Chinese Mythology: The Niu Lang and the Zhi Nu
zhèshìzhōngguódàihěnyǒumíngdehànlǎobǎixìngdeàiqíngshìshìzánmenzhōngguóchāoyǒumíngdemínjiānchuánshuōdesānshìliángshānzhùyīngtái 》、《 mèngjiāngchángchéngháiyǒubáishézhuàn 》。

This is a famous love story among the Han Chinese folklore in ancient China, and it’s also one of the four super well-known Chinese folk legends. The other three are “Liang Shan Bo and Zhu Ying Tai,” “Meng Jiang Nu Cries at the Great Wall,” and “The Legend of the White Snake.”

zhèshìshìcóngqiānniúxīngzhīxīngdemíngbiànláideshuōdeshìdàitiānshàngyǒutiāndesūnjiàozhībiéhuìzhīměitiāndōugěitiānshàngzhīcǎixiádànjuédezhèzhǒngzitàiliáolejiùtōutōupǎodàorénjiān西dejiàoniúlángdexiǎohuǒzijiélehūnliǎngrénzhòngzhīguòdetǐngkāixīnde
This story evolved from the names of the Cowherd Star and the Weaver Star. It goes like this: In ancient times, there was a Tian Di in the sky, and his granddaughter, the Zhi Nu, was particularly skilled at weaving. She would weave colorful clouds for the sky every day. However, she found this life too boring, so she secretly descended to the mortal world and married a young man named the Niu Lang who lived on the west bank of the river. Together, they farmed and wove, living a happy life.

shìzhèshìérbèitiānzhīdàolefēichángshēngjiùzhīzhuāhuíletiānshàngháiràngmenliǎfēnkāizhǐràngmenměiniánnóngyuèzàiquèqiáoshàngjiànmiànmenzhījiāndegǎnqíngtàizhēnzhìleliánquèdōubèigǎndòngleshìhǎoduōquèdōufēiguòláiyòngdeshēnchénglezuòqiáohéngkuàzàitiānshàngràngmenliǎnéngzàitiānshàngjiànmiàn
But when the Tian Di found out about this, he was extremely angry. He captured the Zhi Nu and took her back to heaven, separating her from the Niu Lang. He only allowed them to meet once a year on the Double Seventh Festival (the 7th day of the 7th lunar month) on the Magpie Bridge. Their love was so sincere that it even moved the magpies. Many magpies flew over and used their bodies to form a bridge across the Milky Way, allowing the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl to meet on the river.

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