Hongdongzouqin Customs
01 · Historical Records
The origin of the Hongtong kin-visiting custom (走亲) lies in the legends of Yao and Shun. Yanghu (羊獬) on the east bank of the Fen River and Lishan (历山) on the west bank are said to be the hometowns of Yao and Shun respectively, and Ehuang and Nüying are claimed as daughters of the two families, so the two villages regard themselves as kin. This kinship was bestowed by legend, yet it proved more effective than boundaries drawn by officials: separated by a single Fen River, the two places were originally self-contained farming households that formed ties in the name of the goddesses' natal and marital homes, giving the kin-visiting procession its yearly occasion without troubling the authorities. Once the legend was taken as true, the geographical divide also softened: the village boundaries remain, but intercourse between the villages came first.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
The era of Yao and Shun, characterized by well-established institutions, has long been regarded as the starting point of Chinese civilization, and stories such as Yao's abdication in favor of Shun and the marriage of Yao's daughters to Shun have become celebrated tales passed down through the ages. Yanghu and Lishan in Hongtong County, Shanxi Province, preserve secondary legends of the Yao-Shun myths: Yanghu, situated in the river valley basin on the east bank of the Fen River, is held to be Yao's hometown and thus the natal home of Ehuang and Nüying, while Lishan, located in the hilly mountainous country on the west bank of the Fen River, is Shun's hometown and at the same time the marital home of the two goddesses. The residents of the two places and the villages along the route therefore address one another as "kin," giving rise to the distinctive kin-visiting custom of "greeting the aunt and welcoming the goddesses" (接姑姑迎娘娘). Each year on the second day of the third lunar month, before Qingming, the kin-visiting procession of Yanghu villagers, mainly men, carries the sacred palanquin "jialou" (驾楼) of the two goddesses Ehuang and Nüying out of the village temple in solemn ceremony; gongs then clear the way as the procession leaves the village and, amid honor guards, earth-shaking "majestic gongs and drums," and deafening firecracker-gun salvoes, crosses the Fen River and surges up onto Lishan. The next day, the third day of the third lunar month, the Yanghu procession escorts the statues of the two goddesses out of the Lishan temple in an even grander ceremony, hurrying along a winding route back to Yanghu; the round trip passes through more than twenty villages in all. On the twenty-eighth day of the fourth lunar month, the birthday of King Yao, the people of Lishan go to Yanghu to offer birthday congratulations to King Yao and then escort the two goddesses back to Lishan, the liveliness of the journey matching that of the third day of the third month. After the kin-visiting activities, the busy farming season arrives, and the farmers of the two places devote themselves wholeheartedly to agricultural production. The Hongtong kin-visiting custom has continued from antiquity to the present; by turning historical legend into belief and evolving geopolitical relations into kinship ties, it has gradually played a positive role in building harmonious village relations and strengthening the bonds between people.
Carrying the palanquin out on the second
The palanquins leave the shrine with gongs and firecrackers, answering the drumbeats sent back from across the river.
Fording the Fen to climb Lishan
The crossing of the Fen and the climb to Lishan fill a whole day, with salutes from every village en route.
Returning the images on the third
The images come back the following day, passing more than twenty villages in a still grander procession.
The birthday offering on the twenty-eighth
A second visit on the sage's birthday keeps the custom alive twice a year, spring and after harvest.
Drums answered across the river
Sound rather than writing tells each village the other has set out; the drums are a letter both can read.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
The procession and its ceremonial schedule grew into shape between the two villages. On the second day of the third month the people of Yanghu carry out the sacred palanquin jialou, clear the way with gongs, sound majestic gongs and drums together with firecracker-guns, cross the Fen River, and ascend Lishan; on the third day of the third month the people of Lishan bring out the statues and return to Yanghu, a route passing through more than twenty villages. The homeward honor guard is grander than the outward one; gazing across the river at each other, the two villages answer with gongs and drums, and news of which family is holding a communal sacrifice or celebrating a happy event is passed along through the occasion of the kin visit. The procession sets up no inns and no tents along the way; food is prepared by each household, and the procession eats as it walks — this mobile protocol drew every village along the route into the event.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
At the same time, this folk activity has important research value for history and folklore studies.
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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