The Lotus Lantern Festival is held annually in South Korea to celebrate Buddha’s birthday, which lands on May 6 this year. The festival began this weekend on April 25 with the first exhibition of the traditional lanterns in Gwanghwamun Square. The lanterns are mostly seen at Cheongyecheon Stream, Jogyesa Temple, and Bongeunsa Temple.
The lantern lighting tradition began in Korea during the Goryeo and Joseon Dynasties, and has been preserved ever since. Lanterns symbolize wisdom, according to Buddhist beliefs. The lanterns bring light to the world as well as wisdom.
The Lotus Lantern Festival is now designed to bring local and foreign visitors together to celebrate the lighting of the lanterns. Visitors can make their own lantern, eat Buddhist temple dishes, and view the Lotus Lantern Parade in Dongdaemun.
I went to the exhibition of the lanterns in Gwanghwamun Square on Friday since it was the first day of the festival. I have never been to a lantern festival so I didn’t know what to expect. It surprised me that the lanterns were quite big. The lanterns were located along the Cheongyecheon Stream where visitors were walking along the stream and taking pictures of the lanterns. They had metal plaques at the bottom that I couldn’t read since they were in Hangul (Korean alphabet). However, that did not take away the beauty of the lanterns as you will see in the pictures below.
There was a long rope fence with yellow ribbons tied to it. The ribbons had messages to the victims of the Sewol Ferry tragedy that happened April 16. The messages were written in different languages other than Korean and English. They were all mourning and hoping for the best for the victims and those who died.
The next event of the Lotus Lantern Festival was the Lotus Lantern Parade in Dongdaemun on Saturday. I arrived about 30 minutes early to the parade and stood near the Dongdaemun Design Plaza. I was able to see the lantern floats lit up and ready to go. The dragon and elephant lanterns moved, and the peacock lantern flapped its wings. One of the floats had a woman standing at the top and dressed in a traditional hanbok. Also, there were many people who were able to walk in the parade, holding their lanterns. They ranged from monks, women in hanboks, and students from different Korean universities.
Overall, it was an amazing event to see and I was glad I didn’t miss it since it was only happening this weekend. The following week will have more events including Buddha’s birthday service on May 6.
This will be my last blog entry about my study abroad adventure in South Korea for Her Campus USFSP. I will continue my posts at USF Going Places for the remainder of my time here in South Korea. I want to thank Her Campus USFSP for letting me blog about my experience abroad.