Celebrate
Mooncake Festival - The Legend Of Chang Er 嫦娥 (Goddess Of The Moon)
Monday, September 28, 2015
Mid-autumn Day occurs on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month of the Chinese calendar, which falls on the 27th September this year. It is a date that parallels the autumnal equinox of the solar calendar, when the moon is at its fullest and roundest.
There are many legends and myths related to the moon and the most popular one has to be "Chang Er flying to the moon" (嫦娥奔月). Chang Er* is regarded as the Goddess of the Moon who is currently residing in the moon with the Jade Rabbit. Well, in the Western world you have Unicorns and Santa Claus and in the Eastern world we have Chang Er and the Jade Rabbit! :p
Here's my attempt to recreate the story using our Playmobil friends. :)
Long long time ago, a brave archer, Houyi was summoned by the Jade Emperor to shoot down the suns that were causing drought and scorching heat. There were 10 suns and he shot down 9 of them, leaving 1 to provide warmth, vitamin D and solar eclipse.
He was rewarded the elixir of immortality by the Queen Mother of the West. By drinking the elixir, one will ascend to heaven to become immortal.
Houyi brought home to his wife, Chang Er, and told her about the elixir. While her husband was resting from his journey, she could not resist peeking at the elixir he brought back. Her eagerness to become immortal tempted her into drinking the entire potion.
Before long, she felt her limbs grow weightless, and she began to float into the sky against her will. She chose the moon as residence to be nearby her beloved husband.
Chang Er spent the rest of her days in a lonely palace accompanied by a white rabbit, the Jade Rabbit**. She misses her husband Houyi, who was condemned to live the rest of his days on Earth as a common man.
It is said that during the Mid-Autumn Festival, Chang Er and Houyi are reunited—which is why Mid-Autumn Festival is also an important day for families to come together.
It is now an annual festival where the whole family get together to eat moon cakes and enjoy the moon.
The round moon cake looks exactly like the full moon in the night sky. More importantly, it symbolizes a family get-together and reflects the family culture and the special importance Chinese people attaching to the family reunion. The moon cake is not just a kind of food, but more of a cultural element deeply penetrated into Chinese people’s hearts, symbolizing family reunion and embodying spiritual feelings. The moon cake is undoubtedly a key element in the Chinese culture.
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*Chang Er was mentioned in a conversation between Houston Capcom and the Apollo 11 crew just before the first Moon landing in 1969:
Houston: Among the large headlines concerning Apollo this morning, is one asking that you watch for a lovely girl with a big rabbit. An ancient legend says a beautiful Chinese girl called Chang-O has been living there for 4,000 years. It seems she was banished to the Moon because she stole the pill of immortality from her husband. You might also look for her companion, a large Chinese rabbit, who is easy to spot since he is always standing on his hind feet in the shade of a cinnamon tree. The name of the rabbit is not reported.
Michael Collins: Okay. We'll keep a close eye out for the bunny girl.
**In this legend, three fairy sages transformed themselves into pitiful old men and begged for something to eat from a fox, a monkey and a rabbit. The fox and the monkey both had food to give to the old men, but the rabbit, empty-handed, offered his own flesh instead, jumping into a blazing fire to cook himself. The sages were so touched by the rabbit's sacrifice that they let him live in the Moon Palace where he became the "Jade Rabbit."
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