Zee Wong

    zedwong@163.com

    RICE is the dominant staple food of China and other Asian countries. A favorite prepared rice dish, congee, or rice porridge, is valued for its nutrition and medical application. Since congee is a fluid rice dish, it is easier for digestion and, hence, best for the elderly and patients.

    When congee is made with herbs or dried fruits, it has a much larger “customer base.” When congee is made with dates, it is considered an elixir, cherished by Chinese women. The date congee replenishes blood and promotes blood circulation, so is very good for the skin. The efficacy may vary since each person has a different physique. For best results, users should learn more about this traditional Chinese medicine.

    Chinese food and medicine share the same root. For example, Laba congee is very wholesome. It is a rice porridge cooked with a mixture of rice, beans, and dried fruits. On the eighth day of the 12th lunar month, Laba congee is essential for celebrating the Laba Festival.

    A legend about the Laba Festival is related to the Gautama Buddha, or Shakyamuni Buddha, who founded Buddhism when he was 35 years old. As a prince of the city Kapilavastu in the ancient Shakya kingdom, the Gautama Buddha could have lived a lavish lifestyle. However, he chose to abdicate his throne and went on six years of ascetic practices with five companions.

    In the ascetic forest, the prince ate very little, only once a day or every other day. Later in his ascetic practice, he ate once every seven days. His body emaciated until his bones were covered only with thin skin.

    The prince realized that asceticism was not the ultimate path to enlightenment, so he accepted rice porridge with milk offered by a cowherd girl. The companions thought that he had lost his faith and left him.

    In fact, the prince did not give up. He went to the Gaya Mountains and meditated underneath a bo-tree (ficus religiosa), known as a tree of wisdom. Overcoming seductions and threats sent by the devil, the prince was enlightened on the seventh day. To commemorate the enlightenment of the Gautama Buddha, people celebrate the Laba Festival.

    Since Buddhism flourished in the Tang Dynasty (618-907), it became increasingly influential in China. Influenced by Buddhism, the Laba Festival moved from three days after Dongzhi Festival (usually around Dec. 22) to the eighth day of 12th month on the lunar calendar.