Double Ninth Festival — Myths and Legends
There are three main legends about the Double Ninth Festival, two of which are folk tales:One: Climbing High to Find Nine-Section Acorus
It is said that the custom of climbing high on the Double Ninth Festival began when Emperor Qin Shi Huang ordered the fortune-teller Zheng Anqi to go to Lingnan to find the elixir of immortality. When Zheng Anqi found the nine-section acorus on Baiyun Mountain, he accidentally fell off a cliff and was carried away by a crane to heaven.Two: Bringing Back Lightning Fire
Ancients believed that the misty mountains were the dwelling place of the dragon god that could call wind and rain, summon lightning and thunder. Moreover, the lightning on the mountain could bring fire, which could be used to cook raw meat and eliminate its stench.Three: Heng Jing Eliminating the Pestilence Demon
According to legend, during the Eastern Han Dynasty, there was a pestilence demon in Ruhé River. Whenever it appeared, every household would have someone fall ill, and even people would die daily. The people in this area suffered greatly from the pestilence demon, with tragic scenes. At that time, there was a young man named Heng Jing in Ruzhou County. One year, the epidemic took away his parents, and he almost died too. After recovering, he bid farewell to his beloved wife and fellow villagers, determined to go out and seek immortal skills to eliminate the evil. Heng Jing endured great hardships and finally found a powerful immortal in an ancient mountain. Moved by Heng Jing's perseverance and spirit of eliminating evil for the people, the immortal decided to take him as a disciple, gave him a magical sword to subdue demons, and secretly taught him the techniques to defeat demons. Heng Jing practiced day and night, eventually mastering extraordinary martial arts.One day, the immortal called Heng Jing and said, "Tomorrow is the ninth day of the ninth month, and the pestilence demon will come again. Now that your skills are complete, you should return home to eliminate the evil!" At that moment, the immortal gave Heng Jing a bag of dogwood leaves, a jar of chrysanthemum wine, and imparted a secret to avoid evil, telling Heng Jing to immediately ride the crane back home. Heng Jing returned to his hometown and on the morning of the ninth day of the ninth month, he led the villagers to a nearby mountain, giving each person a piece of dogwood leaf and a cup of chrysanthemum wine. By noon, the wind howled, the north wind blew fiercely, the sky darkened, and with several loud cries, the pestilence demon emerged from the Ruhé River and rushed down the mountain. At that moment, the demon suddenly smelled the strange aroma of dogwood and the rich fragrance of chrysanthemum wine, its face changed, trembling and unable to move forward. Before it could react, Heng Jing, holding the magical sword, rushed down the mountain. After a few intense rounds of combat, Heng Jing killed the pestilence demon, and the plague was eliminated. Later, people regarded the Double Ninth Festival climbing as an activity to avoid disasters and misfortunes.
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