When did the custom of Lantern Festival begin?

According to legend, the custom of playing lanterns began in the Western Han Dynasty and flourished in the Sui and Tang Dynasties.

After the Sui and Tang Dynasties, lantern style prevailed in all previous dynasties and spread to future generations. The fifteenth day of the first month is the climax of the annual lantern fireworks. Therefore, the Lantern Festival is also called "Lantern Festival". Before the fifteenth day of the first month, the streets were covered with lanterns, flowers and lights, which reached a climax on the fifteenth night of the first month. On the fifteenth day of the first month, "watching lanterns" has become a spontaneous activity among Shanxi people.

Since the Lantern Festival formed the custom of decorating lanterns, the fifteenth day of the first month and watching lanterns have been an important event in all dynasties. Emperor Liang Jianwen once wrote a column Deng Fu, which wrote:

South oil is full, and west paint is burning.

Su Zheng is resting in peace, and wax comes out of Longchuan.

Oblique light reflection, clear reflection.

Cifu depicts the grand occasion of the Lantern Festival at that time.

During the reign of Yang Di, a grand banquet was held on the 15th day of the first month every year to entertain guests and envoys from all over the world. According to the Records of Sui Shu Music, the Lantern Festival is very grand, with lanterns and colorful decorations everywhere, singing and dancing day and night. There are more than 30 thousand performers and nearly 20 thousand musicians, and the stage is four kilometers long. There are countless people playing with lights and watching them. Tens of thousands of people stayed up all night, happy and lively.

By the Tang Dynasty, it had developed into an unprecedented lantern market. After the middle Tang Dynasty, it has developed into a national carnival. During the prosperous time of Kaiyuan in Xuanzong period of Tang Dynasty, the lantern market in Chang 'an was very large, with 50,000 lanterns of all kinds. The emperor ordered more than 20 giant light towers, about 50 meters high, with dazzling golden light and spectacular scenery.