Who will be commemorated besides Qu Yuan during the Dragon Boat Festival?

The origin of the Dragon Boat Festival has its own origins, including Qu Yuan's theory, Wu Zixu's theory, Cao E's theory, the theory of exorcising evil days on the moon and wuyue's national totem festival, but Qu Yuan's theory is the most recognized.

To commemorate Qu Yuan

In 278 BC, Qin Jun conquered the capital of Chu. Seeing that his motherland was invaded, Qu Yuan was heartbroken. On May 5th, he threw himself into the Miluo River. After Qu Yuan's death, the people of Chu were heartbroken and flocked to the Miluo River to pay homage to Qu Yuan, and had the custom of racing dragon boats and eating zongzi on the Dragon Boat Festival.

In memory of Wu Zixu

Wu Zixu helped Wu to attack Chu, and suggested that the state of Yue be completely destroyed, but Fu Cha, the prince of Wu, did not listen. Zixu said to his neighbor, "When I die, I will gouge out my eyes and hang them on the east gate of Jason Wu to watch the Vietnamese army enter the city to destroy Wu" and then committed suicide. Therefore, it is said that the Dragon Boat Festival is also a day to commemorate Wu Zixu.

In memory of filial daughter Cao E

Cao E was a native of Shangyu in the Eastern Han Dynasty. Her father drowned in the river and didn't see her body for several days. At that time, Cao E, the filial daughter, was only fourteen years old, crying day and night by the river. 17 days later, he also threw himself into the river on May 5, and fished out his father's body five days later. Later, in order to commemorate Cao E's filial piety, Cao E Temple was built where Cao E threw himself into the river.

An evil day

In the pre-Qin period, it was generally believed that May was a poisonous month and the fifth was an evil day. According to legend, this day is evil, and the five poisons came out together. Until the Republic of China, there was a custom of "hiding from the Dragon Boat Festival" in society. Another folk activity of Dragon Boat Festival is developed to drive away disasters and evils. ?

Related to summer

Some scholars' research shows that the origin and formation of the Dragon Boat Festival is closely related to summer. 1983, in another theory of the origin of the Dragon Boat Festival, Mr. Liu Deqian believed that the Dragon Boat Festival originated from the summer solstice in the Xia, Shang and Zhou Dynasties. He quoted the first explanation of the Dragon Boat Festival in the famous landscape novel Year after Year: "The sun is shining, just in midsummer." In other words, the Dragon Boat Festival is in midsummer, so it can also be called "Midsummer Festival". ?

Many festivals in China correspond to solar terms. The Dragon Boat Festival and the summer solstice are a good example. The solstice in summer reminds people of the arrival of high temperature. There is plenty of sunshine and rain, which is beneficial to the growth of crops. At the same time, mosquitoes and flies begin to breed and epidemics prevail. The natural changes bounded by the summer solstice affected the production and life of ancient people. The level of science and technology was underdeveloped in the past. After people realized this phenomenon, they had to hold some kind of ceremony to remind this crucial day.