The Moon Festival, also known as the Mid-Autumn Festival, will be celebrated today at DePauw's McKim Observatory.
Those in attendance have the opportunity to watch the full moon through the Clark refractor telescope as well as a variety of performances. Refreshments — including moon cakes and tea — are provided.
The Harvest Moon is celebrated on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month throughout China and other Asian countries. The day of the festival usually occurs sometime between the second week of September and the second week of October on the Western calendar. The full moon symbolizes reunion.
Sherry Mou, associate professor of modern languages and Asian studies, introduced the Moon Festival to DePauw in 2002.
"The Moon Festival is the second biggest festival in China, second only to the Lunar New Year," Mou said. "It's really equivalent to the Thanksgiving holiday in America."
In China, families get together when the full moon rises, eating moon cake and drinking wine while watching the moon.
Those who cannot return home still enjoy the night by looking up at the full moon and extending their best wishes to each other. A great amount of poetry has been devoted to the festival.
Reading poetry in various languages has become a tradition of the Moon Festival at DePauw. This year there will be poetry readings in Spanish, German, Japanese and Chinese.
Sophomore Risa Morita, vice president of the ASIA club and master of ceremonies for the Moon Festival said a variety of entertainment will be included in the festival.
"This year we have more variety of performances," Morita said. "We have Indian dance, Japanese dance, songs from China, Vietnam and Japan, poetry reading, instrument performance and so on."
Asian snacks and moon cakes, which are made with sweet fillings of nuts, mashed red beans, lotus-seed paste or Chinese dates, are some of the refreshments that will be provided.
"We try to bring everyone together and show a diverse Asian culture," said senior Sunny Wang, president of ASIA club. "Wamidan will be performing and students from Wabash are coming to join us."
Senior Jiayin Qian has personal connections to the holiday and attends the Moon Festival every year.
"I have special feelings for the festival. When I was in China, my family usually went to visit my grandparents, and we had the moon cakes together," Qian said. "Now I gather with friends and watch various Asian and oriental performances at the festival."
Associate professor of modern languages and director of Asian studies Hiroko Chiba explained some of the ways in which the DePauw celebration differs from other celebrations.
"Unlike China, the Moon Festival in Japan is a little more quiet event," Chiba said. "The celebration at DePauw is also very different. It's a community gathering instead of family gathering."
The festival also offers an opportunity to look at the moon through the observatory telescope at time when the moon appears to be the brightest and most beautiful of the year.
The Asian studies department, ASIA club, DePauw China Connection and the physics and astronomy departments are hosting the event.
The event is free and open to the public and begins at 8:30 p.m. According to members of the physics and astronomy departments, the moon will appear at 8:45 p.m.