As the traditional Chinese Dragon Boat Festival is to fall on Tuesday, housewives are wrapping up glutinous rice with bamboo or reed leaves, which are, according to historical tradition, thrown into rivers to spare from the fish's mouths the body of a patriotic poet who drowned over 2,000 years ago.

The poet, named Qu Yuan, lived in the state of Chu during the Warring States period (475 B.C. to 221 B.C.). He drowned himself in the Miluo River in 278 B.C., on May 5th of the Chinese lunar calendar, hoping that his death could awaken the king to revitalize their kingdom.

The date has since been remembered as the Dragon Boat Festival, or Duanwu Festival, on which local fishermen would row dragon boats along the Miluo river to search for Qu Yuan and scatter glutinous rice dumplings in the water to prevent the fish and shrimps from eating his body.

Days before this year's Dragon Boat Festival, citizens of Miluo city, in today's Yueyang city of central Hunan Province, have organized dragon boat races to commemorate Qu Yuan.

"My father and grandfather are all expert rowers," said Zheng Guoying, a young man who heads a local team of dragon boat rowers. "We've got to carry forward the Chinese tradition and should never forget the hero."

Zheng said his team are preparing for an annual race set for Tuesday, one that will draw thousands of residents to the banks of the Miluo River.

The locals have rallied nearly 100 dragon boats for the race, according to Zhan Leixiong, a local publicity official.

Housewives in Chutang village alongside the Miluo River are busily making glutinous rice dumplings, dotting them with dates and peanuts and wrapping them with reed leaves.

"Some will be offerings to Qu Yuan and we'll share the rest with friends and family as snacks for the holiday," said Weng Wuxi, a villager.

Weng has also hung wormwood at her gate and poured yellow wine in every corner of her courtyard. "We were told since childhood they would ward off evils," she explained.

In Qu Yuan's hometown Zigui county of the neighboring Hubei Province, the Dragon Boat Festival has become an indispensable part of the people's life for more than 2,000 years.

Besides an annual dragon boat race, the county will host the first ever national dragon boat cultural festival from June 25 to July 2, according to Zheng Jiayu, a publicity official with the Zigui county government.

He said the festival would feature a traditional dancing contest, a poem writing competition and a series of traditional sacrificial activities in commemoration of Qu Yuan.

"The Dragon Boat Festival is widely accepted in China as an occasion to commemorate Qu Yuan, though the festival was already celebrated before his death," said Qian Xiaomei, a researcher on Qu Yuan based in Wuhan, capital of the central Hubei Province.

On the eve of the festival, large cities including Beijing and Shanghai have also launched varied activities to mark the traditional holiday.

More than 100 noted poets gathered in Beijing Sunday at a seminar to study Qu Yuan's poems and compose their own verses in memory of the late hero.

"It's a tradition for Chinese scholars to compose verses to hail Qu Yuan's patriotism and selflessness," said noted writer Li Jinlong. "The seminar aims to study Qu Yuan's work, carry forward his spirit and encourage today's writers to be as devoted in their writing."

Also on Sunday, more than 100 Taiwan compatriots celebrated the upcoming holiday with local persons of letters in the eastern municipality of Shanghai.

"Many of us still make glutinous rice dumplings and hang wormwood at home to express our nostalgia," said Sun Shuwen, a Taiwanese businesswoman who has set up a firm in Shanghai to produce Taiwanese style glutinous rice dumplings.

Though the Dragon Boat Festival is still popular in many parts of China and dragon boat racing has even become an international sports event, experts warn the traditional holiday is being edged out by western holidays, particularly among young people in large cities.

"China should pay more heed to the preservation of traditional culture -- and we should start with the young people," said Wu Bing'an, vice-chairman of Chinese Folklore Society. "We should let the younger generation know and respect various forms of Chinese culture."

As far as the Dragon Boat Festival is concerned, Wu said it has always been an occasion to carry out various sports activities, ward off evils and diseases and promote the people's health. "We should try to maintain its original flavor in our preservation work," he said. "Because that's where its true value lies."

On the other hand, Wu said it is equally important to extend cooperation with other countries on the preservation of cultural heritage while endeavoring to introduce traditional Chinese culture to the international community.

Sources with the city government of Yueyang say the city will submit an application to make the Dragon Boat Festival as a human oral and intangible heritage.
 
(Xinhua News Agency June 22, 2004)