Traditional festivals

Brief Introduction

Characterized by diverse styles and themes, traditional Chinese festivals are an important part of Chinese history and culture, both ancient and modern. A close relationship exists between many of the traditional festivals and chronology, mathematics, the Chinese Calendar and the twenty-four solar terms. Many of the customs connected with the traditional festivals have links with religious devotions, superstitions and myths. The form which most of the festivals take today was established around the time of the Han Dynasty (206BC - 220) and for many years, various eminent poets have written countless masterpieces describing the festivals and are still recited regularly today.

Almost every festival has its own unique origins and customs which reflect the traditional practices and morality of the whole Chinese nation and its people. The grandest and most popular festivals are the Spring Festival, the Lantern Festival, the Qingming Festival, the Dragon Boat Festival, the Double Seventh Festival, the Mid-autumn Festival, the Chongyang Festival, and the Laba Festival.

Table of Eight Chinese Traditional Festivals

Festival		Date	Customs
Spring Festival		1st day of the first lunar month - the end of Lantern Festival	pasting Spring Festival scrolls, the character 'Fu', and paper-cuts pictures, displaying firecrackers and fireworks, paying New Year visits, and eating jiaozi.
Lantern Festival		15th day of the first lunar month	watching lanterns and fireworks, guessing lantern riddles, performing folk dances, and eating yuanxiao.
Qingming Festival		April 4th or 5th of the solar calendar	tomb sweeping, spring outings, and flying kites.
Dragon Boat Festival		5th day of the 5th lunar month	dragon boat racing, eating zongzi, wearing a perfume pouch and tying five-colour silk thread, and hanging mugwort leaves and calamus.
Double Seventh Festival		7th day of seventh lunar month	praying for skillful hands, appreciating the stars, and eating noodles, jiaozi, and wontons.
Mid-autumn Festival		15th day of the 8th lunar month	appreciating and offering sacrifice to the moonlight and eating moon cakes.
Chongyang Festival		9th day of the 9th lunar month	eating Chongyang cake, drinking chrysanthemum wine, climbing mountains and appreciating beautiful chrysanthemums.
Laba Festival		8th day of the 12th lunar month	eating laba rice porridge.

The earthen buildings

The earthen buildings of Hakkas are considered a wonder of oriental architecture. Spread around Yongding, in the west of Fujian Province , there are 4,000 square buildings and 360 round ones, which are quite breathtaking. The buildings usually are formed as two or three circles. The outer circle can be as high as 10 meters (31 feet) and its four stories may hold between one and two hundred rooms. The kitchen and dining room will be found on the first or ground floor. The second floor is used as warehousing, and the third and fourth floors contain the bedrooms. The inner circle is 2-storied with 30 to 50 rooms which function as a guesthouse. In the middle is a rectangle hall, a public place for the several hundred inhabitants.

Chinese ancestors thought the sky was round and the earth square. So, round and square buildings are representative of the sky and the earth. Round also implies unification and perfection, which is a foremost ideal of Chinese people.

Architectural Features
The earthen buildings known as tu lou are made of rammed earth and timber with neither concrete nor steel. A Hakka saying has it that one bowl of rammed earth is worth a bowl of meat. The main material is a mixture of fine laterite, fine sand from the river, silt from the bottom of paddy fields and even re-cycled ancient wall mud. After these materials are thoroughly mixed together, quality brown sugar, whisked egg white and the strained liquid from sticky rice soup are added and a new turn of mixing begins. The resultant material is then used for the earthen buildings. The ingenious Hakkas use this method to compensate for the lack of raw materials normally used for building.

As well as providing a defense from enemies, the tu lou has the following advantages: quakeproof, fireproof, theft proof, good ventilation and day lighting. Also due to their thickness, the earthen walls help to provide thermal insulation and preservation, which makes the building warm in winter and cool in summer.

The Influence of Ba Gua
Originally, the Hakkas came from central China and were influenced profoundly by traditional Chinese culture. Earthen buildings were created using the ba gua (Eight Trigrams) theory, more widely known in the West as Feng Shui, which was thought to be the essence of ancient Chinese culture. From a more practical point of view, as the Hakkas usually lived in barren and remote hilly environments, they needed to defend themselves from wild animals as well as other clans.

Highlight of Earthen Buildings
In 1986 China Post issued a set of stamps featuring Chinese dwellings and the representative of these unique Fujian dwellings is the Chengqi Building in Gaobei Village, Gaotou Town, Yongding. Known as the King of Earthen Buildings, Chengqi Building was created by three generations over a period of some 50 years.

This complex of four stories and four circles won fame by its grand and classic architectural style. The base of the wall is 3 meters (9.8 feet) thick and from the lower to the upper the width diminishes from 1.5m (4.9 feet) to not less than 0.9 meters (3.0 feet). There are 72 rooms on each story. In the center of the building lies a rectangle ancestral hall. The configuration conforms with the ancient Chinese idea of a round sky and a square earth.

In Splendid China in Shenzhen, Guangdong, a miniature representation of Chengqi Building stands with dignity among other Chinese architectural wonders.

Hakkas, the Owner of Earthen Buildings
Hakka, literally, means 'guest' in Chinese. They are not an ethnic group like the Tibetans or Mongolians. Their nationality is Han. The ancestors of Hakkas used to live in central China and were forced to move southward due to wars, famine and political reasons.

There were 5 major migrations:
From the end of the Han Dynasty to Jin Dynasty, Han people crossed the Yangtze River to avoid wars.

From the East Jin to the Five Dynasties, Han people moved further south from the Yangtze River.

During the Southern Song Dynasty when the Mongolians spread rapidly southwards and the Song moved their capital to Hangzhou, the Hakkas moved from Fujian and Jiangxi to the north and east of Guangdong.

At the end of the Ming Dynasty as the Mandarin army and farmers' uprising were rampant, Hakkas moved on to central Guangdong and coastal area, also to Sichuan, Guangxi, Hunan and Taiwan with a minority going to southern Guizhou.

During the reign of the Qing Emperor Tongzhi (1862-1874), Hakkas moved on to Hainan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau, South-eastern Asia and even to Europe and America as a consequence of the Taiping Tianguo uprising.

Over their long history, Hakkas have formed their own unique culture. They adhere to Confucianism and give importance to education. Often referred to as the Jews of China, Hakkas excel in many fields from academe to politics and commerce. They are spread around the world and especially in South-east Asia. Notable figures include Deng Xiao Ping, the chief designer of the opening-up and reform of modern China, Li Ka-Shing, a Hakka from Chaozhou, Guangdong Province, is the Asia's richest and most powerful man and No. 22 in the list of the World's Richest People 2005, according to Forbes. Lee Kuan-Yew, the former prime minister of Singapore, also is Hakka.

Garden Architecture

Early in the Shang Dynasty (16th - 11th century BC) and followed by the Zhou Dynasty (11th century BC - 221 BC), Chinese kings and nobilities began the practice of developing forests and woods for the specific purpose of hunting. In some instances these areas of forests and woods, called 'You' in Chinese covered dozens of square kilometers or even hundreds of square kilometers. Somewhere between 206 BC and 220 BC, the Han Dynasty advanced the concept of these 'Natural Gardens' by adding living quarters and adding animals that were raised and considered to be the rudiment of Chinese garden architecture. Traditional Chinese Garden architecture in the real sense first appeared in the Tang Dynasty somewhere between 618 AD and 907 AD. During this era, the construction of beautiful architecture evolved into what would include man-made hills, pools and fountains. As time went on, and craftsman became more accomplished, this man-made beauty was able to successfully blend in well with the beauty of the natural environment.

The Ming Dynasty (1368 AD - 1644 AD) followed by the Qing Dynasty (1644 AD - 1911 AD) saw the heyday of Chinese garden architecture. Especially in the Qing Dynasty, emperors collected skillful craftsmen from all over the country to create even more elaborate gardens. Gardens in this period were no longer merely places for fun, but also served as areas where more formal ceremonies could take place such as holding court, hosting banquets, pursuing studies, producing theatrical activities, and to provide a setting where people could worship.

Depending on their geographical locations, Chinese gardens can vary. Generally speaking, they can be divided into two groups that would include the Imperial Garden Architecture in north China and the Private Garden Architecture in south China. Imperial gardens are noteworthy for their grand dimensions, luxurious buildings, and exquisite decorations. With material resources and generous financial support combined with supreme power, emperors were able to construct Imperial Gardens with almost unlimited extravagance. Designers placed emphasis on the harmonious unity of architecture with nature which contributed to the decision to construct many gardens in scenic mountain areas. In northern China, Beijing is one of the better known areas for these beautiful gardens. 'Summer Palace' and 'Old Summer Palace' (Ruins of Yuanmingyuan) are typical examples of this period. Gentle babbling brooks meander through delicate palaces, pavilions, platforms, and bridges. Large lakes shimmering in the early morning or late afternoon sun, where fish swim delightfully in and out of duckweeds add to the incredible beauty of the pleasant surroundings. When one is confronted with all of this fine architecture, it is easy to appreciate the high level craftsmanship that went into the construction of these magnificent gardens.

Although different from the imperial gardens of Northern China, the gardens in the south are smaller but no less exquisite. The area in South China although rich in water resources is somewhat limited in the land area that could be used for private gardens. As a result of these phenomena, garden owners were put in the position where they skillfully and cleverly constructed their private gardens according to their own personal tastes. Unlike the majestic and splendor of northern gardens, southern gardens are simpler and more elegant, like a shy girl waiting for you to take away her veiling. Designers were also good at selecting colors such as dark grey tiles to cover the house roofs, while walls were painted white. Wooden pillars were colored dark brown or greenish black that blended with the bridges, pavilions and corridors that were made of natural stone. The whole scenery presents a peaceful and pleasant atmosphere. Famous gardens belonging to this type are popular in Jiangsu Province. Some of the more noteworthy would be 'Garden of the Master of Nets', 'Li Garden', 'Canglang Pavilion', 'Lion Grove', 'Garden for Lingering', and 'Humble Administrator’s Garden'.

Other kinds of garden architecture contain monastic gardens which are located in temples, symbolizing a sort of spiritual peace and harmony. An example of this would be the 'Mountain Resort of Chengde' (Bishu Shanzhuang) that is built on a large scale and blends in well with the mountain scenery.

Buddhist Architecture

The development of Chinese Buddhist architecture can be traced back to the introduction of Buddhism. The main Buddhist architectural items include temples, pagodas, and grottos. Buddhist architecture is regarded as a great art treasure where calligraphy, sculpture and painting combine. Being the spiritual symbols of Buddhism, they are not only monastic holy places, but also serve as sacred land that can purify souls.

The Buddhist temple is the holy place where Buddhist doctrine is maintained. Differing from other religions' temples, Chinese Buddhist temples have many characteristics of their own. For example, similar to Chinese palaces and dwelling houses, they are comprised of a number of small yards. The oldest temple in China - White Horse Temple is a typical example of this.

The architectural styles of Buddhist temples in China were mainly formed in three periods: Han Dynasty (206BC-220), Northern and Southern Dynasties (386-589), and Tang Dynasty (618-907). The first period sees the retention of Indian styles. In the second period, wooden framework was added to the original styles. In the third period, the styles of Buddhist temples were totally Sinicized and the pavilion-like pagoda, which is unique to China, became popular.

The Pagoda, symbol of Buddhism, where people climb to have a bird's-eye-view, is often erected in temples. Pagodas can be made of stone, wood, colored glaze or metal. Pagodas have an odd number of layers. Seven-layer and Nine-layer pagodas are commonly built. The shape of cross-section is rectangular, eight-sided or even circular. Initially, the pagoda served as the central axis alongside which rows of halls and monks' rooms spread out. Later, pagodas were built near the main palace hall.

The Grotto, another type of Buddhist architecture, is often chiseled into cliffs. In the 3rd century, Chinese Buddhists began to build grottoes and Xinjiang is the first area where grottoes were hewn. Grottoes are decorated with painted sculptures, carvings and frescos. Craftsmen revealed real life pictures and their understanding of society in these art works, which gave them great historical and cultural value. The four famous grottoes in China are: Mogao Caves, Longmen Grottoes, Yungang Grottoes and Maiji Caves. They are well preserved and attract many visitors from home and abroad.

Buddhist Temples

Buddhism was introduced into China mainly during Eastern Han Dynasty (25 - 220) via the South China Sea and Western Region. Figures of Buddha and the bones of Buddha's relics are worshipped in the temples which were called Futu, Lanruo, Chanlin, Daochang, Jialan and Zhaoti in different dialects of Chinese.

The Buddhist temple was adapted to Chinese tastes when it arrived in China. Its general layout follows Chinese traditional type - courtyard with dome-shaped structure called a stupa as its principal part. A lecture hall, refectory, sutra depository and monks' rooms are distributed along the central axis. Unlike the paintings and decorations in Christian churches which present a heavenly afterlife, Chinese Buddhist temples reveal an atmosphere closer to worldly life.

The general development of Chinese Buddhist temples went through the following periods:

Eastern Han Dynasty - Eastern Jin Dynasty (317 - 420): Buddhism was introduced to China during this period. The early Chinese Buddhist temples followed Indian style, which set the stupa as its center. They once had a traditional Chinese name - Ci (ancestral temple) and the number was very limited. White Horse Temple in Luoyang is a typical example of this period.

Northern and Southern Dynasties (386 - 589) to Five Dynasties (907 - 960): Buddhism was at its height of splendor and power during this period. In the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907), a lot of Buddhist doctrines were translated and the main Buddhist sects were formed and developed. Many more Buddhist temples were built with larger dimensions. Walls of the courtyard were decorated with exquisite embossment. A niche was placed in the middle of the north wall. A Buddhist pylon stood in the centre of the temple. The Big Wild Goose Pagoda in Xian was built in this period.

Song Dynasty (960 - 1279) - late Qing Dynasty (1644 - 1911): The social position of Buddhism overall was weakened in the Song Dynasty but Zen, a major sect of Chinese Buddhism, began to flourish in this period. The layout of temples changed little by little. Xiangguo Temple in Kaifeng City is an example of this period.

The layout of Buddhist temples has been long established. Generally speaking, the mountain gate (front gate) is the entrance part. The Bell Tower and Drum Tower stand on the two sides inside the mountain gate. The Hall of Heavenly Kings, where sculptures of Four Heavenly Kings stand on the two sides with two in a group and Maitreya (the fat laughing Buddha) laid in the middle altar, is the first main hall. Next follows the Grand Hall where the sculpture of Sakyamuni sits. Bodhisattva Hall worships the main Bodhisattva of a temple, the enlightened being who seeks to enlighten others, is located behind. Next is the lecture hall, the place where Buddhist doctrines are delivered. Sutra Depository, where Buddhist books, sutras and scriptures are stored is situated at the back. Refectories, monks' rooms and other attached architecture are distributed along the central axis. Buddhism advocates that people act with leniency. An area where captive animals are freed to show the charity of human souls and to accumulate merit for the afterlife can be found in most Buddhist temples. Generally speaking, this is the common layout of Chinese Buddhist temples.

Chinese Temples

Temples symbolize the long history and rich culture of China, and are regarded as valuable art treasures. There are many different religions in China, such as the Buddhism, Christianity and Islam introduced from other regions, as well as Taoism and Confucianism, the native-born religions. Of course, temples or houses of worship of different religions differ. Buddhist temples include a temple, pagoda and grotto, which are called Si, Ta, and Shiku in Chinese respectively. Taoist architecture is variously called Gong, Guan or An in Chinese. Confucian temples, such as Kong Miao, Yonghe Lamasery (Harmony and Peace Palace Lamasery) and the Temple of Heaven are called Miao, Gong, or Tan in Chinese. An Islamic house of worship is referred to as a Mosque. Christian churches have also added some Chinese flavor to them.

Chinese temples are well kept cultural artifacts of every dynasty. And temple culture has influenced every aspect of Chinese people's life such as painting, calligraphy, music, sculpture, architecture, temple fairs, folk-customs and many others.

Kadampa Buddhist Temples

A Kadampa Buddhist Temple is a special, holy place, where we can receive blessings and powerful imprints on our minds that lead to deep inner peace in the future.

Many Kadampa Temples are being built around the world as part of the International Temples Project.

Kadampa Buddhist Temples take many forms. Some are custom built according to a special design developed by Geshe Kelsang based on traditional Buddhist architecture, such as the Mother Temple at Manjushri Kadampa Meditation Centre in England and the Temples in New York, and São Paulo.

Others are adapted from existing buildings acquired for Kadampa Meditation Centers around the world, such as the Temples in Toronto, Le Mans, Berlin, Zurich Texas and Melbourne. Yet others
are incorporated within Hotel Kadampas, such as those in Málaga and Tuscany.

Many more Temples are planned throughout the world.

Whatever form they take, Kadampa Temples are holy places open to everyone to enjoy. They are Pure Lands in our troubled world – offering doorways to inner peace for all who visit them.

Pure land

Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso explains that at first a Temple is a representation of a Pure Land, such as Tushita Heaven where Je Tsongkhapa abides, or the Pure land of Buddha Heruka and Vajrayogini.

Eventually, however, through the force of all the pure practices and sincere prayers performed in it and the blessings of the Holy Beings, the Temple becomes an actual Pure Land.

Blessed statues

Kadampa Temples all house beautiful shrines in which you can see magnificent statues cast in Kadampa Studios. Just seeing these blessed statues places powerful imprints on the mind to experience deep inner peace in the future.

The Temples are open to the public for both private and group visits. Information on local visiting times can be found on each Temple’s website (see menu).

Annual events

Kadampa Temples are international establishments and each year they host major gatherings such as Dharma Celebrations, National Festivals, and International Festivals.