What is the origin of the tradition of moon worship in China?

Our ancestors lacked a scientific understanding of the alternation of seasons, changes in time, the sun and moon, especially water, fire, thunder and electricity, which endanger human life, and thought that there was a supreme god in nature, who not only ruled the heavens, but also ruled over the survival of mankind, good fortune, bad luck and misfortune.

So people worship this deity with fear and hope, hoping that it will eliminate disasters and bring blessings to human beings.

This pure and simple theocratic thought and the hazy religious consciousness, is the production of altar worship as a place of prayer for the initial motivation. Later, successive dynasties have increased the number of sacrificial objects, the establishment of a variety of altars and temples, as well as a set of complex and mysterious sacrificial rituals, as a spiritual tool of the court.

In fact, as early as the Zhou Dynasty, sacrifices to the heavens and the earth, the sun and the moon have become a system. Qin Shihuang had sacrificed the sun at Chengshan, which was later known as Chengshan Temple in Rongcheng, Shandong Province, and the moon at Laishan Yexian, and he was the earliest emperor to sacrifice the sun and the moon in China's ancient times. He had a wide and far-reaching influence on the sacrificial activities in China.

The ancients believed that a good harvest of grains could not be separated from the moon, and that without the moon to give dew, and without the moon's fullness to count the agricultural time, a good harvest would not be possible. According to the Book of Rites: the Son of Heaven spring sunrise, autumn sunset moon. The sun rises in the morning and the moon sets in the evening.

It means that the Son of Heaven sacrificed the sun in the spring and the moon in the fall, the sun in the morning and the moon at night. It can be seen that as early as the pre-Qin period, there was a ritual for the emperor to sacrifice the sun in the spring and the moon in the fall.

Later, the nobles and scholars also followed suit, in the Mid-Autumn Festival, the sky is bright and round a round of white moon, ornamental worship, to send feelings, this custom is so spread to the people, the formation of a traditional activity.

When Emperor Wu of the Western Han Dynasty was in power, he would bow to the moon and perform the ritual of the sun and the moon. During the reign of Emperor Chengdi of the Han Dynasty, a "Heaven and Earth Sacrifice" was built on the southern outskirts of Chang'an, the capital of the Han Dynasty, to offer sacrifices to heaven and earth, and a "Dongjun Sacrifice" was built to offer sacrifices to the sun.

During the Wei, Jin, and North and South Dynasties, the spring equinox was held in the eastern suburb of the sun, and the autumn equinox was held in the western suburb of the moon, sacrificing to the gods of the sun and moon. Up to this point, sacrifices to the sky, earth, sun and moon has become one of the grand ceremonies of the ancient state of China, is an important way of the emperor's rule, and has always been valued.

Until the Tang Dynasty, this custom of sacrificing to the moon is more important to people, the Mid-Autumn Festival has become a fixed holiday, the history of the Tang Dynasty - Taizong record "recorded in the August 15 Mid-Autumn Festival". It is rumored that the formation of this important festival of the Chinese nation is related to the story of "Tang Ming Huang's dream of visiting the Moon Palace".

Legend has it that one year Emperor Tang Minghuang dreamed of traveling to the Moon Palace on the night of August 15, and when he traveled to the Moon Palace, he saw a huge plaque hanging above the Moon Palace with six big words "Guanghan Qingxu's Mansion", and he curiously walked in.

After entering the palace, Emperor Tang Minghuang was immediately stunned by the scene in front of him, only to see hundreds of heavenly nymphs, all like flowers, they dance white as jade long sleeves, in the cloudy space, accompanied by beautiful music, dancing. Tang Minghuang saw a fairy body light, dance beautiful and moving, the more they see the more do not want to leave. He was in high spirits, when the interest is strong, do not realize that sleepy eyes wake up, it is a beautiful dream.

But Tang Minghuang has been difficult to wake up from this dream, and later even "dream as true", can not forget everything in the dream. He ordered the palace chief to organize the palace maid, according to their own memories, designed and rehearsed a set of imitation of the moon palace nymphs performing the Nishang Yuyi dance.

In this way, every August 15, we must set up offerings, enjoy the moon festival, while watching the beautiful dance performed by the palace maidens, attracted the civil and military officials in the dynasty competed to follow suit, and later spread to all parts of the country, so that the moon has more mysterious, but also prompted the August 15 every year to the Mid-Autumn Festival this trend gradually prevailed, forming a four major festivals in Chinese folklore with the Spring Festival, Ching Ming, Duanwu Qiqiao.

The ancients called the day "Yang", the moon is called "Yin", Yin and Yang and all things prosper, so people have a unique emotion for the moon. The moon in people's hearts is beautiful, gentle, quiet and lovely, set all the feminine beauty in one. And "Chang'e to the moon", "Wu Gang felled the laurel", "Jade Rabbit pounding medicine", these romantic and beautiful myths, more so that the moon more mysterious poetic.