As the Dragon Boat Festival approaches, the drums of dragon boats drift with the fragrance of rice dumpling leaves in every corner of the land of Nanyue. The lively “Dragon Boat Season” gradually kicks off. Among the many dragon boats with different forms, the Babaylan “Swallow Dragon Boat” has become the most unforgettable Dragon Boat Festival memory for fresh people with its unique local characteristics. Regarding the origin of “three-person swallow-tailed dragon boat racing”, although the Qingyuan County Chronicle of the People’s Republic of China stated that “there are also small boats, and three or five people cut them off, and there is no dragon shape. This is purely a fighting drama and a legacy of Yangzhou.” However, after field investigations, it was found that its formation was related to the unique local geographical environment and folk roots of Cinema.
There are many legends about the origin of “three-person swallowtail dragon boat racing”, and the four representative ones are as follows.
1. The Origin of Labor
Theory of the Origin of Labor
Huainanzi·Qi Su Xun” Cinema said: “Hu people are convenient for horses, and Yue people are convenient for boats.” In ancient times, Lingnan was mostly water network areas, and people often used boats to travel, and used boats as production workers to get along with each other.Pass tool. People row and compete in the labor of catching fish and shrimps or during leisure time, and enjoy the entertainment in labor production and leisure. This is the prototype of the ancient ferry of “Three-person swallowtail CinemaDragon Boat Racing”.
Shantang Town is close to the Beijiang River and is located in a low-lying state. It is mostly continental, with a water network and floods every year. Whenever the rice harvest season is over, it is mostly during floods. In the sixth year of Guangxu in the Qing Dynasty, the Qingyuan County Chronicle said: “The continental land was baptized and drought, but it was more likely to be drought. When the river overflows, those who plowed will suffer a lot of losses.” In order to facilitate the harvest of rice and other crops, ordinary people could only travel to the fields with a small boat and reach out to harvest rice and crops exposed to the water. Over time, in order to grab food with the God of Heaven and reduce losses, rowing activities spontaneously formed between villages and villages.
2. The Origin of the Boat Soldier
Shantang Town, Qingxin District, BabaylanShijiao Town and Longtang Town in Qingcheng District are located in the middle and lower reaches of the Beijiang River and are the throat of the waterway. During field surveys, we listened to local people telling stories, saying that this kind of small boat was a boat that sailors (boat soldiers) used to ride in the old days. There were few people and the boats were fast, so it was easy to hit the enemy. The locals introduced that this was related to the race boats, and it was also related to the Qin Dynasty and the Western Han army heading south through the Xijiang River to attack Nanyue.
The fresh “three-person swallow-tailed dragon boat” is similar to the “five-person dragon boat” in the Pearl River Delta in terms of boat shape, materials, and competitive methods, and is the same as the “three-five people are stripped of it” in the version of the Qingyuan County Chronicles of the Republic of China. The former three people took them off and were active in the middle and lower reaches of the Beijiang River. Later, there were five people in group of Cinema, which was popular in Foshan and Zhongshan areas, especially in the Bai Ni in Xijiang.town.
Whether this long-shaped boat “three-five-man dragon boat” is related to the two-way interactive communication of Beijiang and Xijiang cultures, and whether it is related to the Southern Ark soldiers during the Qin and Han dynasties, it still needs to be further studied.
3. The Origin Theory of Welcoming Gods and Eliminating Ghosts
Most of the villages in Shantang Town are built next to the inland river. In ancient times, whenever floods occurred, “water ghosts” became the main culprit that endangers life. In order to drive away the “water ghosts”, the villages spontaneously organized a “swallowtail boat ghost-driving team” between them. Young and middle-aged people joined the battle, supporting their own swallowtail boats to drive away ghosts from the upper reaches of the river and set off a large number of firecrackers to scare and cheer.
4. The theory of origin of games
The ancient games were an important part of the origin of human culture. The three-person swallowtail dragon boat racing event has the initial game elements. Locals often use the word “play”. It means “playing and picking dragon boats”, and the “playing” in it reflects the psychology of the game. KomiksGame Prizes have also changed to competitive Prizes. In order to mobilize the motivation to participate in games (competitiveness), the prizes are becoming more and more abundant, and the amount of prizes is also increasing as the people’s living standards gradually improve.
(This article is excerpted from “Fresh Three-person Swallowtail Dragon Boat Racing”)
Provided by | Editor Yang Yingyu | Source of Liang Xingwu | Yangcheng Evening News Publishing House