The
Cowherd and the Weaving Girl
Once
upon a time, there was a boy, clever, diligent and honest.
Orphaned, his wicked big brother drove him out of home,
giving him nothing but a decrepit buffalo. The animal, however,
proved to be very loyal to the boy, trying its best to relieve
him of the toil in the fields. The two friends were seen
together all the time. Eventually the boy became known as
the Cowherd.
Meanwhile,
the youngest of the seven celestial princesses had grown
tired of the privileged but secluded life in the Celestial
Palace, longing for a mundane life she often saw down beneath
her. Once she saw the cowherd, she fell in love with him.
For this, she was ostracized by her other sisters. But this
attraction drew her to him so much, she left her celestial
home and one day, appeared before him. The Cowherd was pleasantly
surprised to have such a beauty fall literally into his
grasp and he returned her love.
They
married and had a lovely little boy and a girl. While the
Cowherd worked in the fields with his loyal animal, the
buffalo, the heavenly princess wove at home to help support
the family. Villagers all admired her excellent weaving
skill and thus earned the nickname of Weaving Girl.
All
was well for several years, the Cowherd and the Weaving
Girl, until the girl's celestial royal family realized that
she was missing. Much to their chagrin, they found her living
an ordinary life in the village. Incidentally, it was believed
that a day in heaven amounted to years on earth. Thus, the
years she had spent with the Cowherd were but a few days
in heaven.
The
Celestial Empress flew into a rage. She gave her daughter
two options: to come back home or to see her husband and
children perish. A loving wife and mother, she had but to
surrender and return to her celestial home, sadly leaving
behind the Cowherd and her two children.
The
bereaved Cowherd was at a loss what to do when suddenly
the old buffalo began to speak, saying that soon he was
to die. He offered his own hide as a vehicle to go catch
his wife. Off went the Cowherd into the sky, carrying his
young son and daughter in a basket on each side of a shoulder
pole.
Seeing
the Cowherd closing in, the empress took out her hairpin
and drew a line across the sky in front of the Cowherd.
Instantly, it became a raging river of stars, known to the
Chinese as the Silvery River, and the West as the Milky
Way. In doing so, she made sure that the couple would never
have a chance to get together.
Seeing
the despair of the lovers, all the magpies in the world
became angry at the cruelty of the selfish mother. They
flocked to their rescue. Each year, on the seventh day of
the seventh month on the Chinese lunar calendar, the birds
would manage to gather enough force in number to form a
bridge so that the family may at least have a brief reunion.
But forevermore, the two lovers live in the sky, separated
by a raging river of stars, fortunate enough to meet on
this one day. They can still be seen in the sky as the Lyra
and the Aquila constellations, separated by the Milky Way.
Since
then, the seventh day of the seventh month on the lunar
calendar, has been known as the Chinese Valentine's day,
a time when all lovers celebrate their love and their ability
to be together. Moreover, the magpie has been regarded as
a messenger of good tidings.
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