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February 4, 2007
the different types of lions in chinese lion dance
how many of us, casual onlookers of the chinese lion dance, actually notice the complex protocols and hierarchy behind the performances? it wasn't until a conversation with my brother about a rare "qing she" that i knew about the presence of strict etiquette in the realm of lion dancing.
"qing she", or rather - the green faced lion, is the most revered of all lion dances. it has a flat menacing face, and designed to look extremely cruel and ferocious. the green lion can only be danced by the most skilled and dexterous of kungfu practitioners.
i myself have never seen a green faced lion dance perform. it is extremely rare - though in KK, the green faced lion makes a yearly appearance. this dreadful lion was invented during the Manchu reign, and dancing the lion signifies the fall of the manchus. the violent appearance is meant to illustrate the inhuman manchurians who massacred thousands of chinese. its brows are actually twin steel swords measuring a foot and six inches each. the body is 18 feet long - and is used to conceal weapons.
the green faced lion dance usually ends very grotesquely - with the skinning of the lion, dissected abdomens, chopped limbs and intestine splattered open. it symbolises the death of manchurians. the tradition faded away when the objective was realised.
in the lion dance arena - when a green faced lion enters, the dragon, the unicorns and the lions all bow down to revere and respect it.
next in the hierarchy is the dragon. the dragon dance was performed originally by farmers to appease the dragon king so that he would send rain to their parched lands. the pearl that the dragon chases represents the sun, which means wisdom. this signifies the dragon's endless pursuit for wisdom.
the unicorn dance is next in rank, which is hakka in origin. its head scoops to the left and right continually in a figure of eight.
finally comes our favourite - the lion lion dance! there are two types of lions, the northern lion, and the southern lion. the northern lion is more furry. it's quite logical really, since northern states of china are generally colder. their colours are usually red or orange, sometimes green. the northern lions resemble the pekingese dog (remember, there are no lions in china, so the "lions" are inspired by animals that the chinese find around them) and often prances after a ball in their dance. the bow on their heads give their gender away - red for males, and green for females.
the southern lions are the ones we're more accustomed to watching. they are energetic, with feline like behaviour.
the southern lions can be further divided - by look, and by colour. there is the duck billed southern lion - the heshan variety. He Shan which means Crane Mountain have shorter tails, straight mouth and rounded horns. they are generally more peaceful.
the other variety is Fu Shan, which means Buddha Mountain. their tails are longer, they have sharper horns, curved mouth and are generally more courageous.
traditionally there are three colours of lions - the yellow/gold, the red and the black. these represents the three heroes from the Romance of the Three Kingdoms. later, an additional two were added - the green and the white. the five colours then represents the five elements.
the yellow lion symbolises Emperor Liu Bei. he is the eldest brother among the heroes. he usually has a yellow face with white hair. there are three coins behind this lion's head - signifying intelligence, kindness and bravery. he is the most revered and gentle of all lions, thus is called the Auspicious Lion. sometimes he dons on a rainbow coloured body encompasing all the five elements (he controls all since he is the emperor). sometimes his horn is replaced by an eagle, or a phoenix. his beard is white and long (length of beard denotes age).
the red lion is guan kong. he is the second brother, and has a red face and black hair. also known as the Awakened Lion, he has two coins on the back of his head to represent intelligence and bravery. a corrupt officer once tried to kill guan kong by trapping him inside a burning temple. he survived it - and has a red face because of the incident. guan kong usually has a semi long black lustrous beard.
the black lion is zhang fei - the youngest brother. he has a quick temper and loves to fight. usually with a black face, black hair and red eyes, zhang fei has one coin at the back of his head to signify bravery. also called the Fighting Lion, his body was traditionally adorned with bells that served as warning (like the rattler on a rattle snake). because he is young, he usually has a short black beard.
the green lion is often called the fourth brother - Chow Yuen. he is given the title Heroic Lion because he rode into a battle of a million army just to rescue Liu Bei's infant.
lastly the white lion (which i can't find any pictures of) is Ma Chao. he is known as the Funeral Lion. he rode into battle with a white arm band to avenge the death of his father and brother. this lion is usually burned after used as it is inauspicious to keep. one however, should not mistake the contemporary silver lion with Ma Chao.
traditionally, a Liu Bei lion should only be used by established schools or sifu, and a "younger" lion should never challenge this lion. a Zhang Fei lion is usually used by new schools, or whoever that wants to "pick a fight" with another sect.
Tomorrow : the etiquette of lion dancing
posted by nyx at February 4, 2007 11:03 AM
Comments
Hey, this is interesting. I didn't know that there are meanings behind these lions...
Posted by: She's Jess at February 4, 2007 11:00 PM
good... good..... i want more about lion dance. A good post.
I thought the black lion is the best lion... as seen in Wong Fei Hung flicks.
Never seen a flat-menacing-faced green lion. Even Wong (Fei Hung) sifu use a black lion only.
Posted by: endroo G at February 5, 2007 12:22 AM
oh...that reminds me... i meant to look for a clip online of the wong fei hung scene, i forgot how it went. but if he was battling with someone its appropriate that he used a black lion?
i read a quote by a sifu who was stressing on how important lion dancing was to kungfu, he said that chinese martial arts without lion dancing is like a flower without petals.
Posted by: nyx at February 5, 2007 8:24 AM
yup. it was a battle scene..
Posted by: endroo G at February 6, 2007 2:02 AM
Brilliant post!!
Posted by: KK at February 16, 2007 7:20 AM
wow... great post! i've never ever seen the green lion before.
Posted by: wyejon at February 16, 2007 9:39 AM
Actually you forgot Huang Zhong he was given the color yellow when Liu ascended to the rank of emprero (with slight orange hue in it). He not Liu Bei makes up the fifth element-remember, Liu was the emepreor and had the control of the elements. These five were also known as the 5 Tiger generals of Shu.
As far as I was taught nothing is above the dragon. The highest of which was the golden dragon. The green lion is something the other lions would battle. Qi lin is a peaceful animal and not even hurt a blade of grass that it stepped on, so it would never battle. It appears only when an important sage/person is born or about to pass.
This is my teachings and how I learned it.
Posted by: William Lee at March 3, 2007 5:51 AM
In Wong Fei Hung the fourth movie "Once Upon a Time in China 4" The Excellency dies and Wong Fei Hung uses the funeral lion I believe. If i get the chance i'll put it up on youtube or something like that. You probably can't find the picture of Ma Chao lion because they burn the lion after they use it and is never used outside to preform and probably bad luck.
Posted by: Chris at March 4, 2007 4:00 AM
qi ling rank is higher than dragon
Posted by: David at March 10, 2007 10:58 AM
what about lubu lion head ?
Posted by: justin wong fei hung at October 20, 2007 8:30 PM
Found this by Googling. Fascinating post!! Thank you so much for sharing!
:)
Posted by: Rita at November 5, 2007 3:17 PM
I believe what your calling a Green faced lion is actully a Pay Yau and not a lion, which is a Hakka art like Kei Lun (unicorn). The taditional lion is Fut San (fo shan) or Buddha mountain and the Hok San is the Malaysian which is the duck billed and is the more modern lion dance style that is done on the high jongs in internatioal competition.
Posted by: dan at November 13, 2007 4:06 PM
I've found a few clips of the Green faced Lion.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qhQX3g-9qU
Its one strange dance, and the Pixui (貔貅) would surely scare the hell out of little kids! :-D
But a great page, very informative, and appreciated. And just posting up the link as you said you haven't seen a Green faced Lion dance.
Posted by: James at December 18, 2007 7:43 AM
James - thanks a bunch for the video, you're right, the Pixui is one hell of a weird dance!
Thanks for the input too, much appreciated :D
Posted by: nyx at December 18, 2007 9:18 AM
Thanks for posting this entry on the different lions. I am now watching the lion dance competition on tv and was curious to know more about the different types of lions used. Your site came in real handy for me. Thanks again :)
Posted by: hush at February 7, 2008 12:07 PM
I think the unicorn is best because i play it
Posted by: Anonymous at February 20, 2008 2:24 AM
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