Wanderlust World Wanderlust World The most famous legend surrounding the holiday dates back to the 3rd century BC when a man named Qu Yuan, a patriot and government minister in the kingdom of Chu, drowned himself in the Miluo River after learning of the fall of his state. His local villagers tried to save him by diving under the water but only found his body. According to legend, the local villagers would throw zongzi into the river every year to feed Qu Yuan's spirit. They would also paddle long, narrow boats called dragon boats into the river—often hitting their drums loudly to keep the spirit of the dragon that would try to harm Qu Yuan at bay. Eventually, these events became traditional.
For good fortune
The Dragon Boat Festival is also associated with good fortune. Racing in the dragon boats is done in competition to catch the eye of the water dragons as they sleep, with the hope that those who capture the dragons' attention will receive an auspicious fate from the gods for the following year.
To dispel disease and bring good weather
The festival also involves hanging calamus or mugwort leaves or reeds from the front doorway of the house. It's believed that doing this will keep out all evil spirits and the dragon in the heavens that controls clouds and rainfall that can bring bad luck.