中秋节的传统 The Mid-autumn Festival
文章作者 100test 发表时间 2007:12:26 15:16:09
来源 100Test.Com百考试题网
中国农历每年8月15日是传统的中秋节。在这天，每个家庭都团聚在一起，一家人共同观赏象征丰裕，和谐和幸运的圆月。此时，大人们吃着美味的月饼，品着热腾腾的香茗，而孩子们则在一旁拉兔子灯玩。
或许最早中秋节是一个丰收的节日，后来，月宫里美丽的仙女嫦娥的神话故事赋予了它神话色彩。传说古时候，曾有10个太阳绕地球旋转。一天，这10个太阳同时出现，酷热难挡。弓箭手后翌射下了其中9个太阳，拯救了地球上的生物。他偷了长生不死药，为了避免后翌长期残暴统治，妻子嫦娥先将此药喝下。此后，嫦娥（月神），这位在中秋节时，少女们都要向之祈福的仙女的传说便流传开来。
在14世纪，中秋节吃月饼又有了一层特殊含义。传说在朱元璋带兵起义推翻元朝时，将士们曾把联络信藏在月饼里，因此，中秋节后来也成为汉人推翻蒙古人统治的纪念日。在元朝，蒙古人统治中国。而前朝统治者们不甘心政权落入外族人手里，密谋策划联合起义。正值中秋将近，起义首领就命令部下制作一种特别的月饼，把起义计划藏在每个月饼里。到中秋那天，起义军获取胜利，推翻了元朝，建立明朝。今天，人们吃月饼纪念此事。
The Moon (Mid-autumn) Festival
"Zhong Qiu Jie" which is also known as the Mid-Autumn Festival, is celebrated on the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar.
Mid-Autumn is a time for family members and loved ones to congregate and enjoy the full moon - an auspicious symbol of abundance, harmony and luck. Adults will usually indulge in fragrant mooncakes of many varieties with a good cup of piping hot Chinese tea, while the little ones run around with their brightly-lit lanterns. "Zhong Qiu Jie" probably began as a harvest festival. The festival was later given a mythological flavour with legends of Chang-E, the beautiful lady in the moon. According to Chinese mythology, the earth once had 10 suns circling over it. One day, all 10 suns appeared together, scorching the earth with their heat. The earth was saved when a strong archer, Hou Yi, succeeded in shooting down 9 of the suns. Yi stole the elixir of life but to save the people from his tyrannical rule, his wife, Chang-E drank it. Thus started the legend of the lady in the moon to whom young Chinese girls would pray at the Mid-Autumn Festival.
In the 14th century, the eating of mooncakes at "Zhong Qiu Jie" was given a new significance. The story goes that when Zhu Yuan Zhang was plotting to overthrow the Yuan dynasty started by the Mongolians, the rebels hid their messages in the Mid-Autumn mooncakes. Zhong Qiu Jie is hence also a commemoration of the overthrow of the Mongolians by the Han people. During the Yuan dynasty (A.D.1280-1368) China was ruled by the Mongolian people. Leaders from the preceding Sung dynasty (A.D.960-1280) were unhappy at submitting to foreign rule, and set how to coordinate the rebellion without it being discovered. The leaders of the rebellion, knowing that the Moon Festival was drawing near, ordered the making of special cakes. Backed into each mooncake was a message with the outline of the attack. On the night of the [Page] Moon Festival, the rebels successfully attacked and overthrew the government.
What followed was the establishment of the Ming dynasty (A.D. 1368-1644). Today, moon cakes are eaten to commemorate this event.