The Dragon Boat Festival is a lunar holiday, occurring on the fifth day of the fifth lunar
month The Chinese Dragon Boat Festival is a significant holiday celebrated in China, and
the one with the longest history. The Dragon Boat Festival is celebrated by boat races in
the shape of dragons. Competing teams row their boats forward to a drumbeat racing to reac
h the finish end first.The boat races during the Dragon Boat Festival are traditional cust
oms to attempts to rescue the patriotic poet Chu Yuan. Chu Yuan drowned on the fifth day o
f the fifth lunar month in 277 B.C. Chinese citizens now throw bamboo leaves filled with c
ooked rice into the water. Therefore the fish could eat the rice rather than the hero poet
. This later on turned into the custom of eating tzungtzuand rice dumplings. The celebrati
on's is a time for protection from evil and disease the rest of the year. It is done so by
different practices such as hanging healthy herbs drinking nutritious co
ncoctions, and displaying portraits of evil's nemesiChung Kuei. If one manages to stand an
egg on it's end at exactlynoon, the following year will be a lucky one.Dragon Boat
race Traditions At the center of this festival are the dragon boat races. Competing teams
drive their colorful dragon boats forward to the rhythm of beating drums. These exciting
races were inspired by the villagervaliant attempts to rescue Chu Yuan from the Mi Lo rive
r. This tradition has remained unbr for centuries.Tzung Tzu A very popular dish during the
Dragon Boat festival is tzung tzu.This tasty dish consists of rice dumplings with meat, p
eanut, egg yolk, or other fillings in bamboo leaves. The tradition of tzung tzu is meant
to remind us of the village fisherscattering rice across the water of the Mi Low river in
order to appease the river dragonsso that they would not devour Chu Yuan.Ay Taso The time
of year of the Dragon Boat Festival the fifth lunar moon, has more significance than just
the story of Chu Yuan. Many Chinese consider this time of year an especially dangerous tim
e when extra efforts must be made to protect their family from illness. Families will hang
various herbs, calleAy Tsao, on their door for protection. The drinking of realgar wine i
s thought to remove poisons from the body. Hsiang Bao are also worn. These sachets contain
various fragrant medicinal herbs thought to protect the wearer from illness.