Nicole Simpson & Marija Gocevski Moon Viewing Ceremony Nicole Simpson & Marija Gocevski

Autumnal Moonlight viewing There is an old custom of celebrating the full moon on the fifteenth day of the eighteenth month on the traditional Japanese calendar. The full actually appears on the 14th of September.

The reason for the festival It’s a very poetic and elegant practice, with people placing ornaments and offerings next to windows, on verandas. The reason for the moon viewing festival is to enjoy the beautiful rays of the moon spread to warriors and townspeople. Farmers also incorporated viewing the full autumn moon into agriculture rites.

how the festival is celebrated It is celebrated by people placing ornaments and offerings next to windows, and on verandas. People also fill the vases with pampas grass and autumnal herbs, they also make seasonal foods such as, dumplings, pears, persimmons, and grapes are placed on dishes.

The history of the festival The traditional Japanese calendar and the modern one used by countries around the world today are off by about a month. The moon usually appears on the 14 of September but its not unusual for the chushu no meigetsu to be a day or two off from the day of the full moon. Chushu no meigetsu was marked with poetry and music on records, by court aristocrats as early as 909. Chushu no meigetsu is the meaning of the full moon in the middle of the month.

bibliography http://www.web- japan.org/kidsweb/explore/calendar/september/moon.ht ml http://www.google.com