During the Water Splashing Festival, the Dai youth like to go to the forest clearing to do the bag throwing game. Flower bag made of beautiful flower cloth, filled with cotton paper, cotton seeds, etc., four corners and the center of the five flower spikes, is a token of love, young men and women through the bag, catch the bag, get acquainted with each other. And so the girl consciously let the young man could not lose, the young man will be ready to give the girl, both left the crowd to the secluded place to talk about love to go.
During the Water Festival, there is also a dragon boat race. The competition is held on the Lancang River. A group of groups of red and green dragon boat in the "Hall Hall" in the sound of the gong and "Hi Hi Hi" shouts and whistles, chopping waves, bravely forward, thousands of Chinese and foreign tourists attracted to the Lancang River side, for the festival has added a lot of tension and joyful atmosphere.
Putting on the high altitude and Kongming lanterns is also a unique activity in the Dai ethnic area. People set up a good anti-aircraft stand before the festival, when the homemade clay rockets will be ignited, so that it whistles and flies into the blue sky. The higher and further away from the walled village, the more colorful and auspicious people feel. The winners will also ****. At night, people in the square on the open space will be lighted candles, put into the homemade large "balloon" within the use of hot air buoyancy, a "Kongming lanterns" flying into the sky, in honor of the ancient sage Kong Ming.
Additionally, river boats, elephant foot drum dance and peacock dance, cockfighting, etc., are also activities during the Water Festival. In recent years, folklore visits and economic and trade talks have also been added. So that the activities of the Water Splashing Festival are more colorful and diversified. Water Festival is held annually in Xishuangbanna and Dehong at the same time. West land can be directly from Kunming by plane. April 13, 1961,**** Premier had participated in the water festival in Xishuangbanna. Since then, the Water Splashing Festival has become bigger and bigger, and every year tens of thousands of Chinese and foreign tourists regard it as the most unforgettable experience of their lives.
The Water Splashing Festival used to be a religious ceremony of Indian Brahminism, which was later absorbed by Buddhism and introduced to the Dai ethnic area of Yunnan through Myanmar at the end of the 13th century and the beginning of the 14th century, with a history of 700 years. With the increasing influence of Theravada Buddhism in the Dai region, the Water Festival has become more and more widespread.
The Legend of the Water Splashing Festival
The Water Splashing Festival is an annual traditional festival of the Dai ethnic group (April 13-15 on the solar calendar). In Dai language, it is called "Lenghe Shanghan", i.e. "June New Year" or "Dai New Year". In fact, the Water Festival is the New Year's Day of the Dai calendar, because the Dai calendar counts the new year from the beginning of June.
About the origin of the Water Splashing Festival, there is a local legend: a long time ago, a wicked devil king took over the beautiful and rich Xishuangbanna, and snatched seven beautiful girls to be his wife. The girls were filled with hatred and planned how to kill the devil king. One night, the youngest girl Nongxiang with the best meat and wine, the devil king drunk, so that he revealed his fatal weakness. It turned out that the king was not afraid of the world, not afraid of the devil, is afraid of his hair strangling their necks, vigilant little girl carefully pulled off the king of a red hair, strangling his neck. Sure enough, the Demon King's head fell off and turned into a ball of fire, rolling to wherever the evil fire spread to. The bamboo buildings were burned down and the crops were scorched. In order to extinguish the evil fire, the little girl grabbed the head of the devil king, and the other six girls took turns to keep pouring water on it, and finally extinguished the evil fire in the sixth month of the Dai calendar. The townspeople began to live in peace and happiness. From then on, there was the custom of splashing water in every year. Now, the custom of splashing water has actually become a form of mutual blessing. In the view of the Dai people, water is a symbol of holiness, beauty and light. With water in the world, everything can grow, and water is the god of life.
Anyone who has been to Yunnan knows the famous Dai Water Festival, but there are two kinds of legends about the origin of the festival. Xishuangbanna, Dehong legend is by the "seven princesses to kill the fire demon" story, but is located in Lijiang Huaping area of the Dai Water Festival story is unique. The Dai people here are the northernmost Dai tribe in China and even in Asia. Their story is this:
Legend has it that a long time ago, the Jinsha River side of a Dai village living in the depths of the dense forest, because of the forest fire, the villagers are in danger of being engulfed in flames, a Dai man named Li Liang, in order to protect the village, undaunted by the dangers of the fire net, picking buckets of water from the Jinsha River, splashing fire, after a day and a night of hard work, the fire is finally extinguished, the villagers saved, Li Liang because of the fire, the fire, the fire, the fire, the fire, the fire, the fire, the fire, the fire, the fire, the fire. Villagers were saved, Li Liang because of exhaustion sweating dry, thirsty on the hill. The villagers called the water to Li Liang to quench their thirst, but after drinking 99 picks of water can not quench their thirst, and then, Li Liang jumped headlong into the river, turned into a giant dragon, down the river and go. Some people said that he turned into a big tree. Dai people in order to commemorate Li Liang, every year on the third day of the third month of the lunar calendar, each house cleaned up, sprinkled with pine leaves, and in the selected riverside or wells, with the green tree set up a half-mile-long green shed, under the shed sprinkled with thick pine needles, both sides of the water tank full of water, the sun when the top of the midday when the crowds walk under the shed with each other with a pine branch dipped in the water sprinkled body, expressed the nostalgia and the blessing for the new year of Li Liang. This activity continues to this day, and has become the festival of the Dai people to celebrate the old and welcome the new, and to bless the auspicious festival - the Water Festival.
When the Water Splashing Festival comes, the Dai people will be busy killing pigs, chickens, brewing wine, and making a lot of "huonosuo" (rice cakes) and many kinds of poop made of glutinous rice, which will be eaten during the festival.
The festival lasts three days. On the first day, dragon boats are rowed, high rises are released, and cultural performances are held; on the second day, water is splashed; and on the third day, young men and women engage in bag-throwing and exchanges of materials.
The festival is generally held on the banks of the Lancang River in the beautiful scenery. When the morning sun reflects the red "City of Dawn", people of all ethnic groups will be dressed in costumes, from all directions converge here. A call, a branch of high rise into the air, straight through the clouds, a dragon boat arrow, straight to the other side. At this time, ten million golden bamboo "(on the bamboo under the must)" together blowing, (hydrazinium) gongs, elephant foot drums sounded together, both sides of the Lancang River suddenly turned into a sea of joy.
When the water splashing just started, the polite Dai girls said words of blessing, while using bamboo leaves, branches dipped in the basin of water to each other sprinkled. "Water flowers put, Dai crazy", to the climax, people with copper bowl, basin, and even buckets of water, in the streets and alleys, playful chase, only feel, face to face with the water, behind the water, splashed to the fullest, one from head to toe soaked, but people are happy, full of laughter everywhere. After a period of water baptism, people form a circle and dance to the accompaniment of gongs and drums, regardless of ethnicity, age or occupation. When people are excited, they burst into cheers of "Shui, Shui, Shui". Some men danced and drank, drunk, all night long.
"Throwing bags" is the most romantic, often unmarried Dai young people's exclusive game. "Packet" is a token of love, by the Dai girls with flower cloth carefully made, loaded with cotton seeds, packet corners are decorated with colorful flower spikes. When the bag is thrown, men and women stand in a row on the grassy lawn, and the Dai girl throws the bag to the young man, and the young man then throws it to the girl and uses it to pass on his feelings. In this way, the flower bag flying around, and finally the exchange of feelings to a certain extent, the two sides quietly out of the bag throwing field, looking for a quiet place to shoulder whispering to go.
On the Water Splashing Festival, youths splashed water, as if silver flowers blossomed.
Unforgettable Water Festival