Cideng

01 · Lineage & Regional School

Cideng, Male, Tibetan, from Yajiang, Sichuan, is a sixth-batch national representative bearer of Guozhuang Dance (Ⅲ-20). The tradition is documented in Yajiang, Sichuan. Within the regional tradition and school record of Guozhuang Dance in Yajiang, Sichuan: According to the region in which it is popular, guozhuang dance can further be divided into categories such as Ganzi guozhuang and Manai guozhuang. The movements of male dancers are rugged and vigorous, those of female dancers graceful and lively, giving the dance a distinctly local character. Yajiang County lies on the Sichuan-Tibet corridor in the middle reaches of the Yalong River; it was formerly a trading and caravan station on the Tea Horse Road. Guozhuang dance is passed on both in the farming villages along the Yalong and in the pastoral areas around Xiala and Xiyuoluo. Men and women form teams and make a circle, facing inward, and dance gracefully. According to the Tibetan book *The Royal Lineage of Ladakh*, guozhuang had already developed in the Tibetan areas as early as the period of the Deqiao Gong, long before the rise of the Tubo Kingdom. After more than a thousand years of development and change, it has evolved into several major schools. Ganzi guozhuang took shape in the area of Ganzi Prefecture. After 1978, guozhuang activity in Ganzi grew even livelier and had already become an indispensable mass recreational activity at festivals. In the Republic of China period the lyrics mostly praised the gods and Buddhas and the tusi and local chiefs. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, some traditional lyrics were retained while new ones were created praising the socialist system, singing of the Communist Party and extolling the hard-working and courageous nature of the people.

02 · Mastery & Signature Works

The bearer record for Cideng is anchored in the documented technical standards of Guozhuang Dance in Yajiang, Sichuan. Within the documented technical tradition of Guozhuang Dance in Yajiang, Sichuan: Guozhuang dance is a type of folk dance popular in Tibetan-inhabited areas. It changes continually as the social history of the Tibetan people develops. There are songs and dances reflecting labour such as threshing highland barley, twisting wool, feeding livestock and brewing wine, and there are songs and dances portraying Tibetan customs and performed at weddings, house completions and when welcoming guests and entertaining visitors. Guozhuang dance is divided into old-style guozhuang and new-style guozhuang. Old-style guozhuang is sacrificial in character: only its set lyrics may be sung and no alteration whatsoever is permitted, and the dance is generally slow, steady, archaic and solemn. New-style guozhuang mostly reflects farming and herding production and commercial and trading activity; both its lyrics and its dance movements are relatively free and flexible. An ordinary guozhuang dance is not limited in the number of performers; it may be danced by one person or by many. Its dance steps fall into two main categories, 'guozhuo' and 'kuzhuo'; the former is walking dance, the latter turning dance. Guozhuang means 'circle dance'; it is an ancient traditional song-and-dance form. Ganzi guozhuang is one of its branches. In the Republic of China period Ganzi organized a guozhuang troupe every year (men and women alike) to perform at monasteries for the tusi and the local chiefs. This gradually formed the 'dance corvee system', which was abolished only after the founding of the People's Republic of China. The performing format of Ganzi guozhuang is: men and women form a circle, or each side forms a small circle of its own. Each side has a singing and dancing 'zhuoben' (lead dancer). Before the dance begins, each side first sings a free-metre 'yinzih' (introduction), after which the dancing proceeds clockwise. When the men's side sings and dances, the women's side dances without singing; when the women's side sings and dances, the men's side dances without singing. While dancing, men and women either link arms or dance without linking arms; the tempo slows to quick, and the performance ends at the climax with a fast tempo. By traditional custom the lyrics and tunes of Ganzi guozhuang follow a fixed sequence that may not be altered at will: first, gathering in joy; second, prayer; third, praise; fourth, jest; fifth, marriage; sixth, glorification of the Buddha. As a rule a guozhuang is not concluded until ten tunes have been sung and danced. In stylistic terms Ganzi guozhuang is archaic and expansive, and especially in its fast-tempo passages the melody is warm and spirited. The tunes and dance postures of Ganzi guozhuang were basically the same before and after the founding of the People's Republic of China. The lyrics have changed to some extent as the times have developed. The lyrical form of such folk songs usually belongs to antiphonal songs or long epics. The most common is the three-part form, each part running from 2 to 8 lines, and each line most often having 8 syllables. The most prevalent time signature is 2/4, and in addition some parts use the relatively more complex meters of 3/4, 6/8 and so on. The common modes are the yu mode and the shang mode. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Dance troupes along the Yalong river": In Yajiang the farming villages along the Yalong and the pastoral areas differ in step and tempo, and troupes visit one another at festivals. "Men and women facing inward": The basic formation: men and women in a circle facing inward, taking turns to sing while the other side only dances. "The record in the Ladakh Royal Genealogy": The Tibetan Ladakh Royal Genealogy holds that circle dances flourished even before the rise of the Tubo kingdom. "Old and new circle dances": Old dances are ritual in character with unchangeable texts and grave movement; new ones reflect farming, herding and trade and are freely varied.

03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status

In 2025, Cideng was announced in the sixth batch of national representative bearers for Guozhuang Dance, with Yajiang, Sichuan as the declared area. Within the documented safeguarding record of Guozhuang Dance in Yajiang, Sichuan: The project was inscribed in the national inventory in 2008 (batch 2), with Yajiang, Sichuan as its declared area, and Yajiang County Tourism Service Center as its safeguarding unit. Since the project was inscribed in the national inventory, its declared area and safeguarding unit have carried out documentation, transmission and presentation within the national safeguarding framework. Together, the inventory record and the project archive form the public documentary basis for the bearer’s transmission practice.

04 · Associated Heritage Item Dossier

05 · Fellow National Bearers Lineage

National representative bearers recorded under the same item code, ordered from the first to the sixth batch. Batch order is not a teacher–student relationship.

06 · Archival Sources & Bibliography

1. Cideng (Yajiang, Sichuan) · China ICH Official Project Archive
2. Cideng · China ICH Official Archive