包邮中国传统节日文化英语读本

　　Legends of the Festival　　There are many legends about the origins of the Longtaitou Festival. One of them is aboutthe daughter of the Dragon King.　　The Dragon King of East Sea had a beautiful daughter， who was born on February 2nd.One day the young daughter slipped out of the Dragon Palace and came to the mortal world.She saw those withered crops in the fields and became very sad. She took out a handful of redbeans and scattered them into the fields. Suddenly， clouds began to gather in the sky. Lighteningflashed and thunder rumbled， and there came the downpour of rain. When the rain finallystopped， the crops were all lightened up by a beautiful color of green. The Dragon King wasoutrageous when he learnt what his daughter had done in the mortal world. He believed that itwas an offense against rules as the princess made the rain without his permission. As a result，the daughter was driven out of the palace as a punishment by the Dragon King. The DragonQueen missed her daughter so much that on her birthday， February 2nd， the queen came out ofthe water and raised her head to look up to the sky and cried her sorrows out. Her cry turnedinto the thunder and her tears the heavy rain， and thus the spring thunder and rain bringing lifeto earth and good hope of harvest for the farmers.[2]Customs of the Festival　　The customs of the Longtaitou Festival have changed over time. It came into shape in theTang and Song Dynasties and reached its heyday in the Qing Dynasty and since the mid-20century， it has gone to a decline.Shaving Dragon's Head　　The custom of Shaving Dragon's Head， which is to have a haircut on February 2nd is anationwide practice. People believe that it is improper to cut hair during January， as there was asaying that "Don't have a haircut in January， or your uncle must meet a disaster， even death."Therefore， when January is over， everyone wears long beard and hair， and a refreshing haircut isgreatly in need. People choose to cut their hair on February 2nd as it is the day when "thedragon raises its head"， which sounds auspicious.[3]　　Even today many Chinese follow the tradition. They choose to have their hair cut on Feb2nd of the lunar calendar. Hairdressers are extremely busy on this day. They advertise their services for children's "auspicious haircut" and "dragon haircut" for adults， hoping to bring luckto their customers. As the dragon raises its head， virtually everybody， old and young， will cuttheir hair that day. It's believed to bring good luck， health， and wellbeing for the entire year.Therefore， many Chinese who follow the tradition choose to have their hair cut on Feb 2nd ofthe lunar calendar.[4]Worshipping the Dragon King　　In Shanxi， Shandong， Shaanxi and Henan provinces， people observe the practice ofworshipping the Dragon King on the day of February 2nd. They offer sacrifice to the DragonKing on the day and dine together near the Temple of Dragon King， which is called "temple fairgathering". In Henan province， people worship not only the dragon king but also the grind andpestle， which is believed to be closely related to dragons. In Shandong Province， everyhousehold put up the upper part of the stone mill， indicating the so-called "dragon raising itshead"， which will bring an in-time spring drizzle and ample food and clothing for a whole year.　　In Hebei province， there is a grand ceremony called "Dragon Table Club". Members of theclub worship the Dragon Tablet， which is usually enshrined in the house of the head of the Club.The head of the Club offers incenses and sacrifice every day to the tablet； on the first day andthe fifteenth day of every month， people from the village or other villages will come to bumincense and make a wish to the tablet. The Club ceremony begins on the fist day of Februaryand ends at the fourth day. During the four days， a special tent will be set up for the dragon god，which is called "religious tent"， where Taoist priests are called in to hold religious rituals， andthe Dragon Tablet is carried to the tent in a yellow-curtained sedan for worshipping. During thisperiod， performances of local operas and carnivals will be given. Families invite friends andrelatives to get together. It is one of the most significant and hilarious festivals in the localcommunities， no less than the Spring Festival and the Lantern Festival.　　……