Customs of Dragon Boat Festival in various places. Please be kind and quick. O(∩_∩)OThank you.

Festival customs

Ornaments

A kind of ornament worn by women during the Dragon Boat Festival in Jiangsu and Zhejiang in the old days. It is usually made of gold and silver wire or copper wire and gold foil, in the shape of a villain riding a tiger. Some also add bells, bells, tassels, garlic, rice dumplings, etc. It is inserted into women's hair buns and is also used for giving gifts. "Qing Jia Lu" says: "(May 5th) the city people used gold and silver wires to make tassels, bells, bells and other shapes, riding people on tigers, very fine, decorated with small hairpins, running through them into strings, or using copper wire and gold foil They also offer gifts to each other, and they are called Jianren. "Jianren agrees with Airen, but only exchanges silk for Ai. Wu Manyun's "Jiangxiang Jiewu Ci·Small Preface" says: "Hangzhou custom. "Jianren is moxa, and it is made of silk, in the shape of a camel and tiger, and all women wear it," it must have the effect of exorcising evil spirits and warding off epidemics; one theory is that it is the ancient Bu Yao, purely for women's decorations ( Note from Cai Yun's "Wu Xian"). Children will also use realgar wine to draw a "king" on their heads. Damselfly, the headdress worn by women during the Dragon Boat Festival in the old days. More common in Jiangnan. In some areas, they are also called Jianren. It is said that this thing originated from the ancient Bu Yao, and it is said that it is a different form of Ai people. "Qing Jia Lu" quotes "Relics of the Tang and Song Dynasties" as saying: "Whoever is north or south of the river, the preparation of the five-day hairpin head colorful victory is extremely ingenious. Anyone who uses silk and pins to make moxa leaves, or embroiders immortals, Buddhas, He, Wu They are in the shape of insects, fish, and various beasts, including eight treasures, flowers, and other shapes. They include silk spiders, silkworms, phoenixes, cocoons, grass lizards, mantises, cicadas, gourds, melons, and fruits, all with realistic colors. The treasure cover is decorated with hydrangeas and hundreds of bells, or strings of them, which are called damselflies. "Aihu, a thing used to ward off evil spirits during the Dragon Boat Festival in the old days, was also used as a decoration. In ancient my country, the tiger was regarded as a sacred animal, and it was believed that it could ward off evil spirits and protect peace. "Customs" says: "The tiger is the male object, the leader of all beasts. It can eat ghosts and ghosts, and... it can also ward off evil." Therefore, the folk often use tigers to ward off evil spirits, among which the Aihu during the Dragon Boat Festival is the most distinctive. The moxa tiger may be made from moxa braiding or cut into a ribbon, with moxa leaves glued on it and worn around the hairline and body. The custom of wearing Aihu as a decoration during the Dragon Boat Festival has a history of more than a thousand years. Song Dynasty Chen Yuangui's "Sui Sui Guang Ji" quoted from "Sui Sui Za Ji": "Dragon Boat Festival uses mugwort as a tiger shape, as big as a black bean, or cuts a ribbon into a small tiger, and sticks mugwort leaves to wear it. Wang Yigong's "Dragon Boat Festival Post" poem:' The hairpin-headed moxa tiger wards off evil spirits, and rides the seven-treasure chariot with auspicious clouds at dawn." Another Qing Dynasty Fucha Dunchong's "Yanjing Years' Notes" says: "Every Dragon Boat Festival, those who are clever in the boudoir will use silk to make small tigers and rice dumplings... with colorful flowers." Thread it through and hang it on the hairpin head, or tie it on the child's back. An ancient poem says: 'The jade swallow hairpin head is light on the moxa tiger', which is what it means."

When painting the forehead, apply realgar on the Dragon Boat Festival. The custom of rubbing children's foreheads can repel poisonous insects. The typical method is to use realgar wine to draw the word "king" on the child's forehead. One is to use realgar to drive away poison, and the other is to use tiger ("king" resembles the forehead pattern of a tiger, and tiger is the king of beasts, so it is replaced by tiger). evil. "Yanjing Years' Notes" written by Fucha Dunzong of the Qing Dynasty: "Every Dragon Boat Festival, starting from the first day of the Lunar New Year, take realgar and wine and sprinkle it, and apply it on the child's collar and between the nose and ears to avoid poisonous substances." Except on the forehead, nose and ears. In addition to smearing, it can also be smeared on other places with the same intention. Shanxi's "Hequ County Chronicle" says: "Drink realgar wine during the Dragon Boat Festival and apply it on the child's forehead, hands and soles... It is said that it can cure diseases and prolong life." Long-term destiny, wear ornaments during the Dragon Boat Festival. It is also called life-extending thread, life-extending silk, year-extending thread, longevity thread, also known as "Baisuo", "Pi Bingshao", "Wucai thread", etc. The names are different, but the shape and function are roughly the same. It is customary to knot five-color silk into a rope during the Dragon Boat Festival. It can be hung at the head of the door, worn around children's necks, or tied to children's arms, or hung on bed tents, cradle, etc. It is said that it can avoid disasters, cure diseases, and protect health. , prolong life. There are generally five shapes of such festival objects: simple five-color silk threads are stranded into a rope and tied to the arm; the five-color rope is decorated with gold and tin ornaments and hung on the neck; the five-color rope is folded into a square and decorated on the chest; Colorful rope knots are worn by human figures; sun, moon, stars, black animals and other objects are embroidered with colorful silk threads as a tribute to the elders. This custom began in the Han Dynasty. Yingshao of the Eastern Han Dynasty wrote in "Customs and Customs·Anonymous": "At noon, the arms are tied with colorful silk to avoid ghosts and soldiers, so that people will not get sick and plague. One person will have a long life, and the other will be a soldier." From then on, it became a habit until modern times. The Qing Dynasty's Fu Cha Dunzong recorded the customs at that time: "Every Dragon Boat Festival, the clever ones in the boudoir would make little tigers and rice dumplings, gourds, cherries, mulberries, etc. out of Suluo, thread them with colored threads, and hang them On the hairpin head, or tied on the back of a child. "In the Tang and Song Dynasties, the court even gave ministers this kind of gift. According to historical records, during the Duanjie Festival of the first year of Zong Xingyuan in the Tang Dynasty, the court once gave a hundred ropes and one shaft. Also in "History of the Song Dynasty·Book of Rites Fifteen": "On the previous day, gold life-extending belts and colorful silk life-extending belts were given to all officials. Wear them during festivals." Purse

Wear a sachet to bring fragrance. Bags are also called sachets, sachets, purses, etc. They are made of five-color silk threads or sewn with rags, and are filled with spices (made from the Chinese herbs Angelica dahurica, Chuanxiong, Baicao, Paicao, Kaempferia spp., Spicy nard, and Gao Benxing). , worn on the chest, the fragrance is fragrant. Chen Shiliang's "Sui Sui Guang Ji" quoted from "Sui Sui Za Ji" mentioned a kind of "Duan Wu made of red and white colors like a bag, with colored threads running through it, and the twitching makes it look like a flower." and another kind of "clam pink bell". : "On the fifth day of the Dragon Boat Festival, put clam powder in the silk and decorate it with cotton, like a few beads. Let the children wear it to absorb sweat." The contents of these portable bags have changed several times, from clam powder to absorb sweat, talismans to ward off evil spirits, copper coins, and realgar powder to repel insects, to sachets filled with spices. The production has become increasingly sophisticated, becoming a unique folk custom of the Dragon Boat Festival. Artwork. Wearing a sachet is very particular.

In order to prevent diseases and keep fit, the elderly generally like to wear flowers in the shape of plum blossoms, chrysanthemums, peaches, apples, lotus flowers, dolls riding fish, dolls hugging roosters, double lotuses and other shapes, which symbolize the singing of birds and the fragrance of flowers, all the best, love between husband and wife, and family harmony. Children like birds and animals, such as tigers and leopards; monkeys on poles, cockfights and rabbits, etc. Young people are particularly particular about wearing sachets. If they are passionate lovers, then the passionate girl will carefully make one or two unique sachets and give them to her lover before the festival. The young man wearing the sachet given by his sweetheart will naturally arouse comments from the men and women around him, praising the young man's ingenuity.

Eliminate, eliminate and avoid the Five Poisons

The Five Poisons

As mentioned above, the Dragon Boat Festival is a poisonous and evil day in the minds of the ancients. This idea has been passed down from generation to generation, so there are various customs of seeking peace and avoiding disasters. In fact, this is because the weather in summer is hot and dry, making people prone to illness and epidemics. In addition, snakes and insects breed and can easily bite people, so we must be very careful and this habit is formed. Various customs, such as collecting herbs, sprinkling realgar wine on walls, doors and windows, drinking Pu wine, etc., may seem superstitious, but they are hygienic activities that are beneficial to health. The Dragon Boat Festival can actually be regarded as a traditional medical and health festival. It is a festival for the people to fight against diseases and poisonous insects. Today, these health customs should still be developed and promoted. Hygiene customs during the Dragon Boat Festival ① Collecting herbs. This is one of the oldest Dragon Boat Festival customs. "Xia Xiaozheng" records: "On this day, medicine is stored to remove poisonous gases." Volume 22 of "Sui Sui Guang Ji" "Collecting Miscellaneous Medicines" quotes the lost text of "Jingchu Sui Shi Ji": "On May 5th, there was competition to collect miscellaneous medicines." Medicine can cure all kinds of diseases. "In "Qimin Yaoshu·Zaji" of the Later Wei Dynasty, there is a record of catching toads in May, which are also used for medicine. Later, many areas had the custom of catching toads during the Dragon Boat Festival. For example, Jiangsu harvested toads on the Dragon Boat Festival, pricked the foam, and made the traditional Chinese medicine toad cake. People in Hangzhou also gave toads to children, saying that they could cool down the fire and prevent sores and boils in the summer. In addition, on the fifth day, put an ink tablet in the mouth of a toad, hang it up to dry, and it will become a toad tablet, which can be applied to the abscess to dissipate it. This custom of catching toads to make medicine originated from the legend of "toads fighting for war" in the Han Dynasty. Another example is the Hubei Jianli "collecting hundreds of herbs" during the Dragon Boat Festival, which is also the custom of collecting medicinal herbs. The custom of collecting herbs was formed on this day because the stems and leaves of herbs mature around the Dragon Boat Festival and have good medicinal properties. ②Mu Lan Tang, bathing in Lan Tang on Dragon Boat Festival is an ancient custom recorded in "Dadaili". The orchid at that time was not the orchid of today, but the orchid of the Asteraceae family. It was fragrant and could be boiled for bathing. "Jiu Ge·Yun Zhongjun" also has the sentence "Bath in orchid soup will bring you fragrance". "Records of the Years of Jingchu": "On May 5th, it is called the Orchid Bathing Festival." "Wuzazu" records that people in the Ming Dynasty took five-color grass and brushed it for bathing at noon because "orchid soup was not available." Later, I usually take a bath with fried pudding, mugwort and other herbs. In Guangdong, moxa, cattail, impatiens, magnolia and other flowers and plants are used; in Hunan, Guangxi and other places, cypress leaves, galanthemum root, mugwort, cattail, peach leaves, etc. are boiled into medicinal water for bathing. Regardless of men, women, old or young, the whole family washes it. This custom still exists today. It is said that it can cure skin diseases and remove evil spirits. ③Drink Pu wine, realgar wine, and cinnabar wine, and sprinkle it with wine. "Records of the Years of Jingchu": "Use calamus (a perennial herbaceous plant that grows by the water, with light red rhizomes underground, leaves shaped like swords, and spadix inflorescences. The rhizomes can be used as spices and medicine) or hollowed or scraped, "Cold wine." The wine is fragrant and refreshing. Later, realgar, cinnabar, etc. were added to the wine. "Wuzazui" written by Xie Zhaozhe of the Ming Dynasty: "You can also drink calamus wine...and drink it with realgar." "Yue Ling Guangyi" written by Feng Yingjing of the Ming Dynasty: "Use cinnabar wine for five days to ward off evil and detoxify, and use the wine to dye the forehead, chest, hands, feet, and heart , there will be no danger of snakes (a poisonous snake mentioned in ancient books). You can also sprinkle the walls, doors and windows to avoid poisonous insects." This custom is widely spread. To this day, in Binyang, Guangxi, bags of medicinal ingredients are sold during the Dragon Boat Festival, including realgar, rhubarb, cypress, peach kernel, cattail leaf, mugwort leaves, etc. After soaking in wine, people use calamus and mugwort to sprinkle on walls, corners, doors and windows. , under the bed, etc., and then use wine to smear the child's ears, nose, and navel to drive away poisonous insects and pray for the child's safety. In addition, in some areas, powdered realgar wine is used to draw the word "王" on children's foreheads, so that the children bear the mark of the tiger, in order to use the tiger to ward off evil spirits. From a health perspective, these activities still have scientific rationale. Realgar mixed with water and wine and sprinkled indoors can be disinfected and sterilized, and drinking it is also beneficial. ④Pick tea and make herbal tea. In some areas in the north, people like to pick young leaves and wild vegetable leaves during the Dragon Boat Festival and steam and dry them to make tea. In the Chaozhou area of ??Guangdong, people go to the countryside to collect herbs and make herbal tea to drink. It's also good for health.

Hanging mugwort, calamus, and banyan branches

There are other reasons for hanging mugwort, calamus (pujian), pomegranates, and garlic at the door during the Dragon Boat Festival. Usually mugwort, calamus, and ficus branches are tied into a bunch with red paper, and then inserted or hung on the door. Because the calamus is the first of the five auspicious signs in the sky, it symbolizes the sword that drives away bad luck. Because of the growing season and shape, it is regarded as a "hundred-yin spirit". The leaves are sword-shaped and can be inserted at the door to ward off evil spirits. Therefore, the alchemists called it the "Water Sword", and later customs extended it to the "Pu Sword", which can kill thousands of evil spirits. There is a record in "Qing Jia Lu" written by Gu Tieqing of the Qing Dynasty that "cut cattails to make swords, cut pods to make whips, use peach stems and garlic as accessories, and hang them on the bed, all to ward off ghosts." In the "Feng Tu Zhi" of the Jin Dynasty, there is "Use moxa in the shape of a tiger, or cut a ribbon into a small tiger, and post it with moxa leaves, and people compete to cut it. Later, calamus was added, either in the shape of a human or in the shape of a sword, named Pujian. , to drive away evil spirits and expel ghosts.” Mugwort represents Zhaobaifu. It is a kind of medicinal herb that can cure diseases. When inserted at the door, it can make the body healthy.

It has been a medicinal plant in ancient my country. The moxibustion method in acupuncture uses mugwort as the main component and burns it on the acupoints to treat diseases. The legend that mugwort can ward off evil spirits has been circulating for a long time, mainly because of its medicinal functions. For example, Zong Mao's "Jingchu Sui Shi Ji" records that "when the rooster is not crowing, people who look like humans are picking mugwort, and they are grabbing it." It is used for moxibustion, and it is very effective. On this day, moxa is collected in human form and hung on the door, which can ward off poisonous gas. It is the custom of taking newly married or married girls home to celebrate the festival. "Hide the Dragon Boat Festival", also known as "Hide the Dragon Boat Festival". It is customary to regard May and May 5th as evil months and days, and many things need to be avoided, because there is a custom of picking up daughters to go home to hide the Dragon Boat Festival. This custom seems to have disappeared in the Song Dynasty In the poem "Feng Sui" by Lu You, there is a sentence: "Yangqiang wine and baskets are used to welcome women, and drums and dragon boats are sent to compete with gods." "Jiajing Longqingzhi" also records: "Married girls are called back to celebrate the festival." , "Luanzhou Chronicles": "When a newly married woman comes home with the moon, it is called 'hiding from the Dragon Boat Festival'". It is a folk custom that it rains on the Dragon Boat Festival, which is unlucky; Ji. This kind of popular belief already existed in the Song Dynasty. Chen Yuanliang's "Sui Sui Guang Ji" quoted from "Yi Yuan Lu": "If someone exposes the medicine on May 5th, there will be no disaster." If it rains, ghosts will expose the medicine and people will get sick. This is a Fujian proverb. "Also Xu Yueqing's "Ci Yun Shu People Li Shizhou Fu Dragon Boat Festival" notes: "Linchuan people say that it rains on the Dragon Boat Festival, and ghosts and people cause disasters. Annotations to Zhao Huaiyu's poems of the Qing Dynasty also include the proverb "A good year will come if there is no rain on the Dragon Boat Festival".

Dragon boat racing and worship of Qu Yuan and Cao E

The word dragon boat was first seen in the fifth volume of the ancient pre-Qin book "The Biography of Emperor Mu": "The emperor rode a bird boat and the dragon boat floated on the swamp." In the "Nine Songs of Xiangjun", "I am riding a flying dragon to the north today, and I am on my way to the Dongting", and "the stone is shallow, and the flying dragon is graceful". Scholars also believe that the "flying dragon" is a dragon boat. "Xiang Jun" is a poem that describes Hunan people riding a dragon boat and sinking jade pendants into the river (similar to throwing a trace into the river) to mourn a certain historical figure. This coincides with the "soul boat" and the image of the Chu State's "Silk Painting of Figures Yulong", which can be confirmed by each other. "Records of the Years of Jingchu" records: "On May 5th, it is called the Yulan Festival... On this day, there is a race to gather miscellaneous medicines." Since then, there have been countless poems, notes, chronicles and other records of the race in the past dynasties. . Dragon boats are different from ordinary boats. They come in different sizes and have different numbers of racers. For example, the dragon boat in Huangpu and suburbs of Guangzhou is 33 meters long. There are 100 people on the road and about 80 people on the ground. Nanning dragon boats are more than 20 meters long, and there are about fifty or sixty people in each boat. The dragon boats in Miluo City, Hunan are 16-22 meters long and can hold 24-48 people. The dragon boat in Fuzhou, Fujian is 18 meters long and holds 32 people. Dragon boats are generally long and narrow, with a dragon head on the bow and a dragon tail on the stern. The colors of the dragon head include red, black, gray and other colors, all similar to the head of the dragon lantern, with different postures. It is usually made of wood and painted (it can also be tied with paper or gauze). The dragon tail is usually carved from whole wood with scales carved on it. Before the dragon boat race, the dragon must be invited and sacrificed to the gods. For example, the Guangdong dragon boat takes off from the water before the Dragon Boat Festival, worships the Queen of the South China Sea in the Nanhai Temple, installs the dragon head and tail, and then prepares for the race. They also bought a pair of small paper roosters and placed them on the dragon boat, thinking that they would keep the boat safe (which vaguely corresponds to the ancient bird boats). People from Fujian and Taiwan go to Mazu Temple to worship. Some people offer sacrifices to the dragon's head directly by the river, killing chickens and dripping blood on the dragon's head, such as in Sichuan, Guizhou and other areas. In Miluo City, Hunan, before racing, one must go to the Quzi Temple to worship the god in the poem, put a red cloth on the dragon head, and then put the dragon head on the boat to race, not only to worship the dragon god, but also to commemorate Qu Yuan. In Zigui, Qu Yuan's hometown in Hubei, there are also rituals to worship Qu Yuan. The custom of worshiping Qu Yuan is recorded in "Book of Sui Dynasty: Geography": "It gallops quickly, sings and sings, and vibrates the water and land, and the spectators are like clouds." Tang Dynasty Liu Yuxi's "Jingdu Song" notes: "Jingdu Song" It started in Wuling, and now it is held in harmony with each other, and the sound of it is: "Where is it?" It can be seen that worshiping Qu Yuan and dragon boat racing are closely related in the two lakes area. Maybe after the death of Qu Yuan (and Cao E, Wu Zixu, etc.), the local people also used soul boats to send their souls for burial, so this custom existed. Another example is Zhejiang, where dragon boat races are held to commemorate Cao E. According to "Book of the Later Han·Biography of Women", Cao E died by throwing herself into the river. Folk legend has it that she went down to the river to look for her father's body. Many people worship it in Zhejiang. "Dianshizhai Pictorial: Sacrifice to Cao E" depicts the scene of people in Kuaiji area worshiping Cao E. "Qing Jia Lu" records that the ferry race in Wudi (Jiangsu area) originated from commemorating Wu Zixu. Therefore, Suzhou has the old custom of offering Dragon Boat Festival sacrifices to Wu Zixu and holding a ferry race on the water to commemorate it. There are also ceremonies in Guangxi to commemorate Ma Yuan and in Fuzhou to commemorate the King of Hell and Wang Shenzhi. Various sacrificial and commemorative rituals are nothing more than lighting incense and candles, burning paper money, and offering chickens, rice, meat, fruits, rice dumplings, etc. Nowadays, these superstitious rituals are rare, but in the past, people worshiped the Dragon Temple in a solemn atmosphere, praying for a good agricultural harvest, good weather, to ward off evil spirits, to avoid disasters, to have everything go as they wished, and for safe boating. In people's words, "for good luck" expresses people's inner good wishes. When the official race began, the atmosphere was very lively. Tang Dynasty poet Zhang Jianfeng's "Song of the Race": "...the robes on both sides of the strait are fragrant, and the silver hairpins shine like frost blades. The red flag opens with three beats of drums; two dragons leap out of the floating water. Thousands of swords fly across the waves, The sound of drums crackles the waves, and the mark is approaching. The two dragons are looking at the mark, and the people on the slope are startled by thunder, and the poles are decorated with rainbow lights.

There are other activities of dragon boat racing. For example, dragon boat races are held to nearby familiar villages for fun and gatherings. Sometimes the dragon boats also have various patterns of paddling, which have the meaning of performance.

For example, in the dragon boat in Guangzhou, people hold hands and insert the paddle into the water, and then lift it up to make the water splash; the people at the bow and stern of the boat rhythmically stamp their feet to press the boat, making the dragon boat rise and fall like a dragon swimming in the water. In some dragon boats in Yuhang County, Zhejiang, people step down on the dragon's tail so that the dragon's head is raised, and the rapid waves from the bow of the boat spit out from the dragon's mouth, just like a dragon swallowing clouds and spitting rain. There are also boat races. For example, "Huainanzi·Benjingxun" "Dragon boat with a bird's head, floating and blowing for entertainment" means rowing the dragon boat and rocking the boat to play music and play on the water. "Mengliang Lu" records that "six dragon boats were playing in the lake" in Hangzhou in the Southern Song Dynasty. There are dragon boats on the lake, which are only part of the painted boat cruise. Emperors of the Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties all had the entertainment of watching dragon boats by the water, which was also a game. "Old Book of Tang" records that both Mu Zong and Jingzong "watched the boat race". Volume 7 of "Tokyo Menghua Lu" records the custom of the Emperor of the Northern Song Dynasty watching the dragon boat race in Jinming Pond in the Linshui Palace. Among them, there are colorful boats, music boats, small boats, painting cabins, small dragon boats, tiger-head boats, etc. for viewing and playing music, as well as a large dragon boat that is forty feet long. Except for the big dragon boat, other boats lined up to bid and compete for the ferry as entertainment. This scene is depicted in "Jinmingchi Winning the Bid" by Zhang Zeduan of the Song Dynasty. Another emperor of the Ming Dynasty watched dragon boats in Ziguang Pavilion in Zhongnanhai, and watched the warriors of the imperial archery prison race horses and shoot arrows. In the Qing Dynasty, the ferry race was held at Fuhai in the Old Summer Palace, and Emperors Qianlong and Jiaqing went to watch it. There is another night dragon boat. In Wujin, Zhejiang, there used to be dragon boat races at night, with small lanterns hanging on all sides for the purpose of racing. Night dragon boats have appeared in Wutong Bridge in Sichuan since 1982. The boats are equipped with electric lights, fireworks, and floating river lanterns, which are brilliant and dazzling. In a few places in Zhejiang, piles of floating flames are set up on the water, allowing dragon boats decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations to pass through the flames. There is also dry dragon boat racing, which is an activity that simulates dragon boat racing on land. For example, "Nanchang Prefecture Chronicle" records: "On May 5th, there is a dry dragon boat, and several people are invited to do it. They pass on traditional medicine and drums, filling the thoroughfares. The ladies give money to pray for blessings, and compete with firecrackers to ward off bad luck." Wuyi County, Zhejiang Province. In the past, there was also the custom of pushing the Dragon Boat Festival boat on dry land, which was also believed to be able to ward off evil spirits. In addition, Foshan, Dongguan and Xinyi in Guangdong have the custom of dragon boat racing on dry land. It is actually a kind of dance, but the date is not necessarily on the Dragon Boat Festival. The dry land dragon boats are most spectacular during the autumn colors in Foshan. Another example is recorded in "Huizhou Prefecture Chronicles": "On May 5th, a boat was used to welcome the gods and drive away the epidemic. The boats were made of bamboo and painted in the shape of a loach. They used twelve human gods to carry them around Xu City." There is also a small drought boat. Dragon Boat makes toys for children. When rowing dragon boats, there are many dragon boat songs that are sung to add to the fun. For example, during dragon boat rowing in Zigui, Hubei, there is a complete singing style. The lyrics and music are based on local folk songs and chants. The singing voice is majestic and heart-stirring, which is the legacy of "raising each other's hands and bowing in harmony". Another example is the dragon boat song in Nanxiong County, Guangdong. It is sung after the dragon boat is launched in April and ends at the Dragon Boat Festival. The performance content is very wide.

Zhong Kui

1. Jumping Zhong Kui and Alarm Clock Kui: Since the Jin Dynasty, dancing Zhong Kui and Alarm Clock Kui to bless the house has been an important part of the Dragon Boat Festival and the Spring Festival. Picture of Zhong Kui holding a sword to ward off evil

2. Hang Zhong Kui’s painting. The earliest Zhong Kui painting is said to be from the painting sage Wu Daozi. According to Shen Kuo's "Mengxi Supplementary Talk" of the Northern Song Dynasty: Emperor Ming of the Tang Dynasty had been ill for nearly a month and suddenly dreamed of two ghosts. The little ghost stole the emperor's jade flute and Yang Guifei's purple sachet and fled. The big ghost caught the little ghost, cut off its eyes, and then broke it and ate it. The big ghost said: "I am Zhong Kui, a man who is not successful in martial arts. I swear to your Majesty to rid the world of evildoers." After Emperor Ming of the Tang Dynasty woke up and recovered from his illness, he summoned the painter Wu Daozi and asked him to paint Zhong Kui's capture according to the scene in his dream. The ghost picture was created by Daozi with a stroke of his pen. When Emperor Ming saw it, it was exactly the same as in his dream, and he was amazed. Later, Zhong Kui's paintings gradually became popular among the people. Most of Zhong Kui's paintings were painted on the Dragon Boat Festival in May, or a few days before and after the Dragon Boat Festival. By the Qing Dynasty, most residents in the Jiangnan, Jiangsu and Zhejiang areas hung up Zhong Kui pictures on their gates or halls for a month during the fifth lunar month, in order to drive away evil spirits and bring good fortune.

Fighting with grass

There was no such thing as fighting with grass before the Han Dynasty. ("A Study of Popular Social Things in the Past Dynasties·Shang Binghe") The origin is unknown, but it is generally believed to be related to the emergence of traditional Chinese medicine. Ancient ancestors struggled to survive and lived a monotonous life. In their spare time, they entertained themselves by fighting insects, fighting grass, and fighting animals. After the legendary "Shen Nong tasted a hundred herbs" formed traditional Chinese medicine, groups went out to the countryside to collect herbs every Dragon Boat Festival and planted them. It has become a custom to relieve the poisonous epidemics caused by summer heat. After the harvest, competitions are often held, and the names of flowers and grasses are exchanged in the form of duel. The winner is the winner. This is a wonderful Qing Jin Tingbiao that combines plant knowledge and literary knowledge. The group of babies fight against the sketched axes

It is interesting; the children use the petioles to hook each other, pinch and pull each other, and the one who breaks the leaf loses, and another leaf is used to fight. Bai Juyi's poem "Guan'erxi" says: "Clicking dust or fighting grass, having fun all day long." "Wu Yuan" says: "It began in Han Dynasty." According to Liang Dynasty's Zong Nao's "Jingchu Years of Life": "On May 5th, all the people stepped on the grass together, and there was also a grass fight." "Nian Hua Ji Li": "Dragon Boat Festival knotted the house to store medicine, and fought against the grass." , wrapped with five threads." In the Southern and Northern Dynasties, it was called "Taibaicao", and in the Tang Dynasty, it was called "Ducao" or "Doubaicao". "Liu Binbin's Jiahua" says: "In the Zhongzong Dynasty of the Tang Dynasty, Princess Anle fought with hundreds of herbs for five days." In the Song Dynasty, it was expanded to include fighting at any time on weekdays. There are many descriptions of this in the works of literati in the past dynasties. The "Sketch of a Group of Infants Fighting" collected by the Palace Museum in Beijing is roughly played as follows: both sides of the competition first pick grass with a certain degree of toughness. , field ridges and other places.

No stems, with many slender fibrous roots; leaves emerge from the rhizosphere, are thin and papery, with five main veins, entire or wavy margins, or have sparsely toothed teeth, up to 15-30 cm long; with green-white sparse flowers, four-sided corolla It is split and has four stamens; when the fruit is mature, it will open like a lid and release four to six brown-black seeds. Its long flower axis is a good material for fighting weeds. ) and then cross each other to form a "ten" shape and pull hard, the one who keeps doing it wins. This kind of grass fighting, in which winning or losing is determined by the strength of the pulling force of people and the pulling force of grass, is called "fighting by force". Wang Jian's "Gong Ci" describes the situation of the grass-fighting game: "There are celery leaves in the water and flowers in the soil. If you find them, you will hide away from everyone, waiting for others to count them all. You will pick out tulip buds from your sleeves." In addition to "fighting", grass-fighting , and "Wen Dou". The so-called "literary struggle" refers to the names of flowers and plants. In Chapter 62 of "Dream of Red Mansions": "On Baoyu's birthday, the sisters were busy feasting, drinking and composing poems. The girls in each house also followed the master to have fun, Xue Pan's Concubine Xiangling and several girls each picked some flowers and grass, and played with each other for fun. One said, I have Guanyin willow; It is the custom to eat "five yellows" on the Dragon Boat Festival. Five yellows refer to cucumber, eel, yellow croaker, salted duck egg yolk, and realgar wine. In addition, tofu is also eaten on the Dragon Boat Festival in northern Zhejiang.

There is also archery on the Dragon Boat Festival. The play, "History of the Jin Dynasty·Li Zhi": "In the Jin Dynasty, due to the custom of Liao Dynasty, it was necessary to plant willows in the ground for about five days and peel them off to make them white. First, one person leads the way with a galloping horse, then the rear gallops and shoots them with featherless horizontal clusters of arrows. The one who broke the willow and let it go with his hands was the best. Those who are broken and cannot be picked up are the second best. Every time he shoots, a drum must be fired to boost his energy. "In the Ming Dynasty, birds were stored in gourds and shot at them.

Playing polo is also one of the Dragon Boat Festival dramas. Polo is played by riding on a horse and holding a stick. It was called Juju in ancient times. Three Kingdoms There is a sentence in Cao Zhi's "Famous Capitals" about "beating the soil evenly". In Chang'an of the Tang Dynasty, there was a large stadium, and emperors such as Xuanzong and Jingzong were fond of polo. There is a picture of polo in the tomb of Prince Zhanghuai. The prosperity of polo in the Tang Dynasty: In the painting, more than 20 horses are galloping, their tails are tied up, and the players wear scarves, boots, and sticks to hit the ball. In addition, there is also the custom of visiting the Temple of Heaven in Beijing. Volume 2 of "Scenery of the Imperial Capital": "Before noon on May 5th, people enter the Temple of Heaven to avoid the poison. After noon, under the wall of Zoumatan. In Wujiang City, there is a custom of silk millet, and it is also called corn millet. There is no custom of racing, but there is also competition and fun. "There is also a Zhong Kui competition in Shanghai, where a man dresses up as Zhong Kui, brandishing a sword and holding a paper bat in front of him, as if "drinking blessings are coming late"; followed by a full guard of honor, walking through the market to ward off evil spirits. In addition, during the Dragon Boat Festival, there are also Circus and duck racing.