I see the moon

Tomorrow marks one of two important festivals for Chinese all over the world – the Mid-Autumn or Harvest Moon Festival. This is the night when the moon is at its biggest and brightest. Like the Spring Festival or Lunar New Year, this is an occasion for family gatherings, reunions with friends long-lost or otherwise, around a table with, as always, good food, and plenty of it. Family members who may not be present at the gathering can still connect, since wherever in the world they may be, they will all be looking at the same harvest moon. 

A feature of the Mid-Autumn Festival celebration hereabouts is the dice game, which is unique to Fookienese (which most of the Tsinoys here are) and Taiwanese. My friend Ka Chak, a source of much useful information, tells me that the dice game was invented by a general in the army of Koxinga as a means to alleviate the homesickness of his troops who had retreated to Jinmen, near Taiwan, as they fought against the Qing rulers.

Any number of people can play, and each turn in the game involves a roll of six dice in a bowl (the dice must not jump out of the bowl or you forfeit your turn). The dice combination determines what you win from among six categories, named after the six levels in the ancient imperial court examinations. There is only one grand prize (tsiong guan), and the winner is usually tasked to provide next year’s grand prize, or host the dinner next year. Some recognize a category beyond tsiong guan, which is a winner-take-all prize, meaning you can take all the remaining prizes or, in some cases, take even those that have already been claimed. 

Traditionally the prizes are different sizes of pastry filled with sweet bean paste, or hopia, but since nobody wants to be stuck with a big stack of hopia at the end of the evening, the prizes can be anything from candies to trinkets to knick-knacks...to cash.

The moon festival is tied to the legend of Chang’e, the moon goddess. She was wife to Houyi, the god of archery, who saved mankind by slaying nine of the ten sons of the God of Heaven. The sons were supposed to take turns appearing as the sun, but they decided to all appear at the same time, scorching the earth and threatening all life with their intense heat. At the request of the emperor, Houyi shot down nine suns, leaving just one. He saved mankind but incurred the ire of the gods, who stripped him of immortality.

The Queen Mother of the West took pity on him and gave him two vials of elixir which would restore his and his wife’s immortality. But one night while he was away, his wife got curious and drank the elixir in the two vials. Chang’e immediately began ascending to the moon, and lives there to this day with only a rabbit as companion. If it’s a clear night tomorrow, go outside and take a good look at the moon and you’ll probably catch a glimpse of the beautiful immortal and her companion the rabbit.