Poems of the Dragon Boat Festival cover

Poems of the Dragon Boat Festival

Rating 3.8
Word count
39K words
Chapters
85
ISBN
9787532550241

Tags

Summary

The Dragon Boat Festival, held on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, is a traditional Chinese holiday with several theories about its origins. Some say it commemorates Qu Yuan, the poet of the Chu state who drowned himself rather than witness his country's conquest by Qin; others trace it to ancient dragon-totem sacrificial rites in the land of Yue; still others see it as evolving from the Xia dynasty's summer solstice festival. The name Duanwu means 'the first fifth,' the fifth day of the fifth month; as the Fengtu Ji notes, 'duan' means beginning. Since 'wu' was once interchangeable with 'five,' the festival was also called Duan-Wu, and in the Earthly Branches system 'wu' corresponds to the fifth month. The name was fixed in the Tang dynasty: Emperor Xuanzong's birthday prompted a taboo against the word 'five,' and at the minister Song Lijing's suggestion the festival was officially renamed 'Duanwu.' Customs include dragon boat races, zongzi, realgar wine, fragrant sachets, mugwort, calamus, and images of Zhong Kui, with dragon boat racing and zongzi the most distinctive. This collection presents over eighty poems on the festival, revealing the humanistic concern with life embedded in its traditions.

Editor's review

Compiled by Shanghai Classics Publishing House, *Duanwu Poems* is credited to "the publisher" but is in fact a carefully selected classic anthology assembled by the house's professional editorial team. It is not a new work but a themed poetry collection devoted to the Dragon Boat Festival, gathering fine pieces on the festival by countless writers from ancient times to the present. Online searches show that the book has no widely circulated rating on platforms such as Douban—precisely because, as a distinctive themed compilation, it remains relatively niche in mainstream reading, though its professional value should not be overlooked.

In content, the book's value lies in its systematic and thematic approach. It brings together Dragon Boat Festival works scattered across the poetry collections of successive dynasties, allowing readers to take in at one stop the festival's literary presence across history. These poems not only depict such festival scenes as dragon-boat racing, eating zongzi and hanging mugwort, but also carry the ancients' reflections on the turning of the seasons, their remembrance of Qu Yuan and other historical figures, and the deeply rooted attachment to home and country and cultural memory. Reading this book is like opening a window onto the spiritual core of traditional Chinese culture, where the festive bustle and the elegance of poetry blend perfectly.

For an editor, the selection reflects the rigorous scholarship long upheld by Shanghai Classics Publishing House. The chosen pieces likely balance the canonical and the representative, and the annotations strive for accuracy and concision, helping readers understand the historical allusions and linguistic difficulties behind the poems. It is more like a small themed literary reference library for browsing and savoring at any time; its reading value lies not only in aesthetic pleasure but in deepening cultural understanding. In an age of fast-food reading, such a quiet, focused anthology of traditional festival poetry offers a way to return to the text and savor cultural nuance.

Who it's for

A good fit for

  • Readers with a strong interest in traditional Chinese festival culture, especially the customs and meaning of the Dragon Boat Festival.
  • Lovers of classical poetry who wish to read deeply by theme and broaden their appreciation.
  • Teachers, students or cultural researchers in need of themed literary reference material on the Dragon Boat Festival.
  • Readers seeking a culturally rich printed book suited to quiet reading during the Dragon Boat Festival.

Not a good fit for

  • Readers expecting original works on the Dragon Boat Festival with strong personal views or modern interpretations.
  • Fast-paced readers looking for light entertainment or fictional narrative content.

Reading tips

  1. Read it alongside the actual atmosphere of the Dragon Boat Festival to feel the scenes and emotions in the poems more vividly.
  2. There is no need to finish it in one sitting; keep it as a desk book, savoring pieces as the seasons turn and comparing how poets of different dynasties wrote about the festival.
  3. While reading, consult Qu Yuan's life and related historical background to understand more deeply the sentiments and allusions in many of the poems.

About the publisher

Shanghai Classics Publishing House China · Founded in 1956

Shanghai Classics Publishing House is a professional publisher centered on the collation of ancient texts and academic research works. Its publishing areas cover historical readings, classical poetry, folk literature, literary appreciation, canonical works, and Eastern philosophy. Its books include Chen Yinke's A Brief Discussion of the Origins of the Sui and Tang Institutions, Xin Qiji's Chronological Annotated Edition of Jiaxuan's Ci (Simplified Edition), Tang Xianzu's The Peony Pavilion, Liu Xie's The Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons, as well as New Annotations to Three Hundred Tang Poems (Collector's Edition), Annotated Edition of Han Changli's Collected Works (Simplified Edition, 3 volumes), and Youyang Zazu. Its authors include Chen Yinke, Xin Qiji, Tang Xianzu, Liu Xie, Deng Guangming, Hengtang Tuishi, Han Yu, and Ma Qichang. In terms of publishing characteristics, the house emphasizes collation, annotation, and compilation of ancient texts alongside academic research works, and continues to issue simplified and collector's editions that balance scholarship and accessibility. Public information about the publisher's fuller publishing profile is limited.

Contents

  1. 版权信息
  2. 前 言
  3. 五 日
  4. 端 午
  5. 五日观妓[1]
  6. 官庄池观竞渡
  7. 端午日赐衣
  8. 竞 渡 曲
  9. 表夏十首[1](选一)
  10. 和万州杨使君四绝句·竞渡
  11. 端 午 日
  12. 同州端午
  13. 竞 渡 诗
  14. 竞渡时在湖外偶为成章
  15. 端 午
  16. 岳州端午日送人游郴连[1]
  17. 和李秀才端午日见寄
  18. 宫 词
  19. 端午日事
  20. 五月五日
  21. 五日登北山望竞渡
  22. 皇后阁五首(选一)
  23. 渔 家 傲
  24. 端 午
  25. 端午雨饮伯英池馆
  26. 浣 溪 沙
  27. 南 歌 子
  28. 南 乡 子
  29. 喜 迁 莺
  30. 和 端 午
  31. 重午王文辅送米食张云卿送新酒来因成绝句
  32. 端午绝句二首(选一)
  33. 端午即事
  34. 重午日晚眺
  35. 重 午
  36. 端午日次郁林州[1]
  37. 齐 天 乐
  38. 端午日无菖蒲
  39. 端 午
  40. 五月五日海上遇风雨作
  41. 夔州竹枝歌九首[1](选一)
  42. 如 梦 令
  43. 乙卯重五
  44. 重 午
  45. 归州重五[1]
  46. 端午后顿热
  47. 过弋阳观竞渡
  48. 端午独酌
  49. 一 斛 珠
  50. 贺 新 郎
  51. 扬州端午呈赵帅
  52. 午阴小饮
  53. 贺 新 郎
  54. 念 奴 娇
  55. 念 奴 娇
  56. 端午即事
  57. 菩 萨 蛮
  58. 端午日照道中
  59. 竞 渡
  60. 端 午 词
  61. 重午客中
  62. 端午日怀古
  63. 五月五日淮阴
  64. 端 午
  65. 端阳十咏·射柳
  66. 端阳十咏·斗草
  67. 端阳写怀
  68. 辛酉端阳日
  69. 端午赐扇
  70. 五 日
  71. 端午日小酌
  72. 午日处州禁竞渡[1]
  73. 端阳采菊
  74. 五月端午
  75. 浪 淘 沙
  76. 南唐宫词六首(选一)
  77. 端 午
  78. 台湾竹枝词·竞渡
  79. 梅雨经旬得遣怀绝句六首(选一)
  80. 连日竞渡再赋
  81. 南楼忆旧
  82. 甲子端阳日哭屈子[1]
  83. 五 毒 符
  84. 端五日送穷[1]
  85. 端五日于扇头朱书虎字

FAQ

Why is the author listed as "the publisher"? Is the content original?
"The publisher" refers to the editorial team of Shanghai Classics Publishing House. This is a poetry anthology organized and selected by the publisher; its core value lies in the systematic collection, selection and arrangement of material around the theme of the Dragon Boat Festival, not in individual original writing. It offers a curated set of existing classic texts.
What is the range of poems included?
Judging from the publication information, the book should include classic Dragon Boat Festival poems from the Han dynasty onward, through the Tang, Song, Ming and Qing and into modern times. The specific contents require checking the table of contents, but readers can expect a variety of themes: celebrating festival customs, commemorating Qu Yuan, and expressing seasonal reflections.
Is this book suitable as an introduction to Dragon Boat Festival culture?
Very much so. It presents the rich meaning of the festival through the most direct and beautiful literary form—poetry. The annotations aid understanding, so while savoring the poems readers naturally learn about the related history, figures and customs. It is both literary and informative, suitable for beginners and for deeper study.

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About the author

本社 Author

Benshe is a collective署名 author, and publicly available information about it is limited; no clear record of its identity or individual history has been found. Judging from the fourteen works in the collection, its editorial scope is quite broad: it includes technical materials for engineering practice, such as the Consolidated Compilation of Construction and Acceptance Specifications for Electrical Installations and the companion volume of clause explanations, as well as selections of classical poetry such as Dragon Boat Festival Poems and Mid-Autumn Festival Poems, and historical and festival-custom readers such as Speaking of Qingming and Pain and Dreams Around 1898: The Li-Li Talks During the Treaty of Shimonoseki. It also covers culinary titles such as 800 Irresistible Hunan Dishes and travel books such as Journey of Dreams: Finding the Most Romantic Places. Overall, Benshe appears to be an editorial body responsible for compilation and anthology work; its books emphasize practicality and popular knowledge, are plainly written, and serve readers with different needs, from engineering construction to traditional culture and daily life.

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