Langjiawangjiu
01 · Lineage & Regional School
Langjiawangjiu, Male, Tibetan, from Biru, Tibet, is a sixth-batch national representative bearer of Axie (Ⅲ-84). The tradition is documented in Biru, Tibet. Within the regional tradition and school record of Axie in Biru, Tibet: Dabu Axiang is transmitted within Biru County of Nagqu City, Tibet; in Tibetan it means “the Dabu ram song”. Performers may number one, two, three or more than a hundred; when there are many they form a circle or stand in two rows, without distinction of men and women, holding the aga in the right hand and singing and dancing as they go, singing and dancing rhythmically while pounding the ram; some dancers also tie a string of bells to their implements, striking out crisp bell sounds in different rhythms. The Dabu Living Buddha is a renowned Buddhist scholar, philosopher and artist of Tibet, well versed in the five sciences, both greater and lesser, and of high attainment in Buddhist studies. According to the County Annals of Biru and the records of the project, this song-and-dance work is divided into thirty-one chapters dealing with politics, religion, culture, nature, geography, life and customs, among them maxims of sages, literati poetry and the admonitions of prophets. In the 1920s, while the monastery of Zhude was under construction, he created Dabu Axiang, with flexible and varied melodies and agile, brisk steps, letting the labourers sing and dance as they worked, so as to ease their fatigue and raise their spirits.
02 · Mastery & Signature Works
The bearer record for Langjiawangjiu is anchored in the documented technical standards of Axie in Biru, Tibet. Within the documented technical tradition of Axie in Biru, Tibet: “Dabu Axiang” means in Tibetan the Dabu ram song. It is transmitted within Biru County of Nagqu, Tibet, and is said to have been created by the fifth Dabu Living Buddha of Biru (Nashiu); to the present day it has a history of nearly a hundred years. The Dabu Living Buddha is a renowned Buddhist scholar, philosopher and artist of Tibet, well versed in the five sciences, both greater and lesser, and of high attainment in Buddhist studies. Dabu Axiang, which integrates singing, dancing and music, is divided into thirty-one chapters dealing with politics, religion, culture, nature, geography, life and customs; among them are maxims of sages, literati poetry and the admonitions of prophets, and in performance it is sung and danced throughout, full of local colour. Dabu Axiang has chorus, unison and solo singing, and its dance skills are rich and varied, with endless changes of formation. Performers may number one, two, three or more than a hundred; when there are many they form a circle or stand in two rows, without distinction of men and women, and they sing and dance as they go to the aga (a Tibetan struck idiophone). While singing and jumping, the performers now and then rotate their wrists and change formations, holding the aga in the right hand, singing and dancing rhythmically while pounding the ram. The song-and-dance rhythms and forms are many and varied: there are love songs, antiphonal singing and the like; some dancers tie a string of bells to their implements and strike out crisp bell sounds in different rhythms. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "The aga clapping instrument": The aga is a Tibetan percussion instrument held in the right hand, its tamping strokes turning the labour of building into part of the dance. "Thirty-one chapters": The form runs to thirty-one chapters touching politics, religion, culture, nature, geography and custom, sung in chorus, unison or solo. "The building of Drude monastery": Legend credits the fifth Dabu tulku with creating the form around 1920 while building Drude monastery, so that labourers could sing and dance as they worked. "Bells strung on the tools": Some dancers tie strings of bells to their tools, striking crisp patterns in time; the rhythms and forms vary widely, from love song to antiphony.
The aga clapping instrument
The aga is a Tibetan percussion instrument held in the right hand, its tamping strokes turning the labour of building into part of the dance.
Thirty-one chapters
The form runs to thirty-one chapters touching politics, religion, culture, nature, geography and custom, sung in chorus, unison or solo.
The building of Drude monastery
Legend credits the fifth Dabu tulku with creating the form around 1920 while building Drude monastery, so that labourers could sing and dance as they worked.
Bells strung on the tools
Some dancers tie strings of bells to their tools, striking crisp patterns in time; the rhythms and forms vary widely, from love song to antiphony.
03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status
In 2025, Langjiawangjiu was announced in the sixth batch of national representative bearers for Axie, with Biru, Tibet as the declared area. Within the documented safeguarding record of Axie in Biru, Tibet: The project was inscribed in the national inventory in 2008 (batch 2), with Biru, Tibet as its declared area, and Tibet Naqu Biru County Culture and Tourism Bureau 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
Historical origin
In the 1920s, while the monastery of Zhude was under construction, he created Dabu Axiang, with flexible and varied melodies and agile, brisk steps, letting the labourers sing and dance as they worked, so as to ease their fatigue and raise their spirits.
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.
| Bearer | Declared area | Roster code | Relation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Langjiawangjiu | Biru, Tibet | — | This page |
06 · Archival Sources & Bibliography
This static English edition is rendered at the edge for search engines, AI crawlers and readers without JavaScript. Compiled from official national representative bearer archival records and the associated project dossier, organized by topic and translated into English. 阅读中文版。