The Facts:
The Lantern Festival began in Han dynasty(A.D. 25 - A.D.220 )
The Lantern Festival was hold every 15th day of the 1st lunar month.
The four important festivals in China are the Spring Festival, the Lantern Festival, the Dragon-boat Festival and the Mid-autumn Festival.
Chinese Lantern Festival is also one of the Ancient Chinese Valentine's Days.
In the morning of Japanese Lantern Festival, there is a habit of eating small beans congee; Japanese believed that beans can avoid evil things.
China is known for silk in ancient time, rats often eaten silkworms that time, so that people cook a pot of gruel for the rats specifically in the Lantern Festival to avoid their silkworms being eaten.
South Korea, Japan, Singapore also celebrate the Lantern Festival.
The Customs:
Making lanterns are hung outside each house to help the dead to find their way. (Or keep off evil spirits)
Eating Tang-Yuan, it means the family reunion, people eat Tang-Yuan, and hope it can help their family reunion.
Watching fancy lanterns, Lantern Festival is the Chinese Valentine's Day in the ancient China; the lovers go to the street which decorate with lanterns and colored ribbons together, and watching the fancy lanterns.
Sending Lanterns, some blessing text were written on the lanterns to give the people who received the lanterns a good blessing.
Greeting the immortal of toilet, Chinese women use a red Shau Kei as a sedan chair, and greet the immortal of toilet (This immortal died under torture when she is alive).
Crossing the bridge for no illnesses, Chinese women go across the bridge with each other women; they believe this can help them no illnesses in the next year.
Stealing crops, Young women who steal men's crops believe it would help them to keep the health of their silkworm, improving the production of silk.
Hunting festival, 36 young women will pose as 36 different prey and dance beside the bonfire, the men arm with hunting weapons and dancing around the prey.
