Guest Author - Caroline Baker

The Dragon Boat Festival is one of the major events that begins to summer season in Chinese culture. Celebrated on the fifth day of the fifth month of the lunar calendar, it is also referred to as the Double-Five Day.

On this day, long “dragon boats” are raced. The ceremony begins with a solemn ceremony to awaken the Dragon King to bring about rain for the crops and keep away misfortune. Come of these ceremonies were violent in nature, requiring sacrifices. However, one in particular stands out as part of the awakening ceremony, the “dotting f the eyes”. This was based on a Taoist legend that told of a painter who drew a beautiful and realistic dragon, but refused the dot the eyes. When asked why, he explained he feared doing so would bring the dragon to live. He was asked by the Emperor to complete the drawing and dot the eyes, which immediately brought about an awakening of the painting. The dragon literally flew off his paper and became real.

These boats, holding around 20 or more paddlers, are normally around 40 to 100 feet long. They are often decorated in bright, colorful designs, most notable is the dragon head at the front and tail at the end. At the head of the boat, a drummer sits who beats out the rhythm to which the rowers will proceed. The boats themselves are built of bamboo or hollowed logs and have two points on the bottom, like a “W”. (Most canoe-type boats tend to only have one and are shaped like a “V”.) Competitors will either race from one end of a river to another or race to collect flags at the finish line.

In addition to the races, it is common to celebrate the holiday by eating zongzi. Zongzi are sticky rice stuffed with meats, eggs, nuts, and beans and wrapped in bamboo leaves. They are tasty dishes that resemble the Mexican tamale and are eaten throughout the year. Some legends claim that in time of war, these bundles of rice were used to smuggle information across enemy lines.

For this holiday though, the zongzi are related to one of the legends behind the festival. Qu Yuan, a minister and poet living during the time Period of Warring States (475-221 BC), was a champion of political integrity. When he was exiled by corrupt politicians and then learned his state would fall, he committed suicide by drowning in the river. Commoners were so moved by his dedication and loyalty that they quickly paddled out to save him. They used the drum and the splashing of their paddles to scare away hungry fish and tossed zongzi into the river in hopes to keep the braver fish from eating Qu Yuan.

The time of the celebration is picked specifically because the hot months are coming up, a time of many diseases and death. Before antibiotics and modern refrigeration were common, the increase temperature would provide conditions favorable for bacteria growth and birth of disease carrying insects. In addition, droughts during this time could ruin all the crops for the year.

Today, the Dragon Boat Festival is celebrated around the world, in many Asian communities. Teams these days spend years preparing for the race and even participate in organizations such as the International Dragon Boat Federation. Dragon Boat races are held starting in June and going into some time in October.

In 2005, the official date of the Dragon Boat Festival (Double-Five) is June 11.