有关端午节 Dragon Boat Festival Feature

An Incredible Man –Qu Yuan 一位不可思议的伟人 —-- 屈原

文◎Kok Foo Chang 郑国扶 译◎Elvie Yap 叶俐廷

No different from other races and nationalities, the Chinese people have numerous festivals of their own to celebrate throughout the year. It is well understood that the Chinese have continued to follow their own traditional lunar system to mark the dates and festivals. The three major and most significant occasions such as ‘Spring Festival’, ‘Mid-Autumn Festival’ and the Winter Solstice, ‘Dongzhi’ are undoubtedly very much family orientated. Habitually, the Chinese spare no effort, energy and expense to return to their families for the festivities. One festival, however, is celebrated, by far, in a different way. It involves big masses of people, communities, guilds and associations, even religious devotees and an entire region. This grand occasion is to honour and to remember the patriotism, the integrity and the sacrifice of one early individual, statesman, diplomat, strategist and a much loved, popular poet, in ancient China.

Qu Yuan lived in the state of Chu (in present Hubei Province, China) during the Warring States Period (475 - 221 BC). During this time, the area known as Central China was occupied by seven states or small kingdoms of Qi, Chu, Yan, Han, Zhao, Wei and Qin, who were rivalling for control and supremacy.

Early in life, Qu Yuan was already a member of the ruling house of Chu. He had a brilliant career, was made a minister of the court of Chu and an envoy to a neighbouring state Qi. He was once trusted by King Huai of Chu. When the state Qin invaded the other six states, Qu Yuan advocated forming a pact with state Qi to resist Qin. His early success evidently caused jealousy and envy of his fellow officials, who made wrong accusations to slander him. As a result, King Huai dismissed and exiled him. As the affairs of state Chu gradually headed downhill, King Huai recalled Qu Yuan to assist him in governing. In the ensuing years, the King of Qin offered King Huai some 600-li of land to lure him, pretending that the two states could live peacefully together. This infuriated the state Qi. Against Qu Yuan’s advice, King Huai eventually visited the state Qin. He was detained for many years and died there. King Huai was succeeded by his son, who ignored Qu Yuan’s advice not to yield to Qin. Qu Yuan was exiled again to a place further away than before.

Saddened, disappointed and lonely, he used the days of his exile to travel widely, teaching and writing his ideas. Qu Yuan wrote many famous immortal poems – on his love for his country and its people – and the longest lyrics of romanticism regarding politics in the history of ancient Chinese literature.

In 278 BC, a Qin army, led by General Bai Qi, occupied state Chu. Qin subsequently conquered the other states and unified the whole of China – for the first time under one ruler. By then, Qu Yuan was an 犹如各国家的民族，每一年华人都会庆 祝好几个传统节日。华人依据农历的日 子来庆祝传统节日，其中包括三个以家 庭为主导的重要节日，分别为春节、中 秋节和冬至。一般上，每逢佳节华人都 会不计劳苦地回家与家人团聚过节。 相比这华人传统佳节，有一个节日无论 是欢庆方式或意义上却截然不同。这个 日子是为了纪念一个中国古代人物的爱 国情操，他不仅是当代的政治家、外交 高手，也是一位受人爱戴的诗人。

屈原 Qu Yuan

屈原,生长于战国时代（公元前221-475 ）的楚国（即现今的湖北省）。当时战 国末期，统称为中原的国土，由七个实力较 强的诸侯国，分别为秦国、齐国、楚国、韩 国、赵国、魏国、燕国互相争夺。

屈原早年，凭着超人的才华，因功出仕， 在楚国都城为官，也是出派齐国的使者，且 备受怀王重用。当年秦国入侵六国时，屈原 游说齐国共同携手对抗秦国。他主张联齐抗 秦，使楚国一度出现了一个国富兵强、威震 诸侯的局面，他的成就却招惹上官大夫等人 的嫉妒，屈原后来遭到群小的诬陷。最终导 致怀王将屈原逐出郢都。后来由于齐楚两国 外交变得恶劣，与秦国对抗两度惨败，于是 屈原奉命出使齐国重修齐楚旧好。

屈原回到郢都不久，秦王以愿意和平共 处并割舍六百里土地的借口利诱怀王相会。 怀王不顾屈原的反对赴会，这举动激怒了齐 国，怀王也被秦扣留，最终客死秦国。怀王 之子顷襄王即位后不听屈原劝告，继续对秦 国采取妥协政策，并打压主张抗秦的大臣， 屈原也因此被罢免官位，流放到江南，此后 长期居于流放地。

屈原悲愤失望，他利用流放的日子步万 里路来传授和书写他的理念。屈原写了不 少的伟大诗篇，来诠释他对国家和人民的 爱，倾吐自己的历史、远大的政治理想，其 中包括编写有史以来中国古代历史最长的 爱国诗篇。 old man over sixty. He realised that his hope to serve his land and to fi nd a new worthy ruler had come to an end. Once he sighed to an old fi sherman: “the world is muddled, yet I am clean; all people intoxicated, only I am sober – this is the reason I had been exiled.” On another occasion, he simply said, “to live with the corrupt and the scum, I’d rather be perished in the guts of fi sh”.

On the fi fth day of the fi fth lunar month, 279 BC, on the bank of Miluo River (in present Hunan Province), he noticed a solitary wild goose hovering above, quickly disappearing into the distance. In complete despair and loneliness, he picked up a boulder, and with it, he jumped into the river.

On hearing this, the people in the vicinity rushed out in their small boats in search of him. At the same time, they splashed the water with their short paddles, some clanging gongs and others beating drums, in an eff ort to scare the fi sh away from him. Some even started throwing cooked rice wrapped in bamboo leaves overboard to turn the fi sh away from eating his body.

Every year thereafter, the villagers and those who had heard of him returned to Miluo River to commemorate his life. Over time, the event has since developed into an enthusiastic boat race. This was the beginning of the grand festival called “Duan Wu Jie”, often referred to as ‘double fi fths’, or simply ‘Dragon Boat Festival’ to many westerners.

公元前278年，楚国国都被秦国攻占， 秦国继而占领其他诸侯国，统一中原。当时 屈原已年逾六十，他获知故国已灭，回天无 力，郁郁难舒。屈原披头散发地游荡到了汩 罗江（现位于湖南省）。有一个在江边打渔 的渔夫看到屈原形容憔悴，身如枯槁，于是 好奇地问他为何在这，屈原回答道：“众人 皆醉我独醒，整个朝堂都是昏庸不堪的，只 有我一个人是清白的。他们不愿听见正确 的声音，所以我被流放到这里了啊。”屈原 正色道：“我宁可远离那混沌的庙堂也不 能忍受与他们同流合污。哪怕要投入这汩 罗江中葬身鱼腹，我也不愿让自己的品德 沾染上不洁的污垢。”于是心丧若死的屈原 怀抱石头，遂投江以身殉国，当天正是农 历五月初五。

附近的百姓听闻此噩耗，纷纷划船搜 索，打捞屈原的尸体，大家敲锣打鼓地盼能 驱赶鱼虾， 并把竹叶包着糯米的饭团投进 江中，但愿将鱼虾喂饱，免得牠们咬食屈原 的尸体。自此以后，村民和听说过屈原的人 们每年都会来到汨罗江纪念他。久而久之， 端午节划龙舟的习俗就这样流传了下来，这 个节日也被称为重午节，外国人一般简称它 为龙舟节。

今年的农历五月初五，会是在阳历6月18日，大家一起度过这历史悠长的端午节。

This year’s Duan Wu festival falls on 18th June, lets celebrate this meaningful festival together.

Duan Wu Jie has its special foods. Glutinous rice is preferred. One typical type is stuff ed with savoury fatty pork meat, or chicken meat with beans, chestnuts and salted duck egg yolk, all wrapped in bamboo leaves or banana leaves before being thoroughly cooked. This is commonly called ‘zongzi’ in Mandarin. In China, each region or area has its own version of ingredients. These days, zongzi is available throughout the year. In Perth, in the Northbridge area, zongzi is also readily available in some of the Asian grocery shops.

These days, Duan Wu Jie is celebrated throughout China. Outside China, countries like Burma, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam are among the earliest to follow in earnest. Unfortunately, and rather sadly, the present generation of people look at the festival as an organised carnival of feasts, of zongzi and of boat racing in regional and international contests, with little reference to its origin of more than 2,200 years and to the amazing poet Qu Yuan.

On 5 March 1953, China held a grand commemorative event in honour of Qu Yuan as a great poet. Little do we know, the same year, the World Peace Council held a special meeting to honour him, and called people to learn from him. Qu Yuan was also listed as one of the four literary celebrities of the world – an accomplishment of no equals. His poems are already translated into many languages. 端午节的节令食物是粽子，一般是用糯 米制成。较为传统的粽子是以带咸 味的肥猪肉或鸡肉，配豆类、板栗、咸鸭蛋 为馅，以竹叶或香蕉叶裹着煮熟后享用。在 中国，各省区所采用的材料也有所不同。时 至今日，想吃粽子也无须等到端午节。在珀 斯，一般北桥区的亚洲食品店都有出售。

端午节是中国的节日，在中国以外的国 家如缅甸、日本、韩国、马来西亚、新加坡、 越南在很多年前已经开始庆祝这节日。然 而，后人早已把这节日视为节庆，共享粽子 或举办区域性或国际性的龙舟赛来过节，而 几乎忘却了这节日背后超过2200年前的一 位伟大诗人---屈原。

1953年3月5日，中国曾经举办过一个大 型的纪念活动来悼念屈原。估计不会有太多 人知道在同一年，世界和平协会也曾经在一 个特别会议上高度赞赏屈原，并鼓励人们向 他学习。此外，屈原也被列为世界四大文学 高人之一，他的诗篇已被翻译成多种语言。