Sacrificing the moon originated from people's worship of the moon in early ancient times. Later, the moon was personified as a celestial body and became the moon god. The royal family in past dynasties called Luna the luminous god, and after the rise of Taoism, Luna was called the King of Luna. But most people think that the moon god is a woman, especially Chang 'e, calling her a moon aunt or sister.
As the evolution of seasonal ritual, offering sacrifices to the moon has been incorporated into the ancient royal ritual and routine ritual, and there is no news of offering sacrifices to the moon among the people. As the god of heaven and earth who represents Yin and Yang, only Wang Jiacai can communicate with him, and offering sacrifices to the moon has become a royal patent.
In the ritual system of ancient emperors, there were two festivals in the Spring and Autumn Period: the Spring Festival for the sun and the Mid-Autumn Festival for the moon. According to historical records, as early as the Zhou Dynasty, ancient emperors had the custom of offering sacrifices to the sun at the vernal equinox, to the earth at the summer solstice, to the moon at the autumnal equinox, and to heaven at the winter solstice. Its places of worship are called Ritan, Ditan, Yuetan and Tiantan. It is located in four directions: southeast and northwest. The Moon Altar in Beijing was built during Jiajing period of Ming Dynasty, and it was used to worship the moon. The ritual system of sacrificing the moon here was passed down in Ming and Qing Dynasties.
With the development of society, it also gradually affects people. Imitating the ancient emperors' social system of offering sacrifices to the sun in spring and the moon in autumn, folks also have the custom of offering sacrifices to the moon in the Mid-Autumn Festival. Later, it was more important to enjoy the moon than to sacrifice it, and serious sacrifice turned into light entertainment. The custom of enjoying the moon in the Mid-Autumn Festival prevailed in the Tang Dynasty, and many poets wrote poems about the moon in their masterpieces. In the Song, Ming and Qing Dynasties, Yue Bai's court and folk activities to enjoy the moon were even larger.