Lantern Festival The Lantern Festival falls on the 15th day of the first lunar month, the night of the first full moon after the Spring Festival. Traditionally, people eat sweet dumplings during this festival. Sweet dumplings, round balls of glutinous rice flour with sugar filling, symbolize reunion. During the festival people display multicolored lanterns on the streets and courtyards, and stroll around admiring them at night, hence the name ¡°Lantern Festival.¡± Some places also hold evening parties for people to guess riddles written on lanterns.
Pure Brightness Day Pure Brightness Day falls around April 5th every year. Traditionally, this is an occasion for people to offer sacrifices to their ancestors. In recent years, many people have also been going to the tombs of the revolutionary martyrs to pay their respects. At this time of year the weather has begun to turn warm, and the earth is once again covered with green. People love to go to the outskirts of cities to walk on the grass, fly kites and appreciate the beauty of spring. That is why Pure Brightness Day is sometimes also called ¡°Walking amid Greenery Day.¡±

Drum performance at the Temple of Earth Fair during the Spring Festival in Beijing.
The Dai people celebrating their most important traditional festival, the Water Sprinkling Festival.

Mid-Autumn Festival The Mid-Autumn Festival falls on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month, which comes right in the middle of autumn, hence its name. In ancient times, people would offer elaborate cakes as sacrifices to the Moon Goddess on this day. After the ceremony, the family would enjoy sitting together to eat the pastries. The festival came to symbolize family reunion, and the custom has been passed down to today. On this mid-autumn night the full moon is especially bright. The whole family sit together eating moon cakes while admiring the moon in its perfect splendor.
The Double Ninth Festival This festival falls on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month. According to Chinese tradition, the ninth day is an auspicious day; and the ninth day of the ninth lunar month is the most auspicious day. On this day, the Chinese people customarily ascend a hill, eat cakes, drink wine and admire chrysanthemums. Since the late 1980s, the Double Ninth Festival has become a festival for old people. Various kinds of activities to show respect and concern for the elderly are held throughout the country; old people are also invited to attend celebration meetings and watch theatrical performances.

Dragon Boat Festival It is generally believed that this festival originated to honor the memory of the patriotic poet Qu Yuan, who lived in the State of Chu during the Warring States Period. In despair at not being able to halt the decline of his country, he drowned himself in the Miluo River in modern Hunan Province on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month after the capital of Chu fell to the State of Qin in 278 B.C. Legend has it that after Qu Yuan's death people living on the banks of the river went out in their boats to try to find the corpse. Every year thereafter, on this day people would row their boats out onto their local river, throwing sections of bamboo filled with rice into the water as an offering to him. Today, the memory of Qu Yuan lives on, zongzi (pyramid-shaped dumplings made by wrapping glutinous rice in bamboo leaves) remains the traditional food and dragon-boat races are held.

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About Religions & Social customs

. Social Customs . Festivals

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