7th day of 7th month on the Chinese lunar calendar
Originated in Han Dynasty (202 BC - 220 AD), the Double Seventh Festival is what Valentine's Day to the western countries. In Chinese, it is called Qixi. As it falls on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month, the festival is named the Double Seventh Festival. It is the most romantic festival among all the traditional Chinese festivals with a legend about the two lovers - cowherd and weaver girl. Because in the past it is a day especially for young girls to pray for dexterity in needlework and happy marriages, it is also known as the Young Girls' Day or Qiqiao (pray for intelligence and skills) Festival.
The legend about Qixi Festival is Niulang (cowherd, symbolizing Altair) and Zhinv (weaver girl, symbolizing Vega) which has been handed down from Western Zhou Dynasty (1046 BC - 771 BC). It is said that the Niulang's parents died at an early age. While living with his brother and sister-in-law, he was usually harshly treated by them. His only friend was an old ox. The Zhinv is the seventh daughter of the Goddess. One day, she escaped from the heaven with his sisters and swimmed in the river. The old ox gave a good advice to Niulang about how to take Zhinv as his wife. Following the ox's idea, he took Zhinv's clothes away. The other fairies flew back the heaven by fear only left Zhinv alone. Under the Niulang's pleading, Zhinv agreed to be his wife. They lived happily after marriage and had a son and a daughter. Niulang ploughed and Zhinv weaved every day. Later, the old ox died. Before he died, he told Niulang to took his hide off and put it on when needed after he died. The couple followed his advice and buried him on the hill.
While, after knowing Zhinv had married Niulang, the God and Goddess flew into a rage. They ordered to capture Zhinv back to the heaven. When Niulan came back home and found his wife was taken by the God, he put on the ox's hide and bought his two children to chase after his wife. When he was about to chase her, the Goddess took out her hairpin and scratched a wide river in the sky to separate the two lovers. A Milky Way between them was formed blocking them to meet each other since then. Later, moved by their true love, the Goddess allowed them to meet each other once a year on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month. On the day, all the magpies in the world would fly up into the heaven to form a bridge for them to meet.
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