Chinese Valentine''s Day

Raise your head on August 4 and gaze at the stars, you will find something romantic going on in the sky.

VALENTINE''S Day in China, the seventh day of the seventh lunar month, falls on August 4 this year.

That is, on Monday evening, Niu Lang and Zhi Nu will meet on a bridge of magpies（鹊桥） across the Milky Way（银河）. Chinese grannies will remind children that they would not be able to see any magpies on that evening because all the magpies have left to form a bridge in the heavens with their wings.

Romantic legend

The legend has been handed down for nearly 2 millennia. The story has been recorded as far back as the Jin Dynasty (256-420 AD). Poets composed hundreds of verses on the love story and many types of Chinese opera tell the story.

The Chinese people believe that the star Vega（织女星）, east of the Milky Way, is Zhi Nu and, at the constellation of Aquila（天鹰座）, on the western side of the Milky Way, Niu Lang waits for his wife.

Zhi Nu was said to be the youngest of seven daughters of the Queen of Heaven. With her sisters, she worked hard to weave beautiful clouds in the sky, while Niu Lang was a poor orphan cowherd, driven out of his home by his elder brother and his cruel wife.

Niu Lang lamented over his lonely and poor life with an old cow, his only friend and companion. The magical cow kindly told him of a way to find a beautiful and nice woman as his life companion.

Under the direction of the cow, Niu Lang went to the riverside on an evening, where the seven fairies slipped out of their heavenly palace to bathe.

He took one of the beautiful silk dresses the fairies had left on the bank. When the fairies left the water, the youngest couldn''t find her clothes and had to see her sisters fly back to heaven without her.

Then Niu Lang came out with the dress and asked the youngest fairy, Zhi Nu, to stay with him.

Several years passed on Earth, which were only a few days in heaven. Niu Lang and Zhi Nu lived happily together and had two children before the Queen of Heaven discovered Zhi Nu''s absence.

She was so annoyed she had Zhi Nu brought back to heaven. Seeing his beloved wife flying in the sky, Niu Lang was terrified. He caught sight of the cowhide hanging on a wall. The magical cow had told him before dying of old age: "Keep the cowhide（牛皮） for emergency use."

Putting the cowhide on, he went after his wife with his two children.

With the help of the cowhide, Niu Lang was able to follow Zhi Nu into heaven. He was about to reach his wife when the Queen showed up and pulled off her hairpin to draw a line between the two. The line became the Silver River in heaven, or the Milky Way.

Zhi Nu went back to the heavenly workshop, going on weaving the clouds. But she was so sad, and missed her husband across the Silver River so much that the clouds she weaved seemed sad. Finally, the Queen showed a little mercy, allowing the couple to meet once every year on the Silver River.

Well-known poem

One of the most famous poems about the legend was written by Qin Guan of in the Song Dynasty (960-1279).

Fairy Of The Magpie Bridge

Among the beautiful clouds,

Over the heavenly river,

Crosses the weaving maiden.

A night of rendezvous,

Across the autumn sky.

Surpasses joy on earth.

Moments of tender love and dream,

So sad to leave the magpie bridge.

七夕节的英文是"Chinese Valentine's Day"，通常在每年农历七月初七，也就是中国农历的七月初七。

七夕节，又称乞巧节，是中国的传统节日，每年的农历七月初七庆祝。这个节日有着悠久的历史和丰富的文化内涵，主要源于古代的牛郎织女传说。根据该传说，牛郎（牛郎星）和织女（织女星）相爱，但被天帝分隔在银河两岸，只有每年的这一天才能跨越银河相会。

在英语中，七夕节可以被介绍为：

"Qixi Festival, also known as the Double Seventh Festival, is a traditional Chinese holiday celebrated on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month. It has a long history and rich cultural significance, originating from the ancient legend of the Cowherd and the Weaving Maiden. According to the legend, the Cowherd (represented by the star Altair) and the Weaving Maiden (represented by the star Vega) fall in love but are separated by the Heavenly Emperor, who places them on opposite sides of the Milky Way. They are allowed to meet only once a year on this day."

七夕节现在也被看作是中国的情人节，情侣们会在这天表达爱意，进行各种浪漫的活动，如观星、赏月、乞巧、挂牵牛花等。这个节日不仅是中国的文化遗产，也越来越受到全世界人们的关注和喜爱。