The Traditions of the Oixi Festival
2 min readThe Qixi Festival,also known as the the Qiqiao Festival,is a Chinese festival that celebrates the annual meeting of the cowherd and weaver girl in Chinese mythology .It falls on the seventh day of the 7th month on the Chinese calendar.It is sometimes called the Double Seventh Festival,the Chinese Valentine’s Day.It has been celebrated since the Han Dynasty.
The festival originated from the romantic legend of two lovers, Niulang and Zhinv,who were called the cowherd and the weaver maid respectively.As the story goes,an honest cowherd lived alone with an old ox.His ox told him of a secret pond where the fairies bathed.If the cowherd took one of their clothes,the fairy would be unable to escape and become his wife.As it happened, the girl happened to be the seventh,youngest and most beautiful, daughter of the Emperor of Heaven.Soon they fell in love,married and lived happily.The cowherd cultivated the land and the weaver Spun the clothing.But the Emperor of Heaven was angered and ordered the Queen Mother to bring their daughter back.The cowherd came home to find the weaver gone.The cowherd went to heaven to find his wife,but a large river blocked his way.The birds made a bridge for them to walk on.This bridge is known as the Magpie Bridge.The Queen Mother felt guilty and agreed they could see each other once a year on July 7th on the lunar calendar.
On the Qixi Festival in some parts of Shandong Province,young women offered fruit and pastries to pray for a bright mind. In other regions,seven close friends put a needle,a copper coin and a red date into three separate dumplings to represent perfect Needlework skills,good fortune and an early marriage.
