A brilliant harvest moon is rising over the island of Taiwan, signaling a time for romance and family togetherness form breezy shores to the great peaks. The 15th day of the eighth lunar month marks the mid-autumn Festival, also known as the Chinese moon Festival. Unlike many Chinese celebrations, the festival is a low-key holiday characterized by peaceful gatherings with loved ones.
On this special day, Chinese people worship in temples throughout Taiwan and hold joyous family reunions at home. After nightfall, entire families go out under the stars for picnics in public parks. It is also a for the lovers, who sit holding hands on riverbanks and park benches, enraptured by the brightest moon of the year. According to folk legend, the 15th day of the eighth lunar month is also the birthday of the Earth god, or Tu-ti Kung. Thus the festival has come to symbolize the fruitful end of a year's hard work in the fields. Farm families across the island express their gratitude to the Earth God as to Heaven, represented by the moon, for the year's good blessings.
Round "moon cakes" are a traditional food eaten during the festival as a reminder of family unity. People also enjoy pomelos on this day; yu, the Chinese word for pomelo, sounds the same as another Chinese word to beseech the moon god for protection. For generations moon cakes, the festival delicacy, have been golden brown in color and made of flour with sweet fillings of nuts, mashed red beans, louts seeds or Chinese dates. Sometimes a cooked egg yolk can be found in the middle of the rich-tasting dessert. But with Taiwan's seasonal market for moon cakes becoming increasingly competitve, local bakers have started trying innovative ways to attract new business. This year on store shelves, consumers can also find moon cakes made of fruit, ice cream, yogurt, pork, mushrooms, green tea, flowers, jelly and even XO brandy.
Moon cakes are also being prepared in new ways, as illustrated by the fruit cup, steamed and frozen varieties. In addition, there are also tiny moon cakes shaped like Chinese chess pieces and the domino-like mahjong tiles. Tang Chee, chairperson of Farr Chee Corp, pointed out that mahjong is a game deeply embedded in Chinese society. Relatives and friends often gather to sit up all night playing the game and enjoying one another's companionship.
Mahjong requires a balance of four people to begin play, Which Tang sees as another illustration of the importance Chinese society places on harmony and togetherness. To wish its customers good fortune in the year ahead, Farr Chee Corp. Has decorated the top of its moon cakes with the Chinese character fa, which means prosperity. It is a word that also appears on one of the pieces of a mahjong set. Tang's company is also marketing brightly colored jelly moon cakes, new to the local market this year. The eye-catching snacks are made in Japan and then imported to Taiwan. To cater to today's penchant for a healthier diet, Farr Chee Corp. also sells a low-calorie moon cake of more than 20 kinds of grains.
But the marketing strategies of local bakeries include more than whipping up new-style moon cakes to attract customers during this elaborate packaging and have explored new sales outlets such as beauty parlors and selling door to door. Taiwan people can find moon cakes in nearly every bakery, supermarket, convenience store and restaurant during the Mid-Autumn Festival. Moon cakes can be expensive or relatively cheap, depending on the type of filling used. In agrarian Chinese society, festivals marked the passage of time. The Lunar New Year, Chinese Dragon Boat Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival and winter solstice celebration were more or less evenly distributed across the seasons.
Lifestyles may have changed in modern Taiwan, but the traditional festivals carried forth from ancient Chinese society remain an important part of family life. There are many legends that claim to be the origin of the festival for celebrating the radiant moon. One of the most popular is the story of Hou Yi, an office and bodyguard of an emperor in the Hsia Dynasty (2205-1818 B.C.), and his beautiful wife, Chang-O. As the legend goes, Chang-O stole from her husband an elixir said to ensure youth and immortality. Upon swallowing the drug, she soared to moon, where her youth and beauty were preserved. As punishment for the theft, however, Chang-0 was doomed to stay in the firmament forever. The legend easily comes to mind when you gaze into the sky on the 15th night of the eighth lunar month and behold the lovely, shining moon.
