Everyone worships the Weaver Girl on Tanabata. Why does a village in Fujian worship the Snake King?

Once a year, Chinese Valentine's Day has come again. This festival can be said to be the most romantic among Chinese traditional festivals. In ancient times, this day was not only a good day for cowherd and weaver girl to meet, but also a folk custom for women to pray for weaver girl on this day. However, China is a vast country, and not every place has to worship the Weaver Girl. Take a place in Fujian as an example. On such a romantic festival as Tanabata, they worship the Snake King!

The unique way of opening Chinese Valentine's Day is Zhanghu Town, Fujian. Worship the snake king is a custom handed down from ancient times in Zhanghu Town. In ancient times, snakes were mysterious incarnations, especially giant pythons, which were recognized as sacred objects that would be cultivated into dragons, and dragons were in charge of wind and rain, which was of great significance in ancient farming culture. This idea is particularly popular in Fujian, including Zhanghu Town, and Tanabata is also a season of frequent floods in a year. At this time, worship the "snake king" in order to pray for a good weather and smooth things in the new year.

On the day of Chinese Valentine's Day, a grand snake cultural tourism festival will be held in Zhanghu Town, which is different from the custom of worshipping the Weaver Maid and praying for blessings in traditional culture. During the snake cultural tourism festival in Zhanghu Town, the locals will invite a giant python named "Snake King" out of the snake temple, and many other onlookers will help out with live snakes in their hands. Moreover, during the "Snake King" parade, folk artists will perform a variety of performances featuring snakes, which are both frightening and exciting for foreign tourists and worth seeing. There are also bold tourists who can take snakes or put them on their bodies for photos.

Zhanghu Town, a unique Chinese Valentine's Day, contains people's yearning and blessing for a better life, and also reflects the diversity of Chinese traditional culture.