Many folk festivals in China are related to dragons. Wu, a poet of the Song Dynasty, described the dragon lanterns in the Southern Song Dynasty in Liang Lumeng: "On the night of the Lantern Festival ... the grass is tied into a dragon, covered with a green curtain, and there are thousands of lanterns and candles, which look like a double dragon." Wu Shuo's is a dragon lantern that can still be seen. Xin Qiji, a great poet in the Southern Song Dynasty, has a poem titled "Feng Xiao moves, the jade pot turns, and the fish and dragon dance all night", which refers to the dragon lantern that people dance. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, the wind of dragon lantern dancing was more prosperous. According to the book "The Year of Shanghai" in the light years of the Qing Dynasty, "You can swim in a cage with bamboo foil, cover it with dragon scales, have a head and a tail, and then dance with wooden handles. The instructor in front of the street will be the signal, and you must write' The grain is abundant, the government is clean and folk music'." Yao Qingqing's Miscellaneous Notes on Bamboo Leaf Pavilion also said: "On the fifth day of the first month of Yuanmingyuan, a banquet was held outside the palace, fireworks were set off and dragon lanterns were turned. Its system holds a pole, which is T-shaped horizontally. At both ends of the horizontal bar, two red lights are tied, circling in teams, jagged and high above, like a dragon. If you are less inclined, you will be neutral, and the words' the world is peaceful' will be arranged upwards. " Dragon Lantern Festival is not only held in Lantern Festival, but also in Spring Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival and various temple fairs. In China's traditional concept, the dragon is auspicious, and people use lights to simulate the image of the dragon, which is nothing more than taking its auspicious meaning.
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At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Beizhai Village, Yinan, Shandong Province drew music and dance stone carvings on the east wall of the stone tomb, which provided us with the image data of the fish dragon play in the Han Dynasty. Its dragon has double horns, scales, wings and a long tail, and there is a big round-mouthed ear bottle on its back; On the bottle stood a child who played a feather man, holding a long building with a feather treasure in his hand. In front of the dragon, there was a man holding short stilts in his left hand and shaking the dragon with a drum in his right hand; Behind the dragon was a man with a whip in his left hand and a Liao drum in his right. The atmosphere is very warm. This dragon is shaped like a horse.
February 2 of the lunar calendar is the "Dragon Head-lifting Festival" of the Han nationality. At this time, it is the season of foot sting and vernal equinox. According to folklore, the dragon that has been dormant for a winter looks up on this day, and there will be more rain in the future. Amin Shen Bang's "Miscellaneous Notes of Ten Thousand Parts" records that "February attracts dragons, and a hundred insects smoke": "Ten thousand people say that February is the leader. The villagers spread the cloth from the door to the kitchen with ashes and rotated it around the water tank, which is called "painting Longhuitou Scenic Spot". "Use noodles to spread pancakes, and smoke the bed to keep insects from growing." Due to the drought and lack of rain in northern China, it was introduced into the home, and the picture shows good weather, so the ice also produced "February 2, the dragon looked up; A big warehouse full, a small warehouse flow. On this day, people eat pancakes, dragon ear cakes and so on from Longxu Noodles and Longlin.
The fifth day of the fifth lunar month is the Dragon Boat Festival. According to the local branch, "May" is "noon", and Mr. Wen Yiduo once called the Dragon Boat Festival "Dragon Boat Festival". Dragon boat race is an important part of Dragon Boat Festival. In ancient times, the royal dragon boat was extremely luxurious. For example, the dragon boat painted by Song Li of the Southern Song Dynasty Painting Academy has gold ornaments on its head, tail and scales, a balcony for viewing, and three oars on each side, which is magnificent.
There was a dragon robe in the costume of the ancient emperor. According to the Records of the History of the Qing Dynasty, "The emperor's robes were dressed in bright yellow and cotton gauze, but at that time, the leaders were dressed in azurite and gold green, and embroidered golden dragons, which were listed in 12 chapters with five strokes between them." There is a dragon in the front and back of the collar, a dragon in the left and right skirts and a dragon in the sleeves. The next picture of Babel stands around the water. "The Qing Dynasty generally embroidered Kowloon, but from the front or back, they are all five dragons, which is the title of the Ninth Five-Year Plan Emperor. There are many "water feet" arranged at the bottom of the robe, and water waves are embroidered on the surface of the robe, commonly known as "seawater river". It contains the meaning of unifying the whole country and extending continuously.
The Zhuang, Yao and Hani nationalities in central and southern China have "Dragon Sacrifice Festival". The Dragon Boat Festival of Zhuang nationality is held in February of the lunar calendar. During the festival, two or more families in the village take turns to bear sacrifices such as chickens and pigs. It is believed that killing pigs during the Dragon Boat Festival can protect human and animal safety. The Dragon Boat Festival of Yao people falls on the third day of the third lunar month, and its activities include seeking the soul of the valley, offering sacrifices to the mother of the valley, offering sacrifices to Pangu, offering sacrifices to the Jade Emperor and offering sacrifices to Shennong.
The sacrifice is a pig bought by the whole village, and the sacrifice is shared by the whole village. Women are not allowed to attend the ceremony. Playing with dragon lanterns is very popular among the Dong people in Guangxi. Make a dragon 30-40 cm long with bamboo pieces. There is a bag under the dragon beard to light candles and celebrate the Lantern Festival.
Play at night. When playing, put a square table. People who are duplicitous dance around the table, jump and chase each other, and then play with rhythmic instruments. It is very colorful and interesting.