Today (August 22) is the Qixi Festival, which falls on the 7th day of the 7th month according to the Chinese lunar calendar. It celebrates the legend of the annual meeting between the mythological figures of Zhinü, the fairy of weaving, and Niulang, a cowherder.
Various traditional customs of the festival are preserved across Guangdong. Read on and find out.
Worship ceremony of Qiniang
In some Cantonese-speaking areas in Guangdong, the Qixi Festival is also called Qiqiao (Begging for Skills) Festival or the birthday of Qiniang (Zhinü). Worshiping Qiniang is an important ritual during the festival. On the sixth and seventh days of the seventh lunar month, girls often wear new clothes and new jewelry, offering incense, fruits and flowers to the Vega stars, known in Chinese folklore as the Zhinü star. They prayed for cleverness in needlework and marital bliss.
(Photo: Nanfang Daily)
At present, such a custom is more prosperous in Guangzhou's Tianhe, Panyu, Huangpu districts and so on. Zhucun, a village in Tianhe District, is currently the most concentrated and largest village for these festive activities in Guangzhou.
(Photo: Nanfang Daily)
Chu Hua Yuan
This is a coming-of-age ceremony celebrated by the Teochew people in the Chaoshan region. Its literal meaning is "out of the garden", which means that the children have grown up and no longer play only in the garden. The elders will prepare a special "adult meal" for the youngster.
(Photo: Nanfang Plus)
Qixi water
Hakka people usually fetch and store water from springs, streams, or wells during the Qixi Festival, and they call it "Qixi water". According to a legend in Huizhou, seven goddesses will bathe in the rivers of the earth. Therefore, the waters are believed to be fairy-blessed and can ward off evil spirits and cure diseases to prolong life.
(Photo: Nanfang Metropolis Daily)
In addition, locals in Foshan will make wax gourd juice that day. People often cut the wax gourd into small pieces, put them in clay pots, seal the containers, and drink the juice about three years later. It's said that such juice has a miracle effect on treating heat stroke and fever.
Releasing "ducklings"
In the past, residents of Shiwan Subdistrict in Foshan were mainly generations of potters. People hoped their children could grow up healthily with good strength to help with the pottery work. Therefore, Shiwan people have the custom of releasing "ducklings" on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month.
The elders made duckling dough by mixing sticky rice flour and water. After steaming, the dough will be wrapped with straw to form a duck nest. People light incense candles and lightly place nests of "ducklings" on the water, chanting prayers, wishing that the children grow healthily, walk, run and swim freely like a duck does.
Zouzai fair
Chaoshan people are used to calling their daughters "Zouzai", and the "Zouzai fair" means the married daughters visit their parental home with their husbands and kids. The most common date for the fair is the seventh day of the seventh lunar month.
The gifts "Zouzais" bring home were once sweet peanut and pig's trotter soup or sweet lotus seed soup before, and nowadays they are replaced by mostly dried products with auspicious meanings.
Reporter: Monica, Holly, Jenny (intern)
Poster: Alice
Editor: Wing, Olivia, Nan, Jerry
