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| Apa Itu Festival Qixi? Hari Valentine ala Masyarakat China Berawal dari Kisah Romantis di Dinasti Han |
Talking about Valentine's Day, many people will always remember Valentine which falls on February 14th. But it's different in China.
In addition to having its own calendar calendar system, China also has its Valentine which is celebrated in the Qixi festival. This festival is celebrated every day on the seventh day of the seventh month on the Chinese calendar.
This year, the Qixi festival falls on August 4, 2022. Quoting from the Time Out page, the Qixi festival has been celebrated for more than 2000 years. This festival itself begins with a romantic love story in the Han Dynasty.
The Qixi Festival begins with a legend that tells of a pair of unlucky lovers. It was Zhinhu who was a weaver girl and the daughter of a goddess with Niulang who was a humble cowherd.
A legend that sticks
The two fell in love at first sight. They married and Zhinhu had two children, a boy and a girl. Unfortunately, when Zhinhu's mother found out that her daughter was married to a commoner, Zhinhu was immediately taken back to heaven and made a great river between earth and heaven to separate the couple.
A magpie on land is touched by Zhinhu and Niulang's love. He flew to heaven and helped the couple build a bridge across the river. The presence of this bridge allows the pair to meet.
Finally, the couple got the blessing of Zhinhu's mother for their sincere love. The couple is allowed to meet once a year on the same day, which is the seventh day of the seventh lunar month.
Tradisi festival Qixi
This legend was eventually associated with the Qixi festival or Chinese Valentine's Day which is celebrated on the seventh day of the seventh month. Traditionally, women wear Hanfu, a traditional Chinese dress that features a long, striped robe with loose sleeves and a belt to celebrate the Qixi festival.
These women spent the day preparing offerings of tea, wine, flowers, and various fruits to pray to Zhinhu for wisdom and to grant their wishes. Single women will pray to a heavenly partner in hopes of finding a good partner. Meanwhile, newly married women want to give birth to babies.
At night, the women would gather and compete with each other to thread the needle. Although there are certain foods that are usually prepared during Qixi and vary by region, a popular dish made and eaten during the festival is Qiaoguo.
This dish is a slice of thin fried cake made from a mixture of oil, flour, sugar, and honey. People believed that eating Qiaoguo would help reunite the couple on the Magpie Bridge.
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