In this special episode of Pen to Sword we talk to Dr Sophie Liu, expert in Daoism and discuss the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival.  Where the conversation starts around crops, harvest and mooncake, we take some interesting twists and turns into some of the richer significance of this festival.

Mid-Autumn Festival, Zhongqiu Jie (中秋节) in Chinese, also known as the Mooncake Festival or Moon Festival, is one of China’s biggest holidays. The festival is a joyous celebration with family reunions, mooncakes, parades, and lanterns.

Mid-Autumn Festival is held on the 15th of the 8th lunar month in the Chinese calendar, within half a lunar month of the autumn equinox (from about Sep. 6 to Oct. 6).

On the Chinese lunar calendar, the 8th month is the middle month of autumn and the 15th is its middle day. As, traditionally, the four seasons each have three lunar months, day 15 of month 8 is "the middle of autumn". So it got its name.

The date of the festival is a full moon, and that is why it is also called the Moon Festival. On the 15th of each lunar calendar month, the moon is at its roundest and brightest, symbolising togetherness and reunion in Chinese culture.

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