chang 'e

Tang Dynasty: Li Shangyin

The mica screen was stained with a thick candle, and the milky way gradually tilted the morning star.

Chang' e I must regret that I had eaten the elixir at the beginning, now alone, blue sky, and night and night.

Translation:

The candle shadow on the mica screen is dim, the milky way is gradually setting, and the morning star is also disappearing.

Chang 'e should regret stealing the elixir of life, and now she is lonely to the blue sea and blue sky every night.

Second, Yangguanqu Mid-Autumn Moon

Song Dynasty: Su Shi

The twilight clouds are overflowing and cold, and the silver man turns to the jade plate silently.

This life is not a good night, where to see the bright moon next year.

Translation:

As night falls, the clouds are exhausted, the world is full of cold, the milky way is silent, and the bright moon turns to the sky, as white as a jade plate.

Every Mid-Autumn Festival night in my life, the moonlight is mostly covered by clouds, and I rarely encounter such beautiful scenery as today. It's really rare! But where will I watch the moon in the Mid-Autumn Festival next year?

Third, a cut plum Mid-Autumn Festival in January

Song Dynasty: Xin Qiji

Recalling the Mid-Autumn Festival, the flowers are also in the cup, and the moon is also in the cup. Tonight, there is a statue upstairs, with a cloud wet screen window and a rain wet screen window.

I want to take the wind to ask about the chemical industry, and the road is also difficult to pass, and the letter is also difficult to pass. Only the candle flowers are red, the song is calm and the cup is calm.

Translation:

Recalling that sunny Mid-Autumn Festival, I was in the fragrant osmanthus bushes. The flower shadow is reflected in the glass, and the moon wave ripples in the glass. Tonight, I also raised a glass upstairs to wait for the moonlight, but the dark clouds soaked the screen window and the rain wet the screen window.

I always want to take the wind to ask God, but I can't get through this day, and I can't get through if I want to send a letter. Only the candles in the room shone with high fever, which made the banquet red. Let's drink a few cups of wine slowly, and let's sing the song slowly to the end.

Baidu Encyclopedia-Mid-Autumn Festival