The Lantern Festival, also known as the "Shangyuan Festival" in ancient times, is a grand festival of the Chinese nation. The ancient Chinese used the moon, wind and clouds on the 15th day of the first lunar month to predict rain and the harvest of crops. At the same time, they had to offer sacrifices to the gods in charge of rain. Lighting lamps and burning firewood are indispensable rituals in sacrifices. People also call the lanterns hung during these days "Zhan Sui Lanterns". This folk custom is still followed by the people today. Some historical records show that the Lantern Festival began with the introduction of Buddhism in the Eastern Han Dynasty. Buddhist believers compare the flames to the power of the Buddha, and the lanterns have become one of the offerings in front of the Buddha. According to legend, Sakyamuni showed his magical transformation and subdued the gods and demons on December 30th in the West, which is the 15th day of the first lunar month in the East. In order to commemorate the Buddha's magical transformation, a lantern lighting ceremony must be held on this day. Therefore, starting from the Yongping period of Emperor Ming of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the trend of lighting lanterns has flourished. According to folk legend, the Lantern Festival on the 15th day of the first lunar month is related to the Jade Emperor's order to cremate Puzhou. The people of Min County say that hanging lanterns on the 15th day of the first lunar month is related to exorcising the nine-headed snake spirit. Regardless of when the Lantern Festival began and for what reason, the people of Min County have always celebrated the Lantern Festival in a grand manner. The villagers in the remote mountain villages planted lamp poles in their family courtyards and hung red lanterns to celebrate the festival. In addition to hanging lanterns in each household, many larger villages and towns and urban streets also voluntarily donated money to hold some large-scale "lantern festivals" and "flower festivals". On the night of the New Year and the Lantern Festival, the city and the countryside are brightly lit, just like daytime. In addition, the noise of tourists, the sound of gongs and drums of the community fire and the sound of fireworks and firecrackers are endless, presenting a strong festive atmosphere. The people of Min County have the custom of "traveling to cure all diseases on the 15th day of the first lunar month". People often climb high in the early morning of the 15th day and watch the lanterns at night to eliminate diseases and disasters and seek peace. During the Lantern Festival, whether it is the lanterns of others or the lanterns of the "lantern festival", or the lanterns that one participates in to enjoy, they are all very particular. Not only are they of different shapes, but they are all made of silk or five-color paper, with colorful paintings and writings on them, and the style is very elegant. Those rabbit lanterns, monkey lanterns, rooster lanterns, goldfish lanterns, cabbage lanterns, radish lanterns, lotus lanterns, orange lanterns, watermelon lanterns and rolling lanterns with bells are all very ingenious, lifelike and vivid. The "night fire" on the street is not only grand, but also dazzling. In front of the team, there is a guard of honor holding giant lanterns. The lanterns they hold are all written with auspicious words such as "good weather and good harvest", "good harvest", "peace and prosperity", "prosperity of livestock", and "longevity and prosperity", which are more eye-catching against the background of lights. Following the gong and drum team is a giant dragon with glowing eyes and shining scales all over its body dancing. Then came the hydrangea lanterns of the lion dancers, the paper horse lanterns of the running paper horses, the boat lanterns of the land boats, the car lanterns of the push carts, and the various lanterns held by the yangko and stilt actors. The large lantern team sang and danced in the intensive drums and gongs, and moved forward slowly, like a river of lanterns with colorful candle waves, flowing in the crowded and jubilant streets. In the program, the Eight Immortals came on stage to watch the lanterns. The songs of "One word to light the yuan lantern, double happiness lanterns, three yuan announcing good news lanterns, four seasons of peace lanterns, five grain harvest lanterns, six consecutive auspicious lanterns, seven clever wishful lanterns, eight blessings and longevity lanterns, nine-word chain lanterns, and cross full-house lanterns" accompanied by the rhythm of gongs and drums were very pleasant to the ears. Whenever the big show began, the programs of "Painted Gauze Lanterns", "Yangzhou Lantern Viewing", "Yangko Snow Lanterns", "Ten Lanterns", etc., were sung one after another for a long time. The hanging lanterns, holding lanterns, dancing lanterns, singing lanterns, and watching lanterns turned the entire Lantern Festival night into a world of lanterns. There are many "lantern festivals" in the streets and towns of the county. They vary in size and have their own characteristics. The most prosperous ones are the lantern festivals of Beimen, Housuo, Mazichuan, Dagouzhai, Qianchuan Temple, Mawu, etc. The Beimen Lantern Festival goes directly from the Drum Tower Cross to the North Gate of the City. More than a hundred pairs of lampposts on both sides of the street are hung with lanterns of different shapes and colors. Many of the lanterns are painted with stories, which are linked together and pleasing to the eye and have educational significance. At night on the 15th, the lanterns in two rows on one street are all lit, and tourists are shoulder to shoulder. The scene of scrambling to watch the lanterns and guessing riddles is very exciting. Thousands of riddles written on colored paper were guessed in less than an hour. The winners and onlookers were all excited. Not long after, a giant dragon lantern with golden light shining and transparent body, symbolizing the "God of Fortune", accompanied by the sound of gongs and drums, danced slowly from the north gate to the city in the crowd. Wherever they go, every household will hold a sacrificial ceremony of "welcoming the lanterns". For a while, the air will be filled with fire, the ground will be covered with incense, and the atmosphere will be extremely hot. Wherever there are large flower fairs, "frame flowers" and "fighting flowers" will be set off for tourists to watch. The scene of fire trees and flowers and the roar of firecrackers will immediately push the atmosphere of the festival night to a climax. The dragon will swim along the agreed route, stopping and walking, until the next morning. From the 15th to the 17th, for three consecutive nights, in the city and outside the pass, in different areas and sections, grand "welcoming lanterns" activities are held in a similar form. The "Lantern Festival" in Housuo is jointly held by Shangjie and Xiajie, and its scale is not inferior to the "Lantern Festival" at the North Gate. What's more interesting is that under the lanterns in front of each household, there are also folk crafts such as figures, livestock and poultry, flowers and fruits, vegetables, sachets, purses and various hydrangeas made by women with silk and silk threads. This "lantern festival" that integrates folk arts and crafts not only showcases the exquisite needlework and wisdom of local women, but also adds elegant content that is pleasing to the eyes and the heart for the people who are having fun. The "lantern festival" in Dagou Village is one of the largest "lantern festivals" in villages and towns. The whole village is actually a large-scale "lantern festival", and six branches are set up according to road sections and residential areas. Each branch has ten lantern sheds about 10 feet high and 20 feet long, each with six painted palace lanterns hanging high, for a total of 60 lanterns. The total number of lanterns in the six branches is 66,360. These six sides and 360 lanterns imply the number "-". That is, the four directions of heaven and earth (implying the world). At nightfall on the 14th, the whole village was lit up, and tourists walked under the lantern sheds, enjoying the lanterns painted with complete comic strips such as "Journey to the West", "The Legend of Yue Fei", "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms", "The Story of Tang", "Conquest of the East", "Conquest of the West", "Twenty-Four Filial Piety" and "Stories of the Eight Immortals". After the lights were lit, the community fire came out and turned around the street, passing through the lantern sheds of each association along the route, performing cultural programs such as "Eight Immortals Watching Lanterns". Wherever they went, the people and the "lantern festival" would set off tube flowers, fighting flowers, firecrackers and iron cannons to show "welcoming the lanterns". During the climax, the flames of lanterns, fireworks and firecrackers complemented each other, and the sounds of gongs and drums, singing and cheering resounded through the mountains and rivers. The villagers from all directions were completely immersed in the joy of the festival. The Lantern Festival in Mawu Town is unique. When the festival comes, 19 rows of lamp poles are planted vertically and horizontally on the wide "lantern field" in the center of the town, and a lantern is hung on each pole. Three hundred and sixty-one lanterns were lit together, and the "lantern field" and the surrounding area were suddenly illuminated into a spectacular world of light. This square array formed by the lanterns is the same as the pattern of Go, and has an entrance, an exit and a generals' platform. Visitors who enter the "lantern array" must go around nine bends and eighteen turns before they can pass the generals' platform and go to the exit. Therefore, people call it "touring the Yellow River lantern array" or "turning the nine bends". For first-time visitors and those without experience, entering the "lantern array" is like entering a maze. Most of the visitors cannot go left or right, and have no way to go forward or backward. Those who can pass through the correct path have to go through many twists and turns and go around and around to complete this charming "lantern array". These lucky people are regarded by everyone as people who have everything they want and are safe and auspicious in the past. It is said that this activity is related to the battle between the Three Goddesses and Jiang Ziya, who are worshipped locally. Myths and legends are mostly the imaginations of ancient people trying to conquer natural forces, but the cultural and entertainment activities of "turning the nine bends" are actually the legacy of ancient military tactics and battle formations. "Sun Tzu Shi" says: "The battle situation is nothing but strange and regular, and the changes of strange and regular are endless." Military strategists believe that the deployment of forces in the face of the enemy is the key to the use of troops and the key to victory. The ancients called the "Nine-bend Yellow River Lantern Array" and the vertical and horizontal diagram of Go "magic square". It is not only full of magical and mysterious colors, but also implies many philosophical principles of the infinite changes of heaven, geography, yin and yang, and the four seasons. "The Book of Changes" says: "The number of heaven and earth is fifty-five (heaven is thirty-six, earth is nineteen), which is why changes are formed and ghosts and gods are carried out." It also says: "The number of Qian (yang) is two hundred and sixteen, and the number of Kun (yin) is one hundred and forty-four, a total of three hundred and sixty." The "Lantern Array" also divides the whole map into four corners, and each corner has ninety intersections for one season and three months, and the changes of the four seasons are also included. These are all reflections of the ancient Chinese people's cosmology. They attached the structure of the vertical and horizontal diagrams to the heavenly way, conformed to geography, and implied the infinite changes of yin and yang in nature and the four seasons. Our ancestors used this understanding to transform nature and fight for survival. Today, the "Turning the Nine-bend Yellow River Lantern Array" activity in Mawu Village has not only enriched the spiritual life of the people, but also promoted national culture in an entertaining way. The Minzhou Lantern Festival has a long history and is rich and colorful. This article only describes representative activities, not the whole picture. This is enough to reflect the cultural literacy and aesthetic taste of the people of Minzhou. Today, when we are vigorously building the "two" civilizations, we should cherish our national culture even more, carry forward the past and open up the future, let it flourish and keep it young forever! Information source: Minxian People's Government website Information source: Minxian People's Government website