The seventh lunar month’s seventh day is the Chinese traditional Qixi Festival.
The Qixi Festival is a traditional Chinese folk festival traced back to ancient times. It has become a traditional festival in the Song Dynasty. Now it’s Chinese Valentine’s Day. How much do you know about the origin of the Qixi Festival?
1. The legend of Altair and Vega
In ancient times, people had begun to observe astronomy. At that time, the environment was still relatively good, and it was not like the current night sky where the stars could not be seen, because Altair and Vega were located in the southernmost and northernmost parts of the sky, respectively. , and the two brightest stars, separated by a wavy Milky Way, so ancient people who liked to pursue order turned these two stars and the Milky Way into objects of worship, which is also the origin of the Qixi Festival.
2. Overlapping numbers mean good things
People in ancient China were very concerned about the integration of heaven and ground, and they would celebrate special days like January 1, February 2, March 3, May 5, and June 6, because they thought these days were the time that heaven and ground connecting together. Seven is a lucky number in China, so the day of double seven is being worshiped.
3. The folk story of the cowherd and the weaver girl
Nowadays, people believe that the origin of the Qixi Festival is the story of Dong Yong and Zhinv meeting together. It is said that although Dong Yong is a mortal, he is kind and hardworking. When the Queen Mother’s Seven Fairies took a bath, Dong Yong accidentally stole the youngest fairy-the Weaver Girl’s clothes so that the Weaver Girl couldn’t return to heaven. She fell in love with Dong Yong afterward. She had children in the mortal world. The Queen Mother was furious when she found out, so the mother took the Weaver Girl back to heaven. Dong Yong’s old cow was able to speak, “if you want to see your wife, cut off my horns, the horns can fly to the sky.” Dong Yong brought his son and daughter and went to chase the Weaver Girl. When he was about to meet the Weaver Girl, the Queen Mother used her gold hairpin to make a sky river. And they couldn’t meet due the length of the river.
This is why when we look up at Altair and Vega, there will be a Milky Way separating them apart. It has nothing to do with legends. It is a beautiful conjecture of the ancients about the Qixi Festival. The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl sat on the opposite bank and cried, and magpies worldwide moved together to be a bridge to make them meet. This mythical story is the most well-known version of the origin of the Qixi Festival.
At the Qixi Festival, we wish you and your love can have a lovely day. And the love and passion between you two could last forever.
