一先令The Dragon Boat Festival 端午节简介

2021年1月11日发(作者：蒋经国)
The Dragon Boat Festival
Good morning, everyone. The day after tomorrow is a special
day. Can you guess what it is?
Yes. So I’m going to introduce to you this festival in detail.
The Dragon Boat Festival is one of the three major Chinese
traditional festivals, along with the Spring Festival and the
Mid-autumn Festival. Of the three, it is possibly the oldest one,
dating back to the Warring States Period in 227 B.C. The
Dragon Boat Festival, also called the Duanwu Festival, is
celebrated on the fifth day of the fifth month according to the
Chinese calendar, which commemorates the great patriotic poet
Qu Yuan for his devotion to his native state.
The legend of Qu Yuan
Qu was a minister of the State of Chu situated in present-day
Hunan province and Hubei province, during the Warring States
Period (475-221BC)（战国时期）. He was upright, loyal and
highly esteemed for his wise counsel that brought peace and
prosperity to the state. However, when a dishonest and corrupt
prince vilified Qu, he was disgraced and dismissed from office.
Realizing that the country was now in the hands of evil and
corrupt officials, Qu grabbed a large stone and leaped into the
Miluo River on the fifth day of the fifth month. Nearby
fishermen rushed over to try and save him but were unable to
even recover his body. Thereafter, the state declined and was
eventually conquered by the State of Qin.

The people of Chu who mourned the death of Qu threw rice into
the river to feed his ghost every year on the fifth day of the fifth
month. But one year, the spirit of Qu appeared and told the
mourners that a huge reptile（爬行动物）in the river had stolen
the rice. The spirit then advised them to wrap the rice in silk and
bind it with five different-colored threads before tossing it into
the river.
Customs
Among these customs are dragon boat racing, eating zongzi, and
tying five- colour silk thread.
Eating Zongzi
It is a tradition to eat zongzi, pyramid-shaped dumplings made
of sticky rice wrapped in bamboo or reed leaves, with different
fillings added for interest. In the north part of china, people
favor the jujube as filling, while the south sweetened bean paste,
fresh meat, or egg yolk. Many families make zongzi by
themselves. When they make it, soaking the glutinous rice,
washing the reed or bamboo leaves and wrapping zongzi with
leaves are the most important parts.
Tying Five-colored Silk Thread
Another custom is to tie five-colored silk tread to a child's wrists,
ankles, and around their neck. five-colored thread holds special
significance in China in that it is thought to contain magical and
healing properties. Children are not permitted to speak while
their parents tie the five-colored thread for them, neither are
they allowed to remove it until the specified time. Only after the
first summer rainfall can the children throw the thread into the
river. This is thought to protect the children from plague and
diseases.
Dragon Boat Racing
Local people honor the memory of Qu Yuan on this day by
holding dragon-boat races. It is said that the boat races were
regarded as a symbol of the people’s attempt to rescue Qu Yuan.
For a long time now they have been a popular sport. China has a
long history of making big wooden boats sport. The prow is a
carved dragon’s head, and the body id made in a dragon-like
shape or following the design of fish, birds or shrimp. It is
painted red, yellow, black or white according to the taste of the