The origin of lion dance

There are many theories about the origin of lion dance.

1. It is said that the predecessor of lion dance is the "elephant man" recorded in the History of Rites and Music in the Han Dynasty. According to legend, the lion was first introduced from the western regions and was the mount of Manjusri Bodhisattva. As Buddhism was introduced into China, lion dance was also introduced into China. The lion is a tribute given to Zhang Xin by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty for traveling in inland areas, together with peacocks. However, the skill of lion dance is quoted from Xi Liang's Masked Play.

2. Some people think that lion dance originated from the army in the 5th century, and was later introduced to the people. During the Southern and Northern Dynasties, with the rise of Buddhism, lion dancing became popular. By the Tang Dynasty, lion dance had become a popular activity in court, army and folk.

3. It is said that Emperor Qianlong of Qing Dynasty dreamed of the beast in the south of the Yangtze River, so he called craftsmen to build it according to the dream, and designed two dancers to dance in the dance, which was later used in the army to boost morale and eventually spread to the people.

There is also a saying that lions in the mountains used to eat villagers. After people learn martial arts to kill lions, they imitate their appearance, make lion skins, imitate their habits and become lion dancers. Lion dance has a history of 1000 years. Lion dance was called "Taiping Music" in the old society, but it was widely developed in the Tang Dynasty (AD 6 18 ~ 907). At that time, lion art has become a necessary program for China's New Year holiday and incense walking. In the development of 1000 years, lion dance has formed two performance styles, north and south.