Mid-Autumn dinner with Andy, Qun and all of their students. We’ve had a very busy week here with folks celebrating the Chinese Mid-Autumn. So here’s a few fact for you folks that might not know what this holiday is all about:

Why Mid-Autumn Is Celebrated at Month 8 Day 15? It’s Mid-Way Through the Third Season. The date of the Festival is the middle of the autumn season, according to the Chinese calendar. The third lunar season “autumn” is months 7–9. As the four seasons each have three (29 or 30 day) months on China’s traditional calendars, day 15 of month 8 is “the middle of autumn”.

For the Full Moon

On the 15th of the each lunar month, the moon is at its roundest and brightest, symbolizing togetherness and reunion in Chinese culture. The harvest moon (the full moon at Mid-Autumn, closest to the fall equinox) is traditionally believed to be the brightest of the year.

For Harvest Celebration

Month 8 day 15, is traditionally the time rice is supposed to mature and be harvested. So, people take this festival as an opportunity to celebrate the harvest and worship their gods to show their gratitude.