The Double Ninth Festival,the Festival ofthe Elderly
2 min readThe Elder’s Day is the Double-Ninth Festival,the 9th day of 9th lunar month.Chinese callthis festival Chung-Yang Jie.The Elder’s Day was re-establishedby the Republic of China(Taiwan)in 1974.This is because thegovernment wanted to teach the youth respect for the elderly.Today.the mayors in the major cities in Taiwan will visit thehouses of senior citizens on the Double Nineth Day to ensure thatthe next generation will remember this festival.
The new generation in China do not celebrate this festival,because this is not a fun day for young people.So people forgetthe legend.The story of the Double-Ninth Festival began in theHan Dynasty.One person,called Mr.Chai(around 50-150 B.C.),who lived in the palace liked to wear dogwood(leaf)and drinkchrysanthemum wine in the 9th lunar month.He said that the dogwood can warn people ofimpending disaster and that they would live longer after drinking chrysanthemum wine in the9th lunar month.
The chrysanthemum flower is the prettiest flower in the 9th lunar month.Indeed,the othername of the 9th lunar month is chrysanthemum month.The best chrysanthemum wine is madefrom the 9th month fiowers.It is hard to find dogwood in town.So,people might go to the hillsto find dogwood.At the same time they might visit their ancestors’tombs in the hills and cleanthem up as they do during the Qing-Ming Festival.In later times,people only visited the tombsduring the Qing-Ming Festival and went to the hills for hiking during the Double-Ninth Festivallike today.Hiking to the hill means getting higher in one’s career.Traditionally,Chinese madeChung-Yang cake during the festival,because Chinese pronounce cake and high with the samesound.Today not too many Chinese make the cake anymore.
Since it is so beautiful,artists like to paint the chrysanthemum in the 9th lunar month andpoets like to make poems on the night of the Double-Ninth Festival.
It is customary,on the day of the Double-Ninth Festival,for Chinese to hike on the hill.During the evening they should carry a bag of dogwood and go to a Double-Ninth Festival party.They drink the chrysanthemum wine,watch the chrysanthemums and talk about paintings andpoetry.
Today,Chinese don’t have the time to celebrate this festival,since this is not a nationalholiday in China.In Taiwan,some people will fly kites in competitions during that weekend,because it is usually windy in the 9th lunar month.
