Chinese Lanterns: A Symbolic Tradition

By Author: Lucy Carter
Total Articles: 102
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Throughout Chinese history, lanterns have symbolized celebration, hope and rejuvenation. They have played a key role in both daily life and the most important rituals, aiding communication with the heavens, for ceremonial use, as symbolic items and in festivals.

Certain kinds of lanterns have been used since ancient times as a medium of communication with divine beings, in order to appeal to the gods for wealth, health and long life. This would be done by hanging a lantern outside the supplicant's house for a certain length of time. The lantern would be inscribed with the characters representing "heavenly lantern", "the divine lantern", "heaven and earth lantern" or "heaven and earth divine lantern" and one or two candles would be placed inside of the lantern to illuminate it at night.

People who wish to express their respect for the gods or their citizenship will hang bamboo or wooden lanterns outside their homes. Since the Chinese government would seldom fund street lighting, village and townspeople would use lanterns as a means of illuminating their shops, homes and streets as an aid to night travelers. If ...
... the weather allowed, the Chinese lanterns would remain lit until midnight.

Ceremonially, Chinese lanterns have been used for burials, weddings and when moving from one place to another. On such occasions the lantern frames would be draped with white gauze and four red symbols signifying "a hundred children and a thousand grandchildren" would be attached to them. This expression was used to impart good luck, wishing someone the blessing of a large family and respect in their old age. Such good omen lanterns were suspended from the poles conveying the sedans which transported people during weddings, funerals and when moving from one place to another.

Chinese lanterns, as a cultural symbol, stand for the arrival of spring, joy and earth's renewal. The most important display of lanterns has historically been Shang Yuan, the Lantern Festival, which celebrates the return of the spring sun, the original creative power, to bring warmth back to the earth and renew its vegetation.

Scholars also found a use for the lanterns in that riddles or puzzles would be pasted to them. Such lanterns would typically be four-sided and hung outside of people's homes. Those lucky enough to solve a riddle would immediately be rewarded with some tea, firecrackers, beetlenut, a fan or a pencil. A hint of the reward for solving a particular riddle would be written on the same slip of paper.
Rob Payne is the founder of Hanging Lanterns, suppliers of Chinese lanterns.