The Significance of Worshipping the Moon on Qixi
Qixi is a day when people worship the moon, but the custom of worshipping the moon on Qixi is different from traditional moon worship.Traditional moon worship usually takes place during the Mid-Autumn Festival, which is the custom of worshipping the Moon Goddess. However, moon worship on Qixi is for seeking skill, mainly worshipping the Seven Sisters (i.e., Zhinu), which is actually worshipping the Star Vega.
【Worshipping the Seven Sisters】
There is a custom of worshipping the Seven Sisters on the Qixi Festival. The Seven Sisters refer to Zhinu.
On the seventh night of the seventh lunar month, there is a "Seven Sisters' Gathering", known as "Worshipping the Seven Sisters" in Guangdong. Before the founding of the People's Republic of China, "Qixi" was a grand festival for young women. In ancient times, young women would "beg for skill" from the Seven Sisters, praying that she would teach them the skills of dexterity. The Song Dynasty poet Liu Kezhuang once wrote a poem: "Fruits are arranged with hands clasped in prayer, the sound of street vendors selling snacks echoes. The Cantonese value the night of skill, and the lights shine until dawn."
In areas such as southern Fujian, Wenzhou in Zhejiang, and Taiwan, this is called worshipping "Seven Mothers". The Seven Mothers, also known as the Seven Star Mothers, Seven Star Maidens, Seven Star Ladies, or Seven Mother Ladies, are incarnations of Vega. The Qixi Festival is the birthday of the "Seven Mothers", and the worship of the Seven Mothers is very popular among the people, who regard her as an idol protecting children's safety and health.
Etiquette of Worshipping the Moon
Worshipping the moon refers to the ritual of offering sacrifices to the moon, which is a traditional custom of the Mid-Autumn Festival.Since ancient times, in some parts of Guangdong, people have had the custom of offering sacrifices to the Moon God (worshipping the Moon Mother, worshipping the Moon Light) on the evening of the Mid-Autumn Festival. During moon worship, a large incense stand is set up, with offerings such as mooncakes, watermelons, apples, red dates, plums, and grapes. Under the moonlight, the "Moon God" tablet is placed facing the direction of the moon. Red candles burn brightly, and the whole family bows in turn to the moon, praying for blessings and protection. Worshiping the moon and admiring it, entrusting one's thoughts to the moon, expresses people's good wishes. As one of the important rituals of the Mid-Autumn Festival, moon worship has been passed down from ancient times and gradually evolved into folk activities of moon watching and singing praises to the moon. It has also become the main form for modern people to yearn for reunion and express their hopes for a better life.
To perform moon worship, you need to prepare offerings, generally including:
1. One incense burner and several sticks of incense. A small, ordinary incense burner.
2. Several dishes, plates, bowls, and other containers for offerings.
3. Two red candles. Used for lighting, setting the atmosphere, and burning incense.
4. One regular bottle of alcohol and three wine cups. Wine glasses can also be used.
5. Offerings, such as mooncakes, wild game for the festival, rice balls, drinking, fruits, green beans, and cockscomb flowers.
6. Moonlight paper, which can be printed from images found online, or drawn by yourself.
7. A dedication text for worshipping the moon, which should be concise and elegant, and can be in forms such as four-character, five-character, or seven-character poetry. The dedication text should be written with a brush pen, neatly written on Xuan paper.
