Of Mooncakes and Tradition

Tradition

Because I’m on sabbatical, I find that I'm more reflective about many things. One topic that has particularly drawn me and which I'm striving to deepen myself about is 'tradition.' It's even become a central concept in the book I'm currently writing.

Of course, I start with my own tradition(s). What is my/our Tradition? What are the traditions I'd like to pass on to the next generation, particularly, our daughter, my students, the members of my extended family and clan? This question about tradition is also profoundly tied with the question of identity: What is the identity behind the tradition? 

These thoughts have come to the fore because of the Moon (Mid-Autumn Harvest) Festival this year which fell on September 13 (earlier than the usual). 

It seems I have passed on the use of the word 'tradition' to our daughter because when I'd like to reinforce a practice or emphasize the importance of a ritual, a behaviour, a way of doing things or practically anything (e.g., why we eat certain things), I solemnly proclaim "It's our tradition." I find our daughter also using the same expression to emphasize the importance of things. D, my wife, finds my penchant for proclaiming our "traditions" amusing. But then, tradition is without question such an important thing. Without it, as the philosophers Hannah Arendt and Simone Weil said in effect, people would be “rootless.” It is this rootlessness that gives rise to more insidious things in society such as totalitarian regimes.

This year, for the Moon Festival, in order to "justify" our purchase of an elegant box of mooncake delicacies at the Asian grocery nearby (they are not cheap!), as usual, I said, "It's a tradition." So let me relate why I grew fond of mooncakes.

Mr Chung and His Mooncake Gifts

When I was a boy, a Chinese friend of my father, a certain Mr. Chung (a least, his name sounded that way) would bring us mooncakes from Manila's Chinatown. I only came to know recently that giving someone a mooncake means that the giver wishes you well. People give mooncakes to relatives and really dear friends. Mr. Chung and my dad must have really been good friends for him to give us mooncakes regularly.

The mooncakes from Mr. Chung seemed to be really special delicacies in a metal box, the type you want to use to store important things later on. When you opened the container, a number of deliciously looking mooncakes were staring back at you; some of them had salted egg yolks in them. These ones became my favourites. 

That's the origin of my love of mooncakes.

The Moon

the full moon as seen from our house

Of course, the moon is the central symbol of the Mid-Autumn Harvest Festival appropriately also known as "the Moon Festival." So let me also relate my moon-experiences.

Years later when I lived in Japan in my 20s, when early Fall came after the generally very hot and humid Tokyo summer, I would go out at night to enjoy the cooler weather and also gaze at the moon. I fondly remember often gazing at the autumn moon from the roof terrace of our seminary building which was a prominent building in the neighborhood where I lived called "Fujimicho” (literally, "town where Mt. Fuji is visible"), in Chofu-Tokyo. Yes, one could see Mt. Fuji from that building's roof terrace on clear days. And yes, the full moon was also beautiful from that vantage point.

It was in Japan where I learned how to observe nature more carefully in keeping with this excellent Japanese characteristic of being sensitive to nature. Thus, I learned to notice and observe better the subtle changes in nature accompanying the different seasons of the year. I also realized how really beautiful the autumn full moon is. Besides, Japan has its own tradition of o-tsukimi (お月見, literally, moon watching) when people would go outside, drink sake, eat tsukimi dango and of course admire the beauty of the moon. 

I cherish and treasure these memories.

So this is why I grew to be fond of mooncakes. This is why I regularly buy mooncakes at the Asian grocery even now. This is also why our daughter KH has also come to love mooncakes. 

It's amazing that behind every so-called 'tradition,' there is a rich back story of experiences from one's personal history. It is good to be aware of the origins of our so-called traditions.