Title: Chinese Mugwort during the Dragon Boat Festival

General Information about Item:

• Custom, Superstition
• Language: Chinese
• Culture of Origin: Chinese
• Informant: JH
• Date Collected: 10-20-21

Informant Data:

JH is a Taiwanese national who immigrated to the California Bay Area in the 1980s. He currently lives in a predominantly Asian community and has seen Chinese culture for all of his life. He currently works as an IT engineer in the California Bay Area. 

Contextual Data:

Social Context: I recently had a conversation with JH where I asked about a situation several years ago when JH handed me a sachet filled with pleasant-smelling herbs. As I was young at the time, I took for granted that it would bring me good luck. I did not inquire further until recently, when I remembered the situation and asked about it. 

Cultural Context: The Dragon Boat Festival is an annual festival that lies on the fifth day of the fifth month of the lunar calendar. The festival is meant to reinforce good health, as it is believed that natural disasters and illnesses are common during this month. During this time, people believe that Chinese mugwort can ward off evil spirits. 

Item: 

During the Dragon Boat Festival, it is thought that more ghosts may come out and spread disease. To protect children against disease spread by these ghosts, children are given perfumed medicine bags filled with dried Chinese mugwort. In this way, it is thought that children are able to ward off evil. 

Informant Comment: 

JH thought that these medicine bags smelled good. 

Collector Comment: 

It was unclear whether the informant actually believed this superstition, or if this was more a tradition. 

Tags/Keywords:

• Custom
• Superstition