History of the Dragon Boat Festival（端午节的历史传说）

History of the Dragon Boat Festival

端午节的历史传说

Qu Yuan (屈原)

The story best known in modern China holds that the Dragon Boat Festival or the Duanwu Festival commemorates the death of the poet and minister Qu Yuan of the ancient state of Chu during the Warring States period of the Zhou Dynasty. A cadet member of the Chu royal house, Qu served in high offices. However, when the king decided to ally with the increasingly powerful state of Qin, Qu was banished for opposing the alliance and even accused of treason. During his exile, Qu Yuan wrote a great deal of poetry. Twenty-eight years later, Qin captured Ying, the Chu capital. In despair, Qu Yuan committed suicide by drowning himself in the Miluo River. It is said that the local people, who admired him, raced out in their boats to save him, or at least retrieve his body. This is said to have been the origin of dragon boat races. When his body could not be found, they dropped balls of sticky rice into the river so that the fish would eat them instead of Qu Yuan's body. This is said to be the origin of zongzi.

当代中国有关端午节的故事中，最为人所知的是有关屈原的故事，都说端午节是为了纪念战国时期楚国的宰相和诗人。屈原年轻时期就成了楚国皇室成员，并且身居高位。然而，当楚王决定与日渐强大的秦国结盟时，屈原却因为反对结盟而以叛国罪被楚王放逐。在被流放期间，屈原创作了大量的诗歌。二十八年后，秦国攻陷了楚国的都城郢。绝望之余，屈原投身汨罗江而亡。据说，当地敬重屈原的老百姓，纷纷驾船去搜救屈原，或者至少要找回他的尸首。而这据说就是赛龙舟的起源。当人们找不到屈原的尸首后，他们就往江里投撒糯米团，以免屈原的尸首被鱼儿啃食。而粽子据说就源自这些糯米团。

Wu Zixu（伍子胥）

Despite the modern popularity of the Qu Yuan origin theory, in the former territory of the state of Wu, the festival commemorated Wu Zixu. Wu Zixu was the Premier. Xishi, a beautiful woman sent from king Goujian of the state of Yue, was much loved by king Fuchai. Wu Zixu, seeing the dangerous plot of Goujian, warned king Fuchai, who became angry at this remark. Wu Zixu was forced to commit suicide by king Fuchai, with his body thrown into the river on the fifth day of the fifth month. After his death, in places such as Suzhou, Wu Zixu is remembered during the Duanwu Festival to this day.

尽管如今人们都认为端午节主要源于屈原，但在吴国时期，端午节却是主要用于纪念伍子胥的。伍子胥是当时吴国的宰相，而当时的吴王夫差深爱着越王勾践送给他的美人西施。对此，伍子胥一直提醒吴王要提防越王的阴谋，但却因此惹怒了吴王。于是，吴王逼迫伍子胥自尽，并且在五月初五这天，把他的尸体投到了河里。伍子胥死后，在苏州等地，直到今天，人们都会在端午节这天来纪念他。

Cao E（曹娥）

Although Wu Zixu is commemorated in southeast Jiangsu and Qu Yuan elsewhere in China, much of Northeastern Zhejiang including the cities of Shaoxing, Ningbo and Zhoushan celebrates the memory of the young girl Cao E instead. Cao E's father Cao Xu (曹盱) was a shaman who presided over local ceremonies at Shangyu. In 143, while presiding over a ceremony commemorating Wu Zixu during the Duanwu Festival, Cao Xu accidentally fell into the Shun River. Cao E, in an act of filial piety, decided to find her father in the river, searching for 3 days trying to find him. After five days, she and her father were both found dead in the river from drowning. Eight years later, in 151, a temple was built in Shangyu dedicated to the memory of Cao E and her sacrifice for filial piety. The Shun River was renamed Cao'e River in her honour.

尽管在端午节这天，江苏东南部人们会纪念伍子胥，中国其他地方的人们会纪念屈原，浙江东北部很多地方（包括绍兴、宁波和舟山）的人们纪念的却是一个年轻的姑娘——曹娥。曹娥的父亲曹盱是个萨满巫师，他当时主宰着上虞地区的各种当地的仪式。公元143年，当曹盱在端午节这天主持纪念伍子胥的仪式时，一不小心掉进了顺河。而极为忠孝的曹娥，决心要找到父亲。她独自一人不停地找了三天，但都没有结果。五天后，人们发现了曹娥和她的父亲的尸首，双双因溺水而亡。八年后，也就是公元151年，人们在上虞地区建了一座寺庙，就是为了纪念曹娥以及她为了忠孝不惜牺牲自己的精神。而且，人们为了纪念她，还把顺河改名为曹娥河。