A highlight in the Singapore cultural events calendar, the Rice Dumpling festival in Singapore is celebrated on the 5th day of the 5th month on the lunar calendar of Chinese people. Celebrated to commemorate the patriotic poet Qu Yuan who stood up against the Chu kingdom’s corrupt government in the olden days of China and afterwards had to pay the price by being falsely charged with treason, the festival is associated with making or buying rice dumplings.

According to the legends, after learning about Qu Yuan’s unfortunate death the people had made rice dumplings to throw into the river with the intention of making the fish eat the dumplings instead of the corpse of Qu Yuan, who had tie himself to a large rock and jump into the river upon hearing about the Chu kingdom’s defeat over the Qin kingdom. It is also said that people also went looking for his body in boats, beating gongs and drums to frighten the fish away; hence, this particular event is also known as the Dragon Boat Festival.

During the festival, people exchange rice dumplings with their friends and relatives. Dragon boat races take place at some places where a number competing teams row their boats forward to the rhythm of a drumbeat. However, the celebration is believed to be a time for creating protection against diseases and evil; thus various practices such as drinking nutritious concoctions and hanging healthy herbs on the front entrances of homes are carried out even today. It is also believed that the day of the festival is perfect for collecting medicine and herbs as the herbs picked on that day may deliver satisfactory results.