Dragon boats from all over the Pearl River Delta came to Leliu Longyan Village to hold the “Longyan Finishing Custom” ceremony, praying for the smooth and safe Dragon Boat Competition, and looking forward to a good year of good weather and good harvests. Cinema
Text/Photo Yangcheng School reporter Ouyang Zhiqiang Zhang Taoyuan
Pray for the Dragon Boat Festival Dragon Boat Competition to be smooth and safe, and hope for a good year to have a good weather and good harvest
Dragon boats from all over the Pearl River Delta come to Leliu Longyan Village to “finish the eyes of the longan”
Standard Member of Foshan Municipal Party Committee, Minister of Propaganda Department, and Secretary of the Party Committee of Shunde DistrictBabaylanGuo Wenhai praised the dragon boat team that came to “finish the eyes”
Children bathe in the dragon boat pool to pray for healthy growth
Villagers like to touch the dragon head and pray for blessings
After arriving in Longyan Village, dragon boat teams from all over the country went to Taiwei Temple to perform the “Longyan finishing touch” in Taiwei Temple, on June 16 (the third day of the fifth lunar month), the Propaganda Department of Shunde District Party Committee, District Culture and Sports Bureau, District Tourism Bureau, and Leliu Street Office jointly held the “Civilized Shunde 2018 Grassroots Cultural and Sports Carnival – ‘Rural Revitalization Longteng Leliu’ Leliu Street Dragon Boat Culture Month Promotion Provincial Intangible Cultural Heritage ‘Longyan Finishing Tiao’ Customs Activity” in Longyan Village. Dragons from all over the Pearl River Delta BabylanBoat came to Leliu Longyan Village to hold the “Longyan Finishing Custom” ceremony, praying for the smooth and safe Dragon Boat Competition in the Dragon Boat Festival, and looking forward to a good year of good weather and good harvests.
At the event, Shunde (Longyan) Community Development Doctoral Research Base, Longyan Community University, and Longyan Ecological Museum Preparation Office were unveiled at the same time. Its Doctoral Research Base in Babaylan also signed a cooperation framework agreement with the Institute of Society and Culture of Macau University of Science and Technology. After the entry of postdoctoral talents such as Tsinghua University, it revitalized a 400 square meter house in Komiks, which had been abandoned by the river surf of Longyan Village for many years.
According to this year’s Longyan finishing activities, in addition to highlighting the Longyan finishing touch, the dragon banquet, as well as the popular water color performances and water “dragon lice” (note: local traditional name, smaller dragon boat) performances and other activities, the ancient village Longyan Village showed new cultural connotations; the villages and residential villages implemented “rural revitalization” and the upgrading and transformation of village-level industrial parks; echoing the “dragon boats” that day, it concentrated various dragon boat objects and photography award-winning works to show the Shunde dragon boat culture and dragon boat spirit; at the same time, in order to show the construction of beautiful and civilized villages and the results of ancient villages, the online and offline “longyan treasure hunting” activity that has been lingered for three days has prompted the Shunde water villages to be recognized by tourists in the Pearl River Delta and even the whole country.
The reporter learned that Longyan Village also held a signing ceremony for the “Rural Revitalization” village-enterprise pairing project that day. Longyan Village negotiated with the Zhongdao Reform Institute, the Shunde Dragon Boat Culture Inheritance Association, the Leliu Youth Entrepreneurs Association and five enterprises, and held a calligraphy and painting exhibition, an online and offline interactive attractions “Treasure Hunt”, the second Dragon Culture and Leliu Beautiful Civilized Village Photography Exhibitionetc.
At the scene, citizens and tourists watched the water floating colors, dragon lice and colorful dragon parade on the shore, and tasted dragon boat banquets at the Longyan Cityba Station Stadium. They welcomed the dragons in Longyan Village Square, Taiwei Temple, and other places. The grand custom of “longyan finishing eyes” was unanimously praised by the people on site. In addition, in Dekang Garden, district and town leaders and guests also carried out the “Grands with Warmth” and “Little Hands Holding Big Hands” to celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival with students and parents of Longyan Primary School. The event was funded by the company, and blessing the elderly and condolences to the poor families in the Leliu subsistence allowance and sanitation workers.
According to Komiks, Longyan Village also held a folk art and cultural and sports program exhibition for two consecutive nights on June 14 and 15 to mobilize all villagers to actively participate in the dragon and welcome guests and show the enthusiasm of “hospitable Longyan”.
The origin of “Longyan Finishing”
Shunde is a famous hometown of dragon boats. Since the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the wind of picking dragon boats is growing day by day. The entire set of ritual packages for picking dragon boats includes the dragon, finishing touch, picking green, racing dragon, hidden dragon and scattered dragon.
Leliu Longyan Village was built in the Western Han Dynasty. The village has a long history and rich culture. Huang Xiaoyang of the Ming Dynasty revolted in the Longyan Village area. The result of the suppression was that Shunde County was born. In order to strengthen the rule, the Ming Dynasty precipitated from the South China Sea and set up Shunde County, named after “Shuntian Mingde”; Longyan was called Longzhu in ancient times, surrounded by water, and built the “Han Taiwei Xianggong Temple” commemorating the support of the Han Dynasty by Zhou Bokuang, a general of the Western Han Dynasty. Liang Dunyan was one of the first students studying in the United States in the late Qing Dynasty. Later, he served as Minister of Foreign Affairs and the general director of the Beiyang government’s transportation.
Since ancient times, Longyan Village has become a holy place for dragons to gather together. Dragon boats from the surrounding towns have made an appointment to gather at the Taiwei Temple on the third day of the lunar month. Therefore, “Longzhu” is gradually replaced by “Longyan”, and the place name of Longyan Village has also come. When the Dragon Boat Festival comes, the dragon boats in various parts of the Pearl River Delta come to Longyan Village to make a pilgrimage before the official dragon boat race, especially the new dragon boats are launched. It is said that the dragon boats with cinnabar have a spirituality, and the speed is very vigorous, which is similar to the finishing touch of the dragon. Otherwise, it will drag the mud and water, and may even be in danger of turning over.
The custom of dragon boats in the village has been continuing for more than 600 years. Every year on the third day of the fifth lunar month, dragon boats near the Pearl River Delta will spontaneously gather at the Taiwei Temple in Longyan Village for the “finishing the highlight”. It has become a well-known and popular folk cultural activity. The Taiwei Temple in Longyan Village is therefore called the place where dragon boats “pilgrimage”. According to statistics, in recent years, nearly 100 dragon boats from Shunde, Panyu, Nanhai, Zhongshan, Jiangmen and other places in the Pearl River Delta have come here to hold a “finishing” ceremony every year.
Longyan finishing ceremony
On the third day of May every yearBabaylan, the Taiwei Temple burns incense and inserts flags, and gongs and drums are noisy. The head of the Babaylan ceremony was held in the temple early in the morning to wait for the group of dragons from all directions to gather together to celebrate the finishing touch. On that day, the village also invited opera troupes to entertain themselves. Relatives and friends from all over the world came back to visit relatives and friends, and had a banquet and a happy drink. The “finishing eyes” was more lively than any traditional festival. If it rains that day, it will be even more festive, commonly known as “Longgu Shui”.
A Butou was built about twenty meters in front of the Taiwei Temple. Dragon Boats were moored in the river. Cinema’s eyes were coming to the pilgrimage point. The owner who was waiting in Butou set off firecrackers to show his welcome. When the dragon boat is docked, he removes the dragon head, tail and dragon sign to land. The left door enters the Taiwei Temple. The elder uses a brush to dip the cinnabar to finish the tip of the dragon head. At the same time, the host and the guest give each other gifts. After the “finishing” ceremony, he will exit from the right door. Dragon boats from afar usually eat on the spot, commonly known as “dragon boat rice”.
The people of Longyan Village are particularly welcoming and hospitable, YanhuanBabay11 “gift points” were set up in the river surf of the village to give gifts to the dragon boat that came to participate in the pilgrimage, and to fulfill the friendship of the landlords.
”Longyan finishing the eye” process
Worship: On the evening of the 30th day of the fourth lunar month, the Taiwei Temple beating gongs and drums three times, and the tributes are paid to the TaiweiKomiks, praying for good weather and good weather in the society and the yard, and people are peaceful and good.
Welcome the dragon and the dragon: On the morning of the third day of the fifth month, colorful flags were planted everywhere at the port. Villagers heard the sound of dragon boats and set off firecrackers, and they all served as landlords to send rice wine, fruits and profits. In the Taiwei Mansion, gongs and drums sounded together, warmly connecting the “dragon”, and solemnly and clearly marked the origin of the dragon boat.
Fulong: The new “dragon”, remove the dragon head, Komiks Dragon Tail, Dragon Card, and Dragon Card, take the dragon head first, the dragon card is in the middle, and behind the Dragon Tail Hall, accept the gift of the villagers to comfort the dragon.
Worship: “Dragon” enters the temple gate, the dragon head, dragon tail and dragon plaque are discharged side by side. Under the statue of the gods, the dragon boat team members report their names, burn incense and pray, and pray for smooth sailing and good luck. Every time I visit, the gongs and drums will ring.
Finishing: The finishing touch population is “Smooth the wind and the faucet goes to the dragon’s tail”. Use the longan’s leaf water to sprinkle the dragon’s head, dragon’s tail, god’s bucket, gong, drum, and colorful flag, and dip the new pen in cinnabar, and dot the dragon’s eye, dragon’s neck and dragon’s tail.
Give gifts: The finishing touch is over, and both the host and the guest give each other a gift. The host will give you “Welcome Cambodia”, rice wine, fruits and dragon ears; the guests will give you replies, fruits and dragon boat talismans.
Returning to the dragon: After the ceremony, the dragon boat does not return according to the original route, but is led by a dedicated person to enter and exit from the main hall, commonly known as “going for the great fortune”.
Walking Dragon: The dragon boat bows and bows in the ceremony of three advances and two retreats to thank God for its kindness, and then cruising around the river, with gongs and drums and colorful flags waving.
Source｜Yangcheng School
Editor｜Xie Hong