For the first time ever, I finally see the close (though not exact) connection between the two systems of the September full moons. I do often wonder why the two systems sometimes line up, sometimes don't. I would appreciate any input on that. For now, let's take a look at the story behind Mid-Autumn Festival and the link to Full Moon in Aries.
The Legend(s) Behind Mid-Autumn Festival
It all began when ten Suns appeared in the sky, drying up lives on earth. Hou Yi, a skilled archer, restored nature back to order by shooting down nine, leaving one behind - just enough to give us heat to sustain lives on earth. As a reward, the Queen Mother of the West gave him an elixir of immortality.
In the modern version, the one that I only discovered recently, one of Hou Yi's apprentices stole the elixir out of greed and jealousy. In order to protect the it, Chang'e, Hou Yi's wife, swallowed it so the elixir wouldn't fall into the wrong hands. Chang'e instantly floated up to the moon and became the moon goddess, but separated from her husband forever. The subsequent moon worshipping on Mid-Autumn's full moon is to commemorate this story.
However, the original/older version puts Hou Yi in a more sinister role. In fact, I was amazed by the number of older versions. Hou Yi was crowned king by the people from his heroic act, but the power went to his head and he became tyrannical and asked for the elixir from the Queen Mother of the West. Why he was given it baffles me, wouldn't the Queen refuse it on grounds that he's getting tyrannical? Anyway, he was given it, and Chang'e, out of kindness and compassion for the people, stole the potion and drank it to prevent a tyrannical king ruling the kingdom for eternity. The version I was familiar with is that Chang'e drank the potion simply from greed, and as a punishment, she was sent to the moon for isolation, and not to become an immortal moon goddess.
