Before and after the Dragon Boat Festival, Chinese people all over the world often hold dragon boat races.

There is a popular saying about the origin of the dragon boat race - to commemorate Qu Yuan. However, Wen Yiduo has conducted research and believes that this statement is incorrect.

It is generally believed that the ancestors of the Chinese people once used "dragon" as a totem (there are also objections that "Taotie" is the oldest totem), but since "dragon" is an ancient totem, and the dragon boat's Appeared earlier than Qu Yuan. Therefore, Wen Yiduo’s criticism makes sense. The boat is decorated with "dragon", which should have a closer connection with the concept of totem and its use and (psychological) value, and is unlikely to be due to an actual "life-saving" activity.

Wen Yiduo's "Dragon Boat Test" said that more than a thousand years before Qu Zi threw himself into the river, the custom of dragon boat rowing had already existed in the Wuyue water town. The purpose is to pray for the avoidance of common floods and droughts by offering sacrifices to the totem, the dragon. The day of the sacrifice is the Dragon Boat Festival, and racing boats engraved with dragon decorations in the waters is an important part of the "Dragon Festival".

Historically, the totems of many ancient peoples were generally specific plants or animals. This is not the case with Chinese totem worship. These totems are all products of fantasy, the most famous of which is the well-known dragon- - The supernatural deity who "turns his hands into clouds and turns his hands into rain". This may be closely related to the fact that floods and droughts have always been a serious problem for the people of China. Such as the ancient legend of Dayu controlling floods. Therefore, the emergence of "dragon flags" and "dragon boats" and their most primitive "functions" may indeed be found in totems and religious concepts.

Wen Yiduo believes that the timing of Qu Yuan's suicide by drowning in the Miluo River and the Dragon Boat Festival "sacrifice to the dragon" is a coincidence. But it is just a coincidence, but it is not enough to explain why the later commemoration of Qu Yuan can replace the original function of the dragon boat race - "dragon sacrifice".

This raises two questions: First, personal charm replaces the status of God - how easy is it to have religious belief? Also, the external image of "dragon" is sinister, so it is not difficult to explain why it has become a totem, but Chinese people like to regard the dragon as their ancestor, and like to call themselves "descendants of the dragon"?

Literature and history experts have relatively consistent views on the former issue. There is a term in the field of ancient Chinese cultural history research: "historicization of myths."

The so-called "historicization of myths" refers to the habit of ancient Chinese people to record ancient myths and legends as real people and true events. For example, Hou Yi, Kua Fu... most of these ancient gods in myths and legends have lost their divine qualities in later records, and are more like real characters who have existed.

The historicization of mythology shows that ancient Chinese people’s attitude towards “gods” was not very serious or pious very early on. "The Analects of Confucius" says, "Confucius did not talk about strange powers and confusing gods."

After reading ancient Chinese myths and legends, it is not difficult to find that the genealogy of ancient Chinese "gods" is unclear, and their images are very different from those of humans. This is completely different from ancient Greek mythology. The ancient Greek gods finally developed and matured to have a complete divine lineage. The ancient Greek gods all had humanoid flesh and blood.

The gods in ancient Chinese mythology have strong elusive characteristics from their images to their properties. But how did such a "god" fall to the ground and become a "mortal" (like the saying "Kuafu overestimated his own abilities and ran away with the sun")? It's really an interesting phenomenon.

As a product of early religious concepts, the totem "dragon" once had "boundless power" to determine people's blessings and misfortunes, but the extreme pragmatism of ancient Chinese people's attitude towards gods is very obvious. We can see that after entering class society, the function of "dragon" quickly shrank, and it later became a symbol of the royal family - only members of the royal family are qualified to call themselves "sons and grandsons of the dragon", and of course they will not admit that ordinary people are also "dragons". Descendants of "dragon". Another interesting phenomenon is that the royal family does not seem to attach much importance to the "trademark registration" and "infringement" issues of this badge. So we can also observe that in Chinese folk "dragons" have always been objects that can be discussed, described, and sketched casually, and can also be used as ornaments, so fables like "Ye Gong Loves Dragons" can be passed down forever.

There was no decent religion in ancient China. Scholars have different opinions on how to view this phenomenon. This complex issue will not be discussed here.

But it is quite convincing when interpreted as the ancient roots of a pragmatic mentality. Because they are not serious about faith, the activities commemorating Qu Yuan can successfully replace the original intention of the "Dragon Festival". If the ancients were really pious towards dragons, then Qu Yuan would not have been able to replace "dragon sacrifice". When it comes to dragon boat racing today, few people know that its origin is related to worshiping "gods", which in turn confirms the ancient Chinese people's attitude towards dragons. God’s impiety.

However, with the passage of time, the nature of dragon boat racing in Jiqu has also changed.

"Shui Geography" said: After Qu Yuan threw himself into the river, "the scholars chased him to Dongting, but he disappeared. The lake was big and the boat was small, and those who could not cross it sang: 'How can we cross the lake? ? 'So the drums and poles are competing for the return, and the competition is passed down from generation to generation. It is a race to cross the river. They gallop together quickly, and the drums and songs are loud, and the people watching are like clouds, and the counties of Nanjun and Xiangyang follow suit. Especially."

Obviously, the commemorative nature of dragon boat racing has changed, and commemoration has become a folk competition.

The poem "Returning to the State on the Fifth Day" by Lu You of the Song Dynasty said: "The red flag of Dou Ge is full of rapids, and I can look at it leisurely when I wake up from the boat window. When Qu Ping's hometown and country meet on the Double Fifth Day, it is no better than that of Jiao Lipan all year round." Lu's poem What it means is that with the addition of elements of the dragon boat race (fighting boats), the activities to commemorate Qu Yuan become more extraordinary, which is very different from just throwing rice dumplings into the river in the past.

The Dou Ge - that is, the rowing competition, is lively and joyful, completely changing the solemn and dignified atmosphere of past sacrificial activities.

In fact, as early as the Tang Dynasty, the nature of the dragon boat race had undergone profound changes. It was not only lively, but also official involvement. Song" is clearly displayed.

The poem goes: "On May 5th, the sky was bright and clear, and the poplars circled the river and sang the dawn orioles. Before the county left the county house, the chorus of harmony was heard on the river. ... The drum beat three times and the red flag flew. , the two dragons jumped out of the floating water, their shadows flew into the vast waves, and thousands of thunders were heard. The sound of the drums became more and more urgent, and the two dragons looked at the targets as if they were thunderbolts. The rainbow is dizzy. The boat in front has won the bid, but the boat behind has lost its momentum and is struggling with blood. The loser will only be punished for winning or losing, and the two sides will have to play for a while. Each thing is written on the tattoo. I look closely at Jingdu'er. If you don't want to go to the shore, you will break the car."

The Dragon Boat of the Tang Dynasty. The championship prize of the boat race is a silver bowl. This may be the earliest "boating championship" in China.

The dragon boat race did not originate from commemorating Qu Yuan, but people have forgotten the origin of the "dragon festival" and only know about the dragon boat race to commemorate Qu Yuan, which is undoubtedly a high praise for Qu Yuan.

Qu Yuan had a huge influence in the history of Chinese culture, so the government also intervened in folk memorial activities. Official intervention will inevitably further alienate this folk activity. Zhang Fengjian's poem describes the fierce competition scene, recording the loser's blushing and thick-necked annoyance, and the loser's cheerleader's "heart burning" expression. What's even more intriguing is the author's final twist, linking the scene of this competition with the struggle for power in the officialdom.

The "competition" of dragon boats can actually inspire this strange association in Zhang Fengjian, which shows that the competitive characteristics of dragon boats have obviously overridden the commemorative nature.

So, how do you view this change in the "Dragon Festival"?

Here, the ancient Greek "marathon" story can be a good reference. The marathon story and the dragon boat rowing in commemoration of Qu Yuan have one of the most similarities, that is, both are related to "patriotism." .

Marathon is one of the first events to enter the modern Olympic hall. It has now become a popular and highly commercialized sport in the world. The ancient Greek messenger has also become a household name due to the globalization of this sport. However, according to the original thinking of the Greeks, they hoped that the modern Olympic Games would always be held in their homeland of Greece. If Coubert, the father of the modern Olympic movement, had agreed to the Greek proposal, it is not difficult to imagine that the modern Olympics would never have had such a big influence today, nor would the marathon have such a big influence.

In fact, the influence of ancient Greek culture extends far beyond Europe, largely due to the medium of the modern Olympic Games.

Compared with the marathon, the dragon boat race has become a counterexample in this regard. Although there is also the so-called "International Dragon Boat Race" today, in fact this sport is limited to the Chinese circle.

In 1993, it was reported that in August of that year, there would be a spectacular scene of a grand gathering of descendants of the Yan and Huang Dynasties in mainland China, and Chinese people around the world would hold a series of dragon boat competitions in Yueyang, Jiujiang and Beijing. The purpose is to "use the boat as a matchmaker to make friends, enhance the cohesion of the descendants of Yan and Huang at home and abroad, and at the same time promote the development of the Chinese nation."

In the minds of Chinese people, the dragon boat race is still national. . Therefore, Qu Yuan's scope of influence is naturally much smaller than that of the Greek messenger. Many people now realize that bringing a folk competitive event into the world competitive circle is the best way to expand its influence. Therefore, the Koreans are trying their best to insert Taekwondo into the Olympic Games, and the Chinese are also beginning to think about how to insert martial arts into the Olympic Games, so that they can get a few more gold medals.

The changes in "Dragon Sacrifice" show that our ancestors once took the "dragon" seriously, so it became a totem; later, their attitude towards the dragon was not so serious, so dragon boating was possible. Replaced in memory of Qu Yuan.

The ancient "dragon" was not benevolent, it was ugly and dangerous;

The "medieval" dragon was the emblem of the royal family;

The imperial power was overthrown Later, "dragon" became the national flag.

However, judging from the changes in the "Dragon Festival", it is really boring to keep calling yourself "the son of the dragon".