Import From China Business
A practical guide for starting a small business
2010-
Import from China
Sell on eBay
Sandra Kell
Ontario, Canada
Baby Products
Profit This Year: $10,400
“I started with $1,000 and began importing baby products from China. I sell them on eBay, Facebook and in my local stores. After 8 months, I am earning $400 a week. I finally quit my day job!”
Learn How
Chinese Lantern Festival Celebrations
The Chinese Lantern Festival takes place at the end of the Chinese New Year celebration which is fifteen days after Chinese New Year day. It coincides with the first full moon of the New Year.
The Chinese Lantern Festival is the most ancient of all Chinese festivals. Historians have traced this celebration to ancient fire worship, fertility rites and the honoring of the birth of Daoism and Buddhism. The exact origin is still debated by scholars today.
Stories and legends vary from the Chinese chasing spirits by lantern light to a lonely girl during the Han Dynasty tricking the emperor to have a festival. During the T’ang Dynasty, families simply watch in awe the beauty of the full moon after the New Year.
Chinese Lantern Festival
Photo Credit: Lantern Festival 06 5 & 06 3 -
While the Chinese New Year focuses on the family, the Chinese Lantern Festival involves the entire community. The Chinese Lantern Festival has evolved to have religious, civic, political and commercialism elements. Displaying the lanterns, watching lion and dragon dances, and eating festival foods are activities on this special day.
The night is usually lit by a full moon. The Chinese believed that the evil spirits roam free on the night of the full moon after the New Year. The community gathers during the night to show their lit lanterns which is usually made of silk, paper or wood. It is believed that the light from the lanterns is supposed to ward off the evil spirits because the lantern light makes the evil spirits visible. Afraid of being seen, the evil spirits run from the lanterns.
Chinese Lantern Festival -
The Lantern and the Chinese Lantern Festival hold some of the mystic behind the Chinese traditions and culture:
- Lanterns first appeared in Chinese culture in 250 BCE. Historically, they have been used to announce major events such as birth or death in the family.
- Red lanterns placed outside announced a birth or a wedding. Blue lanterns indicated family illness. Two lanterns placed on either side of a door with a white strip of material draped across the doorway signified a death in the family.
- During the day of the Chinese Lantern Festival, the Chinese visit friends and relatives.
- Matchmakers go from house to house to arrange marriages for families during the Chinese Lantern Festival.
- Tang Yuan or full moon dumplings are eaten during this festival. These white flour rice balls are stuffed with a variety of fillings and are cooked in a broth soup.
- The round Tang Yuan dumplings are symbolic of the full moon and family union. The
Chinese believed that eating the white dumplings under lantern light will make them
clear-
sighted and focused. - Today, the Chinese wear white outfits to honor the moon.
- In modern times, lanterns are hung in shopping malls and markets as the Chinese Lantern Festival is being commercialized.
- Children carry paper lanterns to school. The lantern light is symbolic of providing a bright future.
As a westerner venturing to China whether on business or pleasure, you need to observe the local tradition of adhering to this event as a day for relaxation and leisure.
Chinese Lantern Festival Origins