All About Dragon Boat Fest: Traditions, Food, and the Elusive Dragon Boat Race

Dragon Boat Festival (龙船节 lóngchuán jié or 端午节 duānwǔ jié), which falls on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month (Jun 3 this year), has been observed in one form or another for close to 2,000 years. The holiday originated as a way for people to admonish evil spirits and diseases during the fifth lunar month, which is traditionally considered unlucky and potentially filled with natural disasters and death.

Nowadays, however, the holiday has taken on a more celebratory tone and is used to commemorate the life of the scholar and poet Qu Yuan, who lived between 340 and 278 BC during the State of Chu. The story goes that when the State of Qin was planning to overtake the Chu, Qu Yuan stepped up and devised a plan to strengthen the Chu’s military forces. Sadly, many of Chu's aristocrats opposed Qu Yuan's idea and eventually exiled him. As a result, the Qin successfully conquered the Chu and upon seeing the defeat of his people, a heartbroken Qu Yuan drowned himself in Hunan's Miluo River.

While this story has a rather bleak ending for our protagonist, the people of Chu admired Qu Yuan’s efforts and fought to preserve the scholar’s honor. Upon learning of his suicide, they ran to the river and threw rice and wine into it, hoping to prevent fish from eating his body while fisherman set sail up and down the river to search for his body, which is where the tradition of dragon boat racing (龙舟大赛 lóngzhōu dàsài) comes from. Nowadays these involve 20-plus rowers racing to the finish line in colorful dragon boats to the rhythmic beating of a drum.

Meanwhile, both rice and alcohol are now customary foods to consume during the holiday, the latter in the form of 粽子 zòngzi, sticky rice stuffed with sweet or savory fillings wrapped in argy wormwood or bamboo leaves and then steamed, and the latter as realgar wine (雄黃酒 xiónghuángjiǔ).

If you want to buy zongzi in Beijing, you can't go wrong with the time-honored brand Wufangzhai (五芳斋 wǔ fāng zhāi) or head to your local baozi joint, which will likely be steaming them on the side. Or, if you’re more of a DIY type, click here for an authentic zongzi recipe.

Other customs include hanging mugwort leaf and calamus (both plants have curative properties) on doors, an allusion to how Chinese farmers used to drive pests away during the ‘poisonous’ harvest months.

Pests were also believed to bring harm to children’s health during this time, so to ward off disease, elders will make incense bags from calamus, wormwood, and realgar among other naturally pungent plants. These so-called 'fragrant pouches' are given to children to wear around their necks so as to keep evil spirits at bay.

You may even see pictures of legendary Chinese exorcist and sword enthusiast Zhong Kui hung up during this time, another means to scare away evil spirits and protect people from the poisonous air.

While Dragon Boat Festival is riddled with negative superstitions, in modern days it is a time to celebrate and pay respects to old customs and figures in Chinese history. Not to mention a chance to relax and unwind courtesy of that most contemporary of traditions – a much-deserved long weekend.

READ: Think Twice Before Saying “Happy Dragon Boat Festival” in Chinese

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Photos: chinatouradvisors, studyinchina, junglekey, whatsonxiamen, aliexpress, thebeijinger, courtesy of organizers