Happy Dragon Boat Festival!

The Dragon Boat Festival takes place on the 5th day of the 5th month of the lunar calendar, which is often the end of May or the beginning of June every year.



This festival is associated with Qu Yuan (屈原) , who was a patriotic poet and a beloved minister during the Warring States period. He was falsely accused, which resulted in his exile by Emperor Huai. The next emperor surrendered the country to the rival states, and in his despair, Qu Yuan drowned himself in the Miluo River.

When the villagers heard what he did, they raced out in boats to recover his body. To keep the fishes from his body, the villagers made rice dumplings and threw them into the river. They also beat drums to frighten off the fish. This has since evolved into a yearly Chinese traditions of eating rice dumplings and dragon boat races on the 5th day of the 5th month in the lunar calendar.

Celebrating Dragon Boat Festival as Chinese Christians

What we can learn from Qu Yuan 🙂

Dragon Boat Festival is celebrated to commemorate Qu Yuan, a high-ranking politician and poet (340-278 BC). He loved his country and the people. In return, the people loved him too. 

When he was in exile due to political reasons, Qu Yuan wrote a poem expressing his love for his state. Upon hearing the defeat of his country, he was grieved that he threw himself into the Miluo River. 

The local villagers immediately raced out in their boats to search for him in the river, but they could not find his body. To prevent the fish from eating his body, they threw lumps of rice into the river as food for the fish. This is why we eat rice dumplings on Dragon Boat Festival.

As Chinese Christians, there are 2 ways we can learn from Qu Yuan:

(1) to love our country

We are to pray for the welfare of the city that we are living in (Jeremiah 29:7). We are also to pray for our leaders in authority, that the people will live in peace and harmony (1 Tim 2:1-2) 

(2) to do good deeds

People loved Qu Yuan because he was a nobleman and he cared for them. 

As Christians, we are to bear the fruit of the Spirit, such as: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23) and to do good deeds to bless the community (Matthew 5:16).

As Christians, let us pray for our country and do good deeds that glorify God in Heaven.

Happy Dragon Boat Festival!