Torch Festival

Stories and historical roots

Accounts of the holiday trace its meaning to agricultural protection and ancient calendars. One popular tale honours the legendary wrestler Atilabia, who saved crops by burning pine torches to banish a devastating swarm of locusts. Scholars also link the event to an ancient ten-month solar calendar kept by Yi and Bai communities, where Star Returning observances in winter and summer served as New Year milestones. Across generations, the central purpose has remained consistent: presenting offerings to higher powers, clearing out bad fortune, and praying for fertile fields. Similar torch rituals were also practiced in central and eastern China during the Song, Ming, and Qing dynasties.

Carrying fire and bonfires

Preparations often start weeks ahead as people harvest wormwood or pine to craft torches, commonly making three per person. In areas like Liangshan, wormwood is regarded as a powerful shield against negative influences. When the holiday arrives, individuals illuminate every dark corner of their dwellings and march across agricultural land with lit torches to cast out misfortune. Village torch processions culminate in large outdoor bonfires. Community members gather around the flames to sing, dance through the night, and play traditional instruments, including the plucked four-string yueqin and three-string sanxian.

Feasts and sporting games

Beyond fire ceremonies, the occasion calls for thorough house cleaning, wearing fine clothes, and sharing festive meals. Cattle and food offerings are presented to spirits, and eating beef is considered an omen of good fortune for the coming year. Noodles and fresh fruits are also shared among households. Daytime gatherings feature energetic sporting competitions. Crowds gather to watch horse races, traditional wrestling matches, and bullfights. In Liangshan, modern celebrations organised by local authorities have grown into multi-day civic holidays that incorporate dance performances, beauty pageants, and tourism.

How Torch Festival is kept

Households prepare by crafting three torches per person from wormwood or pine. During the observance, people clean their homes, dress in their finest clothes, and hold burning torches to brighten indoor corners and nearby fields. Torchlight processions move across the countryside to banish misfortune and protect crops. In the evening, communities assemble around communal bonfires to dance and play string instruments until morning. Daytime events include cattle sacrifices, beef meals, horse races, wrestling bouts, and bullfights.

When and where

The celebration is held late in the sixth month of the traditional Yi lunar calendar, falling around August in the solar Gregorian calendar. In ancient times, it marked the summer Star Returning period, representing a seasonal New Year.

The festival is widespread across southwest China, especially in the Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture of Sichuan province. It is kept by Yi, Bai, Hani, Naxi, Lahu, and Pumi communities.

What Torch Festival means

Fire represents light, warmth, and purification. By sweeping torches through domestic rooms and farm plots, people seek to dispel pests, sickness, and malevolent ghosts while inviting good luck and an abundant harvest. The rituals also honour mythic defenders like Atilabia and reinforce shared community ties through collective nighttime dancing and sports.

Questions people ask about Torch Festival

See also

NowruzThe Iranian new year at the March equinox, kept with fire, greenery and picnicsMid-Autumn FestivalAn annual harvest festival celebrating family reunions, full moons and mooncakesSabantuyA summer festival of folk sports and feasting celebrated by Tatar, Bashkir, Chuvash, and Kazakh communities.Loy KrathongA Thai festival of floating leaf baskets on rivers to honor water and release negativity.

Good reading and sources

• Torch Festival on WikipediaEncyclopedia
• More photos on Wikimedia CommonsPhotos and video
• Wikidata recordOpen data

It may contain mistakes. Traditions differ from one family, village and community to the next, and the people who keep them know them best. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-04.