The legend of the Dragon Boat Festival

端午节的传说故事

1.Qu Yuan jumped off river

屈原投江

In order to commemorate¹ patriotic² poet Qu Yuan who jumped into the Miluo river, and avoid his body to be eaten by fish and shrimp³, so people cast many of bamboo rice (rice dumplings) in the river, and compete to row (acetate ship) hoping to find the body of Qu yuan.

为了纪念爱国诗人屈原，居民为了不让跳下汨罗江的屈原尸体被鱼虾吃掉，所以在江里投下许多用竹叶包裹的米食（粽子），并且竞相划船（赛龙船）希望找到屈原的尸体。

2.Cao E looked for her father’s corpse⁴

曹娥寻父尸

Cao E, dutiful girl of the eastern Han dynasty, whose father drowned in the river when she was 14-year old. She cried along the river, still didn’t see his father’s corpse after 17 days, and she jumped into the river on May 1st as well, after five days the two corpses⁵ folded together and float. That was a moving story, so people in the township worship her.

东汉孝女曹娥，因曹父溺江而亡，年仅十四岁的她沿江豪哭，经十七日仍不见曹父尸首，乃在五月一日投江，五日后两尸合抱而浮起的感人事迹， 乡人群而祭之。

3.Madam White Snake

白蛇传

The legend of white snake Bai Suzhen, in order to repay Xu Xian , fell in love with him and finally got married. On the day of the Dragon Boat Festival white snake drink realgar wine, almost reveal herself snakelike, and among the white snake, Fa Hai and water logging Jinshan temple , are popular folk opera repertoire⁶.

传说白蛇白素贞，为了报答许仙的恩惠，与许仙结为夫妻的凄美的爱情故事。端午节当天白蛇喝了雄黄酒，差点现出蛇形，加上法海白蛇及水淹金山寺的情节，都是脍炙人口的民间戏曲的曲目。

4.Wu Zixu's death anniversary

伍子胥的忌日

It’s a legend that after He Lu ,the king of Wu died , the prince Fuchai ascended⁷ the throne, send armed forces to suppress Yue and won. Goujian ,the king of Yue please reconciliation⁸ , Fuchai didn’t listen but agreed treacherous⁹ official and judged Wu Zixu commit suicide. And jumped his body into river on May 5, since then people commemorated¹⁰ him on Dragon Boat Festival.

传说伍子胥助吴伐楚后，吴王阖闾逝世，皇子夫差继位，伐越大胜，越王勾践请和，伍子胥主张和，夫差不听，却听信奸臣言，赐伍子胥自杀，并于于五月五日将尸体投入江中，此后人们于端午节祭祀伍子胥。