Happy Lantern Festival-Taiwan's Lantern Festival customs
Introduction: Our country is vast and has rich resources. There are great cultural differences between the north and the south, which has formed a culture with regional characteristics. The Lantern Festival is one of my country's traditional festivals. People in many parts of our country celebrate the Lantern Festival. So, what are the customs of the Lantern Festival in our beautiful island Taiwan? Let’s find out together! The first month of the lunar calendar is an important month. Let us pay attention to the traditional festivals and solar terms in the first month and have a good start of the month. Although Taiwan is a very small island, there are many Lantern Festival activities and special customs in various parts of Taiwan! Because every county and city in Taiwan has its own way of celebrating. In addition to the people’s celebrations, many of Taiwan’s Lantern Festival celebrations are held by temples. Of course, the Lantern Festival in Taiwan is the same as in mainland China, where people eat Yuanxiao. Yuanxiao is a food that became popular in northern China during the Lantern Festival during the Song Dynasty. It is rolled out in a bamboo basket. Yuanxiao can be filled with various fruits and ingredients, and rolled into balls with glutinous rice flour. After being cooked, it tastes sweet and delicious. In the process of cooking Yuanxiao, the ancients saw the Yuanxiao floating and sinking in the pot, so the earliest Yuanxiao was also called "Floating Yuanzi".Taiwan's Lantern Festival: Taipei Sky LanternsThe so-called "sky lantern" is actually a Kongming lantern. Legend has it that it was invented by Zhuge Liang for use as a signal. Some people also say that the shape of the "sky lantern" is very similar to the hat of Kong Ming in the portrait, so it got this name. In recent years, the Lantern Festival in Taipei has seen the activities of releasing sky lanterns become more and more exciting. The sky lanterns floating in the air emitted brilliant colors, creating a spectacular scene. As the event became more and more lively, people made the "sky lanterns" bigger and bigger. The colorful lanterns were not only painted with various beautiful patterns, but also often had the names of the people releasing them written on them. In Taiwan, there is a saying that "the higher the sky lanterns are, the more prosperous your career will be."Taiwan's Lantern Festival: Tainan Beehive FireworksDuring the Lantern Festival in Taiwan, the “Nan Feng Cannon” in Yanshui, Tainan is a beautiful sight every year. On the Lantern Festival, the people of Yanshui Town, Tainan did not light lanterns. Instead, they focused their attention on setting off "bee firecrackers". The "bee cannon" is made of tens of thousands of rockets, and the core of each rocket is connected together. As long as one of the rockets is ignited, it will trigger the bombing of other rockets nearby. In an instant, multiple rockets are fired continuously, and the sound is deafening, echoing through the sky. Because the sight of thousands of cannons firing at the same time looks like a swarm of bees pouring out of a nest, it is named "Nan Feng Cannon". When the firecrackers were set off, there were many people watching nearby. They were wearing thick clothes and helmets on their heads. It is said that the "bee firecrackers" set off every year are a symbol of praying for good weather and peace in the coming year.Taiwan's Lantern Festival: Dragon Boat Festival in Western TaiwanThe fried dragons during the Lantern Festival are called "fire next" dragons by the locals in Miaoli. Because the word "fire next" cannot be typed (the word "fire next" is pronounced "bang"), newspapers and magazines use the word "fried dragon" to introduce them. Miaoli's dragon-blasting party is an event that will invite not only the champion dragon of dragon dancing to perform on the Lantern Festival, but also representative dragons from various temples in Miaoli to perform dragon dances. This year's dragon-blasting event will have eleven dragons performing at the same time. In addition to the performance venue being filled with firecrackers and dragon cannons, the temples participating in the performance and the onlookers will also constantly light firecrackers on the side of the road (dragon cannons are a type of firecracker that makes a very loud noise and spews fire and smoke). So during the event, you can see groups of dragons flying through the smoke and fire of firecrackers, accompanied by the beating of gongs and drums of traditional dragon dances, as if the real dragon god has come down to earth to help everyone pray for good weather in the future. According to the custom of the Hakka people in Miaoli, the softer the dragon is fried, the better, so that the next year will be prosperous.Celebrating the Lantern Festival in Taiwan: Taitung and HandanFried Handan is a unique custom of the Lantern Festival in Taitung for nearly fifty years. Handan Ye was originally called Handan Ye, also known as Xuantan Marshal and Xuantan Ye. During Taiwan’s Lantern Festival, the custom of “frying Handan Ye” in Taitung is not to be missed. "Handan Ye" is also called the God of Wealth and War. According to legend, "Handan Ye" is afraid of cold by nature, so when he comes out, people use cannons to drive away the cold for him. Wherever "Handan Ye" goes, firecrackers blast and people throw flowers, fruits and firecrackers at "Handan Ye". Amid the deafening sound of firecrackers, the people carrying "Handan Ye" covered their heads with brooms to resist the bombardment of firecrackers. The people watching all had smiles on their faces.Summary: The above article provides us with a detailed analysis of the festival customs and forms of the Taiwanese people’s Lantern Festival, and allows us to feel the atmosphere and culture of the Lantern Festival in Taiwan. Everyone can learn more about it! After reading this article, there are more exciting contents in the special topic of the first month of the lunar calendar. Let’s take a look! |
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