Chinese dialect groups in Singapore unite to celebrate long-lost Qixi Festival
PM Lawrence Wong (front row, fourth from right) at the launch of Qixi Fest 2024 in Keong Saik Road. With him are (front row, from right) Radin Mas MP Melvin Yong; Tanjong Pagar GRC MPs Eric Chua, Indranee Rajah, Chan Chun Sing, Alvin Tan and Joan Pereira; and Mr Koo Tsai Kee, second adviser to Tanjong Pagar GRC
Qixi Fest 2024, which celebrates the Qixi Festival, kicked off on Aug 3 with a street party in Keong Saik Road. Also known as the Double Seventh Festival, Qiqiao Festival (qiqiao means “wishing for skills” in English) and Seven Sisters Festival, it marks the seventh day of the seventh lunar month, which falls on Aug 10 in 2024.
Celebrating cultural heritage, craftsmanship and community, Qixi Fest 2024 at Chinatown’s Kreta Ayer Square will run from Aug 4 to 11.
CHINESE DOUBLE SEVENTH FESTIVAL (QIXI)
7th day of 7th month on the Chinese lunar calendar
It is said that Niu Lang was a cowboy who had a kind heart even though he was without living parents. Living with his brother and brother-in-law, he was maltreated. One day, after having been driven out of his home, an old man (in fact a supernatural being), guided him to the sick cattle from heaven. With great care from Niu Lang, the cattle recovered. In order to show gratitude to Niu Lang, the cow helped him get acquainted with Zhi Nu - a fairy from the heaven. They fell in love with each other and married to live a happy life with Niu Lang planting in the field while Zhi Nu did weaving at home. They were also magically given a boy and a girl.
However, good times didn't last long because Zhi Nu's deeds were known by the king of the heaven who took her back to heaven. With the cow's help, Niu Lang flew to heaven along with his two children as they chased their wife and mother. It was just at that moment before he could reach Zhi Nu that the queen of the heaven created a huge river between them. Tears from the two flowed continuously so that even the queen was moved. As a result, she allowed them to meet only on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month every year. Therefore, the day that Niu Lang and Zhi Nu meet is the present Double Seventh Festival.
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Celebrating Qixi Festival
The Chinese character 爱 ("ai"), meaning love, is the keyword for China's Qixi Festival. This traditional festival has a history of around 2,000 years and originates from the romantic tale of Niulang and Zhinu (Cowherd and Weaver Maid).
The festival is also known as Double Seventh Festival as it is celebrated on the seventh day of the seventh month in the Chinese lunar calendar, usually in August. This year, it falls on Aug. 4. Let's find out more about its romantic history and unique traditions.
Qixi Festival is also known as the festival to "pray for dexterity." On this day, especially in ancient China, females would pray to Zhinu, the goddess of weaving, wishing for wisdom and dexterity in skills like spinning, weaving and sewing.
Double Seventh Festival
The traditional Qixi Festival
The Qixi Festival (七夕节), or the Double Seventh Festival, on the 7th day of the 7th lunar month, is a traditional festival full of romance. It often goes into August in the Gregorian calendar.
This festival is in mid-summer when the weather is warm and the grass and trees reveal their luxurious greens. At night when the sky is dotted with stars, and people can see the Milky Way spanning from the north to the south. On each bank of it is a bright star, which see each other from afar. They are the Cowherd and Weaver Maid, and about them there is a beautiful love story passed down from generation to generation.
Long, long ago, there was an honest and kind-hearted fellow named Niu Lang (Cowhand). His parents died when he was a child. Later he was driven out of his home by his sister-in-law. So he lived by himself herding cattle and farming. One day, a fairy from heaven Zhi Nu (Weaver Maid) fell in love with him and came down secretly to earth and married him. The cowhand farmed in the field and the Weaver Maid wove at home. They lived a happy life and gave birth to a boy and a girl. Unfortunately, the God of Heaven soon found out the fact and ordered the Queen Mother of the Western Heavens to bring the Weaver Maid back.
Qixi Festival 2014 七夕節 Chinese Valentine's Day
Chinese Valentine’s Day – Qi Xi Festival (七夕节)
When the goddness came and took off their silk ropes then jumped into the water. Niulang found Zhinu's clothes and hide away. Other goddesses witnessed Niulang and dressed up quickly and flew away, only Zhinu left. He had adored her from the first moment he saw her. They looked into each other's eyes. The heavenly girl told the poor cowherd that she would be his wife. They soon got married lived together in that cottage. Niulang worked hard to grow crops and Zhinv raised silkworms. They lived a simple but happy life, with a little boy and girl Zhinu give birth afterwards. One day the old ox died and they preserve the its hide according to its words left. At the same time, the king and queen of the heaven found that Zhinu married a man and had babies. The queen flew down to earth with her solders and caught Zhinu away. Niulang came back home and found Zhinu not at home, only the children left. The babies cried and told him where Zhinu was going. Niulang remembered what the old ox told him and placed the twins in wicker baskets on a pole to carry on his shoulder, put on the magic hide, and flew up, up into the sky. The queen noticed that Niulang was following them, she became angry, with wave of her arm, and a raging torrent immediately appeared between her group and Niulang. He could not get past this wide swollen river. Heartbroken, Niulang and his children could only look and weep bitterly. The King in his Heavenly Palace was moved by the sound of their crying, and decided to allow Niulang and Zhinu to meet once a year on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month.
This sad love story was passed down from ancient times, with little magpies were seen on double seventh day, as most of them fly to Milky River to form a bridge for the annual meeting of Niulang and Zhinu. In ancient times, the double seventh day was an important festival for young women and young girls. No matter poor or rich, they would put on their best clothes and place an incense burner in the courtyard and lay out some fruit as offerings. Then all the girls in the family would kowtow to Niulang and Zhinu and pray for ingenuity. But nowadays, these traditional customs were lost and most Chinese young people favored Western Valentine's Day, a great day to express love between lovers.
