The culmination of the 15 days of Chinese New Year’s celebration is The Dragon Dance. It’s origin date back to the Han dynasty (180 – 230 A.D).  The dragon is regarded as a sacred creature, symbolizing power, courage, righteousness, dignity, and good fortune among others.  The Chinese referred to themselves as descendants of the Dragon as a sign of ethnic identity.

The dance signifies the end of the year, and welcoming the new start, driving away evil spirits, and bringing good luck and fortune to the people.  The dance celebrates the onset of planting season in China, and bringing in rain and good fortune to the crops.

The mythical beast takes on the form of many animals – horns of a stag, ears of a bull,  eyes of a rabbit, claws of a tiger and scales of a fish distributed along the body of a serpent.  It was believed to possess the combined traits allowing the creature to walk on land, fly through the heavens, and swim thru water.

The dragon dance requires the coordinated efforts of a team of dancers with a martial arts background.  The dragon is difficult to manipulate and requires well-trained dancers in top physical condition.  The creature moves in precise patterns to the msic of drums, cymbals and a gong.

The dragon consists of a head mask, a lengthy body, which is held up by poles and transported by dancers.  The lead dancer holding up the dragon’s head has an extremely important job.  He or she makes the dragon twist, leap, crouch and dip, as sinuous as a snake.  The dragon mask itself in red, green or gold, is gorgeous and very complex.  The length of the dragon’s body sections may vary, with up to 25 sections.  The longer the dragon, the more good fortune he brings.

If you have never seen a dragon dance they are spectacular.  Find one in your area, and take the children too.  Almost any city that has a Chinese community will have a dragon dance around Chinese New Year.  It is always quite a celebration.

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