The Joy of the Ages: The Joy in Traditional Chinese Festivals

Huang Yuanqi

Huang Yuanqi， an author of Peking University Press， globetrotter， photographer， magazine contributor， and contributing writer to The Paper.

Chinese traditional festivals are all-encompassing， a feast of all kinds of humanities and arts. The author focuses on Chinese festivals， starting from their origins and evolution， combining history， customs， folklore， dances and music， festive food， travel experiences， and people’s touching stories to vividly reveal the China of festivals on paper.

The Joy of the Ages： The Joy in Traditional Chinese Festivals

Huang Yuanqi

Peking University Press

September 2022

59.00 （CNY）

Once during the Mid-Autumn Festival， my friend told me that when he was young， he spent all his Mid-Autumn Festivals in the countryside of Lanxi， Zhejiang province. The moonlight gently flowed in the stream， and the villagers filed out， sticking incense into pomelos， knocking on doors， making greetings， and wishing peace to each family. The village streetlights were dim at night， but a bright moon was enough to illuminate everyone’s face.

My friend from Guizhou has also described that in the mountains of Southeast Guizhou， people of the Dong ethnic minority group will have a big Dong Chorus Meeting， which is unique to their ethnicity， during the New Year. The chorus teams set out early in the morning to compete in front of the drum tower of Dong village. The women singers elaborately dress up in costumes made of special Liang cloth， flowery shoes with tipped-up toe caps， and a dazzling array of silver ornaments. They put on pleated skirts with several long straps full of embroidered flowers sewn under their waists， resembling blossoms， and then put on shoe covers and tie their legs with long， thin， flowery straps. Silver flowers bloom in the singers’ dense clouds of hair and high buns， bright and shiny， tinkling and swaying beautifully with every step.

The square in front of the drum tower is full of beautiful Dong women who gather in chorus teams and sing on stage. The Dong Chorus is a musical art of unaccompanied， unconducted， polyphonic， and natural harmony. The singing range is suitable for the natural vocal range of the human voice as if it was made by nature. When the singers sing， their voices flow like water， and the gentle rhythms sweep through the rolling hills， past the majestic drum tower， and reach the depths of people’s souls.

What a desirable traditional holiday atmosphere！ When you are in a foreign country alone， there is at least a trace of attachment and anchor， telling you that you will have reunion and warmth as long as you return home for a bustling festival.

The festivals have become a healing energy， smoothing out the creases in people’s lives.

Unfortunately， I have not seen any of the festive scenes described by my friends in the city where I grew up. Looking through ancient poems and texts， it is amazing that some traditional festival rituals have existed in China for thousands of years but are now in decline. I want to spend only some traditional festivals dealing with discounts and promotions or having some get-togethers at a random restaurant， which seems so sterile. The idea of seeking out traditional festivals fermented in my mind and finally took shape.

After two years of field interviews and visits to literary and historical experts， the images of the festivals became vivid and varied. History， culture， customs， folk art， dance and music， food， and many other elements are attached to the festivals. They carry the bright civilization and merge with the festivals like streams running to the sea.

I traveled south and north in China to find the festival’s charm in the rhythm of the seasons. I am glad I can celebrate the “New Year” several times a year. For Han， Tajik， Dai， Bulang， and Dong， each festival in these ethnicities is alive and well with its characteristics.

I can recall that in the deep mountains of Yunnan， the Bulang people danced and sang back to their village after greeting the sun. The procession walked very slowly， often stopping to dance every three steps. They sang in succession in their unique Bulang tunes， and after each person finished a verse， someone poured wine into him with great enthusiasm， and everyone applauded in unison. Everyone lifted bamboo streamers filled with flowers and threw puffed rice into the air to celebrate. I waited for the procession not far away， not in any hurry， and watched with pleasure the carefree joy of the villagers. That joy brushed against my heart with the breeze， and I completely forgot all the stress and worries of reality and couldn’t help but smile at them. For a moment， I couldn’t tell if I was the one who had unexpectedly wandered into the Peach Garden. Those traditional customs obviously still exist in folklore， and they have the appeal of making people so joyful and peaceful， so why do we stop caring about them？

The festival is like an old grandmother in elegant costumes， full of wisdom， and if we can invite her out， she will slowly tell us the beautiful past that flowed through the years. If we forget her， what we lose is our own civilization.