The intention of the dragon dance is summarized in these terms: one for praying for rain and blessings, the second for the entertainment of the gods to entertain themselves, the third for the manifestation of the power, the fourth for the prosperity of the people.
One of them, pray for rain is the most basic. Folklore around the two lakes, the Warring States period of the ghost valley and the Golden Horn of the old dragon met, ghost valley said: "According to my counting, recently there is rain, thirty-six points inside the city, forty-eight points outside the city." The Golden Horned Old Dragon, intending to make Gigu Zi's prophecy come to naught, took advantage of his position to make it rain forty-eight points inside the city and thirty-six points outside, resulting in the death of many of the city's common people from flooding. Later, when the Jade Emperor inquired about the crime, the Golden Horned Old Dragon was deposed. In order to atone for his sins, the old dragon bowed to the common people door by door every year at the arrival of the New Year and promised a year of good weather. So, people will be according to this legend, with bamboo wire, satin gauze made of colorful dragons, every New Year's Day dance to express the joy of joy, but also implies that the old dragon submissive, the sky follows the wishes of man. Sichuan Tongliang area of the legend is also different: East China Sea Dragon King suffering from lumbago, into an old man ashore to seek medical treatment. The doctor knew that he was not a human being by taking his pulse, so he let him return to his original form and caught a centipede from his waist. After recovering from his illness, the Dragon King thanked him by revealing a secret: he said that if people could build a dragon to dance around like him, they would be able to keep the rains coming in time, and the grains would be plentiful.
Dancing dragons to pray for rain in the pre-Qin period has begun to popularize, to the Han Dynasty has been quite large-scale, the form is also much to pay attention to. According to Dong Zhongshu "Spring and Autumn Dew", the Han Dynasty, spring drought for rain dance green dragon, hot summer for rain dance red dragon or yellow dragon, fall for rain dance white dragon, winter for rain dance black dragon. These dragons were as long as several zhang, and each time, five to nine dragons were deployed.
Most of the later dragon dances contain the meaning of praying for rain and blessings. For example, the "Dragon Head Silkworm Body Lantern" is popular in the mountainous areas of western Hunan Province. The lamp consists of the head of the dragon and the body and tail of the silkworm. The production of sophisticated, compact, head and tail can bend and stretch, turning and flexible. Bamboo circle into a silkworm body, rope tied within, white cloth outside, outside the red and green colored ring wrapped body, by three outstanding dance skills of folk artists were holding the head, waist, tail three parts of the executive play. The "dragon head silkworm body lamp" is usually traveling in pairs. Before the lamp, each pair of lamps should be down to the riverside "sucking water", and then only along the door along the household blessing auspicious. Why "suck water"? It's easy to understand, the dragon sucked up the water, in order to ensure that the rainfall is sufficient.
Some places in the south popular dance grass dragon date by willow, rattan, straw tie into the night dance, the dragon body full of incense, and therefore also known as "incense dragon", "incense dragon". At the end of the dragon dance, but also in the noisy sound of gongs and drums and firecrackers, respectfully sent the grass dragon to the river and streams and pools. The intention is also to let the dragon back to the Dragon Palace, to bless a side of the ground wind and rain.
The dragon dance for the purpose of entertaining the gods can be traced back to the Han Dynasty "fish and dragons Man Yan". The Han Book - Western Region Chuanzan ": "Xiaowu Shi ...... set up wine pool meat forest to entertain the four barbarians guests, as Ba Yu Du Lu, the sea in the Dan Dan pole, diffuse fish and dragons, the corner of the play to watch." Yan Shigu explained, Ba Yu Du Lu, the sea in the Dan Pole is the name of the song and dance, and "fish and dragon", is dressed up as a giant beast from the Western Regions of the beast of the date Shelly, the first in front of the court dance play music, and then to the temple in front of the water, water splash, into a huge flounder, "jumping gargling water, for the The water splashed and transformed into a huge flounder, "jumping and rinsing the water, making a mist to block the eyes". Then, then turned into a body length of eight feet of the yellow dragon, "out of the water Ao play in the court, flaunting daylight", it is also known as the "yellow dragon change". From this point of view, the "fish and dragon", when it is a kind of people dressed up as a giant fish and a giant dragon to perform a large-scale dance. Because there is a "change" between the giant fish and the dragon, so in the performance, it may also need illusion, scenery, smoke, etc. to cooperate.
What is the meaning of "manjan"? It is said that this big beast "like a beaver, long hundred search", can "imitate this play for a hundred plays." Ancient eight feet for a search, a hundred search is eighty feet. Therefore, the "Xijing Fu" in the "Beast 100 searches, is the Man Yan" sentence, Xue Zhuan note: "as a large beast, 80 feet long, the so-called fish and dragons Man Yan also." From this, it is inferred that "Man Yan" is "fake beast to play", is played by people into a variety of beasts of the dance. The "ichthyosaur" was one of the main typical ones, so it was called "ichthyosaur manyan".
Eastern Han Dynasty, Zhang Heng in the "Xijing Fu", Li You in the "Ping optimistic fugue" in the "fish and dragons Man Yan" have a vivid description. It can be seen that, as a large-scale song and dance of the Han Dynasty, "Fish Dragon Man Yan" gathered the highest level of actors and actresses, as well as sets, props and stunts, which can be said to be on a grand scale, with a variety of illusions. In addition to the centerpiece show, "Giant Fish into Giant Dragon", there were also bears, tigers, apes, elephants, sparrows, tortoises, toads, and other unknown beasts in human disguise.
Beyond the historical data, you can also find the shadow of the "fish and dragons Manyan" on the Han Dynasty portrait stones. Such as Tongshan Honglou found in the music and dance of a hundred theater portrait stone, Shandong Yinan unearthed the corner of the hundred theater portrait stone, there are fish and dragons on the image of the dance.
"Fish and dragon Man Yan" from Han to Tang, continued for nearly seven or eight hundred years, after the Tang, the whole gradually lost, later generations left behind, only part of the program. The Dragon Dance, Lion Dance and Unicorn Dance can be regarded as the inheritance and evolution of "Yu Long Man Yan".
The combination of lanterns and dragons began around the time of the Song Dynasty. Wu Zimu in the Southern Song Dynasty in the "Dream Liang Records" recorded: "the night of the Lantern Festival ...... grass bound into a dragon, with a green screen to cover the grass, densely placed lamps and candles 10,000, looking at the winding as the shape of a double dragon." Such a dragon lamp, that is, what we call placed there exclusively for people to see the dragon lamps. The problem is that the dragon is a walking, good flying gods, can not stay there, and not move ah, and whether the court or folk, since ancient times have the tradition of dragon dance. Since the dance, not only in the daytime dance, dance at night, dance at night can not be separated from the lights, so all the dance of the dragon, are commonly known as the "dragon lamp".
"Dragon lanterns will" generally in the festivals, festivals held at the venue selected in the long street square, the village bay side of the open flat place. Dragon varieties are colorful, there are bamboo dragons, wooden dragons, wattle dragons, grass dragons, cloth dragons, yarn dragons, paper dragons; there are lotus flowers and butterflies composed of "hundred-leaf dragons", with shavings tied into the "wooden flower dragon", with the iron rolled into the "iron dragon "
Dragon
Dragon lanterns are found everywhere. Tongliang County in Sichuan Province is more famous for its dragon lanterns. National Day 50th anniversary ceremony on the golden dragon, from this county. Tongliang dragon lanterns have a "positive dragon": head large, shin long, lighted in the section, to light instead of fireworks, play safer. There are also "colorful dragons" that dance with the help of lamps and lights, using bamboo as the dragon bone, paper as the dragon head, and cloth as the dragon spine; "meat dragons" or "wriggling dragons" that use leather or silk as the skin, painted scales and armor, and the dragon body can be retracted and rotated; and "dragon lanterns" that are used for praying in times of drought and for the sake of the people. The "Yellow Thorn Dragon", which begs for rain in times of drought and splashes water during the dance; the "Filial Piety Dragon", which is made of white flowers and is used to offer sacrifices to the dead; the "Grass Handle Dragon", which is made of straw and inserted into bamboo poles to be held and danced; and the "Straw Dragon", which is made by a group of people who are all in love with each other and who are all in love with each other. The "Straw Dragon" is made of straw, inserted into bamboo poles, and held up to dance; as well as the "Vegetable Dragon", which is played and danced by children with a cabbage inserted into bamboo poles, red candles lit, and a rope strung in the middle, and so on.
Tongliang people have a lot to say about the dragon dance. In the past, they followed the Han Dynasty's rules of dancing the green dragon in spring, the red dragon in summer, the white dragon in autumn, and the black dragon in winter. Now on New Year's Day dance colorful dragon, dance to the door of the family will temporarily stop, the dragon's head point to the master to pay tribute to the blessing of the New Year, and then up and down again, left and right spinning. At this time, the host must firecrackers to show welcome, and some thanks: wrapped in money "red packets" or candy cigarettes.
The people of Foshan, Guangdong also like to dance dragons. In the forties and fifties, Foshan dragons were mostly umbrellas connected by a handful of umbrellas and then painted on the design of the "umbrella dragon", or made of straw "grass dragon", the workmanship is relatively simple. Now the Foshan "colorful dragon", with gabions, wire for the skeleton, dragon head, dragon tail with paper paste, the dragon body masked silk, with metal lenses, aluminum paper, paper cutouts, pom poms to do decorative, beautiful shape, colorful. Foshan colorful dragons of various varieties, there are gold dragons, fireworks dragon, fire dragon, colorful lanterns dragon, sitting dragon, reclining dragon and so on. In recent years, "mechanical dragon", "computer dragon" also into the ranks of Foshan dragon. These dragons with the characteristics of the times can spray water columns and soap bubbles, to make a variety of interesting actions. Foshan colorful dragons are spectacular, flags, sun and moon flags in front of the road, tower lamps, carp, dragon beads for the lead, and then the claws and teeth of the dragon, the dragon followed by gongs and drums music. The dragon dancers, accompanied by music of gongs and drums, perform the dance forms of coiling dragon, jumping dragon, clasping dragon door, piercing dragon's tail, dragon crossing the bridge, jade dragon coiling pillar, two dragons playing with pearls, scaly dragon roaming, giant dragon taking off in the air, and so on. During the handover of Hong Kong, the Kowloon community held a "10,000 feet of golden dragons to offer auspicious activities", its height of 10 meters, 9 meters long, 3 meters wide, weighing more than a ton of giant dragon head is made by the Foshan Arts and Crafts Society. Foshan colorful dragons in recent years, but also out of the country, across the ocean, appeared in Melbourne, Hawaii, Vancouver, London, Port Louis and other places on the street square.
Hanzhong, Shaanxi Province, the "bench dragon" is also very distinctive. This "dragon" originated from a legend: an old man who made a living by selling straw sandals adopted three grandchildren, two girls and one boy. One Spring Festival, the children of a rich family danced with dragon lanterns and rejoiced. The three sisters and brothers were very envious. When they returned home, the clever little brother saw that the bench used by their grandfather for making straw sandals, with the unfinished straw sandals tied at one end, looked like a dragon's head, so he shouted happily, "Look at this straw sandals bench, it looks like a dragon!" The two sisters saw that it did look like a dragon, and the three of them each lifted one leg of the stool and danced. They danced happily, the village neighbors found it interesting, and led them to the street to dance. From then on, the "bench dragon" folk dance has been formed and spread.
The "Bench Dragon" is simple to make, using a wooden bench, carved to look like a dragon, with one end as the dragon's head and the other as the dragon's tail. Dragon scales are painted on color paper or color silk, and then pasted on. Three wooden legs were installed at both ends of the dragon belly, are free to move. Dance when the selection of two women and one man, pretending to be young men and women, wearing red and green, white towels around the head of men, women's heads inserted flowers. Three people each holding a bench leg, two women dance dragon head, a male dance dragon tail, three people work closely together, dance "dragon turn over", "dragon rolling water" and other tricks.
The Chinese nation is a big family with fifty-six members, and the same as the Han Chinese, the various ethnic minorities are also inextricably linked with the dragon, there are also many moving legends about the dragon and a variety of dragon dance. For example, "Jumping the Dragon Door by Holding Hands" of the Yi in Yunnan, "Dancing the White Elephant and Green Dragon" of the Achang, "Receiving the Dragon Dance" of the Miao, "Playing the Flower Dragon" of the Gelao and so on. "and so on. Most of these dragon dances are cheerful and lively, easy and interesting, with distinctive ethnic regional colors.
In addition to praying for rain and blessings and entertaining the gods, the Dragon Dance also has the function of demonstrating power. People believe that the song of the singing, you can summon the dragon spirit; dance of the dance, you can imitate the dragon's demeanor; song and dance, not only can make the dragon happy and joyful, but also to make themselves endowed with the nature of the dragon. At the same time, through the dragon dance, the power of the dragon dancer can also be displayed. Here are several layers of meaning: First, the dragon dance itself is a "strength work", those by leaping, tumbling, coiling back, interspersed, towering and so on the composition of the many routines, modeling, not out of the force will not be completed. Secondly, the dragon is a collection of power, the symbol of power, many animals in nature and heavenly phenomena, will be their own power invested in the body of the dragon. The dragon dance is to show the power of the sky, show the power of the sky at the same time also shows the manpower. Third, do not rule out the dragon "flirtation" and "disrespect". As the dragon is both a symbol of natural forces, but also a symbol of imperial power, often with teeth and claws, hideous, powerful, towering, unrivaled, sacrosanct face, so that all beings have to be treated with reverence relative to the mentality. Now well, the opportunity has come, the people can use the dragon dance out of gas, can press the dragon head, fold the dragon body, reveal the dragon tail, enjoy the emperor of the elephant tossing, teasing, mocking some.
Tongliang, Sichuan, Guangdong Fengshun and other popular "burning dragon", contains multiple meanings. Tongliang people believe that the burning of the dragon is to send the dragon to heaven, the dragon to heaven in order to take up their duties, in time to raise clouds and rain. So, in the dragon lantern will reach a climax, carnival people, or ignite firecrackers thrown at the dragon, or release fireworks spray dragon, or the furnace hot iron poured out, so that the splash of sparks burn dragon ...... Fengshun people burn dragon originated from a legend: a long time ago, a fire dragon came to the ground of Fengshun, the dragon body fire, resulting in the scorched seedlings, field The fields were dry and cracked. A young couple led a group of people to chisel the mountain to draw water, and when the canal was completed, the fire dragon came to destroy it, burning the young couple to death and drying up the water source. The young couple's son inherited the will of his parents and went out to learn the law for three years. After returning, he fought with the fire dragon for three days and three nights, and finally used poison to fight with poison and burned the dragon to death with divine fire, and he himself also died of exhaustion. From then on, the wind and rain in this area were favorable, and there was no more drought. In order to commemorate the hero, the local people will be held every year to burn the dragon activities. The burned dragon is usually made of bamboo paper, 15 meters to 20 meters long, the dragon body is full of firecrackers. After the dragon out of the sea, please dragon, play dragon play dragon program, until the firecrackers finished, the dragon body burned out until. Some places do more dry and more thorough: in the body of the dragon filled with earth gunpowder, earth fireworks, play to the most lively time, a fire lit, only to hear the "boom" a sound, the dragon's mouth spit fire, the dragon's tail smoke, the dragon body cracked and burned date of our Dragon God, in the ear-splitting cymbal gongs and firecrackers and noisy cheers and exclamations in the gradual transformation of the sky into a mass of ashes.
A little analysis, we will understand the burning dragon is a set of prayers for rain and blessings, entertaining the gods and show the power of a comprehensive custom. Because the burning of the dragon, both the god of water or fire, but also the emperor's image, through the burning of the dragon, not only to send the dragon to the sky, so that it is responsible for the responsibility of the rain; can also produce a very spectacular scene, so that the witnesses are happy to see; but also reflects a force, positive victory over evil, good victory over evil, the oppressed people rebel against the power of the imperial power of the teaser.
The prosperity of the people is the deeper meaning of the dragon dance, which is based on the "lights" and "Ding" harmonic symbols. Chinese folklore has a Lantern Festival to do "orange lamp" (harmonic "Jiding"), "add lamp" (harmonic "add Ding"), with the flour knead "twelve Chinese zodiac signs", "the twelve Chinese zodiac signs", "the twelve Chinese zodiac signs", "the twelve Chinese zodiac signs", "the twelve Chinese zodiac signs" and "the twelve Chinese zodiac signs". Flour kneading "twelve zodiac lamps" (the zodiac and fertility are closely related), "send lamps" (harmonic "send Ding"), "steal lamps (the close relationship between the Chinese zodiac and fertility), "sending lanterns" (to send off children), "stealing lanterns" (to steal lanterns), and especially "lotus lanterns" (to harmonize with "Lian Ding"), "welcoming lanterns" (to harmonize with "welcoming flowers"), "welcoming lanterns" (to harmonize with "welcoming flowers "), "receiving lanterns", "returning lanterns", "finishing lanterns" (when a child reaches the age of twelve, the uncle's family sends the lanterns for the last time), as well as "going up to the lantern shed", "wearing the lantern feet", playing the "lighted lantern", hanging the "children's lantern", and burning the "light of the year". The custom of "shining the lantern of the new year" and so on. These lamp custom, all contain prosperous people, prosperous family, for the healthy growth of the next generation to seek good luck and pray for the meaning.
Dragon lanterns are also lamps, is "lamp" on the harmonious "Ding". Moreover, the dragon is the emblem of the Chinese nation, is a symbol of strength, dragon lanterns also means "dragon Ding" date who do not want their own family out of a "dragon child" it? In this way, in all parts of the country in the dragon dance activities, there are often some and "Dragon Ding" related programs, instructions, sayings.
Fenghua, Zhejiang Province, the popular "Pan Long Lantern" date dragon lantern team "Pan" to a large number of grandchildren of the big family, put the "Hundred Son Cannon"; Pan to the small family, put three even ringing cannon. Cannon launchers can not squat on the ground to release the cannon, that the cannon squatting, it means that the children and grandchildren of this is "mud"; to put the cannon in the hands, meaning that the "dragon child" a step up to heaven. When a new house is completed, the women of the family should be allowed to "touch the dragon's beard" and "dragon's horn" (symbolizing the meeting with the dragon), and the children should be allowed to "drill the dragon's door" (and "climb the dragon's door"). (the same meaning as "to ascend to the Dragon Gate", it is believed that after drilling through the "Dragon Gate", there will be the hope of becoming a "dragon"). The dragon lanterns will not dance for nothing, money and materials are always needed, and more is better. People who usually live frugally are usually generous at this time of year.
In some places in Hunan and Hubei, people believe that dragon lanterns are good for fertility. In the dragon dance to the door, those who have not been able to seek children for many years of women, often add money and things, so that the "dragon" around their own bodies, and let a little boy riding on the back of the dragon around the hall circle, play some "unicorn to send a child". In this regard, some people also made such a poem: "women around the dragon can receive a fetus, obsessed with seeking a child is also strange; real dragons are not as good as paper dragons, can be made into a unicorn to send a child." Anhui Gang County popular Mid-Autumn Festival children dance grass dragon, there are children's homes are willing to let the dolls out to dance, no children's homes how to do it? Looking for an opportunity to use the new lamp candle to replace the lamp candle inserted in the dragon's head, it is said to do so will be able to get the "dragon child" of the omen.
Zhejiang Dongyang, Jinhua, Guizhou Tongzi and other places of the dragon lantern, there are "molecular interest" (after the dance dragon lanterns will be divided into lamps or candy gifts), "hanging red" (the village masters or matriarchs to the head of the dragon draped in red silk quilt surface), "Grabbing the red" (whoever snatches the quilt will have prosperous children and grandchildren), "Laying Dragon Eggs" (when the dragon dancers enter the house, they give two red eggs to the master and let him put them in the quilt), "Putting Round Treasure " (the "Yuanbao" of the dragon lantern will be stored at home for one year and returned before the lantern festival in the next year) and other programs. Because people's desire to pray for children and prosperity has been passed down from generation to generation, these programs have been performed continuously
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