The Chinese Valentine's Day is celebrated on the 7th day of the 7th
lunar month in the Chinese calendar. There is an interesting love story
behind this day about the 7th daughter of Emperor of Heaven and an
orphaned cowherd. The Emperor played spoilsport and separated both of
them. The 7th daughter was forced to move to the star called Vega and
the cowherd moved to the star named Altair. They are allowed to meet
only once a year on the 7th day of 7th lunar month.
The Festival
On the Chinese Valentine's Day, lovers go to the temple of Matchmaker
and pray for their love and happiness and their possible marriage in
China. People who are still single also do the same thing to ask their
luck of love in the Matchmaker temple.
The Chinese Valentine's Day is also called The Daughter's Festival.
Since ancient times, Chinese girls always want to learn a good
handcrafting skill like the Weaving Maid. The knowledge of handicrafts
and skill development is essential for their future family. On that
night, the unmarried girls pray to the Weaving Maid star to let them
become smarter.
When the star Vega is high up in the sky, girls perform a test by
putting a needle on the water surface. If the needle doesn't sink, it's
a sign of girl's maturity and smartness and she is ready and eligible to
find a husband. Girls may, now, ask for any wish of their choice, but
only one every year.
People, in some provinces of China believe that decorating the ox's
horn by flowers on the Chinese Valentine's Day will save them from
catastrophe. Another fascinating aspect of Chinese Valentine's Day is
women washing their hair to make it look fresh and shining whereas
Children in turn wash their faces the next morning using the overnight
water to get a more natural and beautiful look.
Backdrop Of The Chinese Valentines Day
There is an interesting story behind the Chinese Valentines Day, which
began from a handsome poor orphaned boy, who lived with his elder
brother and sister-in-law after the death of his parents. The boy owned
an old ox with which he worked on the field everyday. His daily life was
just like in a Cinderella story. The ox was in fact an immortal from the
Paradise. For his mistakes in the Heaven, he was punished and sent on
the Earth as an ox.
The ox developed a liking for the boy and one day asked the cowherd, "You
are a nice person. If you want to get married, go to the river and your
wish will come true." The cowherd went to the stream and saw all
the seven pretty daughters of Emperor who had come down from Heaven to
take a bath. Captivated by the beauty and charm of the youngest
daughter, the cowherd took away her fairy clothes secretly. The youngest
couldn't fly back to Heaven, along with her sisters, without her fairy
clothes. Then the cowherd appeared and asked her that he would return
her clothes if she promised to marry him. The girl felt shy but in
eagerness, agreed to the boy's proposal. Thus, they got married and had
two children.
One day, finding his last days near, the old ox told the cowherd that
he should keep his hide for urgent situation after his death.
On the other hand the Emperor didn't find the sky that beautiful as
before without his seventh daughter weaving clouds and rainbows. He sent
his daughter's grandmother to find the missing daughter and to bring her
back. The grand mother took the seventh princess along. While the 7th
princess was flying back to the Heaven with her grandmother, the cowboy
wore the ox hide, took his children in two bamboo baskets with his
wife's old fairy clothes and chased his wife in the sky, To keep them
separated for ever, the grandmother made a milky way in the sky with her
hairpin. The seventh princess (cowherd's wife) was moved to the star
Vega in the Lyra (Harp) constellation. And the cowherd with his two
children stayed in the star Altair (Flying one) in the Aquila (Eagle)
constellation. The star Vega is also known by the name of the Weaving
Maid Star whereas the star Altair as the Cowherd Star in China.
