Dragon Dance

Ⅲ-4Traditional DanceKaihua, ZhejiangBatch 3 (2011)Extension Item

01 · Historical Records

The Kaihua incense grass dragon is directly linked to the military memories of the late Yuan and early Ming. According to the Wang clan genealogy of Suzhuang Town (compiled in the twenty-eighth year of the Kangxi reign), in the twenty-second year of the Zhizheng era of the Yuan dynasty (1362), the Red Turban leader Zhu Yuanzhang was worsted by Chen Youliang in a battle at Jiujiang, Jiangxi, and withdrew to Yuntai in Zhejiang (that is, today's Suzhuang Town of Kaihua) to rest and regroup. It happened to be Mid-Autumn Festival, and the local people slaughtered pigs and sheep and danced the incense grass dragon to reward the Red Turban soldiers; after watching, Zhu Yuanzhang called the grass dragon the “divine dragon.” In the sixth year of the Hongwu reign (1373), Zhu Yuanzhang sent the secretarial official Ye Chen to Suzhuang to enfeoff Jinxi Village as Fulou Village. Believing that the “divine dragon” ought to have an imperial escort, the villagers made “treasure fans,” “osmanthus trees,” “figure tableaux,” “auspicious-character plaques,” and added butterflies, flying birds, swans, and animals such as fish, shrimp, clams and softshell turtles to dance alongside the grass dragon, adding the distinctive character of the Suzhuang grass dragon. This form of performance has been handed down to the present day.

02 · Core Techniques & Process

Dancing the incense grass dragon is a folk custom observed during the Mid-Autumn Festival in the 18 townships and towns of Kaihua County, and it is most splendid in the village of Fuhu, Suzhuang Town. The Kaihua incense grass dragon is made by braiding a dragon body out of rice straw and studding it densely with incense sticks; when the dance begins all the incense is lit, so that the grass dragon becomes a fire dragon. In the hazy moonlight, smoke curls around it, fragrance drifts, and it seems to ride the clouds and the mist, galloping and flying in a thundering, magnificent display. Before the dragon dance there must first be a “sacrifice to the divine dragon”: an offering table with a pig's head is set out, incense is burned and candles lit, the sacrificial prayer is chanted, and firecrackers are set off with music played; the ceremony is solemn. When the dragon dance ends, the grass dragon is sent (thrown) into the river, meaning that the dragon returns to the sea. According to the Wang clan genealogy of Suzhuang Town (compiled in the twenty-eighth year of the Kangxi reign): in the twenty-second year of the Zhizheng era of the Yuan dynasty (1362), the Red Turban leader Zhu Yuanzhang was worsted by Chen Youliang in a battle at Jiujiang, Jiangxi, and withdrew to Yuntai in Zhejiang (that is, today's Suzhuang Town of Kaihua) to rest and regroup. After watching, Zhu Yuanzhang called the grass dragon the “divine dragon.” In the sixth year of the Hongwu reign (1373), Zhu Yuanzhang sent the secretarial official Ye Chen to Suzhuang to enfeoff Jinxi Village as Fulou Village. Believing that the “divine dragon” ought to have an imperial escort, the villagers made “treasure fans,” “osmanthus trees,” “figure tableaux” and “auspicious-character plaques,” together with animals such as “butterflies,” “flying birds,” “swans,” “fish, shrimp, clams and softshell turtles,” to dance alongside the grass dragon, adding the distinctive character of the Suzhuang grass dragon. This form of performance has been handed down to the present day.

Sacrificing to the divine dragon

The rite before the dance: a pig's-head altar, incense and candles, a recited invocation, firecrackers and music, indispensable to the dragon's appearance.

Sending the dragon back to the sea

After the dance the straw dragon is thrown into the river, meaning its return to the sea, closing the ritual cycle opened by the sacrifice.

The accompanying regalia

Regalia made after the village was granted its name, on the reasoning that a divine dragon needs an imperial escort, joined by butterflies, birds, swans, fish, shrimps and turtles.

The incense straw dragon of Fuhu village

All eighteen townships of Kaihua dance the incense straw dragon at mid-autumn, but Fuhu village in Suzhuang is the most splendid and complete.

Zhu Yuanzhang at Jiujiang

The pivotal local event: after defeat at Jiujiang in 1362 Zhu Yuanzhang rested at Yuntai, was honoured with the straw dragon at mid-autumn, called it divine, and in 1373 sent an official to rename the village.

03 · Regional Records & Related Items

It happened to be Mid-Autumn Festival, and the local people slaughtered pigs and sheep and danced the incense grass dragon to reward the Red Turban soldiers.

04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding

The Kaihua incense grass dragon flourishes most in the village of Fuhu, Suzhuang Town, and is a folk custom shared by the local people during the Mid-Autumn Festival in all eighteen townships and towns. The grass dragon is made of a rice-straw dragon body studded densely with incense sticks; when the dance begins all the incense is lit, so that the grass dragon becomes a fire dragon, and in the hazy moonlight smoke curls around it, fragrance drifts, and it seems to ride the clouds and the mist, galloping and flying in a thundering display. Its combined visual and olfactory effect is extremely rare among dragon dances in different places. Before the dragon dance one must “sacrifice to the divine dragon,” setting out an offering table with a pig's head, burning incense and lighting candles, chanting the sacrificial text, and setting off firecrackers with music played; the ceremony is solemn. When the dragon dance ends, the grass dragon is sent (thrown) into the river, meaning that the dragon returns to the sea. The complete ritual sequence preserves intact the logic of prayer for a good year in an agrarian society, and has distinctive value for studying Mid-Autumn customs in western Zhejiang and the localizing process of Zhu Yuanzhang legends.

05 · Associated Representative Bearers

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

06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography

Dragon Dance (Kaihua, Zhejiang) · China ICH Official Project Archive

Sources

China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)

Read the official ihchina.cn record ↗

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