Legend has it that Dragon Boat racing emerged out of the saga of a Chinese court official named Qu Yuan over 2500 years ago… a champion of loyalty and integrity and community…who was exiled by the corrupt and evil men of his time, and later committed suicide in the Miluo River (perhaps in protest, and other interpretations suggest from despair). It’s told that the common people of his village rushed into the river and desperately tried to save him. They beat drums and splashed the water with their paddles to keep the fish and evil spirits from devouring his body…they even threw rice into the water so that Qu Yuan would not go hungry. It seems that his spirit was resurrected from the dead soon after and he told the villagers that the rice that had been meant for him was being intercepted by a huge river dragon…he gave them special instructions on how to wrap the rice in silk to ward off the dragon along will the beating of drums and paddles on the water…in commemoration of his death dragon boat racing was born. Today these old cultural traditions have been absorbed into the modern version of Dragon Boat racing and festivals…they represent an interesting selection of folks who race for all kinds of charitable, personal and noble reasons. I have had the benefit of knowing and sponsoring a few of them…and I can say that without exception that they have all been incredibly strong, beautiful and inspiring people that embody the best qualities of strength, integrity and community demonstrated by its legendary inspiration Qu Yuan…and it was a joy to see them race again today!
Two Dragons…Ready to Race!
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Lawrence Lewis
“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” – Eleanor Roosevelt
About Lawrence Lewis
I do a number of things professionally...but most of all and the true purpose of what I do through "my work" is to provide for my family, be a good husband and great father, and try to make a difference as a world citizen...I guess it's not much more complicated than that 🙂