The cultural integration characteristics of Jurchen music and dance

 

The cultural integration characteristics of Jurchen music and dance

 

A person who can smile in the face of adversity will have no chance of harming him. Whether you will be crushed by adversity does not depend on how stressful the adversity is, but on how much you can bear. In Jurchen belief, happiness is often a fine wine brewed from unfortunate raw materials. Jurchen music and dance is the cultural history of Jurchens.

When the Burmese musician Duoji talked about Jurchen culture with friends such as Agudengba, Azhuo and Chu Sanxing, his daughters Yadan, Dawa and Xiang Qima paid special attention to the cultural history of Jurchen music and dance.

Dorje told the relevant stories to Yadan, Dawa and Xiangqima:

The Jin Dynasty belonged to the political power established by the Jurchen people. They were often accompanied by songs and dances in their major lives such as choosing mates and having banquets. Songs and dances made them a closely connected ethnic group. The Jurchens love various dramas and dramas, and have created music, song and dance art that can fully reflect the battles, customs and life of their own nation. Its short rhythm fully reveals the unrestrained and simple character of the Jurchens.

After the Jurchens of the Jin Kingdom entered the Central Plains, they fully realized the advantages and value of Han music and dance, and began to imitate the Han culture in the Central Plains. They directly adopted the old traditional music and dance systems of the Song Dynasty, absorbed the Song music system, and imitated elegant music. During the period when they were learning Han nationality's 100 operas, they added many stage effects during the performance to create a lively atmosphere. The literary and martial arts dances during the Jin Dynasty were called "Dance of Baoda Dinggong" and "Dance of All Nations Coming Together" respectively. This, like the music and dance of the Khitan people, was extremely popular in the court of the Jin Dynasty at that time, and was highly praised by the nobles. like.

Duoji said: There are few historical records related to the integration and exchange of music and dance among the Jurchens, Khitans, and Han nationalities in the Central Plains during the Jin Dynasty. However, the music and dance images of the Jin Dynasty have been widely engraved on various Jin Dynasty tomb brick carvings, dance figurines, and murals. From the hairstyles, costumes, dance images, and dynamic characteristics of the music and dance artists on the unearthed music and dance brick carvings, it can be seen that the form of Jurchen music and dance incorporates a large amount of Han culture.

Dorji smiled at his daughters Yadan, Dawa and Xiangqima and said:

It is the first time for men to get married, and for the first time women to get married. How do Jurchens view marriage?

In terms of marriage, the main form of marriage among Jurchens in the Ming Dynasty was monogamy, but polygamy also appeared, and group marriages also survived. Jurchens who live with multiple wives are mostly tribal leaders and wealthy households. The remaining group marriage systems are mainly found in some East China Sea Jurchen tribes in remote areas. There are also remnants of the group marriage system in Jianzhou and Haixi Jurchen societies. For example, Jianzhou Jurchens marry "without choosing race." There is a custom that after the death of a father, his son will marry his stepmother, and if a brother dies, his brother will marry his sister-in-law; the chief of the Hada tribe of Haixi Jurchens After Wang Tai's death, his son Kang Gulu took his stepmother, Sister Wen, as his wife. In addition, early marriage is generally popular in Jurchen society, and "marry at the age of ten". Later, the Haixi Jurchens changed it to the age of seventeen or eighteen, and the Jianzhou Jurchens did not stipulate until the Huangtaiji era that it was "a sin" for a girl to marry before she was 12 years old. Before getting married, Jurchens must first have an "engagement", that is, an engagement. After the marriage, the groom's family needs to pay the bride's family gifts such as armor, cattle, horses, and slaves. However, some poor households have not paid the lottery gift for 10 years and are unable to get married.

At that time, young Jurchen men and women often sang antiphonal songs to court mates on the way, resulting in the famous "Jurchen Love Song" and "Partridge Song". The famous "Zhen Peng Peng Song" later became a popular song and dance imitated by Han officials and people. It was called "Dou La" in the Yuan Dynasty, "Beng Beng" and "Peng Bang Song" in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, and now it is called "Er Ren Zhuan".

Dorje said:

The Jurchens also have their own funeral customs. After the death of a family member, Jianzhou Jurchens put the corpse at home, killed an ox as a sacrifice, and buried it in a sunny place three days later. During the burial, it was customary to bury the deceased with the clothes he wore during his lifetime and the horse he was riding on. The horse was killed, its flesh removed and its skin buried.

Tree burials, also known as wind burials, are also popular among Haixi Jurchens. A big tree is chosen to place the body on it, and the horse skin, tail and feet, as well as the bows and arrows used during life are hung on the tree.

The burial customs of the Jurchen tribes in the East China Sea are relatively primitive. In addition to tree burials, after the death of the Kuwu people's parents, their intestines and stomachs are removed, the corpses are exposed to dry, and they are carried on their backs when going in and out. Food and drink must be sacrificed, and they are "abandoned" after three years. After the death of charming men, women and old men in Qili, they "cut their bellies and burned them, and put their ashes in a tree"; those who drowned, their bodies were harpooned and wrapped in sealskin and buried. It means that the person can transform into a seal; if a person is bitten by a bear or a tiger, he will "lay his body naked in the posture of a bear or a tiger" and have someone shoot the corpse with arrows and bury it with arrows, which means that he can change into a bear or a tiger.

Yadan, Dawa, and Xiangqima were very surprised after hearing Dorje's explanation.

Dorje said:

The burial culture of the Jurchen people is closely related to shamanism. In modern times, northern ethnic groups, such as the Manchus, Mongols, Hezhe, Ewenki, Kazakhs, etc., also believe in shamanism, or retain some shamanistic customs. These are primitive religious activities related to shamanism. Shamanism later developed into the people living in northern China. A religion commonly practiced by Altaic-speaking peoples who once had or still have an economic life of hunting and nomadic life.

Shaman is the general name for shamans, which comes from the Tungus word for "an agitated and crazy person". Different ethnic groups have different names for shamans. The Han people call them wizards.

Shaman dance, commonly known as "god dancing", is a dance performance performed by shamans in activities such as offering sacrifices to gods, treating diseases, etc. It is a primitive dance with totem worship and animistic religious concepts. It is still practiced in Mongolia, Manchuria, Xibo, Hezhe, Daur, There are still remains among the Oroqen, Ewenki, Uyghur, Kazakh, Kirgiz and other ethnic groups.

The cultural characteristics of shamanic dance are reflected in the myths and stories related to shamanism, the lyrics to invite gods, the beating of drums and the use of various magical instruments.

The sacred songs of shaman dance are mostly passed down orally. The lyrics not only reflect the national psychology of the country, but also describe the image of shaman dance.

The movements of shaman dance are a reflection of people’s working life in primitive fishing, hunting, gathering, primitive farming, and animal husbandry during the matriarchal-patriarchal clan development stage; they are a reflection of the original concept of totem worship of animals, plants, and inanimate things. Most of the shamanistic myths and legends are related to animals. Therefore, there are many images of bears and other animals in shamanic dances.

From today's shaman's sacred clothes, magical weapons, and dancing gods, we can also see traces of primitive clan life and primitive culture of the era when nature worship, totem worship, and ancestor worship came into being.

For example, Niu La, the Ewenki shaman, interpreted the 12 pairs of small iron pieces sewn on the sacred clothes as 12 pairs of human ribs, which can cure people's diseases and eliminate disasters; Huang Ge, the Daur shaman, interpreted the sacred clothes as 12 pairs of human ribs. The 360 shells on the shell are interpreted as the 360 days of the year. The French skirt with 24 belts tied around the waist represents the 24 solar terms. The Daur people worship eagles and imitate the image of eagles in their dances; the costumes of the Ewenki shaman dances must be decorated with Made of animal bones and teeth, the drum used is both a ritual instrument and an accompaniment. The drum head and drumsticks are covered with animal skins. The performance includes simulated images of bears and eagles; Oroqen shamans wear deer antlers on their heads. Hats, there are images of deer and bears in the performance; the Hezhen shaman's drumming is covered with deer skin, and the shaman performs the deer god dance every spring and autumn during the Deer God Festival.

Dorje said to Agudengba, Azhuo and Chu Sanxing:

The social culture of each nation is based on the nation's production and lifestyle, is produced under the conditions that satisfy its own cultural environment, and has its own rationality and value. The music and dance culture of the Jurchen people is also based on their own national culture, inheriting Liao culture, integrating Song culture, and formed, developed and prospered under the influence of Bohai and Central Plains cultures.

In the long history of Chinese music and dance, only the music and dance culture of various ethnic groups can gain long-term vitality by interpenetrating and blending with each other. This is also the fundamental reason why the Jurchen music and dance culture in the Jin Dynasty can continue to develop.

Although the original Jurchen music and dance has gradually disappeared, it can be seen from various classics, historical materials and unearthed cultural relics that the Jurchen music and dance are relatively original and lively ancient music and dance in Jinyuan culture, with a history of thousands of years. and inheritance. It can be said that the Jurchen music and dance culture of the Jin Dynasty has extremely high cultural value and practical research significance, and has made important contributions to the development of the history of Chinese music and dance culture.

Several members of the Mongolian dance team sang "Jurchen Song" while dancing Jurchen music and dance:

 

without obstacles,

The waterfall cannot sing a passionate song;

Without suffering,

The body cannot grow strong bones.

 

There has been trauma,

There will be more wisdom and courage;

only night,

It will make the lights brighter.

 

The pursuit of freedom,

We are eagles flying in the blue sky;

Passionate and unrestrained,

We are horses galloping across the prairie.

 

heavily clouded,

Believe that the sun is above the dark clouds;

Jurchen children,

I would like to regard the grassland as my home.