If you’ve seen Disney’s Tangled, then you’ve seen how mesmerizing lantern festivals can be. Cultures around the world use lantern festivals as a way of bringing people together and bringing light to their communities. Some lanterns are released into the air, some float away on the water, and some are used to decorate homes and cities. Below you’ll find a few examples of the many lantern festivals around the world.
Spring Lantern Festival
The Spring Lantern Festival is celebrated throughout mainland China and Hong Kong and marks the end of the Chinese New Year. The festival is celebrated on the 15th day of the first lunar month, which usually falls between early February and early March.
While we know lantern festival originated in China, there are several theories as to how the tradition began. One theory claims that this tradition was started because of the Jade Emperor. After receiving news that his beloved swan had been killed, the emperor vowed to burn down the city responsible for its murder. The targeted city was able to escape its fiery fate by hanging red lanterns around the city, making it glow as if it were already on fire.
Another theory is that the festivals were inspired by Buddhist monks who used lanterns in their worship and decorated temples during the Spring Festival. Emperor Ming noticed this tradition and asked the citizens to hang lanterns in their own homes and at the palace. This seems to be the more likely of the theories, as many other lantern festivals claim Buddhist roots.
The main activity of the festival is lighting lanterns and watching as they are placed all around the city. Traditional lanterns are simple and completely red, the color of good fortune. However, in recent years, lanterns have become more elaborate, some with intricate artwork and some in the shapes of animals or flowers. The celebration is meant to bring good luck in the coming year as the celebration of the New Year ends.
Yi Peng Lantern Festival
The Yi Peng Lantern Festival is celebrated in Thailand in the middle of their 12th lunar month, which falls in November.
This tradition stems from the Lanna people who wanted to worship relics of Buddha. Because these relics were said to be stored on the highest of heaven’s floors, to reach them, worshippers send lanterns into the sky, letting go of the bad luck they have accumulated throughout the past year. Along with the lanterns they release into the sky, people often decorate their houses with small lanterns and candles during this festival period.
Historically, the Yi Peng Lantern Festival was celebrated across Thailand, but recent times have seen restrictions on where lanterns can be released (due to the hazard they pose for aircraft). In 2024, over 4,000 people gathered in Chiang Mai to celebrate in a mass-release lantern event. Dancers and musicians performed, and traditional food was served to those in attendance.
Shinnyo Lantern Floating
The Shinnyo Lantern Floating is celebrated in Hawaiʻi on Memorial Day, which always falls on the last Monday in May. This festival, again with Buddhist roots, was established to celebrate shinnyo, the light that exists in all of us.
Shinnyo Buddhism was first established in Japan in the 1930s, and the first Shinnyo-en community outside of Japan was founded in Hawaiʻ’i in 1971. The Shinnyo Lantern Floating is one of the religion’s main celebrations, meant to share hope for peace in the world.
The lanterns, lit by fire and floating on water, are special symbols of opposing elements working in harmony. Attendees promote this harmony by celebrating the shinnyo in the people around them and in those they have lost. They ponder how they can share their light in the coming year as they watch the lanterns float across the waves.
St. Martin’s Day
St. Martin’s Day is celebrated in German- and Dutch-speaking cities across Europe. It is a Christian festival that follows the story of Saint Martin. The story goes that Martin once cut his cloak in two to give half to a beggar. He later had a dream that Jesus was wearing that same half-cloak he had given the beggar. It is observed on November 11th, the day of Saint Martin’s funeral.
The holiday marks the end of harvest season. It is traditional to cook a goose for dinner, as well as bread shaped like little men called “Martin men.”
On the day of the festival, children walk through the streets of their towns in a parade, carrying homemade lanterns. These lanterns can be made of either paper or turnips, similar to the jack-o’-lanterns seen around Halloween time. The light that comes from this procession is meant to represent how holiness combats darkness and despair.
RISE Festival
The RISE Festival, in the Mojave Desert of the Western United States, is the world’s largest sky lantern festival. The festival spans three days during the first weekend of October, with over 20,000 people attending each day and two lanterns given to each participant. Unlike the other festivals, RISE has no association with any religion. It simply aims to bring people together to find joy and reflect.
The event has three stages: the path, the compass, and the horizon. In the first stage, attendees move along the path and enjoy the beauty of the desert around them as they wait for the sun to set. After the desert darkens, they gather in the compass and release their lanterns into the sky. Each person writes their hopes and dreams for the year on their lanterns. Music plays in the background to transition to the third and final stage, where participants are invited to dance and celebrate all that is on the horizon.
—Ellie Taylor
Sources
www.risefestival.com
www.yipenglanternfestival.in.th
www.lanternfloatinghawaii.com
www.wikipedia.org