The Flower of the Fifth Lunar Month

The flower associated with this month is the flower of the pomegranate.

This flower is bright red in colour and was described as a flower that "enhanced the heat of the early Summer". The flower starts to bud from as early as late spring, and the bloom will last till the height of summer. Thus it symbolises vibrant and youthful energy, like that of Summer.

The pomegranate fruit also has special meaning in the Chinese Culture. The fruit contains numerous red seeds and took on the auspicious meaning of "many children".

The pomegranate plant was brought into China from the Persian regions by a Chinese merchant Zhang Qian during the Western Han dynasty.

The there are many historical figures associated with the pomegranate flower. One is Zhong Kui, the King of the Ghosts. This is because he is associated with the Duan Wu festival held in early summer, the period when the flower blooms. Another is Zhang Qian, since he is the one who brought the seed of this flower into China. But the most widely accepted Diety of this flower should be Kong Zhao An, a poet of the Tang Dynasty. Not only did he wrote some famous works in praise of the pomegranate, he also identified with the plant, and uses it as a symbol of his life.