The Miao people are mainly distributed in Guizhou, Yunnan, Hunan, Sichuan, Guangxi, Hubei, Guangdong and other provinces of China. The ancestors of the Miao nationality once lived in the vast areas south of the Yellow River and north of the Yangtze River. They migrated to Hunan, Guizhou and other places in the Han Dynasty. The Miao people in Yunnan used to be famous for their erratic life of migration, slash-and-burn production method, social division of labor between men farming and women weaving, and self-sufficient small-scale peasant economy. They were called "Gypsies of the East". Since the 1950s, the Miao people have turned to a settled life.
In the last century, on November 20, 1998, the reporter arrived in Wenshan Zhuang and Miao Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province after completing the filming of the Hekou Yao nationality with the "Chinese Ethnic Sports Film Team", and participated in the four-day "Yunnan Province Sixth National Games".
At this year's pro-democracy games, the film crew watched 9 competitions including horse racing, wrestling, dragon boat, fireworks grabbing, blowing guns, swings, shooting crossbows, martial arts, and spinning tops; and more than 50 participating performances. The wonderful 6th Yunnan National Games left a deep impression on the reporter and his party.
Due to the need of the crew to shoot authentic traditional folk sports dances, the crew filmed enough material at the pro-democracy games for four consecutive days. On November 24, our "Chinese National Sports" crew came to The Miao Village in Tangzibian Village, Zhuilijie Township, about 20 kilometers away from Wenshan, started shooting the traditional sports and customs of the Miao people.
The traditional sports of the Miao nationality have a long history, and there are more than 40 kinds of sports that have been discovered and circulated in recent years. Among them, "Badminton", "Shooting Crossbow", "Spinning Top", "Kicking Stand", "Lusheng Dance", "Throwing Flower Bag", "Climbing Flower Pole" and so on are very popular activities of the Miao people.
In the Miao village beside the pond, there is a natural lawn that is as big as half a football field, with simple and beautiful scenery. This is also one of the best natural shooting locations seen during this trip to Yunnan. When we arrived, many Miao villagers had already gathered there. We have successively filmed the performances of the above projects.
Miao people's "ban shuttlecock", also known as "chicken feather shuttlecock", is a healthy and interesting folk sports activity passed down from generation to generation by the Miao people, and it is also a way for young men and women to socialize and build relationships. The utensils for the "bad badminton" are all made by the Miao family. The shape and size of the badminton board is similar to that of a modern table tennis racket; the badminton uses cloth-wrapped copper coins or other metal discs as the base, and three chicken feathers are inserted in the bottom. In competition or play, young men and women usually fight against each other. If you can fight continuously, it means that the tempers of the two sides are close; the longer the fight lasts, it means that the temperament of the two sides is harmonious, and it is expected that the two sides will become good friends; . During the festivals of the Miao family, it is often possible to see lively scenes of Miao youths playing "chicken feather shuttlecocks" in the spacious leeward garden of the Miao village. With the crisp "cracking" sound of the chicken feather shuttlecock, you throw it over and I throw it over, like a young swallow spreading its wings and circling in the wind.
The Miao Huashan is a traditional festival with a long history of the Miao people. Every morning, when the sun is still wrapped in the veil-like mist, the whole Miaoling village will be boiling, and the tide-like crowds are dressed in festive costumes, and they flock to the flower field from all directions with joy, presenting beautiful scenery everywhere. A lively scene of laughter and singing. Lusheng dance is always one of the essential programs in festivals.
When it comes to "Lusheng Dance", we must talk about Lusheng, which is a traditional folk musical instrument loved by the Miao people. Most of the Miao people can play the euphemistic and melodious Lusheng music, and they also like to dance the vigorous, graceful, rough and unrestrained Lusheng dance accompanied by the Lusheng music. Speaking of the origin of Lusheng, there is a beautiful and magical legend. According to legend, Miao and Han were originally two brothers who lived together in the far north and lived happily ever after. Unexpectedly, the two brothers were scattered by the enemy because of the evil war. The Miao brothers fled south to the big river with their children, grandchildren, cattle and sheep. The front was blocked by the river; Bamboo suddenly became the hope for the Miao people to escape, so the wise Miao people worked together to cut down dragon bamboos and made bamboo rafts across the river one by one. Some settled in Guizhou and some migrated to Yunnan. Because bamboo helped the Miao family out of danger, the old people at that time vowed to let the bamboo last forever and leave it to their grandchildren. Therefore, the Miao family used it to make reeds. In order to travel safely, one person was sent to open the road ahead for reconnaissance, blowing the reeds, and using the reeds to call the masses to avoid danger, so that people could move south safely. In this way, the reeds of the Miao family were passed down from generation to generation.
The Lusheng dance competition is a traditional recreational activity popular among the Miao people. There are also various forms of competition. There are both solo performances and group competitions. In the pair competition in Miao Village, we saw two villagers dancing against each other while blowing the reeds. After a few laps, the two played the reeds and kicked each other until one of them fell to the ground. Win or lose. The victor was rewarded with a bowl of corn wine. After drinking, they continued to play the lusheng dance competition. Anyone who is willing to participate in the competition is welcome. Usually one person loses, and the others immediately pick up. Experienced people kick the opponent's calf twice as soon as they enter the stage. If the opponent does not move, they know that they are not the opponent, and they will bow down and leave the dance floor. If the strength is equal, it will be a wonderful game. Those with high dancing skills will hit the opponent's calf with their feet; those with poor dancing skills will not be able to knock down the opponent, and will be knocked to the ground by the opponent after a short time. Amidst bursts of cheers, the competition was played while blowing and dancing.
The solo dance of Lusheng dance is even more interesting. The performer dances while blowing, and mobilizes various parts of the body to flicker and move, and the dancing patterns are dazzling. The basic movement is to rotate in a low posture, bend your knees, and swing your arms up and down, left and right, driven by your shoulders. Sometimes he also makes highly skilled movements such as vacant jumps, rolls, squat jumps, and handstands. The collective reed dance consists of several or dozens of reeds lined up together, led by the master, dancing while blowing. There is also the Lusheng dance, which combines dancing and competition. During the performance, two people dance to the music, one on the left and one on the right, accompanied by a person playing Lusheng. After dancing for a while, accompanied by the accompaniment of Lusheng, the two dancers will perform a shoulder-to-shoulder competition on the ground.
The Miao people not only dance the Lusheng dance during festivals, but also sometimes perform on the road or between work. They play the Lusheng and dance to get rid of the fatigue of the journey and reduce the troubles of life, so as to obtain the joy of the whole body and mind. In the lush and beautiful Yunnan Miao Village, the Miao family often hold various traditional sports competitions. Like other ethnic minorities, the crossbow shooting competition is also a very favorite sport of the Miao people. According to legend, Xiang Chongzhou, the leader of the Miao nationality, once led the shooting crossbow team, which played a brilliant record in invading the French army in the anti-French war of the Miao people. Nowadays, the crossbow shooting competitions carried out by the Miao people usually focus on competition and entertainment. During the competition, men, women and children come together to compete. The crossbows, bows and arrows are all made of bamboo and wood, and the targets are chosen at will. Although there is no basis for professionally measured ring numbers marked on the target paper, the shooting results under the watchful eyes of the public will not bury the real crossbow shooting winners. Due to the simple competition equipment and the casual competition venue, crossbow shooting is very common in Miao Village, and many people will come to watch the competition every time there is a competition.
The ethnic martial arts of the Miao nationality are also an important part of traditional sports. Among them is a very competitive event "kicking frame", which is very popular in Qiubei area of Yunnan Province and is deeply loved by the Miao people there. In Tangzi Bianzhai, two Miao "kicking frame" masters from other places heard our arrival, and they came here to perform a wonderful "kicking frame" fighting match. "Kicking frame", also known as "fighting feet" or "kicking frame", is a fighting competition between two people. The competition is intense and confrontational. It adopts some movements in Wushu Sanda. During the competition, the two sides mainly fight with their feet, and the upper body cannot participate in the battle. Perhaps it is because of these characteristics that the title of kickstand comes from this.
There is no strict time limit for the kickstand competition. As a traditional folk competition, although there are no strict competition rules, for the safety of the competition, generally two people are not allowed to use their feet to step on each other's front during the fight, only to attack. The back of the human body. Even so, good players can kick opponents to the ground from the back. The traditional sports competitions of the Miao family have always been very lively. The men, women and children watching the games not only warmly applauded and congratulated the strong, but also cheered and cheered for the weak. The bustling scene of the Miao village by the pond is enough to prove this point.
In the cultural and sports activities of the Miao people, there are always many Miao girls wearing colorful costumes cheering and watching the battle on the spot. The colorful costumes constitute a beautiful landscape. Miao women's costumes are very distinctive. Their heads are decorated with colored beads and discs with colorful beards. The front, back and sleeves of the clothes are all cross-stitched and embroidered; a wide black border is left on the skirt without any decoration. Of course, there are many branches of the Miao nationality, and the costumes of Miao girls in various places are also colorful, but only within the Miao nationality, can one identify which branch of the Miao nationality they belong to through clothing. The more than 130 kinds of Miao costumes are the crystallization of the wisdom and art of the Miao people. It can be compared with the costumes of any nation in the world. In addition, the exquisite silver ornaments made by the Miao family are like icing on the cake and dizzying. The joyful traditional festivals of the Miao people are a tribute to the new life of the Miao people. There are also love songs, flying songs, wine songs, and numerous national dances all showing the artistic genius of the Miao compatriots. (Photo: Feng Ganyong)