The origin of dragon dance? simple

Dragon is the head of the four spirits in China, and people in China respect and fear it. In our minds, the dragon is auspicious, the master of wind and rain, and the destroyer of wild waves; Its power is unmatched by the fiercest beast. Because the dragon is the master of water, in the coastal areas of China, fishermen build temples to worship in order to keep good weather, and there are many myths about dragons in the coastal areas. It seems that life is like a dream, and dragon dancing at night is one of the folk arts with national colors in China. Whenever there are large-scale festivals, large-scale celebrations and parades, there will be dragon dances. As for when the dragon dance started, it is beyond reproach. However, in ancient times, in the event of floods, droughts, plagues and evil spirits, the ritual custom of dancing dragons and praying for rain can be imagined. Since ancient times, China believed that the dragon was the master of wind and rain and had boundless magic power, so he prayed for its mercy and protection during drought and waterlogging. In the ceremony, wizards and wizards imitate the dragon's movement posture, rotate and dance, and use the magical principle of "as if life were" to pray for rain and sunshine. This is the original origin of dragon dance. This is a future thing, and the ceremony of this festival has evolved into an entertainment-assisted celebration. From the beginning of the Song Dynasty evening play recorded in Hua Meng, Tokyo: "On the left and right doors, the stalks of grass are dragon-shaped, dragons are covered with green curtains, and lanterns and candles are densely placed on the grass, looking like dragonflies", it can be seen that the custom of dragon dancing has prevailed in the Middle Ages. In modern times, the custom of dragon dancing is popular in the northern and southern provinces of China. Golden Dragon and Silver Dragon are indispensable for the Spring Festival, which is more lively and colorful than lion dance. "Dragon" is a powerful clan with totem, which moved eastward from the west (Gansu and Xixia) and entered the Central Plains. This is the later "summer". Fuxi and Nu Wa are famous figures in China's preface and postscript. Legend has it that they are brother and sister, and some people say they are husband and wife. In the stone carvings and brick paintings of the Han Dynasty, there are often portraits of the snake heads of Fuxi and Nu Wa. These portraits of Fu Wing and Nu Wa are adult-shaped above the waist, wearing robes and crowns, and below the waist are snake bodies with two tails tightly intertwined (occasionally dragons); The faces of the two bodies are either forward or backward. People at that time actually believed that they were ancestors and protectors from legends. Therefore, many ancient tombs are engraved with his portrait, which means protecting the dead and enjoying underground happiness. This powerful dragon totem clan entered Xichuan from Gansu and Xian 'an. The land of Bashu is also named after this clan (the pictograph of Bashu House is Baba, which is the pictograph of snake), and then it goes down the Yangtze River, from Sichuan to Wuhan to Henan in the Central Plains. Later, they were hostile to the totem Yin nationality, and some of them moved northward, which was the later Xiongnu. So Attila's place of worship to heaven and earth is also called "Long Ting", which also indicates the relationship with dragons. The nationalities who moved south were Jingchu and wuyue in the early Zhou Dynasty and the Miao nationality in the southwest now. Although the part left in place was conquered by the Yin nationality, its cultural influence has always existed. At that time, dragons and snakes were painted on bronzes in Shang Dynasty. Therefore, although in the Yin Dynasty, Fuyi was still qualified to burn sacrifices. The Xia Dynasty is an era, so there are more legends about the relationship between Yu and the dragon, the first monarch in the Xia Dynasty. According to legend, Yu himself is a dragon, and his success in controlling water is also the dragon's assistance. Qi, the son of Yu, is also driving two dragons to hang two green dragons. Xia culture is the real cultural standard of our country. Emperors of all ages thought it was the incarnation of the dragon. The clothes they wear are called "dragon robes", the bed they sleep in is called "dragon bed", and the fetus conceived by the queen is also called "dragon fetus". Therefore, the dragon has become a sacred and noble "creature" in China. Dragon is a nation and mysterious god in China. Of course, the dragon referred to here is "loong", not a dinosaur in primitive times. Does "loong" exist or ever existed? This is a "God knows" question. This "animal" without fossils can only be seen in pictures now! However, people in China have always believed that dragons are really mysterious, and even ancient metaphysics scholars who study the Book of Changes are convinced that there must be a dragon destined to go to heaven, earth and fire in the universe. The Book of Changes often talks about dragons, and uses their positions and traces to predict good or bad luck.

One legend is that ...

It can be seen that "turning on the light" in the Spring Festival means "Spring Festival". Therefore, "dragon dance" should be a kind of sacrifice at first, not entertainment, and it should become entertainment after the Han and Tang Dynasties. There is a legend here, which also shows that dragon dancing is purely a memorial and contains sacrificial elements. According to legend, a long time ago, there was a lotus village on the bank of Tiaoxi River. There is a lotus pond in front of the village, which is full of lotus flowers. Every summer, the green lotus leaves are covered with water, and countless lotus flowers come out of the water, which is graceful. There lived a hardworking and kind young couple by the lotus pond. The man's name is Bai Ye and the woman's name is Lotus. The husband and wife farm and weave, and respect and love each other. This year, Lotus was pregnant, and ten months later, the child was not born. Another year has passed and there is still no birth. Until the 999th day, a boy was born. Bai Ye saw that the child was healthy and strong, and he liked him very much. Looking closely, I was shocked: a thin dragon forest grew on the child's chest and back, glittering and translucent. Count it, there are 999 pieces. The midwife next to her was startled and shouted, "Oh, great, you have a dragon god at home!" " "The news spread all over the village, and everyone came to congratulate. The news alarmed the old clan leaders in the village. His son is an official in the imperial court, leaving an ugly grandson around him. As soon as the grandparents heard that Bai Ye's family had given birth to a dragon seed, they immediately came to cut the dragon seed with a steel knife. When the villagers got the news, they immediately reported it to Bai Ye. After careful discussion, they came up with a way: put the child in the footbath and hide it quietly in the lotus pond in front of the door. The old patriarch and grandson rushed in with people, and the child disappeared. Seeing that the dragon seed could not be found, the patriarch grabbed the shutter and forced him to hand it over. Grandson saw the beautiful lotus, so he had a plan. He raised a steel knife to kill the louver and robbed the lotus at home. The old patriarch thought: Dragon species will starve to death even if they are alive without parents. Besides, the lotus will bear dragon seeds, and the dragon seeds will be born in their own homes in the future, and the world will be mine. Lotus was robbed to the old clan leader's house, and her husband and children were gone, which was very sad. The patriarch forced her to wash rice. Lotus dragged Tao Tao to the pool and gently stirred the water. Suddenly, a cool breeze blew. Deep in the lotus pond, the flowers and leaves fall to both sides, giving way to a waterway. I saw my son sitting in the footbath and floating towards her. Surprised and delighted, Lotus quickly took her son to her arms, fed him, and put him back in the footbath. A cool breeze brought the footbath back to the lotus. Lotus is glad to know that her son didn't starve to death. Since then, she washed rice in the pool three times a day and fed her son three times. After feeding for 999 days, my son grew up and was covered with golden light shining from Longlin. At night, the lotus pond is brightly lit. People in the village are secretly happy to know that the dragon species have not been destroyed. The old clan leader learned that the dragon seed was actually in the lotus pond and he was poisoned again. One evening, the lotus went to the pool to wash rice, and the grandparents and grandchildren hid under the poplar trees to observe the movement. They saw blue waves, floating flowers and leaves, and a cool breeze blowing gently. A footbath floated slowly from the depths of the lotus pond, and a child covered in gold sat in the basin, with his hands facing the cheerful lotus flower. Lotus was full of joy and was about to reach out and hug when a man came out from under the poplar tree, raised a bright steel knife and cut it straight at the child. In a flash, I saw the child suddenly jump up from the footbath, turn into a golden dragon and jump into the pool. But it was too late, and the knife cut the tail of Xiaolong. A beautiful butterfly stopped between the lotus flowers suddenly flew past, attached its body to the tail of the little dragon, and became the tail of the little dragon with a pair of beautiful wings. The little dragon sang a long song. In an instant, the wind was blowing hard, the dark clouds were rolling and the lotus petals were flying in the pool. In the thunderbolt, the little dragon's body gradually became bigger, and it became a dragon dozens of feet long, tumbling and leaping over the lotus pond. At this time, a tornado rolled over, and the little dragon took off, riding the wind straight into the sky and flying into the clouds. The tornado was so fierce that the person who cut off the dragon's tail was swept into the air and thrown away without a trace. When the patriarch saw his grandson being swept away by the wind, he plunged into the lotus pond and drowned. Lotus saw her son turn into a dragon and fly into the sky, shouting loudly, but the dragon had already flown without a trace. From then on, whenever there was a drought on both sides of Tiaoxi River, Xiaolong came to scatter clouds and rain. To thank it, the local people picked 749 lotus flowers from this pond and made a dragon with 999 petals. Because it is smaller than a piece of Chiba, it is named Baiyelong. Every Spring Festival, people beat gongs, drums and dragons.