Lantern Festival

The Lantern Festival is celebrated on the fifteenth day of the first month of the lunar calendar. The festival closes the New Year festivities. This holiday evolved from ancient Chinese beliefs that celestial spirits could be seen flying about in the light of the first full moon of the lunar calendar. To aid them in their search for the spirits, they used torches. These torches gave way to lanterns of every conceivable size, color, and shape.

The major part of the celebration is the display of colorful lanterns at most temples. A special feature of this holiday is the dragon dance. It is a most colorful event of hundred foot long dragons, lit with flashing eyes and bodies, pounding drums, cymbals, and brass instruments. Lantern Festival is further enriched by the customary lantern riddle parties.

In addition to displaying and appreciating lanterns, Lantern Festival is also celebrated by eating yuan hsiao "tang yuan" to symbolize both the first full moon of the lunar new year and the complete family union so cherished by traditional Chinese.

Each locality its own distinctive way of making yuan hsiao, but all include glutinous rice dumplings filled with bean paste, sesame paste, peanut powder, fish, meat, and more. Generally speaking, yuan hsiao are rolled out on bamboo frames whereas tang yuan are kneaded in the palm of the hand. The final product of both methods is a perfectly round dumpling which can be eaten either in soup made from fermented rice or fried. Many people still believe that they do not gain their one year in age until they eat their yuan hsiao.

The varied festivities and customs practiced on Lantern Festival not only provide celebrants with rich entertainment, like the historical-theme lantern displays and riddles, but are also instructive, by their expression of ancient wisdom.