On a light note
Hundreds of lanterns lit up the sky during the fascinating Lantern Festival in Taiwan
Each year on the fifteenth night of the first lunar month, the tiny country known as Taiwan comes alive with thousands of lanterns lighting the sky. Once named Formosa, which means beautiful, in Portuguese, Taiwan adorns itself with lights during the lantern festival. The sky is lit up with hundreds of lanterns and bursting crackers, to the accompaniment of loud cheering by the people who gather each year to celebrate the festival.The Lantern Festival of Taiwan is a fascinating experience. Since red is considered an auspicious colour, lanterns made in red dot the sky. The festival, an ancient Chinese tradition, dates back to more than 2000 years but it is still celebrated with gusto at Taiwan. Held on the last day of the Chinese New Year celebrations, the entire city is dressed up with lights and a festive mood prevails.
There are umpteen legends about the origin of the festival. According to one of these, the lantern festival began during the reign of a Han dynasty emperor. His subjects were asked to light up the kingdom on the fifteenth night of the first lunar year. The emperor, being a Buddhist, wanted this done as an honour to Buddha. It was also said the light from the lanterns enabled people to see the deities as they descended to earth to bless the devout.Another legend puts the origin of the festival during the rule of the Tang dynasty.
Yet another legend links the festival to the god of good fortune, whose birthday falls on the fifteenth day of first lunar month. The God, Tianguan, is believed to love all kinds of entertainment so the believers put up a show of light, firecrackers and riddles.Whatever be the origin or the reason, the lantern festival has developed into one of the major festivals in Taiwan.Although it began as a religious festival, the lantern festival now holds many interesting events.
One of them is the riddle contest where riddles connected with the festival and lantern are solved by the participants. Each year, a giant lantern in the shape of the animal that represents that year according to the Chinese zodiac signs, is installed in the plaza of the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall. This year being the Year of the Monkey according to the Chinese zodiac calendar, a monkey shaped, gigantic lantern had been installed right in front of the Taoyuan station to celebrate the Lantern Festival.
There are acrobatic shows, dragon dances, traditional drama and mock battles. Dozens of stalls with handicrafts, lanterns and sweets dot the lanes. Almost every Taiwanese is out in the streets enjoying the festival.A special sweet called the Tangyuan is prepared in all Taiwanese homes during the lantern festival. It is made of glutinous rice and has a filling of sesame paste, sweet red bean paste or peanut butter. Tangyuan is shaped like a ball since a round shape is supposed to symbolise good fortune and harmony.
Filed under: Travel, Wine and Cuisine Tagged: Buddha, Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, Chinese, Chinese New Year, Formosa, Han dynasty, lantern festival, Taiwan, Taoyuan, Tianguan
