Following the eighth day of the fourth lunar month, villages across the Pearl River Delta region commence their Dragon Boat Festival celebrations with the "dragon boat raising" (起龙) ceremony.
Raising dragon boats means lifting dragon boats from rivers or ponds and preparing them for the annual dragon boat races. This symbolizes that the "dragon" sleeping for a whole year is "awakened."
Lanchong Village's dragon boats (Photo: Jiangmen Daily Press)
Many traditional dragon boats are made from durable, hard Pontianak wood. These boats are preserved by submerging them in water after each racing season, wrapped in river mud, and stored until the next year. Some boats made from teak do not require this water-based preservation. Instead, they need protection from the sun and moisture.
Preserved dragon boats. (Photo: Guangzhou Panyu Fabu X Panyu Jetso.)
Lianhu Village, located in the Panyu District of Guangzhou, recently held its dragon boat raising ceremony. Let's see how they raised the dragon boat!
First, people needed to remove the wooden planks from the gate of the dragon boat dock to lower the water level in the dock.
Water is let out of the dock. (Photo: Guangzhou Panyu Fabu X Panyu Jetso.)
As the dragon boat emerged from the water, people would remove the water and river mud from the boat's body to fully expose the boat buried deep in the river.
Bail water out of the boat. (Photo: Guangzhou Panyu Fabu X Panyu Jetso.)
Then, the dragon boat would undergo maintenance and refurbishment. People would apply a coat of tung oil to it.
Clean the boat and apply oil. (Photo: Guangzhou Panyu Fabu X Panyu Jetso.)
After the oil dries, people will choose an auspicious day to hold the "green collection" (采青) ceremony, which involves pushing a boat to collect seedlings.
Villagers sail the boat out of the dock. (Photo: Guangzhou Panyu Fabu X Panyu Jetso.)
After that, villagers would install the dragon head, dragon tail, drum rack, gong rack, flag, etc., signaling the start of the festival. People would set off firecrackers to pray for good weather and safety and begin the first round of the dragon boat parade.
Install the dragon head. (Photo: Guangzhou Panyu Fabu X Panyu Jetso.)
From the first to the seventh day of the fifth lunar month, villages across Panyu will visit each other to hold dragon boat parades and friendly races. This is a tradition that has continued for centuries.
People watch the ceremony. (Photo: Guangzhou Panyu Fabu X Panyu Jetso.)
Similar ceremonies are held across Guangdong.
On May 27, Longtan Village in Guangzhou raised its dragon boats. These boats were made in 1984 and have been preserved in the Longyintan Pond (龙吟潭), one of the most ancient and traditional dragon boat docks.
Three dragon boats in the Longyintan Pond. (Photo: Southern Metropolis Daily)
Several villages in Jiangmen have also begun their ceremonies, including Shitou Village in Tangxia Town, Wusha Village in Jianghai District, and Sanyi Heqiao Village in Siqian Town.
Dragon boat raising ceremony at Shitou Village. (Photo: Jiangmen Daily Press / Guo Yongle)
Wusha villagers are bailing out water. (Photo: Fu Shihua)
Dragon boat raising ceremony at Sanyi Heqiao Village. (Photo: Xiangyue Xinhui)
These events mark the start of the lively Dragon Boat Festival season, attracting spectators and participants to witness and engage in this annual cultural spectacle.
Learn more about dragon boat traditions
Reporter | Chen Longyan
Editor | Monica, James
