Mooncake festivals in Malaysia

The Mid-Autumn festival, a harvest celebration, is observed on the 15th day of the

eighth month in the Chinese calendar. An important part of the Chinese cultural heritage, the

festival is also known in Malaysia as the mooncake festival due to the popular practice of

buying and eating mooncakes. The custom of giving mooncakes to family members and

friends is a reminder of how the Han Chinese crushed the Mongol invasion during the Yuan

Dynasty — by sneaking messages in small cakes to organise a rebellion on Mid-Autumn

Day.

The festival celebrates three fundamental concepts which are closely tied to one

another:

 Gathering, such as family and friends coming together, or harvesting crops for the

festival.

 Thanksgiving, to give thanks for the harvest, or for harmonious unions

 Praying (asking for conceptual or material satisfaction), such as for babies, a

spouse, beauty, longevity, or for a good future

Traditions and myths surrounding the festival are formed around these three concepts,

although traditions have changed over time due to changes in technology, science,

economy, culture, and religion.

 In Malaysia, the Chinese community make lanterns and mooncakes and hold family

gatherings to honour the event. Traditionally made at home from ingredients such as lotus

paste and salted egg yolks, the mooncakes of modern times are sold and marketed in many

flavours to appeal to the young and trendy generation.

Besides varied fillings such as durian paste and chocolate, halal and vegetarian

mooncakes are also sold to Muslims and vegans. Chinese cultural experts said that although

the celebration today is different from that practiced by the older generation, there is no

denying the festival’s role as a reminder of historical events and as an event to encourage

Malaysians to treasure the nation’s multicultural identity.

Malaysian Chinese Research Centre director Dr Chiam Yan Tuan, 45, said that the

festival was celebrated in a simple manner during the early days of his childhood in

Jenjarum near Kuala Langat. “My friends and I made our own lanterns which are the

traditional part of the celebration, instead of buying them,” he said. “There were also games

like exchanging riddles to see who can guess the answers. Today, people mostly eat and

exchange mooncakes, and gather with family members and friends. Even the mooncakes in

those days were not as ornate or varied as the ones today. And it used to cost only about

RM3 or RM4.”

In Chinese culture, the round shape of the mooncake signifies togetherness because

the family as well as the community are important. Malaysians are lucky to be able to

celebrate festivals such as this, unlike the times of civil wars in China that made it impossible

for the Chinese there to celebrate it at that time. And this is why the peace we enjoy in this

country should not be taken for granted.

Sources:

1) http://www.therakyatpost.com/life/living-life/2014/09/08/mooncake-festival-opportunity-unite-

malaysians-says-culture-expert/

2) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mid-Autumn_Festival