The Mid-Autumn Festival: A Festival Full of Mystery

熊神進 ・2026-09-29

The MidAutumn Festival A Festival Full of Mystery 神秘的中秋節背後玄機 For many Chinese people, the MidAutumn Festival is more than a time to admire the moon. 對許多中國人來說，中秋節不只是賞月的日子，也是家人團聚、分享食物和表達祝福的重要時刻。 Portuguese readers may understand the festival as a Chinese traditional celebration combining family gatherings, the autumn harvest, legends about the moon and local activities. 葡萄牙讀者可以把中秋節理解爲一個結合家庭聚會、秋季收成、月亮傳說和地方活動的中國傳統節日。 Where Did the MidAutumn Festival Come From 一、中秋節從哪裏來？ The Chinese term ldquo;MidAutumnrdquo; literally refers to the middle of autumn. Since many crops ripen during the eighth lunar month, the festival also carries meanings of giving thanks to nature, celebrating the harvest and hoping for a successful year ahead. It later developed into a celebration centred on moongazing, giftgiving, mooncakes and family gatherings. 「中秋」一詞本身就是「秋季中段」的意思。農曆八月正值許多農作物成熟，因此中秋節也包含感謝自然、慶祝豐收和祈求來年順利的意義。隨著社會發展，中秋節由季節性的節令活動，逐漸演變爲以賞月、送禮、吃月餅和家庭聚會爲主的節日。 Chinese mythology has added colourful stories, including Changrsquo;e flying to the moon嫦娥奔月Hou Yi shooting down the suns後羿射日, and the Jade Rabbit living in the Moon Palace月宮玉兔. These legends are widely loved, but are not the only or earliest historical origin of the festival. 中國神話也爲中秋增添了許多故事，包括嫦娥奔月、後羿射日和月宮玉兔。這些傳說廣受喜愛，但不能簡單視爲中秋節唯一或最早的歷史來源。 Mooncakes 二、月餅 Mooncakes are the food most closely associated with the MidAutumn Festival. 月餅是最能代表中秋節的食物。 Mooncakes come in many flavours. Cantonesestyle mooncakes commonly contain lotusseed paste with salted egg yolk蓮蓉蛋黃；mixed nuts or redbean paste五仁和豆沙. Suzhoustyle mooncakes 蘇式月餅have a flakier pastry, while some regions are known for savoury mooncakes filled with fresh meat鮮肉月餅. Portuguese readers can think of mooncakes as special festive pastries, but their meaning goes beyond taste. Giving someone mooncakes is a way of sharing wishes for reunion and happiness with family and friends. 月餅口味十分多樣。廣式月餅常見蓮蓉蛋黃、五仁和豆沙；蘇式月餅的外皮較酥；有些地方則喜歡鮮肉月餅。葡萄牙讀者可以把月餅理解爲特別的節慶糕點，但它的意義不只在味道。送月餅代表把團圓和幸福的祝願送給親友。 Why Does the Salted Egg Yolk Look Like a Small Moon 三、鹹蛋黃爲什麽像一輪小月亮？ The salted egg yolk in a Cantonese lotusseed mooncake usually comes from a duck egg. When cut open, the golden yolk looks like a small moon and is associated with harvest and family completeness. 廣式蓮蓉月餅中的鹹蛋黃通常來自鴨蛋。切開月餅時，金黃色的蛋黃看起來像藏在糕點內的一輪小月亮，因此常被聯想到滿月、豐收和家庭圓滿。 There is also a folk interpretation based on a Chinese pun. The word for ldquo;duckrdquo; 鴨sounds similar to the word for ldquo;press down壓rdquo;. Some people therefore believe that duck meat and duck eggs symbolically ldquo;press down壓rdquo; worries and bad luck. Ideas such as ldquo;suppressing harmful influences壓煞rdquo; or ldquo;calming fright壓驚rdquo; connect good wishes with similarsounding words. 民間還有一種以諧音爲基礎的解釋：「鴨」與「壓」的讀音相近，所以有人認爲鴨肉和鴨蛋可以寓意壓住煩惱和厄運。「壓煞」或「壓驚」等說法，都是以相近的聲音聯繫吉祥願望的民俗解釋。 Lanterns 四、燈籠 In traditional Chinese ideas about yin and yang, the moon is often associated with yin陰, while fire and light are associated with yang. For this reason, some folk beliefs say that lighting lanterns during the festival adds yang 陽energy and helps create a balance between yin and yang. The word for ldquo;lantern燈rdquo; also sounds like the word for ldquo;male child丁rdquo; in Chinese. As a result, lanterns may be connected with the wish to have children and hopes for a thriving family. These are symbolic wishes, not scientific conclusions. 在傳統陰陽觀念中，月亮常被歸入「陰」，火和光則與「陽」有關。因此，有些民間信仰認爲中秋點燈可以增加陽氣，幫助調和陰陽。「燈」與「丁」同音，所以燈籠有時也被聯想到「添丁」和家庭人丁興旺。這些都是象徵性的意義和美好祝願，不是關于月光或人體的科學結論。 Why Is There a Saying That ldquo;Men Should Not Worship the Moonrdquo; 五、爲什麽有「男不拜月」的說法？ Some parts of southern China have a saying that ldquo;men should not worship the moon, and women should not offer sacrifices to the Kitchen God男不拜月，女不祭灶rdquo;. Traditionally, the moon belongs to yin陰, while the Kitchen God belongs to another householdworship system. In some places, women therefore led moonworship ceremonies, while men took charge of rituals connected with the kitchen and household. 華南部分地區流傳「男不拜月，女不祭灶」的俗語。傳統解釋認爲，月亮屬陰，而灶神屬另一套家庭祭祀秩序。因此，在某些地方，女性主持拜月儀式，男性則負責與厨房和家庭有關的祭祀。 Why Do Some Regions Eat Taro During the Festival 六、爲什麽有些地方中秋要吃芋頭？ In Guangdong廣東, Chaoshan 潮汕and other parts of southern China, taro is a common seasonal food during the MidAutumn Festival. It ripens in autumn and is valued both as a seasonal ingredient and for its auspicious associations. In some interpretations, it suggests having something left over, symbolising a comfortable life and savings in the household. 在廣東、潮汕和其他華南地區，芋頭是常見的中秋時令食物。芋頭在秋季成熟，除了是季節食材，也有吉祥寓意。有些解釋把它與「有餘」聯繫起來，象徵生活舒適、家中有積蓄。 Local writings from Chaozhou record the custom of peeling and eating taro during the festival. In folk tradition, this is sometimes called ldquo;peeling the ghostrsquo;s skin剝鬼皮rdquo;. Peeling away the outer layer is given the symbolic meaning of removing evil influences and getting rid of bad luck. 潮州地方文獻記載了中秋剝芋頭而食的習俗。民間有時稱這個動作爲「剝鬼皮」，把剝去外皮象徵爲剝除邪祟、去除不順。 How Do People in Macao Celebrate the MidAutumn Festival 七、澳門人如何過中秋？ Macaorsquo;s MidAutumn Festival combines traditional Chinese family customs with the daily life of a multicultural city. Families share mooncakes and fruit at home, admire the moon outdoors, and join community activities. 澳門的中秋節融合了中國傳統家庭習俗與多元文化城市的日常生活。許多家庭會在家中聚餐、分享月餅和水果，也會到戶外賞月、觀看燈飾或參加社區活動。 In Cantonesespeaking communities, the expression ldquo;chasing the moon追月rdquo; is sometimes used for continuing to admire the moon and gather with family and friends on the day after the festival. However, this is not a fixed term or practice used by every family in Macao. 在粵語地區，有時會用「追月」來形容在中秋翌日繼續賞月，幷與親友聚會。不過，這幷不是每個澳門家庭都使用的固定稱呼或做法。 Besides mooncakes, common festive foods in Macao include sweet rice dumplings湯圓, taro芋頭, pomelos 柚子and water caltrops菱角. A special feature is the combination of traditional life and historic city scenery. Portuguesestyle buildings, old streets, family lanterns and Chinese mooncakes can all become part of the same evening. 澳門的應節食品除了月餅，也常見湯圓、芋頭、柚子和菱角。澳門中秋的一項特色，是傳統生活與城市歷史景觀同時出現：葡式建築、舊城街道、家庭燈籠和中國月餅，可以在同一個晚上交織在一起。 The heart of the festival is not a particular type of mooncake, nor the need to follow a specific taboo. It is the opportunity to share time and good wishes on an autumn night. 中秋節最重要的核心，不是某一種月餅，也不是必須遵守某一項禁忌，而是人們在秋夜共享時間和祝福。 For Portuguese friends, the festival offers a welcoming introduction to Chinese culture. In Macao, looking up at the moon, carrying a lantern and tasting a small piece of lotusseed mooncake with salted egg yolk蓮蓉蛋黃月餅mdash;while seeing Chinese traditions meet the cityrsquo;s Portuguese heritagemdash;creates a festival memory that is uniquely Macao. 對葡萄牙朋友來說，中秋節可以是一個認識中國文化的友善入口。在澳門，抬頭賞月、提著燈籠、品嘗一小塊蓮蓉蛋黃月餅，同時看見中華傳統與葡萄牙歷史城市景觀相遇，正是澳門獨有的節日記憶。