Mid-Autumn Festival date, traditions & legend: Everything you need to know

Although the true origin of Mid-Autumn Festival is not known for certain, history records show that moon-worshipping practices began over 3,000 years ago in the Shang Dynasty (c. 1600-1046 BC). But, the festival only became an official celebration in China during the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD) when ancient emperors of China would host a feast to make offerings to deities and the moon in celebration of the year’s harvest. After the Tang Dynasty, Mid-Autumn Festival also became a time of the year for the emperor to reward his officials for their hard work and contributions. Over time, it evolved into a festival of many traditions: to give thanks to the moon, pray for better luck, fortune and fertility, and reunite with the family to celebrate and admire the moon in its full glory.

There are many versions of the myth and story behind Mid-Autumn Festival, but the most well-known revolves around an archer hero named Hou Yi and his wife Chang’e.

As the legend goes, Hou Yi was rewarded with an elixir of immortality after shooting down nine out of the ten suns that ravaged the land with drought and disaster. However, when Hou Yi’s apprentice, Feng Meng, attempted to steal the elixir, Chang’e stopped him by drinking the elixir herself. After doing so, she became immortal and floated to the moon, never to be seen by her beloved husband again. After learning what had happened to Chang’e, Hou Yi would prepare a feast on this day every year when the moon is believed to be the fullest, in hopes of catching a glimpse of his wife’s shadow. 

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
The Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance is one of the most spectacular traditions during the Mid-Autumn Festival in Hong Kong. Legend has it that in the 1880s, the villagers in Tai Hang successfully chased off plague and evil spirits by parading the village with a straw dragon covered with incense. To commemorate the victory, the villagers would perform a fire dragon dance through the alleys and streets of Tai Hang every year since. The Tai Hang dragon is a massive structure covered in thousands of incense sticks burning on its body It's made out of hemp rope, pearl straw, and ratton and requires hundreds of performers to prop it up. Today, this public event has become one of the most famous annual rituals in Hong Kong and shines as a testament to the city’s rich cultural traditions. This year it will take place from September 16 to 18.

Photograph: Cara Hung

Lanterns
Lanterns are no doubt one of the oldest traditions of the Mid-Autumn Festival. For thousands of years, communities would come together during the holiday to write wishes on sky lanterns (the type that floats up into the sky) and light them in honour of the legendary goddess of the moon, Chang’e, hoping that she would bless her worshippers with luck. 

Moon gazing
Each year, there are three important days to gaze at the moon among the Chinese community: on the eve of the Mid-Autumn Festival when we welcome the moon; on the day of the festival to admire the moon; and on the following day to send off the moon. This annual affair is a popular tradition that still remains in our modern city and every year, families, friends, and couples flock to the best spots in town to admire the beautiful moon.

Mooncakes
Mooncakes are said to have originated from Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368 AD) revolutionaries as a means to pass covert messages hidden in them. Nowadays, mooncakes symbolise togetherness and harmony, and every year we see shops and restaurants touting mooncakes of all kinds. However, the most traditional ones are made with a lotus seed paste and a salted egg yolk centre. Mooncakes are usually eaten in small wedges with families or friends during the night of Mid-Autumn, often served with tea or wine.

Photograph: Courtesy cc/Flickr/watashiwani

Water caltrops ('ling kok')
Known as water caltrops, and sometimes water chestnuts, this lesser-known customary food is only harvested once a year, usually a few weeks before the festival. They are probably one of the weirdest-looking nuts you'll ever see, but don’t judge a nut by its shell as underneath its devilish appearance, is white nutty flesh with a slight crunch that tastes like a mildly sweet combination of roasted chestnuts and potato. While some consider the chestnut to resemble a bat, an auspicious symbol of prosperity because its Chinese character is homophonous with the word 'fok' (which means luck and prosperity in Chinese); others believe that this dish is eaten during the festival because of the word 'ling' in its Chinese name, which sounds like the same ‘ling’ in the Chinese idiom 'chung ming ling lei', meaning smart or clever. 

Sweet glutinous rice dumplings
No Mid-Autumn meal would be complete without serving up some sweet glutinous rice dumplings ('tong yuen'). Not only do they taste delicious and make a great post-feast dessert, but it is also symbolic in reflecting the tradition of families being together during the festival as the character 'yuen', is the same letter used in the Chinese word 'tuen yuen', which means togetherness. 

Osmanthus wine
We pair mooncakes with all different kinds of beverages nowadays, but the most traditional during Mid-Autumn Festival is probably osmanthus wine. It is a Chinese alcoholic drink that uses baijiu and osmanthus flowers to create a sweet wine with a subtle floral aroma. Osmanthus is traditionally believed to be the key to longevity and is often offered during toasts to encourage a long and healthy life. Some historical records also suggest that osmanthus flowers were exchanged between countries during the Warring States period as a symbol of peace and goodwill. The Chinese character for osmanthus 'gwai’ also sounds similar to the word for wealth, so drinking osmanthus wine on the night of the full moon also represents the celebration of prosperity, health, and harmony. We'll cheers to that.

Tea
In addition to wine, tea and mooncakes are also an inseparable pair. Apart from cutting through the grease, tea also aids digestion, which definitely comes in handy after a full feast and sticky mooncakes!