The origin of the Dragon Boat Festival

Dragon Boat Festival is held on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month every year. Various folk activities, such as offering sacrifices, entertainment and health care, all originate from the seasonal custom of expelling toxin and evil spirits, including offering sacrifices to Qu Yuan, commemorating Wu Zixu, inserting mugwort leaves, hanging calamus, drinking realgar wine, eating zongzi and racing dragon boats to eliminate the five poisons.

According to the historian Biography of Qu Yuan and Jia Sheng, Qu Yuan was a minister of Chu Huaiwang in the Spring and Autumn Period. He advocated the use of talents, empowerment, and prosperity, and advocated joint resistance to Qin, which was strongly opposed by others. Qu Yuan was forced to leave his post, was driven out of the capital and exiled to the Yuan and Xiang river basins. During his exile, he wrote immortal poems such as Li Sao, Tian Wen and Tian Wen, which have a unique style and far-reaching influence (therefore, the Dragon Boat Festival is also called the Poet's Day).

In 278 BC, Qin Jun conquered Kyoto of Chu. Seeing that his motherland was invaded, Qu Yuan was heartbroken, but he was always reluctant to give up his motherland. On May 5th, after writing his masterpiece Huai Sha, he died in Miluo River and wrote a magnificent patriotic movement with his own life.

Legend has it that after Qu Yuan's death, the people of Chu were so sad that they flocked to the Miluo River to pay homage to Qu Yuan. The fisherman paddled the boat and fished for his real body back and forth on the river. A fisherman took out rice balls, eggs and other foods prepared for Qu Yuan and threw them into the river, saying that ichthyosaurs, shrimps and crabs were full and would not bite the doctor. People followed suit after seeing it. An old doctor took an altar of realgar wine and poured it into the river, saying that he would stun the dragon water beast with medicine so as not to hurt Dr. Qu.

Later, people were afraid that rice balls would be eaten by dragons, so they came up with the idea of wrapping rice with neem leaves and then wrapping it with colored silk to make it develop into brown seeds. After that, on the fifth day of May every year, there is the custom of dragon boat racing, eating zongzi and drinking realgar wine. In memory of the patriotic poet Qu Yuan.

Extended data:

The word "Dragon Boat Festival" first appeared in the "Local Records" written by the famous minister of the Western Jin Dynasty at the beginning of Zhou Dynasty, which became an important reference for modern people to consult traditional festivals and customs such as Dragon Boat Festival. When did the Dragon Boat Festival originate? There have been different opinions and arguments for a long time. There are four main views on the origin of the Dragon Boat Festival: According to research, the custom of "dragon boat racing" existed long before Qu Yuan. Before the Spring and Autumn Period, there was a custom of holding tribal totem sacrifice in the form of dragon boat race on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month in Baiyue area of ancient south China.

Even in Qu Yuan's own poems, the custom of horse racing at that time can be reflected. For example, there is a saying in "Songs of the Chu River": "If you go to Yuan by boat, your country will be defeated. The ship is tolerant of not moving forward, and it is stagnation submerged by backwater. It's embarrassing in the morning and sunny at night. " Qu Yuan's long, narrow, light and small boat was essentially a boat used for the competition at that time.

References:

Dragon Boat Festival-Culture-People's Network