Dragon Boat Festival

Today is the Dragon Boat Festival. It’s a legal holiday so, it’s a day off. I tried looking up what this holiday is about but, I found the internet confusing. Apparently, depending on where you are in China, there are three possible reasons for this holiday.

Qu Yuan

From what I’ve read and been told, Qu Yuan’s story is the most commonly cited story for the Dragon Boat Festival.

Basically, Qu Yuan was a poet and government official, from the ancient state of Chu, who opposed an alliance with another state, Qin. After the alliance went through, he was banished. During his banishment, Qu Yuan wrote a lot of poetry and gained respect and fame from those around him. Eventually, Qin overtook Chu. Distraught, Qu Yuan committed suicide by drowning himself in a river. (Although, I have also been told that the drowning was accidental.) When the locals heard Qu Yuan went into the river, they raced their dragon boats out to save him. When they couldn’t find him, they dropped zongzi (sticky rice balls) into the river so the fish wouldn’t eat and desecrate Qu Yuan’s body before the people could find it.

Wu Zixu

Wu Zixu was an advisor to the king. He gave the king some advice and the king ignored it. Apparently, he really pressed this advice and the king accused him of sabotage. So, Wu Zixu was forced to commit suicide. His body was later thrown into the river. When it turned out that Wu Zixu was right and not a traitor, the king was upset and committed suicide.

Cao E

Cao E is a girl who is considered a model for filial piety. Her father was their area’s local shaman. The story says that while her father was performing a ceremony for Wu Zixu, he fell into the river. Cao E went into the river to save him. Apparently, she looked for three days. On the fifth day, their bodies were found together. Both drowned.

From my research, it doesn’t matter which story you believe started the holiday. People seem to celebrate the same way, regardless of the story. The main way to celebrate is to make zongzi, a sticky rice dumpling. People also participate in dragon boat races. All in all, it’s a rather laid back holiday.

Zongzi - My Chinese co-teacher made the dumpling by the blue arrow. I made the dumpling by the red arrow. It's hard to wrap everything up nicely. As you can see, my co-teacher's leaf wrapped dumpling is even and triangular. Mine is definitely not. 

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Watch someone who knows what she's doing make zongzi.

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