The origin of Lantern Festival

Lantern Festival is a traditional festival in China, and the formation of Lantern Festival custom has a long process, which is rooted in the folk custom of turning on lights to pray. Generally, turning on the light for blessing begins on the 14th night of the first month, and the 15th night is "positive light". People light lamps, also known as "sending lamps", in order to pray to the gods.

The introduction of Buddhist culture in the Eastern Han Dynasty also played an important role in promoting the formation of Lantern Festival customs. During the Yongping period of Emperor Hanming, in order to promote Buddhism, Emperor Hanming ordered "burning lamps to show Buddha" in palaces and temples on the fifteenth night of the first month. Therefore, the custom of burning lanterns on the 15th night of the first month was gradually spread in China with the expansion of the influence of Buddhist culture and the addition of Taoist culture.

During the Southern and Northern Dynasties, Lantern Festival gradually became a trend. Liang Wudi believed in Buddhism, and the palace was brightly lit on the fifteenth day of the first month. During the Tang Dynasty, cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries became closer, Buddhism flourished, and officials and ordinary people generally "burned lanterns to worship Buddha" on the fifteenth day of the first month, so Buddha lanterns spread all over the people. It has been legal to set off lanterns on the Lantern Festival since the Tang Dynasty.

The Historical Value of Lantern Festival

The formation of Lantern Festival custom has a long process. The introduction of Buddhist culture in the Eastern Han Dynasty is of great significance to the formation of Lantern Festival customs.

During the reign of Yong Ping in Han Dynasty (AD 58-75), when Ming Chengzu advocated Buddhism, it happened that Cai Cheng returned from India to seek Buddhism, saying that it was an auspicious day to participate in Buddhism when monks gathered to pay tribute to relics on the fifteenth day of the first month in Mohamad, India.

In order to carry forward Buddhism, Emperor Han Ming ordered "burning lamps to show Buddha" in the palace temple on the 15th night of the first month. Therefore, the custom of burning lanterns on the fifteenth night of the first month, with the expansion of the influence of Buddhist culture and the addition of Taoist culture, gradually spread in China.

Nowadays, with the development of the times, today's Lantern Festival is moving from family to society. No matter how the Lantern Festival, lanterns and fireworks change, the ancient traditional customs that the Lantern Festival continues remain unchanged. These elements of traditional culture are always the feelings that people keep giving up.

Refer to the above? Baidu Encyclopedia-Lantern Festival