DRAGON BOAT FESTIVAL-CHINA

The Chinese celebration known as Dragon Boat Festival takes place on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, which on the Gregorian calendar is in late May or early June. The Dragon Boat Festival will take place on Thursday, June 22, 2023. From Thursday, June 22 through Saturday, June 24, China will be off for three days.

What Makes the Dragon Boat Festival Important?

Many people think that Qu Yuan, a prominent Chinese poet and minister noted for his patriotism and contributions to classical poetry who later became a national hero, is remembered at the Dragon Boat Festival.

However, there is proof that Qu Yuan’s passing occurred prior to the Dragon Boat Festival. The fifth lunar month, which the ancients referred to as “the month of poison,” is connected to its early history. People would easily get sick and diseases would develop during the first hot days of summer. Because of this, people in ancient times thought of the month as a crucial period to ward off illnesses and evil spirits.

As a result, the first perception of the Dragon Boat event was as a traditional event celebrating medicine and health. It is customarily a holiday where people (ceremonially) unite against illnesses and dangerous creatures.

How Is the Dragon Boat Festival Celebrated?

The traditions of the Dragon Boat Festival can be loosely divided into two groups. One is to offer sacrifices to dragon and hero gods like Qu Yuan. Dragon boat competitions and eating glutinous rice dumplings are among the events.

Another category tries to protect people from harm and maintain their health. The exercises involve hanging wormwood and calamus, taking herbal baths, and consuming realgar wine.

1.consuming sticky rice dumplings :

The most traditional dish served at the Dragon Boat Festival is called Zongzi (/dzong-dzuh/). According to a tradition connected to the memorial of Qu Yuan, lumps of rice (similar to zongzi) were placed into the river to prevent fish from consuming his drowned remains.

Sticky rice dumplings were a traditional present that every family used to make, give, receive, and consume. Today, only a few of the older, more traditional family members will bother to prepare their own meals, with the remainder being bought from bakeries and restaurants.

Zongzi are constructed of glutinous rice and stuffed with various ingredients, including meats and beans. They are encased in bamboo or reed leaves in triangle or rectangular forms, and then bound with soggy stalks or vibrant silken strands. In China, the flavours of zongzi typically vary from one location to the next. Study up on Zongzi.

2.consuming realgar wine :

There is an adage that states, “Realgar wine drives away diseases and evils!” Chinese realgar wine is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented cereals with realgar (a kind of arsenic sulphide that resembles ruby).

Realgar was regarded in antiquity as a poison antidote that could also be used to ward off bad spirits and kill insects. So, at the Dragon Boat Festival, everyone would sip on some red wine.

3.Racing dragon boats :

The Dragon Boat Festival’s main event is the dragon boat races. It is said to have its roots in a narrative about people setting out on boats to search for the remains of the nationalistic poet Qu Yuan (343–278 BC), who committed suicide by drowning in a river.

Another rationale exists. Dragon boat racing is thought to have originated more than 2,000 years ago as a form of devotion for the Dragon God or Water God.

The Chinese dragon is depicted in the shape and decoration of the wooden boats. The number of paddlers required varies by region and depends on the size of the boat. Teams of dragon boats race each other while paddling quickly and in unison to the beat of drums. The victorious team is expected to have good fortune and a happy life the following year.

4.chinese mugwort and calamus are hung :

At the beginning of the summer, when illnesses are more common, the Dragon Boat Festival takes place. In China, mugwort leaves are used as a medicine to treat several illnesses. Their scent keeps flies and insects away. Similar effects are exhibited by the aquatic plant calamus.

People typically clean their homes and courtyards on the fifth day of the fifth month and hang mugwort and calamus on door lintels to ward off illness. Additionally, it is believed that hanging calamus and mugwort will bring luck to the family.

5.wearing fragnance bags:

Parents typically provide scent pouches for their kids before Dragon Boat Festival. They make tiny bags out of vibrant silk fabric, stuff them with herbal remedies or scents, and then tie the pouches closed with silk threads.

During the Dragon Boat Festival, scent pouches are worn as decorations and wrapped around the necks of children. They are thought to be protected from evil by the scented bags.

How to say greetings on dragon boat festival ?

Did you know that, despite seeming quite natural, wishing someone a “Happy Dragon Boat Festival” (Dunwjié kuàilè) may not be appropriate? (This is as a result of the day’s sombre commemorating and evil-suppressing elements.)

More people are using the phrase “Safe and Healthy Dragon Boat Festival” as a greeting.