Lantern FestivalLantern Festival Customs

There are several explanations for the origin of Lantern Festival lantern-viewing. One theory traces it to the pre-Qin Chu tradition of worshipping Taiyi (太一神), a supreme deity believed to govern the universe. According to this interpretation, the people of Chu worshipped Taiyi on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. During the reign of Emperor Wu of Han, the state ritual to Taiyi was fixed on this date, and by the time Sima Qian helped establish the Taichu calendar (太初历), the fifteenth day of the first lunar month had already acquired the status of an important festival.

Another widely circulated explanation connects the practice with Buddhism. Emperor Ming of the Eastern Han promoted Buddhism and, according to later tradition, learned that Buddhist monks observed the fifteenth day of the first lunar month by viewing Buddhist relics and lighting lamps in honor of the Buddha. He therefore ordered lamps to be lit in the imperial palace and Buddhist temples that evening and encouraged both elites and ordinary people to hang lanterns. Over time, this Buddhist ritual celebration is said to have developed into a major folk festival.

A third explanation associates the festival with the Daoist concept of the Three Yuan (三元). In this system, the fifteenth day of the first lunar month is the Shangyuan Festival (上元节), the day on which the Heavenly Official bestows blessings (天官赐福). Because the Heavenly Official was associated with joy and blessing, lamps were lit in celebration.

After the Sui and Tang dynasties, public lantern festivities became increasingly popular. Although the Tang capital normally enforced a night curfew, the emperor suspended it for three nights during the Shangyuan Festival, a special dispensation known as “releasing the night” (放夜). By the reign of Emperor Xuanzong, the festival had grown into a citywide carnival. In the Song dynasty, lantern displays were extended from three nights to five, accompanied by fireworks and various entertainments. During the Ming dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang ordered lanterns to be raised on the eighth day and taken down on the seventeenth, creating a ten-night celebration. After the Qing dynasty, the imperial court ceased organizing large lantern fairs, but popular lantern celebrations remained spectacular.

Viewing lanterns is one of the oldest and most central customs of the Lantern Festival. Indeed, because of the tradition of displaying and viewing lamps, the festival is also known as the “Lantern Festival” (灯节) or “Lantern Evening” (灯夕). Lanterns come in countless forms, including palace lanterns, animal-head lanterns, revolving lanterns, floral lanterns, and bird-shaped lanterns. Their surfaces may depict ancient legends, the traditional “Four Gentlemen” of plum blossom, orchid, bamboo, and chrysanthemum, or symbolic creatures such as dragons, phoenixes, luan birds, and tigers.

On Lantern Festival night, streets are filled with hanging lanterns, colored decorations, and shifting light. People leave their homes to wander through lantern markets and celebrations, often continuing late into the night. The Tang poet Su Weidao (苏味道) captured the brilliance of Chang’an’s Lantern Festival in On the Night of the Fifteenth Day of the First Month (《正月十五夜》):

火树银花合，星桥铁锁开。 Trees of fire and flowers of silver merge in brilliance; the locks of the star-lit bridge are opened.

In Chinese culture, lantern light symbolizes brightness, hope, and auspiciousness. Viewing lanterns expresses hope for a bright future in the new year while also symbolically dispelling darkness and welcoming spring. Because the fifteenth day is the first full-moon night of the new year, the moon in the sky and the lanterns on earth illuminate one another, creating the celebrated image of a city so radiant that night itself seems to disappear.

On the evening of the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, visitors can attend lantern fairs and lantern markets across China. Major displays are held in places such as Qianmen in Beijing, Yuyuan in Shanghai, the Confucius Temple area in Nanjing, the Grand Tang Mall in Xi’an, and the Zigong Lantern Festival in Sichuan. Displays usually begin around dusk and continue late into the night. It is advisable to check dates and locations in advance, dress warmly where necessary, and avoid peak crowds. Some events also offer lantern-making workshops where visitors can create a small lantern of their own.

Lantern riddles developed from China’s much older tradition of riddles and word puzzles, which can be traced to the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods. Riddles remained a popular form of intellectual entertainment throughout Chinese history. Records indicate that by the Song dynasty, literary riddles were being written on silk lanterns.

The Southern Song scholar Zhou Mi (周密) wrote in Old Affairs of Wulin: Lantern Varieties (《武林旧事·灯品》):

“There were also silk lanterns on which poems and verses were cut and written, sometimes containing satire and humor, together with painted figures, hidden-head riddles, coded sayings, and jokes from the old capital, all intended to amuse passersby.”

In the Southern Song capital of Lin’an, present-day Hangzhou, composing and solving riddles became especially popular during the Lantern Festival. By the Ming and Qing dynasties, lantern riddles had matured into one of the festival’s standard customs.

Solving lantern riddles (猜灯谜), also called “striking lantern riddles” (打灯谜), is one of the festival’s most intellectually engaging activities. On the fifteenth day, colorful lanterns are hung in public spaces and fireworks may be set off. Riddles are written on paper slips and attached beneath or beside the lanterns for visitors to solve. Because riddles stimulate the mind while fitting naturally into the festive atmosphere, the custom became increasingly popular and eventually became an indispensable part of the celebration. Lantern riddles draw on literature, history, geography, folk customs, language, and everyday knowledge, making them both learned and entertaining.

Lantern riddles reflect the high value Chinese culture traditionally places on intelligence, learning, and literary skill. In the midst of a festive atmosphere, participants display knowledge and sharpen their thinking, giving the Lantern Festival not only visual spectacle but also intellectual pleasure. Many riddles also contain historical allusions or moral lessons, giving the custom an educational function through entertainment.

At Lantern Festival events, riddles are often written on red slips of paper and hung beneath lanterns. Visitors may attempt to solve them and, depending on the event, take the slip to a designated desk to check the answer. Correct answers may earn small prizes. Participants should avoid damaging lanterns or removing riddle slips without permission. Community centers and shopping districts also frequently organize lantern-riddle activities during the festival.

The earliest surviving records of eating foods resembling modern yuanxiao (元宵) during the festival date to the Song dynasty. The Song scholar Zhou Bida (周必大) wrote in Continued Drafts from Pingyuan (《平园续稿》) that people cooked fuyuanzi (浮元子) during the Lantern Festival, remarking that earlier writers seemed not to have composed poetry about it.

The Song text Shanfu Lu (《膳夫录》) by Zheng Wangzhi records: “Among festival foods in Bianjing, Shangyuan oil hammers are eaten.” Lü Yuanming’s Miscellaneous Notes on Seasonal Customs (《岁时杂记》) states that people in the capital made tadpole-shaped soup from mung-bean flour, rolled glutinous rice into balls, and served them with sweet syrup, calling the rice balls yuanzi (圆子). Yuanxiao were also known as fuyuanzi, yuanzi, or tuanzi (团子). Because these names evoke the sound and idea of tuanyuan (团圆)—family reunion and completeness—the food gradually became a symbol of household harmony and happiness.

According to a widely circulated later anecdote, after the 1911 Revolution, Yuan Shikai disliked the name yuanxiao because it sounded like “Yuan disappears” (袁消) and in 1913 ordered that it be called tangyuan (汤圆) instead.

Eating yuanxiao is the most representative food tradition of the festival. Made from glutinous-rice flour, yuanxiao may be plain or filled. Common fillings include sweet red-bean paste, sugar, hawthorn, sesame, jujube paste, rose, walnuts, mixed nuts, and osmanthus. They may be boiled, pan-fried, steamed, or deep-fried, producing very different textures and flavors.

A well-known distinction is that northern yuanxiao are “rolled,” while southern tangyuan are “wrapped.” Northern-style yuanxiao are made by cutting the filling into small pieces and repeatedly rolling them in a basket or tray of dry glutinous-rice flour so that layer after layer adheres to the surface. Southern tangyuan are made by mixing glutinous-rice flour with water into a dough, wrapping the filling inside, and rolling it into a smooth ball. Despite their different preparation methods and textures, both foods symbolize reunion and completeness. Their round shape evokes both the full moon and the hope that “the moon is full and the family is whole.”

The round shape of yuanxiao echoes the full moon of the fifteenth night and symbolizes reunion, completeness, and harmony. Eating yuanxiao is therefore more than a culinary pleasure: it expresses hopes for family unity and a happy life. In Chinese festival culture, eating yuanxiao at the Lantern Festival carries a ritual importance comparable to eating mooncakes at the Mid-Autumn Festival.

Yuanxiao or tangyuan can be bought or made at home. In northern China, some supermarkets and pastry shops sell freshly rolled yuanxiao, while in the south handmade tangyuan are widely available. Visitors can also try making them themselves—rolling yuanxiao in the northern style or wrapping tangyuan in the southern style. When boiling them, use plenty of water, add them after the water reaches a boil, and cook until they float. Because glutinous rice is dense and sticky, yuanxiao are best eaten hot, slowly, and in moderation.

The earliest written descriptions of dragon dancing are often associated with Zhang Heng’s (张衡) Han-dynasty Rhapsody on the Western Capital (《西京赋》), which vividly describes dragon performances among the baixì, or “hundred entertainments.” The Book of Sui: Treatise on Music (《隋书·音乐志》) also records a spectacular dragon performance known as “Transformation of the Yellow Dragon” (黄龙变) during the reign of Emperor Yang of Sui.

Dragon dancing developed from ancient Chinese dragon worship. Because dragons were associated with rain and the regulation of weather, people performed dragon dances to seek divine protection and pray for favorable weather and abundant harvests. By the Ming and Qing dynasties, dragon dancing had spread widely across the country.

Dragon-lantern dancing (耍龙灯), also called “dancing the dragon lantern” (舞龙灯) or simply dragon dance (龙舞), is one of the Lantern Festival’s most visually impressive folk performances. In traditional Chinese culture, the dragon is regarded as an auspicious being. A dragon lantern may extend twenty meters or more, with the head and body illuminated from within and mounted on poles carried by a team of performers. As the dragon follows a “pearl,” the performers make it coil, leap, twist, rise, and dive. The long illuminated body undulates through the darkness, producing a brilliant and dramatic spectacle.

The Southern Song poet Xin Qiji (辛弃疾) famously described the splendor of the Lantern Festival in The Green Jade Table: Lantern Festival (《青玉案·元夕》):

东风夜放花千树，更吹落，星如雨。宝马雕车香满路。凤箫声动，玉壶光转，一夜鱼龙舞。 The east wind blooms a thousand trees with light at night, then scatters stars like rain. Fragrant carriages fill the road; phoenix flutes sound, the luminous moon turns, and fish and dragons dance through the night.

In Chinese culture, the dragon symbolizes auspiciousness, nobility, courage, power, and abundance. The dragon dance is therefore not merely a folk performance but also a ritualized expression of hopes for favorable weather, plentiful harvests, and communal prosperity.

During the Lantern Festival, dragon-lantern processions can be seen in streets, plazas, temple fairs, and village celebrations. Performers often travel through entire neighborhoods, creating a highly animated atmosphere. Spectators should remain outside the performance route and keep a safe distance. In some areas, visitors may be allowed to try carrying a section of the dragon under supervision.

Records of lion dancing can be found as early as the Wei, Jin, and Northern and Southern Dynasties period, including descriptions associated with the Record of Buddhist Monasteries in Luoyang (《洛阳伽蓝记》). Traditional accounts often trace its early development to the Three Kingdoms period, after which it gradually became a standardized festival performance.

According to Buddhist tradition, the lion was associated with Manjushri Bodhisattva (文殊菩萨), and the spread of Buddhism into China is sometimes linked in popular explanations to the arrival of lion-dance traditions. By the Tang dynasty, lion dancing had become widely popular and later spread deeply into folk culture.

Lion dancing is one of China’s best-known folk performing arts and is widely staged during the Lantern Festival and other major celebrations. It is also known as “lion dance” (狮子舞) or, in older contexts, “Music of Great Peace” (太平乐). A basic lion team generally consists of three performers: one controls the lion’s head, one controls the body and hind legs, and a third acts as the lion’s guide.

Two broad styles are traditionally distinguished: “civil lion” (文狮) and “martial lion” (武狮). The civil lion emphasizes gentle, playful behavior such as shaking its fur and rolling on the ground. The martial lion emphasizes power and agility, performing leaps, climbs, and ball-play. The guide, often holding an embroidered ball, leads the lion through increasingly difficult movements. Folk belief traditionally attributes to the lion the power to repel evil spirits.

The lion is regarded as the king of beasts and as a powerful protector against evil. Lion dancing therefore expresses wishes to ward off disaster, repel harmful forces, and welcome blessings. The custom also traveled overseas with Chinese migration and became especially prominent in places such as Malaysia and Singapore.

During the Lantern Festival, lion dances can be seen on streets, at temple fairs, in scenic districts, and in commercial areas. Performances are usually accompanied by drums, gongs, and cymbals, creating an energetic rhythm. Spectators should keep a safe distance. Some venues offer interactive moments in which visitors may touch the lion’s head to symbolically “share in its good fortune.”

The custom known as “Walking Away the Hundred Illnesses” (走百病) can be traced directly to an older observance called Haomo Day (耗磨日) during the Northern and Southern Dynasties. The Guangxu-era Dongguang County Gazetteer states that the sixteenth day of the first lunar month was formerly called Haomo Day and identifies this practice as an origin of the later custom.

By around the Tang dynasty, Walking Away the Hundred Illnesses gradually merged with rituals for dispelling disease and epidemic misfortune and with Lantern Festival customs. From the Ming and Qing periods onward, it became an important element of the festival. The Ming writer Zhou Yong (周用) described women preparing themselves to go out together and “walk away the hundred illnesses.”

The custom is also known as “dispersing the hundred illnesses” (散百病), “strolling away the hundred illnesses” (遛百病), “roasting away the hundred illnesses” (烤百病), or “walking bridges” (走桥). Participants were traditionally mostly women, who went out in groups on Lantern Festival night, walking along walls, crossing bridges, or heading into the countryside in the belief that such movement could ward off disease and disaster.

The Ming authors Liu Tong (刘侗) and Yu Yizheng (于奕正) recorded in Scenes and Objects of the Imperial Capital (《帝京景物略·春场》) that from the eighth to the eighteenth day, women dressed in white silk garments walked together at night, believing this would protect them from ailments of the back and legs; the practice was called “walking bridges.” The Qing writer Pan Rongbi (潘荣陛) likewise noted that women went out in groups on Lantern Festival night to pray for protection from misfortune, often crossing bridges in small groups in a rite called “passing beyond calamity” (度厄).

Walking Away the Hundred Illnesses reflects traditional Chinese concern with health, well-being, and the avoidance of disease. Because the fifteenth night is the first full moon of the new year, going outdoors and crossing bridges was understood symbolically as crossing beyond misfortune and entering a year of health. Historically, it also provided women with a relatively rare opportunity for public movement and social interaction.

On Lantern Festival evening, friends or family can go for a walk together and cross a bridge. Urban participants can choose a park, riverside path, or pedestrian bridge, enjoying fresh air and gentle exercise. It is one of the easiest traditional customs to reinterpret in modern life. Comfortable shoes and warm clothing are recommended.

The custom of “sending children’s lanterns” (送孩儿灯) has a long history. Because the Chinese words “lamp” (灯, dēng) and “male heir” (丁, dīng) sound similar, giving a lantern became associated with the auspicious wish of “adding a son” (添丁). In traditional society, fertility and the continuation of the family line were major concerns, so sending lanterns became one of the most earnest blessings a natal family could give to a married daughter. The Ming text Wuzazu (《五杂俎》) already records the custom in Fuzhou.

Sending children’s lanterns, usually shortened to “sending lanterns” (送灯) and also called “sending flower lanterns” (送花灯), traditionally meant that before the Lantern Festival a bride’s natal family would send lanterns to her new household, or that relatives and friends would send them to a newly married couple without children. Because of the sound association between “lamp” and “heir,” the gift expressed the wish that the bride would soon bear children and that the family line would flourish.

Practices vary by region. Around Xi’an in Shaanxi, lanterns are traditionally sent between the eighth and fifteenth days. In the first year, a pair of large palace lanterns and a pair of painted glass lanterns may be given. If the daughter is pregnant, one or two pairs of smaller lanterns may be added. In Fuzhou, during the first Lantern Festival after marriage, the natal family traditionally sends a lotus lantern. If there is still no child in the second year, a Guanyin-Bringing-Children lantern may be sent; after a third year, an orange lantern may be chosen because the Fuzhou words for “orange” and “urgent” sound alike. After a child is born, lanterns portraying “the top scholar riding a horse” or “Heaven grants a qilin child” may be given.

A folk rhyme says:

正月元宵灯，外婆爱外甥，送来红红桔子灯，吉利又添丁。 Lanterns glow at the first-month festival; grandmother loves her grandchild. She brings a bright red orange lantern—auspicious, and wishing the family another child.

Sending children’s lanterns combines the Lantern Festival’s culture of light with traditional Chinese ideas about fertility and family continuity. Through the wordplay between 灯 and 丁, a small lantern came to carry the much weightier wish for new descendants and a flourishing lineage.

For newly married friends or relatives, a pair of festive lanterns can be given before the Lantern Festival together with wishes for family happiness. Red and gold designs are especially common. Because this custom historically carries a fertility message, however, it is best understood in its cultural context and used with sensitivity in modern personal relationships.

The worship of Zigu (紫姑) existed by at least the Northern and Southern Dynasties. Zong Lin (宗懔) of the Liang dynasty recorded the custom of welcoming Zigu on the fifteenth day in the Jingchu Suishiji (《荆楚岁时记》). Stories about Zigu’s identity differ from region to region, but the basic image of a woman who died unjustly, became divine, and was associated with the protection of sericulture remained relatively stable.

Welcoming Zigu (迎紫姑) was a traditional Lantern Festival folk ritual. Zigu was also called Qigu (戚姑) and, in northern China, names such as Toilet Maiden or Third Pit Maiden. According to one legend, she had originally been a concubine who was envied by the principal wife and killed in a toilet on the fifteenth day of the first month, after which she became a deity associated with that space.

On the evening of the festival, people made a life-sized figure of Zigu from straw, scraps of cloth, and other materials and welcomed her into the household near the toilet or pigsty, where offerings were made. Worship of Zigu was especially connected with divining the success of silkworm raising, though she could also be consulted about other matters.

In traditional agricultural society, sericulture was an important source of household income, and Zigu came to be regarded as a deity capable of influencing the success of silkworm raising. The custom therefore reflects both agricultural concerns and the way women in traditional society expressed anxiety and curiosity about their own lives and futures.

Some rural areas retain memories or vestiges of Zigu worship. Visitors may learn about the tradition from local elders, folk museums, or heritage exhibitions. For most modern urban participants, it is better approached as a historical window into the Lantern Festival’s diverse ritual culture rather than as a practice that must be reenacted.