Legends and Stories of Dai Water Splashing Festival

Legendary Stories of Dai Water Splashing Festival

The Water Splashing Festival is the grandest festival of the Dai ethnic group, and also the festival with the greatest influence and the largest number of participants in Yunnan. The festival is the new year of the Dai people, equivalent to the middle of April on the Gregorian calendar, and usually lasts three to seven days. The following is the Dai Water Festival legend story that I carefully edited for you, welcome to read!

Legendary stories of the Dai Water Festival

A long time ago, there was a vicious demon king, he had a magic body, fell in the water can not float away, fell in the water can not be burned, the knife can not be broken, the gun can not be pierced, the bow and arrow can not be shot. He held himself to be too powerful and arrogant, and all day long he roamed about and did wrong. At that time, there were sixteen layers in the sky, and he became the overlord of one of them. He did all kinds of evil to the people, oppressing and plundering them. He had six beautiful wives, but if any of them had beautiful daughters, he would take them as his wives. Once he saw that a princess of the earth named Zongdongbu was more beautiful than his six wives, so he snatched her and made her his seventh wife.

One year in June, it was the day of the New Year on earth, the king of the devil to celebrate the New Year for the dumplings cloth, invited the devil ministers and magic generals, in the palace drinking and enjoying. After three rounds of wine, guests and hosts are already drunk. The king was drunk, but he took the opportunity to praise the king, saying: "My honorable king, you are the best of the best. My honored king, you have infinite magic power and noble virtue, with your prestige, you can conquer heaven, hell and earth, you should be the master of the three worlds. The Devil King listened smugly, pondered for a while, turned his face to his beloved wife and said: ? I can indeed conquer the three realms, and my weakness is unknown to anyone.? 鈥婻鈥檛 then asked again: ? How can the Great King have a weakness when he has such magical power? The Devil King replied in a small voice: ? I am afraid of people pulling out my hair and strangling my neck, which will make my body and head separated, so you have to keep a close eye on it. Dumpling Cloth pretended to be surprised and asked, "How can the king conquer the three worlds? The king who can conquer the three worlds, how can he be afraid of hair? The Devil King whispered again: "The hair is small, but I'm not afraid of it. Although the hairline is small, but my 'hairline will strangle my neck, I will not be able to live. So she continued to pour wine for

the Devil King until the banquet was over, and then she helped the Devil King to go to bed and fall asleep. At this time, she carefully pulled out one of the king's hairs and strangled it around his neck before he woke up. Immediately the king's head fell to the ground, and the blood dripping from his head turned every drop into a ball of fire that burned brightly and spread rapidly to the earth. At that moment, the Dumpling Cloth rushed to pick up the Devil King's head, and the flames on the earth were extinguished, but as soon as the head was put down, the fire burned up again. So, the six wives of the king also came, they took turns to hold the head of the demon king, so that the fire no longer burned up.

Later on, the Dumpling Cloth came back to the earth, but she was still covered in blood, and people poured water on her in order to wash the blood off her body. The blood stains were finally washed away, and the Dumpling Cloth lived happily on earth. After her death, the people in her honor, in the New Year every year, they splash each other with clean water to wash away the dirt, ushering in an auspicious New Year.

Extended reading

The origin of the Festival

The Dai Water Festival is also known as the "Festival of the Bathing Buddha", the Dai language known as the "Bimai" (which means New Year), the Dai people of the Dehong region of Xishuangbanna called this festival "Shanghan" and "Shangji", both names are derived from Sanskrit, meaning that the turnover, change and transfer. For the turnover, change and transfer, refers to the sun has been in the twelve signs of the ecliptic running a week to start the transition to a new year. The festival is celebrated by the Achang, Deung, Brown, Wa and other ethnic groups. Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar, Laos and other countries also celebrate the Water Festival.

Water Festival originated in India, is an ancient Brahmin ritual, later absorbed by Buddhism, about the end of the twelfth century to the beginning of the thirteenth century A.D. through the Myanmar with Buddhism into the Dai region of China's Yunnan Province. With the deepening influence of Buddhism in the Dai area, the Water Splashing Festival has become a national custom that has been passed down for hundreds of years. In the process of passing down the festival, the Dai people gradually combined it with their own national myths and legends, which gave the festival a more magical meaning and national color.

Main activities of the Water Festival

The Dai Water Festival lasts for three to four days. The first day is "Mai Day", similar to the lunar New Year's Eve, which is called "Wando Shanghan" in Dai language, meaning to send the old. At this time, people have to tidy up their houses, clean up, and prepare for the annual dinner and various activities during the festival. The next day is called "annoyed day", "annoyed" means "empty", according to the custom of this day is neither the previous year, nor after a year, it is "empty day"; the third day called "MaiPaYa evening horse", allegedly this MaiPaYa evening horse of the spirit of the new calendar to return to earth, people used to regard this day as the "king of the day to come", is the Dai calendar of the New Year's Day.

To the festival, the Dai men, women and children will put on festive dress, picking water, first to the Buddhist temple bath, and then began to splash each other, you splash me, I splash you, a flower in the air bloomed, it symbolizes good luck, happiness, health, young people in the hands of the bright crystal beads of water, but also symbolizes the sweet love. We splash each other splash, everywhere is the baptism of water, water blessing, water song. Duo Duohua string smile, water festival has become a sea of joy.

The content of the Water Festival, in addition to splashing water, there are also catching swing, dragon boat racing, bathing Buddha, chanting, chapter Ha singing, cockfighting, jumping peacock dance, white elephant dance, throw the bag, put Gao Sheng, put the lanterns and other folk activities, as well as other artistic performances, economic and trade exchanges.

1, the Water Festival "blessing": Bathing Buddha

In the "Mai Day", early in the morning, people have to pick flowers and green leaves to the Buddhist temple offerings, and bring water to the "Bathing Buddha" - for the statue of the Buddha to wash the dust." Bathing Buddha" finished, collective mutual water splashing began. A group of young men and women with a variety of containers of water, gushing out of the streets and alleys, chasing and playing, splashing everyone." Water flower release, Daijia crazy", "splash wet all over, happiness for life"! Symbolizing good luck, happiness, health, a flower in the air bloom, people splash as much as they can sprinkle, laughing loudly, wet all over the body, the excitement is very high?

2, the Water Festival "love": throw the bag

The Water Festival is also unmarried young men and women looking for love, cultivation of happiness in the beautiful season. During the festival, the Dai unmarried young men and women like to do "throw bag" game. The flower bag crafted with flower cloth in the girl's hand is a token of love. Throwing package day, the girls dress up as much as they can, and then hit the flower umbrella, carrying a small flower package to the "package field", and the lads are divided into two sides, thirty to forty paces apart, began to each other to throw the flower package. If the young man can not catch the girl threw the flower bag, you have to put the flowers prepared in advance in the girl's hair on the fly, the girl if you can not catch the young man threw the bag, you have to put the flowers into the chest of the young man? Just so gradually selected each other, a romantic love story began.

3, the Water Festival "power": dragon boat race

Dragon boat race is one of the most exciting projects of the Water Festival, often in the Water Festival, "Mai Paya evening horse" (the third day) held. On that day, the people wearing festive costumes gathered on the banks of the Lancang River and the Ruili River to watch the dragon boat race. River moored in green colorful dragon boat, the boat sits dozens of strong sailors, the order sounded, ready to start the dragon boat like an arrow flying forward, suddenly the whole river, drums, gongs, trumpets, cheers, one after another, sound corresponding to the atmosphere of the festival reached a climax here?

4, Water Festival "dance": Elephant Foot Dance and Peacock Dance

The Dai people can sing and dance, the Water Festival is naturally less dance. Large-scale dances are mainly arranged on the third day of the Water Festival, such as the Elephant's Foot Dance and Peacock Dance. From seven or eight year old dolls to seventy or eighty year olds, they all put on their festive costumes and gather in the village square to participate in the collective dance. The Elephant's Foot Dance is enthusiastic, steady and elegant. The dancers form a circle and dance with the manganese gong and elephant foot drum, cheering "my, my" or "water, water" while dancing! Peacock dance is beautiful, elegant, lyrical, is the soul of the Dai dance, dance to the peacock's posture as the basis for the recreation of the interest and beauty, focusing on the cohesion of the Dai sons and daughters of the aesthetic purpose. There are a lot of dancers to show off their improvisation, some singing while dancing, some even dancing while drinking, such as intoxicated, unrestrained, jumping for days and nights without knowing fatigue.

5, the Water Festival "Gao Sheng": put Gao Sheng and Kongming Lantern

Gao Sheng is the Water Festival is another reserved program. Gao Sheng is a kind of fireworks made by Dai people, the bottom of the bamboo pole is filled with gunpowder and other ingredients, placed on the bamboo frame, connected to the fuse, often burned at night. Release high rise, ignite the fuse so that the gunpowder combustion will produce a strong thrust, will be pushed into the sky like a rocket bamboo. Bamboo spit with white smoke, emitting whooshing whistling sound, while in the air released brilliant pyrotechnics, as if the flowers, colorful, very wonderful. The ground is cheering, applauding one after another, talking, praising the sound of endless, very lively. Gao Sheng fly higher and farther away from the cottage, people also feel more colorful, more auspicious.

Release Kongming lanterns is also a unique activity in the Dai area. At night, people in the square on the open space, will light candles, put into the homemade large "balloon" inside, the use of air buoyancy, a hole in the sky to release the lanterns. A bright Kongming lantern in the darkness of the night higher and higher, more and more far away. People use this to honor the ancient sage Kong Ming.

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