What are the origins and customs of Valentine's Day in China?

China Valentine's Day, also known as Qiaoqi Festival, Qijie Festival, Daughter's Day, Beggar's Day, Chinese Valentine's Day, Niuniu Festival and Qiaoxi Festival, is a traditional folk festival in China. Valentine's Day in China, which originated from the worship of stars, is Seven Sisters's birthday in the traditional sense. Because of the worship of Seven Sisters on the seventh day of July, it was named Tanabata. It is the traditional custom of Qixi to worship the seven sisters, pray, seek skillful art, sit and watch morning glory and weave stars, pray for marriage and store water on Qixi.

First, customs and habits

The custom of begging for cleverness on Valentine's Day in China began in the Han Dynasty.

On a clear summer and autumn night, the sky is full of stars, and a galaxy runs across the north and south. On the east and west banks of the Milky Way, there is a shining star across a river, that is Altair and Vega. It is a traditional folk custom to sit and watch morning glory and Vega on Qixi night.

According to folklore, the weaver girl is a beautiful, clever and ingenious fairy when the cowherd and the magpie bridge meet in the sky on Tanabata night every year. On this night, the girls put the fruits and vegetables of the season in front of the bright moon in the sky, and worshipped in the sky, begging the goddess in the sky to give them smart hearts and dexterous hands.

Let yourself master the skill of knitting needle and thread, and beg for the happiness of love and marriage. Countless sentient men and women in the world will pray for a happy marriage at the stars on this night, when the night is already quiet.

Second, inheritance and development.

In ancient times, Tanabata was indeed closely related to the legend of Cowherd and Weaver Girl, but it was a comprehensive festival with women as the main body. On this day, women will visit close friends in the boudoir, worship the weaver girl, learn embroidery and pray for good luck, so Tanabata is also called "Daughter's Day".

In the days when women are willing to compete and have fun, men also get together to enjoy it. The engagement between men and women is only a by-product of the "Daughter's Day" incident. The written custom of Qixi was first seen in the Book of Songs (mid-Spring and Autumn Period).

Among the Qixi customs, the longest and widest one is "begging for cleverness". The ancients attached great importance to the annual begging custom. On Qixi night, young girls and women should put on seasonal fruits prepared in advance.

Face the bright moon and worship the sky. They will also hold various begging ceremonies, sincerely praying that the Weaver Girl God will give them dexterous hands and pray that they can get a happy marriage match.