Following the dragon boat events at the Haizhu National Wetland Park and the "Awakening the Dragon" ceremony Nansha, on May 15th, the eighth day of the fourth lunar month, villages in Liwan, Tianhe, and Huangpu held "Awakening the Dragon" ceremonies—digging out dragon boats that have been dormant in the mud for a year, in preparation for the Dragon Boat Festival.
On May 6th, people in Shixi Village, Haizhu District, began their traditional "Awakening" ceremony, digging out the "hidden dragon" buried deep under the river. After that, villagers need to refurbish, repair, and maintain the dragon boat, then apply tung oil, and install the dragon head, tail, drum stand, gong stand, and flags. On May 13th, in the river of Xiaozhou Village, Haizhu District, villagers dredged the silt and dug out the "Yingzhou Flying Dragon". Even after more than 40 years, the dragon head of the "Yingzhou Flying Dragon" remains dazzling. After the boat is cleaned and inspected, the dragon head can be installed on the dragon boat.
On May 15th, people in Pantang Village, Liwan District, held the"Awakening" ceremony in Liwan Lake Park. After a series of ceremonies, villagers went to Yucui Lake in Liwan Lake Park, where several dragon boats from Pantang Village, including a 400-year-old dragon boat, had been buried. The "Awakening" ceremony was presided over by respected elders of the village, who sprinkled water soaked with pomelo leaves and wampee leaves on the men retrieving the dragon boats, symbolizing good fortune and smooth proceedings. The men then entered the water, working together to dig out the "old dragon" from the mud, cleaned the boat, and placed dragon boat plaques on the bow and stern. This year marks the tenth anniversary of the Pantang Women's Dragon Boat Team. The team's captain and drummer, Cai Shaoling, said that over the past decade, the team has grown significantly, with positions of drummers and steersperson filled. "In the early days, everyone was afraid of getting tanned. Now, the women in the village are eager to join in!"
In the Tianhe CBD, twelve dragon boats from Liede Village, including the Red Dragon, Flower Dragon, Five-colored Dragon, and the historically significant "Champion" Golden Dragon, were all awakened. In Shipai Village, Tianhe District, hundreds of rowers gathered at the dragon boat workshop in Shuanggang Village, Huangpu District, to awaken the "Hidden Dragon". After the dragon boats were retrieved, the rowers carefully wiped them down, and the boats were sent to a shipyard for inspection, adjustment, and greasing. Interestingly, the river storing the dragon boats is also home to many ducks and geese, and some villagers even caught carp, symbolizing the auspicious "carp leaping over the dragon gate".
On the morning of May 13th, villagers in Nansha District's Nansha Street held their traditional "Awakening" ceremony at Jiaomen River. After about three hours of effort, the team managed to retrieve a dragon boat that had been "sleeping" underwater for around 12 years. The ceremony included several steps such as blessing, digging out the dragon boat, and cleaning it. The dragon boat was made without any adhesive substances between the wood, relying on hand-carved joints of various sizes, which were then carefully smoothed. Regardless of the boat's length, the side standing deviation was controlled within 1 centimeter. Thus, even after many years, the dragon boat remained intact.
Source | Yangcheng Evening News
