The exact origins of Duan Wu are unclear, but one traditional
view holds that the festival memorializes the Chinese poet Qu Yuan (c. 340 BC-278 BC) of the Warring States Period. He committed suicide by drowning himself in a river because he was disgusted by the
corruption of the Chu government. The local people, knowing him to be a good man, decided to throw food into the river to feed the fish so they would not eat Qu's body. They also sat on long, narrow paddle boats called dragon boats, and tried to scare the fish away by the thundering sound of drums aboard the boat and the fierce looking carved dragon head on the boat's prow.
In the early years of the Chinese Republic, Duan Wu was also celebrated as
Today, people eat bamboo-wrapped steamed glutinous rice dumplings called zongzi (the food originally intended to feed the fish) and race dragon boats in memory of Qu's dramatic death.
The Dragon Boat Festival is celebrated (falls)on the fifth day of the fifthmonth of Chinese lunar calendar.
As one of the traditional Chinese festivals, it has been enjoying greatpopularity in honor of the Chinese great poet Qu Yuan living in the WarringStates Period. He committed suicide by drowning himself in Miluo River forpolitical reasons. The local people decided to throw a particular food called“Zongzi” into the river to prevent fish eating his body.
Today, people eat Zongzi, have dragon boat races and wear colorful threadsaround wrists to bring good luck. And now it has become one of the nationalholidays in China.
The Dragon Boat Festival ,also called the Duanwu Festival ,is celebrated onthe fifth day of the fifth month according to the Chinese le alwayseat rice dumplings and watch dragon boat races to celebrate it.
The festival is best known for its dragon-boat races,especially in thesouthern places where there are many rivers and lakes. It's very popular.
The rice dumpling is made of glutinous rice,meat and so on. You can eatdifferent kinds of rice are very Dragon BoatFestival is for Qu Yuan. He is an honest minister who is said to have committedsuicide by drowning himself in a river.
Overall, the Dragon Boat Festival is very interesting!
qu yuanthe dragon boat festival, also called the duanwu festival, is
celebrated on the fifth day of the fifth month according to the chinese calendar. for thousands of years, the festival has been marked by eating zong zi (glutinous rice wrapped to form a pyramid using bamboo or reed leaves) and racing dragon boats.the festival is best known for its dragon-boat races, especially in the southern provinces where there are many rivers and lakes. this regatta commemorates the death of qu yuan , an honest minister who is said to have committed suicide by drowning himself in a river.
qu was a minister of the state of chu situated in present-day hunan and hubei provinces, during the warring states period (475-221bc). he was upright, loyal and highly esteemed for his wise counsel that brought peace and prosperity to the state. however, when a dishonest and corrupt prince vilified qu, he was disgraced and dismissed from office. realizing that the country was now in the hands of evil and corrupt officials, qu grabbed a large stone and leapt into the miluo river on the fifth day of the fifth month. nearby fishermen rushed over to try and save him but were unable to even recover his body. thereafter, the state declined and was eventually conquered by the state of qin.
during the duanwu festival, a glutinous rice pudding called zong zi is eaten to symbolize the rice offerings to qu. ingredients such as beans, lotus seeds, chestnuts, pork fat and the golden yolk of a salted duck egg are often added to the glutinous rice. the pudding is then wrapped with bamboo leaves, bound with a kind of raffia and boiled in salt water for hours.
the dragon-boat racesthe dragon-boat races symbolize the many attempts to rescue and recover qus body. a typical dragon boat ranges from 50-100 feet in length, with a beam of about 5.5 feet, accommodating two paddlers seated side by side.
a wooden dragon head is attached at the bow, and a dragon tail at the stern.
a banner hoisted on a pole is also fastened at the stern and the hull is decorated with red, green and blue scales edged in gold. in the center of the boat is a canopied shrine behind which the drummers, gong beaters and cymbal players are seated to set the pace for the paddlers. there are also men positioned at the bow to set off firecrackers, toss rice into the water and pretend to be looking for qu. all of the noise and pageantry creates an atmosphere of gaiety and excitement for the participants and spectators alike. the races are held among different clans, villages and organizations, and the winners are awarded medals, banners, jugs of wine and festive meals.
Today is the Dragon Boat Festival, but I don't know the origin of theDragon Boat Festival. Mother told me that, during the warring states period, chuqu yuan, a minister, SIMS speak ill of qu yuan to the emperor, the emperor nolonger trust of qu yuan and his exiled to the distance, he jumped river beingthe very sad. In order to commemorate him, the common people threw food into theriver and formed the Dragon Boat Festival.
Dragon Boat Festival we eat zongzi, tie the colorful rope, dragon boat,what a busy and remarkable!
Do you like Dragon Boat Festival? Don't forget to study qu yuan'spatriotism when eating zongzi!