Happy Duanwu Festival!
端午节，Duanwu Festival, or Dragon Boat Festival arrives before the intense wave of summer heat. It is one of the four grandest traditional festivals in China, falling on 5th day of the 5th month in Chinese lunar calendar. The other three are Chinese New Year, Mid-Autumn Festival and Qingming Festival.
AIMIR is having a 3-day holiday from 3 to 5 June, and will resume working on 6 June.
“Activities of the 12 Months: The Fifth Lunar Month”, court artists, Qing Dynasty (1644–1911). Picture courtesy of the National Palace Museum.
As the fifth lunar month arrives before the harvest season, people around the nation enjoy some rare leisure time. We get a glimpse of the month’s prosperity through the exquisite portrayal of the folk lifestyle by a painter in the Qing Dynasty. Hope you enjoy the traditional Chinese architecture in it as well.
What Do We Do?
In tradition, there will be Dragon Boat Racing in most part of China, especially the southern part. A team of people works the oars in a bid to reach the destination before other teams. Due to the pandemic, racings are cancelled in most cities this year, but we can still appreciate their training during this time of the year.
Now, it has turned to be a sport event not only held in China, but also observed in Japan, Vietnam, USA, Canada and UK, etc.
What Do We Eat?
Zongzi! Zongzi is a pyramid-shaped glutinous rice dumpling wrapped in reed leaves. It has various fillings. In north China, people favor sweet filling, while the south salty. For example, you can find sweetened bean paste, fresh meat, egg yolk, or jujubes in the fillings.
Why is the Dragon Boat Festival So Important?
During the festival, we have various traditions that believe they will help us ease diseases, prevent epidemic and ward off evil spirits. In addition to its memorial meaning, there is some actual use. Originally, the festival was set close to Summer Solstice, when pests, other poisonous animals and germs start to become more active, so people took measures to prevent the diseases and epidemics from happening on that day and later evil spirits were also added to the list to be prevented. Many of the customs have been handed down till today.
As a professional Architectural Visualization studio based in Guangzhou, AIMIR has been delivering stunning 3D works to the world since 2006. We wish you a safe and happy Duanwu Festical!