Tujia@Dragon Boat Festival
The Dragon Boat Festival, also known as Duanyang Festival, Chongwu Festival, Dragon Boat Festival, Zhengyang Festival, Yulan Festival, Tianzhong Festival, etc., is a traditional Chinese folk festival.
The Dragon Boat Festival originated in China. It was originally a festival for the ancient ancestors to worship the dragon ancestors in the form of dragon boat races. Because it is said that Qu Yuan, a poet of the Chu State during the Warring States Period, committed suicide by bouldering and jumping into the Miluo River during the Dragon Boat Festival. Later, people also regarded the Dragon Boat Festival as a festival to commemorate Qu Yuan.
Adults will go up the mountain to pick zongzi leaves a few days in advance, and soak them in water to keep them hydrated. If you pick too much, give some to your relatives, or take it to the city to sell.
Looking at the zongzi leaves, I can smell the aroma of zongzi.
Palm leaves are indispensable. It can't be used directly, it needs to be scalded in boiling water, so that the palm leaves can be tied firmly. Strange to say, rice dumplings tied with brown leaves are more fragrant than those tied with ropes.
On the day of the Dragon Boat Festival, soak the glutinous rice that has been preserved for a long time in a basin with cold water. The children sat around their mothers and watched their every move. I saw my mother skillfully lay two zongzi leaves flat, fold them into a cone shape in the palm of her left hand, and then grab a handful of rice in the basin with her right hand and throw them in. If she was more particular, she would put them in the rice. A red date or peanuts, red beans and the like. The leaves were folded back and forth in my mother's hands, and a triangular cone shape appeared, and then tied with a thread, a beautiful zongzi was ready.
In the past, it was filled with pure glutinous rice, but now that the economy is developed, in addition to the various beans mentioned above, there are also expensive ingredients such as egg yolks and meat fillings. Of course the flavors are fantastic.
Eating zongzi has always been my favorite, and perhaps the fragrant lotus leaf taste is more like the Dragon Boat Festival.
Artemisia mugwort, also known as Artemisia annua, our Tujia people call Artemisia Artemisia is a kind of herbaceous plant. Artemisia argyi is closely related to the Tujia nationality's Dragon Boat Festival. The Tujia nationality's customs on the Dragon Boat Festival are different from other ethnic groups besides eating rice dumplings and dragon boat racing. Picked mugwort in the wild and stuck it on doors and windowsills, it is said that it can ward off evil spirits and repel mosquitoes. Therefore, the Tujia people have a saying that "you don't put mugwort at the door, and it will turn into black shoots (a kind of snake) after death". Then store the dried mugwort for later use.
In the past, the Tujia Dragon Boat Festival also had to drink realgar wine, which is said to drive away evil spirits, avoid disasters, and prevent snake bites. On the morning of the Dragon Boat Festival, the first thing the housewife does after washing her face is to make realgar wine (traditional Chinese medicine realgar plus garlic, soaked in high-quality grain wine), and put it on the ears and face of the baby as soon as she emerges from the bed. Wipe it on your face and nose, and give the little baby courage while wiping it: "In the future, insects and snakes will not dare to approach you."
Walking in the Wujiang National Wetland Park along the river these days, you can see the turbulent Wujiang torrent everywhere. The team members wear yellow "life jackets", hold wooden paddles, concentrate on waving the paddles in response to the rhythm of the drums, and shout With a loud chant, they rowed forward with all their strength, "one two one two", "hey hoo hoo", sonorous and powerful voices resounded through Yuanxiao, and the moving dragon boat and the beautiful scenery on the shore complement each other, forming a beautiful landscape .
The team members are preparing for the 2021 Dragon Boat Festival Dragon Boat Race. In order to achieve a good result on the Dragon Boat Festival, they have to train for a long time in advance.
You can take a rest while going down the water.
Now there are many people on the shore watching, some even shouting and cheering.
Previous Dragon Boat Festival Dragon Boat Races
The following are the previous dragon boat races. Isn’t it very lively and grand?
"The Wujiang River is full of jubilation and singing, and the dragon boat races show their glory." Dragon boat racing along the river has a long history and has formed a unique dragon boat culture. It has been included in the fourth batch of provincial-level intangible cultural heritage protection lists in Guizhou Province. In recent years, in order to inherit and carry forward the traditional culture, enrich and activate the festival cultural life of urban and rural people, and demonstrate the hardworking, pragmatic and positive spirit of the people in the county, the county holds dragon boat races every year. The spirit of competition at the head of the tide inspires the people of the county to maintain unity and forge ahead with enthusiasm for work and entrepreneurial passion, to gather strength, seize opportunities, and forge ahead, to build Yanhe into the most beautiful "river city" on the bank of Wujiang River, the brightest Pearl, constantly improving the external image of the county, and writing a new chapter for the happy tomorrow of the people of the county.
The majestic Wuling Mountains and the vast Wujiang River, in this season of singing, singing, singing, swallows and dancing, and luxuriant trees, there are crowds of people on both sides of the Wujiang River. The participating dragon boats competed with each other on the river and fought bravely against the current. Let all the audience witness a live version of a "power contest" on the water.
A team is basically composed of a street or a village. After the competition, they will return to each street and village with prizes or bonuses, and organize the whole village to gather together and have a long table feast with laughter and laughter, which is very lively.
Wujiang Gorge——Lizhi Gorge
When you come to Yanhe, you must want to visit the mysterious Lizhi Gorge, and I will send you a few photos of the canyon. Come for a two-day tour, and I will arrange the itinerary for you in the message area.
Are you interested in the dragon boat race here and the Tujia culture here?
On June 14th, let's gather along the river (Hedong Tourist Wharf), watch the dragon boat race, and have a game of making zongzi.
——Send you a wild horse song "I'm Waiting for You in Wujiang Gorge"!