EXTRA HISTORY

** The Cow Herder and the Weaving Girl/Goddess is one of the most famous Chinese folk-tales and is an embodiment of the greatness of love. Here is one variant of the story: Many many many years ago, an orphan herded cows. His older brother's wife treated him badly - she gave him nine cows and told him to bring home ten cows or he need not ever return. However, he received help from a wise sage and found a sick old cow on a mountain. Under his care, he realized that this old cow was the Taurus constellation that had been sent down to the mortal world. So, the Cow Herder successfully herded him and could go home. Under the guidance of the old cow, the Cow Herder found the bathing place of the female goddesses in the mortal world. The Cow Herder took one of the robes and this belonged to the Weaving Girl/Goddess. They met and fell in love, and even gave birth to twins. However, as the Weaving Goddess broke the rules of Heaven in falling in love with a mortal, she was taken back to the Heavenly Realms. The old cow told the Cow Herder that after he died, the Cow Herder can use his skin to make shoes and he will be able to ride clouds and control the mist, and he managed to fly up to the Heavenly Realms. Upon the point of his reunion with the Weaving Goddess, the Heavenly Empress used a hairpin to become the silver river and blocked his way. The magpies in the sky were touched by their love and so made a "magpie bridge" and allowed the Cow Herder and Weaving Goddess to unite. The Heavenly Empress was a little touched, so she allowed them to reunite on every seventh day of the seventh lunar month at the magpie bridge.