4. Mid-Autumn Festival中秋节
is also known as “Harvest Moon Festival”,
the “moon festival”
“Mooncake Festival”
zhong qiu jie
5. 中秋节is on
八月十五日
the 15th moon day of 8th Chinese lunar month
= 6 October 2006
6. The legend
嫦娥; Cháng'é, is the Chinese
goddess of the moon.
7. 嫦娥Chang'e and 后羿Houyi the Archer
Chang E was a beautiful young girl working in the Jade
Emperor's palace in heaven, where immortals, good people
and fairies lived.
One day, she accidentally broke a precious porcelain jar.
Angered, the Jade Emperor banished her to live on earth,
where ordinary people lived. She could return to Heaven, if she
completed a good deed on earth.
M. Sproule
8. Chang E was transformed into a member of a poor farming
family. When she was 18, a young hunter named Hou Yi from
another village spotted her, now a beautiful young woman.
They became friends.
M. Sproule
9. One day, a strange phenomenon occurred --
10 suns arose in the sky instead of one,
blazing the earth. Life on earth was unbearable.
Hou Yi, an expert archer, stepped forward to try to
save the earth. He successfully shot down nine of
the suns, becoming an instant hero.
He eventually became king and married Chang E.
10. However, Hou Yi grew to become a tyrant.
He sought immortality by ordering a magic
potion to be created to prolong his life. The
magic potion in the form of a single pill was
almost ready when Chang Er came upon it.
To save the people from Hou Yi the tyrant
king, she purposely swallowed the pill.
This angered King Hou Yi, who went after his
wife. Trying to flee, she jumped out the
window of a chamber at the top of palace --
and, instead of falling, she floated into the sky
toward the moon.
11. It is said that Chang'e transformed herself into
moonlight and descended onto the earth to
offer good fortune.
Meanwhile, King Hou Yi ascended to the sun and built a palace.
So Chang E and Hou Yi came to represent the yin and yang, the
moon and the sun.
12. Chinese people believe that on that day, the moon
is the roundest and brightest signaling a time of
completeness and abundance.
A day of family reunions.
Some Chinese families today still stay up late to
observe the occasion eating mooncakes, sipping tea
and gazing at the beautiful moon.
It is regarded the perfect moment if someone catches
the moon's reflection in the centre of his or her teacup.
14. During the Mid-Autumn Festival, children are delighted to stay
up past midnight, parading multi-colored lanterns into the wee
hours as families take to the streets or city parks to
moon-gaze.
15. 静夜思
jing ye si
(Thoughts in a quiet night)
床前明月光
Chuang qian ming yue guang
(The bright moon rays in front of my bed)
疑是地上霜
Yi si di shang shuang
(Seemed like frost on the ground)
举头望明月
Ju tou wang ming yue
(I lifted my head and regarded the moon)
低头思故乡
Di tou si gu xiang
(I lowered my head and thought of my old home.)
李白Li Bai (701-762 AD), one of the two greatest
poets of the Tang Dynasty, wrote this well known
short poem. Almost every student in China can
recite it.
It epitomizes the Chinese love for home. Being
away from home, the poet expressed his deep
sense of homesickness that the beauty of the
moonlight and the moon itself can engender.
http://china.tyfo.com/int/ent/music/festival/mid-autumn/sound.htm
M. Sproule
16. English Translation
You ask me how deep my love for you is,
How much I really love you…
My affection is real.
My love is real.
The moon represents my heart.
You ask me how deep my love for you is,
How much I really love you…
My affection does not waver,
My love will not change.
The moon represents my heart.
* Just one soft kiss
is enough to move my heart.
A period of time when our affection was deep,
Has made me miss you until now.
* You ask me how deep my love for you is,
How much I really love you.
* ** Go think about it.
Go and have a look [at the moon],
The moon represents my heart.
Repeat *
Repeat **
17. Make a lantern for
Step 1: Fold a rectangular piece of paper in half,
making a long, thin rectangle.
Step 2: Make a series of cuts (about a dozen or more)
along the fold line. Don't cut all the way to the edge of the
paper.
Step 3: Unfold the paper. Glue or staple the short
edges of the paper together.
Step 4: Cut a strip of paper 6 inches long and
1/2 inch wide.
Glue or staple this strip of paper across one end of the
lantern - this will be the handle of the lantern.
18. Make a lot of lanterns and string them
along a length of yarn.
Decorate your room!
