Why do we eat glutinous rice balls on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month? What is the meaning?

Why do we eat glutinous rice balls on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month? What is the meaning?
Introduction: The fifteenth day of the first lunar month is our traditional festival, the Lantern Festival, which also has very grand customs. Among them, eating glutinous rice balls is indispensable. So why should we eat glutinous rice balls during the Lantern Festival? What is the meaning? Let’s follow the editor to find out. The first month of the lunar calendar is the beginning of spring, and there are beautiful festivals everywhere in this month. Mr. Shui Mo lists these traditional Chinese festivals and customs for you one by one.

The Origin and Meaning of Eating Tangyuan on Lantern Festival

According to legend, there was a maid in the palace during the reign of Emperor Wu of Han Dynasty named "Yuanxiao". She was secluded in the palace for many years, missing her parents and crying all day long. Minister Dongfang Shuo was determined to help her, so he lied to Emperor Wu of Han that the God of Fire was ordered by the Jade Emperor to burn Chang'an on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. The only way to escape the disaster was to let "Yuanxiao Girl" make a lot of glutinous rice balls, which the God of Fire loved to eat, on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, and all the subjects would light lanterns and offer sacrifices to her. Emperor Wu of Han agreed, and "Miss Yuanxiao" finally got to see her family. Since then, the Lantern Festival was formed.
There are many theories about the formation of the Lantern Festival customs, but it is generally believed that they took shape in the Han Dynasty. According to historical records, during the reign of Emperor Wu of Han, the Han royal family worshipped a god named "Taiyi". It is said that Taiyi was a very prominent god at that time, his status was higher than the Five Emperors, and he was kind to the Han Emperor, so he was worshipped with great fanfare. According to legend, another Han emperor, Emperor Wen of Han, was also related to the Lantern Festival.
Yuanxiao is also called tangyuan. It has many nicknames in history, such as "mianjian, fenguo, ingot, tangbing, round and round", etc. It was not officially named "Yuanxiao" until the Yongle period of the Ming Dynasty. There are two types of Yuanxiao: with filling and without filling. The ones without fillings are small and sweet, and are seasoned with white sugar, longan, osmanthus, diced lotus root and candied fruit. They are also called "pearl glutinous rice balls". The ones with fillings are large and shaped like walnuts.
In the north, most Yuanxiao dumplings have sweet fillings, such as sugar, bean paste, sesame, hawthorn, etc. In the south, they have sweet, salty, meat, and vegetarian fillings. Ningbo glutinous rice balls and Guiyang Wujia glutinous rice balls are especially famous. "Walnuts wrapped in sweet-scented osmanthus filling, glutinous rice as big as pearls washed in well water. I heard that Ma's rice flour is good, so they sell rice dumplings in the wind during the lantern test." This poem "Shangyuan Bamboo Branch Song" from the Qing Dynasty reflects that Beijing has long had the custom of eating rice dumplings on the Lantern Festival, and that there were already shops famous for selling rice dumplings at that time.
The Lantern Festival on the 15th day of the first lunar month is approaching. The Lantern Festival is the Festival of Lights. In China, the custom of watching lanterns during the Lantern Festival, which was left over from the Tang Dynasty, has been passed down among the people. In addition, the custom of eating glutinous rice balls on the Lantern Festival has been preserved to this day. Because glutinous rice balls are eaten on the night of the Shangyuan Festival - Lantern Festival, people are accustomed to calling them "Yuanxiao".
During the Lantern Festival, every household eats a bowl of steaming hot glutinous rice balls on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, symbolizing reunion.
Summary: Through the above article, we know the origin and meaning of eating glutinous rice balls on the Lantern Festival. I hope everyone can have a happy and reunited Lantern Festival!

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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