Chinese Valentines Day

[david_dawei]

Chinese Valentine's Day is on the 7th day of the 7th lunar month in the Chinese calendar.

In China time zone,

Year 2011 is on August 6, 2011

Year 2012 is on August 23, 2012

Year 2013 is on August 13, 2013

Year 2014 is on August 2, 2014

 

Now is your chance to mark a few years going forward... last minute mop slap averted in 2011 by this thread???

[david_dawei]

Origin

 

The legend has been handed down for nearly 2 millennia. The story has been recorded as far back as the Jin Dynasty (256-420 AD). Poets composed hundreds of verses on the love story and many types of Chinese opera tell the story.

 

The Chinese people believe that the star Vega, east of the Milky Way, is Zhi Nu and, at the constellation of Aquila, on the western side of the Milky Way, Niu Lang waits for his wife.

 

Zhi Nu was said to be the youngest of seven daughters of the Queen of Heaven. With her sisters, she worked hard to weave beautiful clouds in the sky, while Niu Lang was a poor orphan cowherd, driven out of his home by his elder brother and his cruel wife.

 

Niu Lang lamented over his lonely and poor life with an old cow, his only friend and companion. The magical cow kindly told him of a way to find a beautiful and nice woman as his life companion.

 

Under the direction of the cow, Niu Lang went to the riverside on an evening, where the seven fairies slipped out of their heavenly palace to bathe.

 

He took one of the beautiful silk dresses the fairies had left on the bank. When the fairies left the water, the youngest couldn't find her clothes and had to see her sisters fly back to heaven without her.

 

Then Niu Lang came out with the dress and asked the youngest fairy, Zhi Nu, to stay with him.

 

Several years passed on Earth, which were only a few days in heaven. Niu Lang and Zhi Nu lived happily together and had two children before the Queen of Heaven discovered Zhi Nu's absence.

 

She was so annoyed she had Zhi Nu brought back to heaven. Seeing his beloved wife flying in the sky, Niu Lang was terrified. He caught sight of the cowhide hanging on a wall. The magical cow had told him before dying of old age: "Keep the cowhide for emergency use."

 

Putting the cowhide on, he went after his wife with his two children.

 

With the help of the cowhide, Niu Lang was able to follow Zhi Nu into heaven. He was about to reach his wife when the Queen showed up and pulled off her hairpin to draw a line between the two. The line became the Silver River in heaven, or the Milky Way.

 

Zhi Nu went back to the heavenly workshop, going on weaving the clouds. But she was so sad, and missed her husband across the Silver River so much that the clouds she weaved seemed sad. Finally, the Queen showed a little mercy, allowing the couple to meet once every year on the Silver River.

 

Celebration

 

The seventh day of the seventh lunar month is the only Chinese festival devoted to love in the Lunar calendar.

 

Unlike St. Valentine's Day in Western countries there is not so much emphasis on giving chocolates, flowers and kisses. Instead, Chinese girls prepare fruits, melons and incense as offerings to Zhi Nu, the weaving maiden, praying to acquire high skills in needlecraft, as well as hoping to find satisfactory husbands.

 

In the evening, people sit outdoors to observe the stars. Chinese grannies would say that, if you stand under a grapevine, you can probably overhear what Zhi Nu and Niu Lang are talking about.

 

 

Source: http://www.herongyang.com/chinese/festivals/chinese_valentine.html

Edited August 6, 2011 by david_dawei (see edit history)

[david_dawei]

Which one is you ? B)

 

http://www.chinesenewyear.me/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/chinese-valentines-day-2011_thumb.jpg

 

 

http://www.chinesenewyear.me/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/chinese-valentines-day_thumb.jpg

 

http://www.asianramblings.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/08/chinese-valentines-day.jpg

 

http://www.qingdaonese.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/chinesevalentinesdaycowherder.jpg

 

http://puzzles-games.eu/data/media/3/Chinese-Valentines-Day-Wallpaper.jpg

[chilton747]

The way my wife just told the story, can you guess what the couple did when they met every year? Yes we celebrated all right.

Edited August 6, 2011 by chilton747 (see edit history)

[david_dawei]

The way my wife just told the story, can you guess what the couple did when they met every year? Yes we celebrated all right.

But if I post that picture it will get deleted by another mod

[chilton747]

The way my wife just told the story, can you guess what the couple did when they met every year? Yes we celebrated all right.

But if I post that picture it will get deleted by another mod

I wouldn't dare post it either. The picture stays in my mind where it belongs.

[Mick]

Thanks for sharing the details of that story and the holiday, David. I think it will add a lot to many of our members' holiday.

[NickF]

I knew about it because ChunMei told me on the 6th. About an hour before our wedding.

[chilton747]

I knew about it because ChunMei told me on the 6th. About an hour before our wedding.

 

 

Just in time!! Congrats!!! Now it will be your responsibility to remember it next year.

[Kyle]

I knew about it because ChunMei told me on the 6th. About an hour before our wedding.

 

 

Just in time!! Congrats!!! Now it will be your responsibility to remember it next year.

Naw, you can just depend on David to remind all of us again next year!

[Henry and Mei]

Already in the habit of learning as much about the Chinese culture and special events as possible. So thanks for the insight.

 

Wished my wife a Happy Valentine's Day and she looked at me funny...Okay that isn't unusual but I already had my calendar marked. And proof positive by showing her this thread.

So a lot of fun having a jump on her this year, but I am sure my moment of being correct will be short-lived.

 

Time for mooncake.