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Hey guys, welcome to Five Thousand Years.
大家好，欢迎来到五千年频道。
It's almost the Moon Festival, also known as the Mid-Autumn Festival.
快到中秋节了，中秋节也被称为月亮节。
It's one of the biggest holidays in China and the surrounding countries.
这是中国和周边国家最重要的节日之一。
But do you know why people celebrate this day?
但你知道人们为什么要庆祝这一天吗？
And where did it get its name from?
以及中秋节的起源是什么？
In today’s video, let’s dig deep into the history and origin of the Mid-Autumn Festival.
在今天的视频中，让我们一起深入挖掘中秋节的历史和起源。
The origin of this holiday goes back to the Zhou Dynasty, some 3,000 years ago.
中秋节的起源可以追溯到大约3000年前的周朝。
The rulers of the Zhou Dynasty called themselves Tianzi instead of Emperor.
周朝的统治者自称为天子，而不是皇帝。
Tianzi means Son of Heaven.
天子的意思就是上天的儿子。
They believed the Heavens bestowed the mandate on whomever was most fit to rule.
他们认为，上天将权力授予最适合进行统治的人。
Therefore every Tianzi dared not to behave without virtue.
所以每个天子都不敢违背天德。
And during special days of the year or whenever anything bad happened,
在一年中的特殊日子里，或者每当有坏事发生时，
they would try to find fault within themselves and worship the Heavens for an answer.
他们反省自己的不足，祭拜上天，以求答案。
The Book of Rites recorded that Tianzi would worship the Sun on the March equinox, and worship the Moon on the September equinox.
《礼记》记载，天子春分时拜日，秋分时拜月。
The annual grand worshipping ceremonies made an impact among commoners.
一年一度的盛大祭拜仪式在平民百姓中也产生了影响。
People also started worshipping the moon on or around this day.
人们也在这一天或前后开始祭拜月亮。
Eventually people shifted the date from the September equinox to the 15th day of the 8th month on the Chinese lunar calendar.
最终，人们将拜月的日期从秋分改为农历八月十五日。
Since the lunar calendar is based upon the moon’s phases, the 15th day of the month will always be a full moon.
因为农历是以月相为基础的，所以一个月的第15天总是满月。
By the early Tang dynasty, it had developed into an official holiday.
到了唐朝初期，这个节日已经发展成为官方节日。
The celebration grew bigger and bigger with each dynasty.
历朝的庆祝活动日益盛大。
And now it’s one of the most celebrated holidays across Asian countries.
如今，它是亚洲国家最受欢迎的节日之一。
Chinese people call this holiday Zhong Qiu Jie which translates to Mid-Autumn Festival.
中国人把这个节日叫做中秋节，意思是在秋季中期的节日。
Ancient Chinese people considered the 7th, 8th, and 9th months on the lunar calendar to be the Autumn Season.
古代中国人认为农历的七月、八月和九月是秋季。
The 15th day of the 8th month is right in the middle of the season and that’s why it’s called Mid-Autumn Festival.
八月十五日正好在秋季的中间，所以叫做中秋节。
The Moon Festival is just a nickname since this holiday is deeply related to the Moon.
中秋节只是一个昵称，因为这个节日与月亮有很深的渊源。
You might have heard of the story of Chang’e who flew to the Moon palace after drinking a magical elixir and became the goddess of the Moon.
你可能听说过嫦娥喝了灵药后飞到月宫，成为月神的故事。
But today we are going to talk about another famous story that was recorded in multiple ancient texts from the Tang Dynasty.
但今天我们要谈的是另一个著名的故事，它被记录在唐代的多部古代文献中。
It’s about Emperor Xuanzong of Tang and his magical experience on the moon.
它是关于唐玄宗在月亮上的奇遇。
It was said on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival during his early reign, Emperor Xuanzong was invited to visit the Moon by his Daoist friend.
据说，玄宗在位初期，在一个中秋之夜，玄宗的道士朋友邀请他去赏月。
The Daoist used his supernormal ability and built a large silver bridge that went directly to the moon.
道士用他的超凡能力建造了一座直通月亮的巨大银桥。
The two of them walked a long way and reached the moon palace.
他们两人走了很长一段路，最终到达了月宫。
The Emperor saw hundreds of divine deities dancing in the palace.
玄宗看到众仙在宫殿里起舞。
The accompanying music was out of this world, literally, and the dance was elegant beyond description.
伴奏的音乐美如天籁，舞姿优雅得无以言表。
The Emperor asked what song is this.
玄宗问这是什么乐曲。
The answer was Ni Chang Yu Yi Qu, which translates to “Garments of Rainbows and Feathers”.
原来这是《霓裳羽衣曲》，意思是彩虹和羽毛做的衣裳。
After the Emperor came back from the Moon, he recalled what he heard from memory and recomposed the song and named it with the same title.
玄宗从月宫回来后，他回忆起他听到的乐曲，重新将它谱写出来，并用相同的名字来命名。
Many poets praised how heavenly the melody was.
许多诗人称赞这首乐曲的旋律无比美妙。
Unfortunately it was lost later.
不幸的是，它后来失传了。
However if you like the background music you are hearing now, it’s actually called “A Reverie in the Moon Palace” based on this story from the Tang Dynasty.
如果你喜欢现在听到的背景音乐，这其实就是根据这个唐代故事改编的《唐玄宗梦游月宫曲》。
Check out my talented friend Tony Chen’s channel for more beautiful music.
欢迎去看看我非常有才华的朋友托尼·陈的频道，他有很多好听的音乐。
Last but not least, let’s talk about what ancient people did during this holiday.
最后，让我们谈谈古人在中秋节都会做什么。
The most important activity was of course worshipping the moon.
最重要的活动当然是祭拜月亮。
Chinese people also loved admiring the moon.
中国人也喜欢赏月。
There were so many poems written about the moon.
有许多关于月亮的诗歌。
The most famous one is Jing Ye Si, Quiet Night Thought, written by Li Bai.
其中最著名的是李白的《静夜思》。
Recite with me if you learned it in Chinese school.
如果你在中文学校学过这首诗，就跟我一起背诵吧。
Moonlight before my bed, Perhaps frost on the ground.
床前明月光，疑是地上霜。
Lift my head and see the moon, Lower my head and I miss my home.
举头望明月，低头思故乡。
Just like the poem implies, this holiday is also about reunion.
正如这首诗所表达的，中秋节也是一个团圆的节日。
If the wife went back to her parents for a visit, she would return home to her husband on this day.
如果妻子在中秋节回娘家探望父母，她也会在当天回到丈夫身边。
Mooncakes were sometimes called reunion cake.
月饼有时被称为团圆饼。
The whole family would share it together.
全家人会一起分享。
Other than mooncakes, people would also give each other watermelons and other fruits as gifts.
除了月饼，人们还会互赠西瓜和其他水果作为礼物。
Eating crabs was also popular because they would get meatier and sweeter during Autumn.
人们也喜欢在这一天吃螃蟹，因为在秋天，螃蟹最为肥美。
Additionally the 8th month of the Chinese lunar calendar is called the month of osmanthus.
此外，中国农历八月也被称为桂花月。
So people would admire osmanthus flowers and make osmanthus wine.
所以人们会赏桂花，酿桂花酒。
The most exciting activity was tide watching and still is today.
最令人兴奋的活动是观潮，直到现在也是如此。
The Qiantang River is known for the world’s largest tidal bore.
钱塘江以世界上最壮观的涌潮而闻名。
And the best time to view it is between the 15th and 18th day of the 8th month on the lunar calendar.
观潮的最佳时间是农历八月十五至十八。
So it has become a tradition to watch tidal bores on the Mid-Autumn Festival.
因此，在中秋节观潮已经成为一种传统。
I hope you learned something useful in today’s video.
希望你在今天的视频中了解到了一些东西。
What's your favorite tradition of the Mid-Autumn Festival?
你最喜欢的中秋节传统是什么？
Let me know in the comments below.
请在下面的评论中告诉我。
