Every time during the Dragon Boat Festival, there are always grand dragon boat races in places where ethnic minorities gather in Guizhou. Compatriots of all ethnic groups actively participate. The reporter has visited the site twice to collect songs, and the warm, jubilant and inspiring scene is deeply memorable and memorable.
I remember that for the first time in the last century, on June 18, 1999, a reporter as a member of the film crew of "Chinese National Sports" came to the ancient town of Zhenyuan, Guizhou to race, just in time for the "16th Dragon Boat Race of Zhenyuan", so our camera recorded The grand occasion of this national dragon boat race held on the Wuyang River in Zhenyuan Ancient Town.
As a famous historical and cultural city with beautiful scenery in Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture of Guizhou Province, Zhenyuan holds a large-scale dragon boat race every year during the Dragon Boat Festival. Before the "Dragon Boat Festival", the local Miao, Dong and other ethnic minority compatriots will hold a traditional "dragon sacrifice" ceremony. "Worshiping the Dragon" was held in Qinglong Cave, a famous scenic spot in Zhenyuan. The Dragon Sacrifice Ceremony is very solemn, and people from the local religious circles burn incense and worship.
After the sacrifice, four strong paddlers lift down the huge colorful dragon head, and the paddlers of each fleet parade in a team. In the parade, there are "Lusheng Dance" and "Bench Dance" of the Miao nationality, "Stepping on Drum Dance" and "Lusheng Dance" of the Dong nationality. Slow down.
The river tour ceremony is even more beautiful. In the Wuyang River, colorful boats will clear the way. A colorful dragon spouting flames and a spray of water swims in the front, followed by colorful boats with Miao and Dong men and women in costumes playing reeds and suonas.
After the parade, dozens of participating dragon boats met in order. On the podium, the high-pitched speakers frequently mobilized the ships, and people looked down from the heights and could clearly see the grand occasion of the game. The scene of the dragon boat race on the Wuyang River is extremely spectacular. I saw the heroic dragon boat team composed of young men and women of various nationalities, and the bright colorful flags on each dragon boat were flying in the wind and weaving back and forth in the Wuyang River.
The length of the dragon boat is 30 meters; the short one is also 22 meters. The bow and stern of the boat are respectively equipped with willow carved faucet and dragon tail, which are painted in color and have fine craftsmanship. The "victory" flag is inserted on the belly of the ship. There are commanders, rowers, gong and drummers, and helmsmen on the dragon boat. The number varies and depends on the boat. When the Gun Pao gave the order to compete, the two dragon boats flew away from the water like arrows flying off the string. The sailors tried their best to row forward desperately against the fast waves with the rapid drumbeat.
The gongs and drums on the river are loud and the roar is loud. I saw dozens of paddle blades opening and closing like the wings of a great roc, raising waves of silver waves and pearls. The two dragons competed for water and refused to give in to each other. The fierce drum beat destroyed the flying boat. Each fleet has a commander, who beats the golden drum and leads the boat across the water to the finish line. Experienced drummers are the soul of the fleet, and the cooperation between the drummer and the helmsman must be very handy in the race with sharp turns. There are fierce and brave oarsmen, as well as experienced drummers and helmsmen, and they will be sure to win the battle. The brave one wins, the one ahead breaks through the waves, and the one who rushes to the finish line excitedly raises his oars to celebrate the victory. There were thunderous cheers on both sides of the strait, and bursts of shouts and cheers broke out.
In recent years, many women's dragon boat teams have participated in the competition. The heroines appeared frequently on the water, constantly arousing people's applause. Watching the dragon boat race, it corresponds to the folk saying in Zhenyuan: "People on the boat are not in a hurry, but people on the shore are in a hurry." In fact, the people on the boat are even more nervous. In particular, a large group of people in the logistics camps of each fleet regard the honor and disgrace of the fleet as their own responsibility. If they lose the game, cheer them up, and if they win, they will set off firecrackers. The scene was very touching.
In Zhenyuan, the annual dragon boat rowing has been practiced in this historical ancient city for a long time, and it is the favorite traditional water sports of many ethnic compatriots who live here. Today, the Zhenyuan Dragon Boat Festival has been held for 19 sessions. According to historical records, the dragon boat race in Zhenyuan began around 298 BC and has a history of more than 2,000 years. The jubilant dragon boat race is the most distinctive national traditional sports activity to compete in physical strength, skill, bravery, perseverance and enhance national unity. It brings people not only real joy. But also into the color of the new era. The dragon boat race integrates traditional cultural activities and sports competitions, and has carried forward the enrichment of traditional sports of ethnic minorities in China.
On June 9, 2016, the "2016 'Colorful Guizhou' Shibing Dragon Boat Race" that the reporter was invited to participate in was grandly kicked off on the Wuyang River in Shibing County. Although this is the second time for the reporter to participate in the news gathering of the dragon boat race, I am still very excited to see that shocking scene again after more than ten years. At that time, the "Dragon Boat Festival Series Activities" opened in Shibing was a wonderful gathering of people's hearts, and there were good shows everywhere in the Dragon Boat Festival. The entire Shibing County was filled with a scene of enthusiasm and jubilation.
This event is also to carry forward the traditional folk culture of the Chinese nation, enrich the spiritual and cultural life of the people during the Dragon Boat Festival, show the spirit of the cadres and masses in Shibing County, Guizhou Province to build the "Five Strong Dreams" and run together on the "well-off road" together, and create Shibing The unique "Dragon" cultural tourism brand promotes the in-depth integration and integrated development of "cultural and sports tourism".
Like the Zhenyuan Dragon Boat Race 17 years ago, the spectacular "2016 'Colorful Guizhou' Dragon Boat Race Parade" was held before the race. I saw ten strong, shirtless young men from the Shibing County Dragon Boat Lantern Association, carrying the "No. 1 Dragon Head of the Chinese Miao Nationality" and walking in the forefront of the team. The queue followed.
Among them, the "China's No. 1 Dragon Miao Costume Team" is the most beautiful. It is composed of more than 180 women in bright and eye-catching Miao costumes. The entire parade started from Shi Bingjiayu Jingcheng, passed through the pedestrian crossing, Yangjia Street, Xianfu Road, Gulou Street, Wenhua Street, Shizi Street and ended at the Garden in the middle of the street. The whole procession came from more than 100 "aunt phalanxes" and tens of thousands of people parading in costumes inside and outside Shibing County, wishing the "birth" of "the world's longest wooden dragon boat". welcome.
Afterwards, the "Water Dragon" performance held in the central area of the county seat once again pushed the warm and jubilant atmosphere to a climax. People on both sides of the street scooped water from the buckets that had been prepared and poured it on the "dragon". This unique custom of celebrating the Dragon Boat Festival made the whole county boil at this time, and people were immersed in the ocean of joy...
Shi Bing's "Water Dragon" folk activity has been passed down for a long time. Whenever the "Water Dragon" activity is held on the Dragon Boat Festival, colorful water dragons can be seen parading the streets and alleys, dancing while walking. , some use a bucket, fill it with water and pour it on the water dragon, and the water dragon will circle and move in the "heavy rain", flying up and down, the harder the water is splashed, the more vigorous the water dragon dances. At first it was people splashing dragons, but later it became people splashing people. Everyone splashed water and had a carnival. Wherever the water dragons passed by, it became a "water street".
Water dragon, also known as Qinglong, is a rain-seeking sacrificial object that was popular in Chengguan area of Shibing County. Whenever there is a drought, the local people will spontaneously organize and hold the event. The whole event lasts for 1 to 3 days. Dragon dances are performed in the streets and alleys.
Shi Bing has played with water dragons for thousands of years. The masses say that the water of the water-splashing dragon is "auspicious water", and the more water is splashed, it means good luck and prosperity. If anyone is lucky enough to be splashed with auspicious water, he will have a prosperous career and fortune. Today, the country is prosperous and the people are safe, and the people have enough food and clothing. Playing with water dragons is no longer a sacrifice to pray for rain, but a local water-splashing carnival.
At 3:00 p.m. on the same day, the grand opening ceremony of the "2016 'Colorful Guizhou' Shibing Dragon Boat Race" was held on the banks of the Wuyang River in Shibing. Although it was drizzling that day, the enthusiasm of tourists and people from home and abroad remained undiminished. They held umbrellas, and the scene of huge crowds of people gathering on both sides of the Wuyang River was very spectacular.
The exciting competition began. In the Wuyang River, 36 traditional dragon boats and more than 70 male and female teams from Shibing Chengguan Sub-district, community and surrounding villages participated in the competition. The first colorful boat cruise. 180 women dressed in bright Miao simple costumes worked together to paddle the "world's longest wooden dragon boat" to lead the colorful boat cruise, adding a unique and beautiful cultural landscape to Shibing of the festival.
Then, after a burst of deafening fireworks, the fierce dragon boat race officially began. After the firing of the starting gun, amidst the inspiring drumbeats, the contestants were full of energy. Sometimes the gongs and drums were loud, and sometimes they shouted for cheer. The Wuyang River was boiling all of a sudden.
The contestants swung their arms and paddles on the broad Wuyang River, cutting through the waves and fighting hard. A total of 48 women's and men's dragon boat teams from various villages participated. Due to the sudden heavy rain, the dragon boat teams of each team did not retreat, but immediately turned to the battle, and carried out a "actual combat" drill of the dragon boat competition without gunpowder in the rain. After the game, a grand award ceremony was held.
After the intense dragon boat races during the day, Shibing County was still immersed in the joyous atmosphere when night fell, because the "Fireworks and Colorful Boat Cruise" activity of the Dragon Boat Festival series began to stage a beautiful show again. Along the river section from Shibing Bridge to Delta Square, cruise ships decorated with lights compete to show their beautiful figures in the night, cruising on the beautiful Wuyang River, adding a beautiful night scenery to Shibing again. As the hometown of singing and dancing of ethnic minorities with Miao and Dong as the main body, Qiandongnan is known as the "hometown of hundreds of festivals". As a "member" of Qiandongnan, Shi Bing also has many kinds of folk songs and dances. As an important part of the Dragon Boat Festival, a wonderful national dance performance was also held at Chengguan Delta Square in Shibing County that night. People will see local and ethnic compatriots from brother cities and counties gather here to dance with their unique songs and dances. Way to spend the Dragon Boat Festival together. (Photo: Feng Ganyong)