The Historical Origin of Folk Lion Dance in tengxian

Lion dance is a traditional entertainment and cultural activity of Han nationality in China, with a long history and unique national style. /kloc-More than 0/900 years ago, Persia traded with China and transported lions and other animals to China. Lions are powerful and are known as the king of beasts, but China is generally not harmed by lions. Therefore, people have a friendly feeling towards the lion, regard it as a symbol of courage and good luck, and hope to use its powerful image to exorcise evil spirits, resulting in lion modeling to suppress or display martial arts. Tengxian, located at the intersection of Jiang Xun River and Beiliu River, is the traffic hub of the ancient Central Plains leading to Leizhou Peninsula, Hainan Island and Jiaozhi country, with frequent economic and cultural exchanges. In front of the Long Mu Temple in the county seat, there are two stone carvings of the Tang Dynasty cultural relic "Snake Body and Lion Head". The history of lion dance in tengxian is closely related to it. There is another saying about the historical origin of lion dance in tengxian: It is said that a monster appeared in the mountainous area of tengxian in ancient times. It appears at the end of each year, plowing crops everywhere, hurting people and animals, and making rural farmers miserable. Later, people thought of a way to tie up many lions with bamboo sticks. As soon as the monster appeared, gongs and drums roared, lions danced vigorously, and the monster turned around and ran away in fear. From then on, local villagers believed that lions had the power to ward off evil spirits and good luck. They all hope that lions can dance in front of the house to eliminate disasters and predict good luck. So every Spring Festival, door-to-door lion dancing to celebrate the New Year has gradually become a trend. In order to welcome the arrival of the Ruis, every household should hang a red envelope on the door. After the lion dance, the first title is raised and the red envelope (also called Cai Qing) is taken down. This lion dance tradition has been spread in the local area so far, and it has become the folk lion dance tradition and culture of the local Han nationality in tengxian.