The Pingxi Sky Lantern Festival

平溪天灯节

Taiwan’s Pingxi Sky Lantern Festival takes place in February of each year.

台湾的平溪天灯节每年都于二月举行。

Originally designed to transmit military information, the lanterns began being used at the beginning of the spring planting season in Taiwan as a prayer（祈祷） for the upcoming year.

最初是用来传递军用情报的，之后，在来年的春种伊始之际，灯笼就被台湾人民用于祈祷。

They would write things like “May the harvests be bountiful（丰收）” and “May a son soon be born” before releasing them into the sky so they could rise up to the ancestors to pray for blessings.

在把灯放飞之前，他们会写些类似“希望丰收”、“求子”的话，这样一来，这些灯就可以升到祖先那，祈求庇佑。

Today this tradition is observed across the island, where thousands and thousands of lanterns are released and light up the sky.

如今，整个台湾岛都在庆祝这个传统节日，成千上万的天灯被放飞，照亮天空。

It’s simply a stunning（极好的） sight, and visitors travel from all over the world to witness it and take part, with everyone being encouraged to fly a lantern of their own.

这简直是个惊人的景象，世界各地的游客来此参观并参与其中，每个人都被鼓励着自己放一个天灯。

Besides the floating lanterns, there are also lantern parades（游行）, which involve huge lanterns, some more than 30 feet tall and playing their own music, being walked through the streets.

除了漂浮的天灯，还有灯笼游行，包括了巨大的灯笼，有些超过30英尺高，播放着自己的音乐，穿过街道。

They usually depict（描绘） the different animals of the Chinese Zodiac（十二生肖）, as well as images of historical figures, birds, and images of them on that year’s celebrations.

他们通常会描绘中国十二生肖里的动物，也会描绘历史人物、鸟类，以及他们自己在当年庆典中的样子。