What is the origin of watching lanterns on the 15th day of the first lunar month, the Lantern Festival?
Introduction: The Lantern Festival is a traditional festival, and appreciating lanterns is an important program of the Lantern Festival. So, do you know why we have to appreciate lanterns on the Lantern Festival? What is its origin? Now, let’s follow the editor to take a look. During the first month of the lunar calendar, you will have a good year. The first month is the most important month of spring. Mr. Shui Mo will share with you some knowledge about January.What is the origin of watching lanterns during the Lantern Festival?There have been several theories about the origin of the custom of watching lanterns during the Lantern Festival. One story says that in the past there was a custom of lighting lanterns during the Lantern Festival. This custom began in the Han Dynasty, during the Yongping period of Emperor Ming of Han (58-75 AD). Emperor Ming promoted Buddhism. It happened that Cai Yin returned from India after seeking Buddhism. He said that on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month in the Indian kingdom of Magadha, monks would gather to pay homage to the Buddha's relics, and it was an auspicious day to visit the Buddha.In order to promote Buddhism, the devout Emperor Ming of Han ordered that lights be lit in the palace and temples to honor Buddha on the fifteenth night of the first lunar month. From then on, the custom of lighting lanterns during the Lantern Festival spread from being only held in the palace to the common people. That is, every fifteenth day of the first lunar month, both nobles and common people would hang lanterns, and cities and towns would be brightly lit all night long. Another theory about lighting and watching lanterns during the Lantern Festival says that the custom of lighting lanterns during the Lantern Festival originated from the Taoist "Three Yuan Theory", that is, the fifteenth day of the first lunar month is the Shang Yuan, the fifteenth day of the seventh lunar month is the Zhong Yuan, and the fifteenth day of the tenth lunar month is the Xia Yuan. The officials in charge of the "Three Yuan" are the Heaven, Earth, and Man. Among them, the Heavenly Official is happy, so lanterns must be lit on the Shang Yuan Festival. The Lantern Festival became the Lantern Festival, and by the middle of the Tang Dynasty it had become a custom. Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty lifted the curfew on the 15th day of the first lunar month in the second year of Xiantian (713) and ordered the lighting of thousands of lanterns, which were kept on for three nights, creating a grand event at the time. During the reign of Emperor Qianlong in the Northern Song Dynasty, the lantern-lighting period was extended to five nights. It starts at fourteen and ends at eighteen. More prosperous. Hence, there is a saying that “Tangyuan in Song Dynasty and lanterns in Sui Dynasty”. In addition, lantern riddles appeared in the Song Dynasty. Riddles were tied to lanterns, allowing people to guess the riddles while enjoying the lanterns, which added to the fun. The term "lantern riddle" originated from this. In the seventh year of Yongle in the Ming Dynasty, the court issued an edict: "The Lantern Festival starts on the 11th day, and a ten-day holiday is granted." It became the longest Lantern Festival in history and also became a national festival. In the Qing Dynasty, the Lantern Festival was extended to four days, but the grand occasion remained the same. The festival starts on the 13th of the first lunar month when “lights are lit, on the 14th when they are tested, and on the 15th when the lights are actually lit.” The excitement continues until the 18th when “lights are put out,” and the entire Spring Festival comes to an end. The legend of hanging lanterns and appreciating lanterns during the Lantern FestivalLegend 1: Emperor Wen of Han and the God of Fire During the Western Han Dynasty, Emperor Wen had a dream in which he saw the Jade Emperor ordering the God of Fire to burn down the capital on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. Emperor Wen was very frightened, so he summoned his ministers to discuss the matter. Minister Dongfang Shuo suggested that they could ask the God of Fire to intercede for mercy and avoid this disaster. On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, the God of Fire indeed came to the capital. Emperor Wen led his ministers and the people of the capital to bow down and greet him respectfully, and pleaded with the God of Fire not to burn down the capital for the sake of the common people. The God of Fire could not bear to see the lives of the people suffer, but he had no choice but to obey the divine command and dared not violate the laws of heaven.Just when he was in a dilemma, Dongfang Shuo offered another plan. That night, inside and outside the capital city of Chang'an, from the imperial palace to the courtyards of ordinary people, everyone followed Dongfang Shuo's plan and lit lanterns and torches, making it bright as day. The flames penetrated the sky. The God of Fire saw that it was indeed like fire from heaven. He thought it was enough to deceive the Jade Emperor, so he returned to heaven to report. From then on, on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month every year, lanterns and torches would be lit in the capital to commemorate the event. Legend 2: The Daughter of the Emperor of Heaven. Legend has it that a long time ago, a divine bird landed on the earth because it was lost, but was accidentally shot to death by an unsuspecting hunter. When the Emperor of Heaven found out, he was furious, and ordered his heavenly soldiers to set fire to the human world on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month and burn all the humans to death. The Emperor of Heaven's daughter was kind-hearted and could not bear to see innocent people suffer, so she risked her life to tell people the news. When everyone heard the news, it was like a loud bang in their heads. I was so scared that I didn't know what to do. After a long time, an old man came up with an idea. He said, "On the 14th, 15th and 16th days of the first lunar month, every household should hang red lanterns, light firecrackers and set off fireworks at home. In this way, the Emperor of Heaven will think that people have been burned to death." Everyone nodded in agreement and went to prepare separately. On the night of the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, the heavenly soldiers looked down and saw a red light on earth. They thought it was the flame of a big fire, so they reported to the Emperor of Heaven that there was no need to go down to earth to set the fire. In this way, people saved their lives and property. To commemorate this near-death experience, every household on earth hangs lanterns and sets off fireworks on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month to commemorate this day. Summary: Through the above article, we know the origin of the custom of appreciating lanterns during the Lantern Festival. I hope you will like the above content. I wish you all smooth sailing and good luck in the new year! 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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