The origin of Qixi Festival and the legend of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl

The seventh day of the seventh lunar month is the ancient Chinese festival Qixi Festival. The time-honored love story of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl meeting on Qixi Festival has become one of my country's four great love folk legends. On clear summer and autumn nights, a shining star appears on each side of the Milky Way: Altair and Vega.

The Qixi Festival has always been associated with the legend of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl. This is a beautiful, timeless love story, making it one of my country's four great love folk legends.

Legend has it that long ago, in Niujia Village, west of Nanyang City, there lived a clever and honest young man. His parents died young, and he had to live with his brother and sister-in-law. His sister-in-law, Ma, was cruel and often abused him, forcing him to do relentless work. One autumn, Ma forced him to herd cattle, giving him nine oxen but telling him to wait until he had ten before returning home. The Cowherd had no choice but to drive the cattle out of the village.

Cowherd drove his cattle alone into the mountains. On a hillside covered in dense grass and forest, he sat beneath a tree, feeling sad, unsure when he would be able to return home with his ten cows. Then, an old man with white hair and beard appeared before him and asked him why he was sad. Upon learning of his plight, he smiled and said, "Don't be sad. There's an old, sick cow in Funiu Mountain. Take good care of it. When it recovers, you can take it home."

Cowherd traveled a long way, crossing mountains and ridges, before finally finding the sick cow. Seeing how ill the cow was, he gathered bundles of grass and fed it for three days. When the cow was full, it raised its head and told him that it was originally the Gray Ox Immortal from heaven, but had been demoted for violating the laws of heaven. When the old cow recovered, the cowherd happily drove his ten cows home.

After returning home, his sister-in-law continued to treat him harshly, attempting to harm him several times, but the old cow always managed to save him. Finally, infuriated, the sister-in-law drove the cowherd out of the house, and the cowherd only kept the old cow to himself.

One day, the Weaver Girl from heaven and other fairies came down to earth to play and bathe in the river. With the help of the old cow, the cowherd met the Weaver Girl, and they fell in love. Later, the Weaver Girl secretly descended to the human world and became the cowherd's wife. Wife. The Weaver Girl also shared the silkworms she brought from heaven with everyone and taught them how to raise them, spin silk, and weave shiny silk.

After the Cowherd and Weaver Girl married, they worked in the fields while the Weaver Girl wove, and their love was deep. They had two children, a boy and a girl, and lived a happy life. However, their good times didn't last long. The Emperor of Heaven soon learned of their misfortune, and the Queen Mother descended to Earth and forcibly took the Weaver Girl back to heaven, separating the loving couple.

The Cowherd had no way to ascend to heaven, but an old cow told him that after its death, he could make shoes from its hide, which he could wear to ascend to heaven. The Cowherd did as the cowherd advised, donning the cowhide shoes and taking his children with him, they soared into the sky on a cloud and mist to pursue the Weaver Girl. Just as they were about to catch up, the Queen Mother pulled out the cowherd's leather. With a flick of the golden hairpin, a turbulent Milky Way appeared, separating the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl, who could only weep at each other's side. Their devoted love moved magpies, and millions of them flew over to form a bridge, allowing the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl to reunite on it. The Queen Mother, helpless, allowed the two to meet on the bridge every July 7th.


Later, on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month, the day when the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl were said to meet on the bridge, the girls would gather under the moon and flowers, gazing at the stars, searching for the Altair and Vega stars on opposite sides of the Milky Way, hoping to witness their annual reunion. They would pray to the heavens for their ingenuity and dexterity, like the Weaver Girl, and for a happy and fulfilling marriage. This is how the Qixi Festival came to be.