Chinese Folklore Special: Mid-Autumn Festival Stories

You've probably seen an abundance of mooncakes lining supermarket ailes in the past few weeks, along with a few special offers here or there. That's all been leading up to today: the Mid-Autumn Festival! The Chinese have three stories that they use to explain to younger generations the origins of 中秋节 Zhongqiu Jie (Mid-Autumn Festival), which are: Chang’e and Hou Yi, The Jade Rabbit and Wu Gang and the Cherry Bay.

Chang’e and Hou Yi, a story most commonly associated with the festival, is the tale of a local archer and his wife’s ultimate sacrifice. The Jade Rabbit is a sort of sequel to Chang’e and Hou Yi folklore, delving into the couple's afterlife. Wu Chang and the Cherry Bay, on the other hand, is unrelated to the first two, telling a completely different festival story.

Chang’e and Hou Yi

The story goes like this: long ago, there used to be 10 suns in the sky. Each day, one of the suns would travel around the sky on a carriage driven by Xihe, the mother of the suns. One day, all 10 suns simultaneously appeared in the sky, which instantly dried all the crops around the world, spelling disaster for everyone on Earth.

Hou Yi, a local archer, was filled with sorrow over the people's suffering, and decided to help them. Hou Yi climbed up to the summit of the Kunlun Mountains in Central Asia, where he shot down the suns until only remained. Hou Yi was honored as a hero of the people.

Later, Hou Yi married a beautiful girl—Chang’e, and it seemed like happily ever after for the couple.

The Queen Mother of the West even gifted Hou Yi an elixir which could grant the user immortality, but only if it was consumed after one had prayed and fasted for a year. Hou Yi gave the elixer to Chang'e for safekeeping. Unfortunately, one of his apprentices, Peng Meng, discovered the secret, and planned to steal it.

When Hou Yi and his apprentices went out hunting, Peng pretended to fall ill and stayed home. When the others had left, Peng tried to force Chang'e to give him the elixir. Knowing she could not defeat Peng, Chang'e swallowed the elixir, and immediately began floating into the sky. Not wanting to leave her husband but unable to reverse her fate, Chang'e chose to live on the Moon forever; so she could look after her husband below.

In the late afternoon, Hou Yi came back and was told what had happened. When he returned and learned what had happened, Hou Yi was heart-stricken. He went into the family's garden and called his wife’s name ceaselessly. Surprisingly, he found that the Moon was extremely clean and bright that night; and he saw a moving figure that resembled Chang’e on its surface. Hou Yi desperately tried to catch up with the moon, but couldn't.

Hou Yi then asked servants to set a table in the garden with his wife’s favorite snacks and fruits on it. Eventually, more and more people heard the news that Chang’e had become an immortal, and so also made tables under the Moon to pray to Chang’e for good fortune and safety. This is how honoring the Moon on Mid-Autumn Festival came to be.

The Jade Rabbit

This legend is considered to be an extension of Chang’e Flying to the Moon. Three sages transformed themselves into pitiful old men. One day they met a fox, a monkey and a rabbit, and they begged the beasts for their food. The fox and the monkey shared their food with the old men; but the rabbit, who had nothing to share, jumped into a blazing fire to offer his own flesh instead. The sages were so touched by the rabbit’s kindness that they sent it to live in a palace on the Moon, where it became the Jade Rabbit. Chang’e, who lived alone after arriving in the Moon, was enthralled to find a companion in the Jade Rabbit, and kept it as company. As time went on by, Chang’e and the rabbit became inseparable friends.

After Chang'e told the Jade Rabbit her story, the Jade Rabbit felt sympathy for them, and decided to make a special heavenly medicine, which could help Chang’e return to Earth. Unfortunately, even though he worked for a thousand years, the Jade Rabbit has still not been able to make the potion. If you look up at the full Moon on Mid-Autumn Festival, you can still see the rabbit, slaving away trying to concoct his medicine.

Wu Gang the Woodcutter

Wu Gang was a woodchopper. He had always wanted to become an immortal, but never tried his best to learn the way. The Jade Emperor got angry with him because of his lazy attitude. In order to punish him, the Jade Emperor planted a huge cherry bay tree, which was 1665 meters (5460 ft) high, on the Moon, and ordered Wu Gang to chop it down. When he had done so, the Jade Emperor told Wu Gang, he could achieve immortality.

This time, Wu Gang took the task seriously, but he could never finish his work. The tree simply healed every time Wu Gang chopped it down. But Wu Gang wouldn’t give up. He tried time and time again.

On cloudless nights, people can see shadows on the Moon. These shadows are said to be made by the tree.

READ: Mooncake Memories: Your Guide to the Colorful History of this Celestial Pastry

Images: Wikimedia Commons