Moon Cakes (repost)

[CHUNG Yoon-Ngan <chungyn@mozart.collective.com.au>]

   Moon Cakes (repost)

   The Moon Festival (Zhong Qiu Jie) is of great significance to the
Chinese. Central to the festival is the traditional decoration, display of
lanterns and the making and consumption of moon cakes. The tradition dates
back many centuries.

   In 1280AD the Mongols came from northern China and destroyed the Song 
Dynasty (960AD to 1280AD). They established the Yuan Dynasty (1280AD to
1368AD). The northern Han Chinese were treated as 3rd class citizens and the
southern Han Chinese, 4th class citizens. Han Chinese were oppressed,
suppressed, maltreated, persecuted, generally ill-treated and regarded as
nothing more than slaves.

   The Han Chinese had had enough of hardship under the Mongols. During
the years between 1348AD to 1353AD many groups of people were organized
throughout the country for the sole of fostering rebellion against the
Mongols: Fang Guo Zhen in Zhejiang province; Liu Fu Tong in Anhui province;
Li Er in Jiangsu province; Zhu Yuan Zhang in Hao Zhou Zhejiang; 
and many others in other parts of the country.
  
   In the beginning, rebel leader, Liu Fu Tong, could not find a secret
place to convene a meeting with his followers as all Han Chinese were kept
under very strict surveillance. Han Chinese were not allowed to convene any
meetings and any gathering of people was forbidden. Liu tried to set a date
for an uprising against the District Officer in Ying Zhou (present day Fu
Yang city in Anhui province) but there was no way he could meet his 
followers. It was around mid-Autumn in 1351AD and the moon would in a few
days be very round, big and bright. 
 
   Liu finally devised an ingenious plan. He sought the permission of the
Mongol District Officer to allow him to give gifts to friends as a symbolic 
gesture to bless the longevity of the Mongol Emperor. The District Officer
gladly agreed as it would after all be an occasion to celebrate the long 
reign of the Yuan Dynasty.

   Liu made a great quantity of sweet round cakes shaped like the full moon
which he called Moon Cakes. Inside each of the sweet cake he inserted a
piece of paper with the words, "Kill the Tartars on the night of 15th of the
8th moon". He gave every household a cake with the instruction that it
should be eaten only on the night of 15th of the 8th moon.
   
  When the appointed night arrived the Han Chinese started to cut and eat
their cakes.  They were surprised to discover the clandestine messages
inside the cakes calling them to arms. During that night all the Mongols,
including the District Officer, in Ying Zhou were killed. Thus Liu Fu Tong
laid the foundation stone for rebellion against the Mongols.
   
  The man who eventually exterminated the Yuan Dynasty was Zhu Yuan Zhang.
He established the Ming Dynasty (1368AD to 1644AD). To commemorate
and celebrate the event of the night of 15th of the 8th moon in 
1351AD the tradition of making and eating the sweet cakes (Moon Cakes) was
born and carried on by Chinese in almost every part of the world.
   
Ming Shi (Ming Dynasty)
CHUNG Yoon-Ngan.