Mid-Autumn Festival has just finished in Singapore. This festival is also known as Chinese Moon Festival and fell on the 25th of September. It is also called the Mooncake or Lantern Festival.
Lantern festivals traditionally date back to 230 B.C. That time the Chinese began to decorate the streets with lanterns to pray for peace and to celebrate the harvest.
This day is to worship the moon god. According to one of the legends, this day is also the birthday of the Chinese earth god. This festival symbolizes the end of the hard-working farming year and an abundant harvest.
In praying people show deep gratitude to the moon and their earth god for the benefits they have enjoyed over the past year. They also hope for protection, family unity, and good fortune.
The name of the Mooncake is also symbolic. Round "moon cakes” are sold and eaten far and wide during the festival. They symbolize family unity and closeness.
Pomelos are also eaten on this day. The Chinese word for "pomelo" or "grapefruit" is homophonous with the Chinese word for "protection”. So the Chinese are expressing their hope for protection on the part of the moon god.Moon gazing for lovers is another necessary part of this festival. At the time the moon is at its roundest and brightest. Lovers are praying for togetherness symbolized by the roundness of the moon.
This festival differs from other Chinese festivals and is considered to be a low-key and elegant holiday.