Contents
Introduction to the festival
Origin of the festival
Customs of the festival
The precepts of water-splashing Wen Splashing
Wu Splashing
Others
The significance of the festival 1, the festival of the "blessing": the bath of the Buddha
2, the festival of the "love": the loss of the bag
3, the festival of the water "Power": Dragon Boat Racing
Heritage Value
Folklore Festival Introduction
Origin of the Festival
Festive Customs
Pouring of Water Wen Pouring
Wu Pouring
Other
The significance of Water Splashing Festival 1, Water Splashing Festival "Blessing": Bathing in Buddha
2, Water Splashing Festival "Love": Throwing Bags
3. Water Splashing Festival "Power": Dragon Boat Racing
Inheritance Value
Folk Lore
Expand Water Splashing Carnival
Edit Festival Introduction
The Dai[1] in China is an ethnic minority with long cultural traditions, with a population of nearly one million people, mainly residing in the Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture in the south of Yunnan, the Dehong Dai Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture in the west, and the Dehong Dai Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture in the south of Yunnan, and the Dehong Dai Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture in the west. Dehong Dai Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture and the autonomous counties of Gengma and Menglian, with others scattered throughout Yunnan. The Dai people have a long history, and the Dai language belongs to the Dai branch of the Zhuang Dai language family of the Sino-Tibetan language family. All the people believe in Buddhism, but primitive religious activities are also more common, such as sacrifices to the gods of the village, the village ghosts, agricultural rituals, hunting rituals, spirit worship, etc. The Dai Water Festival is also known as the "Water Festival of the Dai". The Dai Water Splashing Festival is also known as the "Buddha Bathing Festival", which is celebrated by the Achang, De'ang, Brown, Wa and other ethnic groups. Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar, Laos and other countries also celebrate the Water Festival. The Water Splashing Festival originated in India, and with the deepening influence of Buddhism in the Dai area, the Water Splashing Festival has been passed down as a national custom for hundreds of years now. At the festival, the Dai men, women and children put on festive costumes, while the women each pick a quart of water for the Buddha to wash the dust, and seek the blessing of the Buddha spirit." After the "Bathing Buddha", people start to splash water on each other to express their blessings, hoping that the holy water will wash away diseases and disasters and bring about a better and happier life. Collective splashing each other started in this way. A group of young men and women with a variety of containers of water, gushing out of the streets and alleys, chasing and playing, splashing everyone." The water flower is released, Daijia crazy", "splashing wet, happiness for life"! Symbolizing good luck, happiness, health, a flower in the air bloom, people splash as much as they can sprinkle, laughing loudly, soaked to the skin, the excitement is very high. Into the night, the village drums and music heard, people singing and dancing, lively and extraordinary. Throughout the festival, in addition to the dragon boat race, put high, put the lanterns, splashing water, throwing bags and other traditional recreational activities, there are cockfighting, balloon, garden party, material exchanges and other new activities. Dai and Wa men and women in Yunnan Ethnic Village also wore costumes to celebrate the Water Splashing Festival with tourists.
Origin of the Festival
The Dai Water Splashing Festival, also known as the "Buddha Bathing Festival", is called "Bimai" (meaning New Year) in the Dai language and is held in the middle of the sixth month of the Dai Calendar, between April 13 and April 15 on the solar calendar (i.e., ten days before and after the Ching Ming Festival on the lunar calendar). Xishuangbanna Dehong region of the Dai also called this festival "Shang Han" and "Shang key", two names are derived from Sanskrit, meaning turnover, change and transfer, referring to the sun has been in the zodiac twelve houses orbiting a week to start the transition to a new year. The festival is celebrated by the Achang, Deang, Brown and Wa ethnic groups. Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar, Laos and other countries also celebrate the Water Festival. The Water Splashing Festival originated in India, is an ancient Brahmanism ritual, later absorbed by Buddhism, about the end of the twelfth century to the beginning of the thirteenth century A.D. through Burma with Buddhism into the Dai region of China's Yunnan Province. With the deepening influence of Buddhism in the Dai area, the Water Splashing Festival has become a national custom that has been passed down for hundreds of years. In the process of the water splashing festival, the Dai people gradually combined it with their own national myths and legends, giving the festival a more magical meaning and national color.
Customs of the Festival
The Water Splashing Festival is the grandest festival of the Dai people, and it is also the festival with the greatest influence and the largest number of participants among the festivals of the ethnic minorities in Yunnan. The Dai Water Splashing Festival lasts for three to seven days. The first day is "Mai Day", which is similar to New Year's Eve on the lunar calendar, and is called "Wan Duoshanghan" in Dai language, meaning sending the old. At this time, people have to tidy up their houses, clean up, and prepare for the annual dinner and various activities during the festival. The next day is called "annoyed day", "annoyed" means "empty", according to the custom of this day is neither the previous year, also does not belong to the year after the year, it is "empty day"; the third day of the New Year, called "aba net horse", after all, the first year, people regard this day as the most beautiful, the most auspicious day. Early in the morning of the festival, the Dai men, women and children dressed in festive costumes, picking the water, first to the Buddhist temple to bathe Buddha, and then began to splash each other, wishing each other good luck, happiness and health. People dance while calling out "Water! Water! Water!" The sound of drums and gongs resounded through the sky, the blessing of water splashing everywhere, the scene is really very spectacular. Every Water Festival, the Dai people to the nearby mountains to collect some flowers and leaves, to the festival day, the Dai men, women and children will put on the festival dress, picking the water, first to the Buddhist temple bathing, take the collection of flowers and leaves dipped in water, began to splash each other, you splash me, I splash you, a flower blooms in the air, it symbolizes good luck, happiness, health, young people in the hands of the bright crystal beads of water, but also symbolizes the sweet love! It symbolizes good luck, happiness and health. We splash each other ah splash, everywhere is the baptism of water, water blessing, water song. Duo Duohua string smile, Water Festival has become a sea of joy.
Edit this section of the water to splash the precepts
Wen splash
The more traditional way, with a wooden basin filled with water, splashed on the person.
Wu Splash
Splash people with dirty water, sewage and water with stones, glass, mud, itchy things; splash water to the police on duty, staff, photographers, journalists, the elderly, the sick and disabled, pregnant women, babies and young children; blocking the passing vehicles to besiege the splash; use high-pressure water gun spray splash; the use of mobile splash vehicles to the crowd to splash
Other
In addition to the In addition to splashing water, there are other folk activities such as catching the pendulum, dragon boat races, Buddha bathing, chanting sutras, Zhangha singing, cockfighting, peacock dance, white elephant dance, throwing bags, releasing the Gaoxin, releasing the Kongming lanterns and other artistic performances, economic and trade exchanges, and so on.
Edit the meaning of the Water Festival
1, the Water Festival "blessing": Bathing Buddha
In the "Mai Day", early in the morning people will be taken to the Buddhist temple to pick up flowers and green leaves, water to the Buddha's temple offerings, water to the "Bathing Buddha" - for the Buddha to wash the dust." Bathing Buddha" finished, collective mutual water splashing began. A group of young men and women with a variety of containers of water, gushing out of the streets and alleys, chasing and playing, splashing everyone." Water flower release, Daijia crazy", "splash wet all over, happiness for life"! Symbol of good luck, happiness, health, a flower in the air bloom, people splash to their heart's content, laughing loudly, wet all over the body, the excitement is very high. The wetter the water is splashed, the more water is splashed, the more blessings you receive. A pot of water represents a pot of blessings, splash to everyone you want to bless.
2, the Water Festival "love": throwing bags
The Water Festival is also a wonderful time for unmarried young men and women to find love and cultivate happiness. During the Water Festival, the Dai unmarried young men and women like to do "throw the bag" game. The flower bag crafted with flower cloth in the girl's hand is a token of love. Throw package day, the girls dress up to the best of things, and then hit the flower umbrella, carrying a small flower package to the "package field", and the young men on both sides of the separation, thirty to forty paces apart, began to each other to throw the flower package. If the young man can not catch the girl threw the flower bag, you have to put the pre-prepared flowers inserted in the girl's hair on the fly, the girl if you can not catch the young man threw the bag, you have to put the flowers inserted into the young man's chest ...... so gradually selected each other, a period of romantic love story has begun.
3, the water festival "power": dragon boat
Dragon boat race is one of the most exciting projects of the water festival, often in the water festival "Mai Paya evening horse" (the third day) held. On that day, people dressed in festive costumes gather on the banks of the Lancang River and the Ruili River to watch the dragon boat race. River moored in green and colorful dragon boat, the boat sits dozens of strong sailors, the order sounded, ready to start the dragon boat like an arrow flying forward, and then the whole river, drums, gongs, horns, applause, one after another, sound corresponding to the atmosphere of the festival reached a climax here. ......4, the Water Festival "Dance": Elephant Feet Dance and Peacock Dance The Dai people are good at singing and dancing, and the Water Splashing Festival naturally involves dancing. Large-scale dances are mainly arranged on the third day of the Water Festival, such as the Elephant Foot Dance and Peacock Dance. From seven or eight-year-old dolls to seventy or eighty-year-olds, they all put on their festive costumes and gather in the village square to participate in the collective dance. The Elephant's Foot Dance is enthusiastic, steady and elegant. The dancers form a circle and dance with manganese gongs and elephant foot drums, cheering "my, my" or "water, water" while dancing! Peacock dance is beautiful, elegant, lyrical, is the soul of the Dai dance, dance to the peacock's posture as the basis for the recreation of the interest and beauty, focusing on the cohesion of the Dai sons and daughters of the aesthetic purpose. There are also many dancers who show off their own improvisation, some sing and dance, some even dance and drink, as intoxicated, wild and unrestrained, jumping for several days and nights without knowing fatigue. 5, the Water Festival "Gao Sheng": put Gao Sheng and Kongming Lanterns Putting Gao Sheng is another reserved program of the Water Festival. Gao Sheng is a kind of fireworks made by Dai people, the bottom of the bamboo pole filled with gunpowder and other ingredients, placed on the bamboo built into a high frame, connected to the fuse, often burned at night. Release high rise, ignite the fuse so that the gunpowder combustion will produce a strong thrust, will be pushed into the sky like a rocket bamboo. Bamboo spit with white smoke, emitting whooshing whistling sound, while in the air released brilliant pyrotechnics, as if the flowers, colorful, very wonderful. The ground is cheering, applauding one after another, talking, praising the sound of endless, very lively. The higher and farther the walled village, people also feel more colorful, more auspicious. Release of the Kongming lanterns is also a unique activity in the Dai area. At night, people in the square on the open space, will light candles, put into the homemade big "balloon" inside, the use of air buoyancy, a hole in the sky lanterns. A bright Kongming lantern in the darkness of the night higher and higher, more and more far away. People use this to honor the ancient sage Kong Ming.
Editing the value of inheritance
The Water Splashing Festival is a comprehensive stage to show the traditional cultures of Dai water culture, music and dance culture, food culture, dress culture and folk veneration, etc. It is an important window to study the history of Dai, and has a high academic value. The artistic performances such as Zhangha and White Elephant Dance displayed at the Water Splashing Festival can give people artistic enjoyment and help them understand the national characteristics of the Dai people, such as their sense of nature, love of water and respect for Buddha, and gentleness and serenity. At the same time, the Water Splashing Festival is also an important link to strengthen the unity of the people of all ethnic groups in Xishuangbanna, which plays a positive role in the friendly cooperation and exchanges between Xishuangbanna and Southeast Asian countries as well as in the promotion of socio-economic and cultural development all over the world. Whoever is splashed with more water in the Water Splashing Festival symbolizes whoever is the happiest this year, and it also expresses the nostalgic symbolism of the Dai people's hope for each other's peace and happiness.
Edit this section of folklore
On the origin of the Water Splashing Festival, there are four such vivid legends: a long time ago, in the Dai inhabited areas appeared a brutal king of the Devil, he did no harm, burning and looting everywhere, so that the crops were not harvested, the people do not feel at peace, the people do not live. People have suffered his cruelty, hate him to the bone, but no one can eliminate him. The devil has 6 wives, but he is still not satisfied, and robbed a beautiful and smart girl. The seven girls saw their compatriots living a miserable life and were determined to find a way to destroy the devil. The clever girls hated the devil in their hearts, but on the surface they didn't show their faces and pretended to be very close to the devil. One night, the demon king from outside to snatch back many treasures and slaves, they took advantage of the demon king happy not to be prepared to try to find out with the demon king hair can strangle the demon king's secret. So, in the dead of night, while the demon king was sleeping, the girl quietly pulled off one of the demon king's hair, strangling the demon king's neck. In a few moments, the devil's head rolled to the ground, but as soon as the head hit the ground, the ground burst into flames. Seeing that it would become a disaster, the girls immediately picked up the head, and the fire was extinguished. However, the devil's head rolled wherever, where there will be disaster, thrown into the river, the river flooding; buried in the ground, everywhere the stench of heaven, only the devil's wife held to be safe. In order to avoid the disaster scourge of the people, the girls will take turns to hold the devil's head, one person to hold a day. Day in the sky, equal to a year on the ground, every year the girls rotate the day, that is, the Dai New Year, the Dai people with admiration for the girls, to hold the head of the girl poured water, in order to wash away the body of the blood stains and adult fatigue, as a blessing to wash the dirt clean body. Later, the Dai people in honor of the seven brave and resourceful women, on this day every year to splash each other, since the formation of the Dai people to celebrate the old and welcome the new grand festival - Water Festival. Another: 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 rushing out of the fire net, picking buckets of water from the Jinsha River, splashing the mountain fires. After a day and a night of hard work, the fire was finally extinguished, the villagers were saved, Li Liang because of the exhaustion of the sweat dry, thirsty on the hill. The villagers called for fresh water to quench Li Liang's thirst, but he couldn't quench his thirst even after drinking ninety-nine picks of water. Later, Li Liang just jumped into the river and turned into a huge dragon and went down the river. Others said that he turned into a big tree. Dai people to commemorate Li Liang, every year on the third day of the third lunar month, each house cleaned up, sprinkled with green pine leaves, and in the selected riverside or wells, with green trees set up a long half a mile of the green shed, under the shed sprinkled with thick pine needles, both sides of the water tank filled with water, the midday sun when the top, the crowd walked between the shed, each other with the pine dipped in water sprinkled with water, auspicious and happy water mutual splash, expressed the nostalgia and the New Year of Li Liang! The event has continued to this day, and has become one of the most popular events in the world. This activity has been continued until now, and it has become a festival for the Dai people to celebrate the old year and welcome the new year with blessings and good fortune, which is the Water Splashing Festival. About the origin of the Water Splashing Festival, there is a touching story in the Dai folklore. Legend has it that in ancient times, the agricultural time was controlled by a god called Hao Ma Duo Dala Zha. However, holding hemp point Darazhak with their own magic, magical powers, chaotic display of God's power, do whatever they want, want to rain on the rain, want to lower the temperature on the temperature, so that the earth's warm and cold out of balance, rain and drought confusion. The god of the sky Inda Tila decided to give the earth to the disaster of the cupped hemp point Dalachar to sanction, but due to the cupped hemp point Dalachar magic skill, all the gods do not dare to move him. So Indarati turned into a handsome young man, to "string" holding hemp point Dalachar's seven daughters, he told their father how to do evil things. Seven kind, beautiful girl was on the father's behavior is very dissatisfied, today heard the words of the "young man" is filled with righteous indignation, determined to justice, for the earth to eliminate the disaster, the girls privately discuss, to get rid of the father of the ten evil, must be the father of the secret of life and death to find out. Hold hemp point Dala Chad in the joke unknowingly leaked his own secrets of life and death: fire, flooding, knife, arrows, he was not afraid, afraid of their hair made of "Bow Sai Zai" (meaning "bow of the heart strings"). One day, the girls made their father very drunk, and while he was sleeping, they quietly pulled out a piece of his hair and made a "Bow Sezai". When they aimed the "Bow Sai Zai" at Dharaja, his neck was broken, and when the head fell to the ground, it burst into flames, which spread everywhere. In order to extinguish the fire, the seven girls took turns holding the head in their arms until it rotted. Rotation, the girls have to hit the water, splashed on their own body, washed away full of stains relics of odor. In order to commemorate the seven righteousness of the family, for the people to get rid of the girl, the Dai people celebrate the New Year, are to be held in order to eliminate the water activities to eliminate the disaster, I wish in the new year, the wind and rain, a good harvest, people and animals thrive. Dai New Year in the "wrist brain", that is, holding hemp point Dala Chad's head rotting days, splashing activities held on this day. Legend four: a disobedient son in the Qingming Festival after the seventh day of work in the mountains, to see the birds feeding the scene, there is a sense of realization, determined to treat well to serve the mother, at this time, his mother is coming to the mountains, for the son to send food, accidentally slipped and fell. The son rushed to help her, but she thought he was coming to beat her, and crashed headlong into a tree. The son regretted it, cut down the tree and carved a statue of his mother, and every year, on the seventh day after the Qingming Festival, he would dip the statue into warm water sprinkled with flower petals to clean it. It has since evolved into a custom.