Lantern Festival

Ⅹ-71Folk CustomsLedu, QinghaiBatch 2 (2008)Newly Added Item

01 · Historical Records

Since the Han dynasty, the Chinese have lit lanterns on the night of the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, a practice that gradually developed into a folk custom. The custom became even more popular in the Tang dynasty; the lines 'fire trees and silver blossoms joined, the star bridge with its iron lock opened' describe the splendor of the Lantern Festival in Chang'an. In the Ming dynasty, the Lantern Festival had already become an important part of popular life, with ten consecutive days of lantern viewing; in the Qing dynasty, it was a folk festival celebrated by the whole nation, and the lantern-viewing activities were enlivened by fireworks. The Lantern Festival also involves several traditional activities. First is 'cai deng mi' (guessing lantern riddles), also called 'da deng mi', which first appeared in the Song dynasty; riddles are hung up waiting to be solved, and those who guess correctly receive prizes. Second is eating yuanxiao: yuanxiao was originally called 'fuyuanzi' (floating round balls) and is also known as 'tangtuan' or 'tangyuan'; it is a ball-shaped food made of glutinous rice flour, usually with a filling, boiled in water and eaten, with an exceptionally sweet taste. Eating yuanxiao symbolizes the whole family being reunited and living in harmony and happiness. Besides the Han, the Manchu, Korean, Hezhe, Mongol, Daur, Evenk, Oroqen, Hui, Xibe, Tibetan, Bai, Naxi, Miao, Yao, She, Zhuang, Buyi, Li and Gelao ethnic groups also celebrate the Lantern Festival, and their festival activities each have their own distinctive features. In Qili Dian there is a Sanguan (Three Officials) temple built in the thirty-sixth year of the Wanli era of the Ming dynasty (1608). According to the Xining Prefecture Gazetteer, the temple's formal name is Cifu Temple (Temple of Bestowed Blessings); after the temple was built, the Yellow River lantern fair began to be held there as an important part of the temple fair, and a stage was also erected for opera performances during the lantern fair. The lantern-lighting fair lasts three days, beginning on the fourteenth day of the first lunar month and ending on the sixteenth; the lanterns are lit at seven o'clock each evening and the fair ends at about eleven o'clock. Throughout these nights the entire Yellow River lantern city flows with light in dazzling splendor, like a sea of lanterns.

02 · Core Techniques & Process

The Lantern Festival, also known as the 'Shangyuan Festival', the 'Yuanxi Festival' and the 'Deng Festival' (Festival of Lanterns), is a traditional Chinese festival, popular throughout the country. In China, the first month of the lunar calendar is the yuan (first) month; in ancient times, night was called 'xiao'. Hence the first full-moon night of the year, the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, is named the 'Yuanxiao Festival'. In some places the Lantern Festival also has the custom of 'zou bai bing' (walking off the hundred illnesses), also called 'kao bai bing' (roasting away the hundred illnesses) or 'san bai bing' (dispersing the hundred illnesses). On the day of the Lantern Festival, people set out walking in groups, following one another across bridges or traveling far into the countryside, symbolizing the dispelling of illness and disaster and the attainment of peace and health. In modern times, traditional performance items such as dragon lantern dances, lion dances, stilt walking, land-boat (dry boat) dancing, yangge dancing and taiping drum playing have been added to Lantern Festival activities across the country, giving the festival new development in the course of its transmission. With a history of more than two thousand years, the Lantern Festival is not only widely observed on both sides of the Taiwan Strait but also attaches great importance among overseas Chinese communities. The Qili Dian Nine-Bend Yellow River lantern custom is found in the four administrative villages of Majiatai, Qili Dian, Lijia and Shuimowan in Gangou Town, Ledu County, Qinghai Province. The Yellow River lantern fair's full name is the 'Nine-Bend Yellow River Lantern Array'; its layout is derived from the Eight Trigrams diagram and, following the battle formation of 'the Supreme Ultimate gives birth to the Two Modes, the Two Modes give birth to the Four Images, the Four Images give birth to the Eight Trigrams, and the Eight Trigrams form the Nine Palaces', it is designed with an outer city, a city moat, lanes, an inner city, a ceremonial gate and other elements. Sixteen tall poles are planted in the lantern city, each hung with one tall lantern; at the same time, divine banners of different colors are hung according to the five different directions. The Qili Dian Yellow River lantern fair is held twice every three years, commonly known as 'three years, two turns' (san nian liang tou). At the same time, households in the Qili Dian area hang various tall lanterns and door lanterns, their light mingling with that of the lantern city and shining for several li around. At every lantern fair, the masses from ten li around and beyond put on festive attire and converge on the venue from all directions; outside Cifu Temple the visitors are as thick as woven threads, and the average daily number of lantern viewers exceeds ten thousand.

The lantern fair at Cifu temple

The temple founded the lantern fair, and the fair in turn became a fixed part of the temple festival.

Laying out the nine-palace city

The city layout follows the eight trigrams into gate, moat, lanes, inner city and ceremonial gate.

Sixteen poles and five directional banners

Sixteen poles bear tall lamps while five coloured banners mark the five directions.

Household lamps echoing the city

Household lanterns match the lamp city so that the light carries for several li.

Every third year, for three nights

The fair is held twice in three years, for three nights from the fourteenth of the first month.

03 · Regional Records & Related Items

The Ledu Qili Dian lantern fair is held only in the area where the Sanguan temple stands. The four villages of Majiatai, Qili Dian, Lijia and Shuimowan each contribute lantern households, and at the same time each household hangs tall lanterns and door lanterns beneath the eaves, their light reflecting the lantern city into a single expanse. The fair is held 'two turns in three years'; in the intervening years the people do not leave lantern affairs to idle talk alone, but keep the memory of the lantern city alive in the lantern ornaments of New Year festivals and weddings, waiting for the next round to open. The daily number of viewers exceeds ten thousand, most of them coming from the villages within ten li and beyond.

04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding

The Xining Prefecture Gazetteer records that the Yellow River lantern fair was held from the moment Cifu Temple was built, showing that the practice here of using the temple fair to carry the lantern fair, and the lantern fair to extend the temple fair, is of long standing. The lantern city arranges the outer city, city moat, lanes, inner city and ceremonial gate according to the Eight Trigrams diagram, while sixteen tall poles and the divine banners of the five directions fix the cardinal positions, fusing ritual order and sightseeing into one; the fair lasts three days, with the lanterns lit from seven to eleven o'clock each evening, and both the length of the festival and the hours of lighting are fixed quantities, not extended because of the crowds.

05 · Associated Representative Bearers

Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:

06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography

Lantern Festival (Ledu, Qinghai) · China ICH Official Project Archive

Sources

China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)

Read the official ihchina.cn record ↗

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