What is the content of sword dance?

From the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period to the Qin and Han Dynasties, there were constant disputes in the Central Plains, so martial arts prevailed. Due to the continuous improvement of metal smelting technology, "sword" is more and more loved by people. Sabre has become a necessary outfit for generations of literati warriors. In this social background, it is natural for sword dance to be popular in Han Dynasty.

Dance with a sword

The historical record of sword dance performance is Historical Records. The story of the famous "Hongmen Banquet" is recorded in Biography of Xiang Yu: "... there were several kings in Fan Zeng, three of whom wore jade tablets to show people, but Wang Moran should not. Fan Zengqi summoned Xiang Zhuang and said,' Your Majesty is unbearable. If you want to live a long life, please dance the sword and kill him because you beat Pei Gong. If you don't, if you belong to all, you will be captured. "The Zhuang people have birthdays. After the birthday, they say,' Jun and Pei Gong are drinking, and the army is not happy. Please dance with a sword. Wang Xiang said, "Promise me." Xiang Zhuang drew his sword and Xiang Bo drew his sword and danced. He often covers the king with his wings, but Zhuang can't attack. "This matter is described in the Han Dynasty stone reliefs.

Perhaps the sword is full of movements, or perhaps the performers of music and dance in Han Dynasty have a special preference for sword dance. You can see the image of sword dancing on the Han stone relief. On a brick of Han Dynasty unearthed in Deng County, Henan Province, there is a vivid scene of three people dancing swords. One person on the left sat on his hip, his right arm was raised, and the blade was put down, as if preparing for an attack. There was a huge man in the middle, standing on his hands, waiting for the situation. What is even more exciting is that the sword dancer on the right side of the picture is very dynamic, waving double swords and rushing to confront the people in the middle. Other "sword dance" images include those who stand with their swords across, those who are ready to leave with their swords flat, and those who stand with their swords glaring. Some performers hold one sword, while others dance with two swords.