Taige

Ⅹ-87Folk CustomsLianyuan, HunanBatch 4 (2014)Extension Item

01 · Historical Records

As time passed, this custom gradually evolved into a folk activity that entertains both the gods and the people: the bodhisattvas on the carrying frames were replaced by real people dressed up as characters from stories, a step that not only preserved the tradition of worshipping the gods but also enhanced the spectacle of the activity, the degree of popular participation and its entertainment value.

02 · Core Techniques & Process

Zhumei Carried Stories is a folk activity passed down from generation to generation in the Zhumei area of Longtang Town, Lianyuan City, Hunan Province; it arose in the Chongzhen era of the Ming dynasty and is closely related to Taoist fasting-and-offering rites for praying to the gods. Under these circumstances, people went in crowds to Taoist temples to pray for the protection of the Jade Emperor; beating gongs and drums, they carried the divine statues out and toured them through the villages. Later the epidemic was in fact brought under effective control, and people believed that this was a manifestation of the gods' power. From then on, the custom of making vows and carrying the bodhisattva arose in response to the times. "Vowing in spring, repaying in autumn" is the established tradition of Zhumei Carried Stories. In spring, people make vows at the earth-god temple; in autumn, they repay the vows through jiao-offering rites, story-carrying and other means. The vow-repayment ceremony usually lasts three days, and its main procedures include inviting the water, purifying the altar, reciting scriptures, bowing in penitence, repaying grace, handing over the vow, collecting the pestilence, carrying the stories, touring the boat, relieving the hungry ghosts and peaceful installation. The story-carrying activity takes place mainly on the afternoon and evening of the second day; its purpose is to drive away evil and ward off pestilence, protecting the locality with peace and auspiciousness and bringing longevity and abundant harvests. Before the story-carrying activity is held, ample preparation must be made. First the frames must be prepared, the iron stakes fixed in place, and signs installed indicating the name and content of each story. Next come such tasks as painting the faces and applying make-up to the performers of the story characters, and preparing the props. Afterwards the figures are fixed onto the carrying frames. Each story platform is staffed by 8 people, divided into 3 layers. The upper layer is the "crown prince", played by a child of about one year old in a seated posture; the middle layer is the "prime minister", played by a boy of about ten years of age, standing facing the crown prince, signifying minister and sovereign facing one another; the lower layer consists of sedan-bearers and "warriors", with two warriors holding tall forks, responsible for the safety of the crown prince. Through long development, Zhumei Carried Stories has now given rise to various forms such as square-table stories, water-wheel stories, circling stories, boat stories, horse stories, ground stories and night stories. Daytime story-carrying signifies peace and auspiciousness, while night-time story-carrying signifies health and long life.

The eleven stages of the vow-return rite

The three-day rite is divided into eleven stages, from fetching water and purifying the altar to the final enshrinement.

Crown prince, minister and the halberdiers

Each platform carries eight performers in three tiers, with the crown prince seated above a minister and two halberdiers below.

Painting faces, props and mounting

The frame, stakes and labelled plaque are set first, then faces are painted, props assigned and performers lashed in place.

Day platforms and night platforms

The same troupe lifts its platforms by day for peace and again after dark for health, keeping the altar alive till late.

Table, waterwheel, horse and ground stories

The tradition branched into table, waterwheel, boat, horse, ground and night forms, each with its own frame and construction.

A vow in spring, its return in autumn

A vow is made at the earth shrine in spring and discharged after harvest, tying the ritual to the farming year.

03 · Regional Records & Related Items

According to the Seventh Revised Genealogy of the Liu Clan, during the Chongzhen era an acute dysentery broke out locally; because medical conditions were limited at the time, the survival rate of those infected was extremely low — of ten people, fewer than three survived.

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04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding

Zhumei Carried Stories preserves completely and in living form the developmental course from a simple worship of the gods to a folk activity whose main purpose is to entertain both gods and people; this is of irreplaceable value for the study of Meishan culture and the folk customs of central Hunan. The activity reflects the psychological aspirations of the villagers, publicizes famous historical figures, generals and ministers, and heroic characters of ancient China, and carries forward such traditional virtues as loyalty, filial piety, benevolence, righteousness and trustworthiness; it plays a positive role in transmitting traditional values and building a harmonious society. Liu Qiyue (official archive record of the associated inheritor): Male, of Han ethnicity, born in November 1962, native of Lianyuan City, Hunan Province. He has mastered and can fully demonstrate the entire process of story-carrying; he has innovated in the forms of story-carrying and enriched its content, developing from the old high-and-low stakes handed down to the present water-wheel stories, ground stories, night stories and others. He organized experts to excavate and compile the make-up, costumes and props of a number of stories and characters, producing the Carried Stories Materials. Since 1980 he has each year organized and taken part in close to twenty story platforms, and in recent years the number has increased each year to between forty and sixty platforms. In 2015 he took the lead in organizing the plaque-awarding ceremony for the national-level intangible cultural heritage representative project Raised Platforms and a large-scale carried-story performance event. In 2016 he took the lead in establishing a transmission and study centre for carried stories. Representative inheritor of the national-level intangible cultural heritage project Raised Platforms (Zhumei Carried Stories), fifth national batch. He has opened classes to teach the knowledge and techniques of story-carrying, training more than a thousand person-times in all, and has built a stable and efficient performance team of more than four hundred people.

05 · Associated Representative Bearers

Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:

06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography

Sources

China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)

Read the official ihchina.cn record ↗

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