Zhonghe Festival

Name of China's national intangible cultural heritage: Zhonghe Festival (Yongji beibing)

Applicant: Yongji City, Shanxi Province

Project No.: 1198

Project No.: Ⅹ - 123

Time of publication: 2011 (the third batch)

Category: folk customs

Region: Shanxi Province

Type: new item

Applicant: Yongji City, Shanxi Province

Protection unit: Yongji Cultural Center

Introduction to Zhonghe Festival (Yongji beibing)

Applicant: Yongji City, Shanxi Province

The second day of the second lunar month is the ancient "Zhonghe Festival", also known as "Chunlong Festival" and "Qinglong Festival". The legend of the name "Zhonghe Festival" began in the fifth year of Zhengyuan (789). At that time, Emperor Li Shi of Dezong issued an imperial edict to abolish the festival of the first month and build the "Zhonghe Festival".

Back ice custom is one of the activities of Zhonghe Festival, which is spread in Changwang village, Yongji City, Shanxi Province. It is a kind of folk custom activity of honor guard. Because of its unique form of performance, spread a long history, loved by the local people.

It is said that during the Xianfeng Period of the Qing Dynasty, when the peasant uprising army led by Hong Xiuquan attacked pujindu in the northern expedition, Xia Xin, a general of the Qing army, demolished the houses and prepared to light wood for defense when the Taiping army attacked the city. General Fulu (from Changwang Village), a general of the uprising army, proposed to drill ice in the Yellow River and carry ice on his back to put out the fire. After Xiang Jiejia returned to the countryside, he organized people to break and carry the ice in his village, reflecting the scene at that time, which has been handed down since Xianfeng years. "Beibing" is a kind of local folk social fire, which mainly shows the brave spirit of "not afraid of heaven and not afraid of earth". The performance is easy for the people to participate in, and the group inheritance. The generations of Changwang village, big and small men can participate in it. The main performances of "back ice" include going down the river, breaking the ice, crawling forward, invulnerability and so on, which fully shows and carries forward the fearless spirit of the former NPC.

At present, many young people in rural areas go out to work, and the number of people involved is gradually decreasing. Coupled with the climate warming, the ice of the Yellow River is easy to melt. Every year, ice makers are used to make ice cubes. The activities are not as magnificent as before, and the number of inheritors is decreasing.