The USC Asian Pacific American Studies Services (APASS) hosted a Mid-Autumn Festival celebration on Monday at the Student Union.
At a long table lined with a red tablecloth, small traditional Chinese vases and wooden lanterns were placed in the center. Students bent over their crafts, folding and taping their own paper lanterns.
The Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as the Mooncake Festival or the Moon Festival, is a harvest festival celebrated in traditional Chinese culture. Held on the 15th day of the eighth month in the Chinese lunar calendar, the celebration corresponds with a full moon and typically falls between mid-September and early October on the Gregorian calendar.
“The Mid-Autumn Festival is a centuries-old tradition celebrated across East and Southeast Asia, rooted in themes of reunion, gratitude, and reflection under the full moon,” said Peter Limthongviratn, Director of USC Student Culture & Community, Leadership and Education. “At USC, we welcomed all students to explore this cultural heritage through drop-in paper crafts featuring symbols like lanterns and dragons.”
The Mid-Autumn Festival is connected to an old Chinese legend about the archer Hou Yi and his wife Chang’e.
According to the legend, there were once 10 suns in the sky, and Hou Yi shot down nine of them to save the earth from being scorched. As a reward for his deed, Hou Yi was granted an elixir of immortality. But when one of his apprentices tried to steal the elixir, Chang’e was forced to consume it herself. Turning immortal, Chang’e ascended into the sky until she reached the moon, where she now resides as the Moon Goddess, accompanied by her companion, the Jade Rabbit.
Historically, the festival served as a time for families to give thanks to the moon for the year’s harvest and to pray for prosperity, unity, and good fortune, according to the Smithsonian. With time, it has evolved into a time centered around lantern displays, gifting mooncakes, and family gatherings.
These hands-on activities offered a creative entry point into the festival’s meaning and history, while celebrating the diverse traditions within the USC campus community,” Limthongviratn said.
Mooncakes, a staple during the festival, are round pastries that can be filled with sweet or savory fillings, with their round shape symbolizing completeness and reunion. Mooncakes can also include salted duck egg yolks, which are a symbol of the full moon.
During APASS’s celebration, students ate mooncakes and constructed lanterns from paper. In Chinese culture, these lanterns are associated with light, hope and the pursuit of happiness. Not only used for decoration, lanterns also serve as an offering to the Chinese moon goddess, expressing prayers for peace and a good harvest.
“In high school I took Chinese, and I’m a little part Chinese too so I feel really connected with the culture. It just seems like something fun to practice all the time,” said Michael Young, a health and human sciences student.