Chang 'e (a figure in ancient China mythology)
Chang 'e, a figure in China's ancient mythology, also known as Hengwo, Heng E, Chang E, Su E, and Yi's wife, rose to the Moon Palace for stealing the elixir. The story of Chang 'e first appeared in Gui Zang, a hexagram book of Shang Dynasty. The complete story of the Goddess Chang'e flying to the moon was first recorded in Huai Nan Zi Lan Ming Xun in the Western Han Dynasty. In the Eastern Han Dynasty, the relationship between Chang 'e and Yi was established, and Chang 'e became a toad after entering the Moon Palace. After the Northern and Southern Dynasties, the image of Chang 'e returned to her daughter's body.
In the portrait of the Han Dynasty, Chang 'e has a snake-shaped head, a high bun, a long sleeve, and a long tail decorated with hooked short feathers. After the Northern and Southern Dynasties, the image of Chang 'e was portrayed as a peerless beauty. Chen Shubao, a Chen Houzhu in the Southern Dynasties, once compared the favorite concubine Zhang Lihua to Chang 'e. Bai Juyi, a poet in the Tang Dynasty, once praised the rare appearance of the girl next door with Chang 'e.
By the time of the Northern Song Dynasty, the Mid-Autumn Festival had become a common folk festival, and August 15th of the lunar calendar was officially designated as the Mid-Autumn Festival. By the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the Mid-Autumn Festival had become one of the main folk festivals in China, and various customs about the Mid-Autumn Festival had gradually become popular.
Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as Moon Festival, Moonlight Birthday, Moon Festival, Autumn Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, Moon Festival, Moon Festival and Reunion Festival, is a traditional folk festival in China. The Mid-Autumn Festival originated from the worship of celestial phenomena and evolved from the worship of the moon in autumn in ancient times. The Mid-Autumn Festival has had folk customs such as offering sacrifices to the moon, enjoying the moon, eating moon cakes, watching lanterns, enjoying osmanthus flowers and drinking osmanthus wine since ancient times. The long-lasting Mid-Autumn Festival originated in ancient times, popularized in the Han Dynasty, shaped in the early years of the Tang Dynasty and prevailed after the Song Dynasty. Mid-Autumn Festival is a synthesis of seasonal customs in autumn, and most of the festival customs contained in it have ancient origins. The Mid-Autumn Festival is a colorful and precious cultural heritage, with the full moon as a sign of people's reunion, as the sustenance of missing their hometown and their loved ones, and hoping for a bumper harvest and happiness. At first, the festival of "Sacrificing the Moon" was held on the day of "Autumn Equinox" in the 24th solar term of the Ganzhi calendar, and it was later transferred to August 15th of the summer calendar. Mid-Autumn Festival, Spring Festival, Tomb-Sweeping Day and Dragon Boat Festival are also called the four traditional festivals in China. Influenced by Chinese culture, Mid-Autumn Festival is also a traditional festival for overseas Chinese in some countries in East and Southeast Asia, especially local Chinese. On May 20th, 2006, the State Council listed it in the first national intangible cultural heritage list. Mid-Autumn Festival has been listed as a national legal holiday since 2008.
The origin of the Mid-Autumn Festival name
According to the ancient calendar of China, the eighth month of the lunar calendar is in the middle of autumn, which is the second month of autumn, so it is called "Mid-Autumn", and the fifteenth day of August is in the middle of Mid-Autumn, so it is called Mid-Autumn Festival. In addition, the Mid-Autumn Festival is also called August Festival, Moon Festival and Reunion Festival.