Chinese Lantern Festival and Full Egg Moon

Tonight is Yuan Xiao, the 15th and last day of the Chinese New Year Festival. Tonight is also the full moon. Yuan means "first" and xiao means "night" and it indicates the first time that the full moon is seen in the New Year. 

It's other name is the Lantern Festival, because on this night folks make or buy lanterns of all kinds: shaped like flowers, or boats, or birds; made of bamboo, silk or paper; decorated with paintings, embroidery, paper cuts, tassels, and fringe. Everyone takes to the streets to display their lanterns. It’s like a carnival: Children dress in costumes and watch parades with lighted floats, fireworks displays, puppet shows, and dances.which is my monthly time for action and release: I look again at the “seeds of intention” I planted 2 weeks ago at the new moon and decide on my next steps to take; I take those steps; then I release my expectations in order to clear space for new ideas and new intentions. 

This full moon is called the Egg Moon, because this is the month when birds begin to lay eggs again. The egg is a powerful symbol: It is hope, new beginnings, and completeness. My vague ideas take a solid shape, enclosed in a perfect shell, and I have created a whole new beautiful thing!

The month of March is filled with a riot of color and activity. It’s a fresh, young, quick-flowing time- the start of something new. In the winter I dreamed dreams and made plans. Now is the time to get into action- to do the work of creating my vision here on the earth.

Agenda for today:
1. Altar:

It's time to discern what to put on my altar for March. (For my thoughts on altars see About Altars). I generally keep it simple and choose only things that speak to me and feed me, and reveal what I believe in. I ask, what quality of Spirit do I want to invoke? 

Today I add-

• a flower print cloth for spring
• eggs for hope, new beginnings, and completeness
• fresh daffodils for happiness and friendship

Each month at the full moon I also add new candles, in colors that symbolize what I want to focus my attention on. In March I add:

• a spring green candle for strength, vitality, and inner growth; a color to support change, and bring new ideas into being. 
• an orange candle for energy and confident action.

I also add a motto or quote to ponder as a theme for the month. This month: 

Strength does not come from physical capacity.

It comes from an indomitable will. 

Mahatma Gandhi

2. Journal:

Review the intentions I set 2 weeks ago, at the new moon.

Do these goals all still seem vital? What are my next steps?

What new ideas are hovering, and what fears do they bring to me?

What does my body need now to improve my vitality, strength, and health?

3. Take Action:

Now is the time to jump into ACTION. 

4. Make tang yuan, sweet sesame dumplings:

It is a tradition to eat these round sticky dumplings today to symbolize the full moon and also family togetherness. 

I used two different fillings- sweet bean paste (you can buy it ready to use at Asian Markets), and one made with black sesame seeds. They are delicious, but very rich, so only cook a few for each person, and freeze the rest to cook later.

Sweet rice flour and black sesame seeds

Sesame filling

• 1/4 c. raw black sesame seeds
• 1/4 c. granulated sugar
• 1/4 c. unsalted butter
• red bean paste (optional) 

Dumplings

• 2 c. glutinous or sweet rice flour
• 3/4 c. cold water
• food color (optional)

Ginger syrup

• 2 c. water
• 2-inch knob of ginger-root
• 1/2 c. sugar 

Yield: 20 dumplings-

1- Toast the sesame seeds in a small skillet over low heat for 3-4 minutes, shaking the pan and stirring continuously to keep the seeds from burning. They will begin to smell aromatic and they might start to pop. Grind seeds into a fine powder (a coffee grinder works well). 

2- Mix sesame powder with butter and sugar in a pot, and warm just until they form a thick paste. If the butter melts too much you might need to put the pot in the freezer for a few minutes. Form into 20 tiny balls and place onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. 

You can also form balls of red bean paste now, if you want, or skip the sesame and just make the bean filling. 

Freeze balls for about 30 minutes.

3- Meanwhile, put the rice flour in a bowl and mix with a little water at a time until it holds together and is soft like play-doh. Knead together until smooth. (If it's too sticky, add more flour, and if it's too dry, add more water.) 

Divide the dough into 2 or 3 equal portions; leave one portion white and add a drop or two of food color to the others, if desired. Knead again until the color is even. Cover and set aside.

4-In a small pot, bring 2 cups of water to a boil. Smash the ginger root with a mallet, add it to the small pot, and boil for 10-15 minutes on medium heat. Add the sugar to taste (about 1/2 cup) and boil for another 5 minutes. Remove the root, lower the heat, and simmer until the syrup is a bit thickened.

Black sesame seed balls (left) and dumplings (right).

5- Heat up a large pot of water to boiling. Divide and roll the dough into 20 round balls. Pat one into a flat disk. Place a sesame seed ball in the center, and gently pinch the dough around the ball to completely cover. (If the dough feels dry, dip your fingers in water before shaping it.) Keep dumplings covered until you get them all made.

Dumplings beginning to float to the top.

6- Carefully drop the dumplings into the large pot of boiling water (only cook as many as you plan to eat now - you can freeze the rest). Use a wooden spoon to nudge dumplings so they don’t stick on the bottom. Boil gently for about 5 minutes.

When the dumplings float to the top of the water, add 1 cup of cold water (this will keep the skins from splitting), and cook for another three minutes. 

Scoop them out with a sieve and divide them into small bowls. Add the ginger syrup and serve immediately.

I used a yellow lighting gel around the jar on the left, and white tissue
on the small jar in the center.

5. Hang a lantern:
In China, the lantern is a symbol of eternal hope. I make a new lantern each year to hang on the front porch.

Supplies: A clear jar, tissue paper (optional), red paper (we used butcher paper), double stick tape, wire, gold cord

1. Choose a clear jar, big enough to hold a votive candle.

2. Cut a strip of yellow or white tissue paper to wrap around the jar and overlap just a bit. Tape the strip where it overlaps. (Or leave it clear.)

3. Cut many 1-inch strips of red paper a bit longer than the height of the jar; you will need between 11 and 20 strips.

4. Put a small piece of double stick tape at the top and bottom of each strip and attach them one at a time to the rim and the bottom edge of the jar, overlapping the last strip by about half.

Add a wire around the top rim if you want to hang it outside. Decorate with gold cord around the top.

6. Riddle guessing:
It’s a custom at the Lantern Festival to have riddle-guessing contests; people copy out a puzzling riddle onto a paper lantern, and hang it at the door, with the promise of a reward to any who may succeed in unraveling it. 

Here are some of my favorite riddles:

• What always goes to bed with his shoes on? (A horse)
• What has feet but can't walk? (A yard stick)
• What has eyes but can't see? (A potato or a needle)
• What has hands but can't feel? (A clock) 
• What has ears but can't hear? (Corn) 
• What has teeth but can't chew? (A comb)
• Take off my skin - I won't cry, but you will! What am I? (An onion)
• There is an ancient invention still used in some parts of the world today that allows people to see through walls. What is it? (A window)
• What gets bigger the more you take away from it? (A hole)
• At night I come without being fetched. By day I am lost without being stolen. What am I? (A star)
• The more you have of it, the less you see. What is it? (Darkness)
• What must you keep after giving it to someone else? (A promise)
• What is lighter than a feather yet harder to hold? (Your breath) 
• If you have it, you want to share it. If you share it, you don't have it. What is it? (A secret.) 
• When you say my name I disappear. Who am I? (Silence)
• What is always coming, but never arrives? (Tomorrow)