洪湖鳳舟Honghu Phoenix Boats

張國浩Zhang Guohao

端午節的龍舟競渡是我國最具影響力的民俗盛事之一。近年來，學術研究與田野實地考察發現，湖北洪湖端午節的鳳舟競渡有著與龍舟競渡同樣出彩的表現。1 600多年前，南朝時期《荊楚歲時記》所記載的飛鳧（fú）舟表演，至今仍以鳳舟競渡的名義在傳承發展，尤其是洪湖地區內荊河兩岸流傳至今的“東龍西鳳”競渡，堪稱端午競渡文化的“活化石”。

It is well known to us that dragon boat racingduring the Duanwu Festival is one of the mostparticipated and popular folk events in China. Inrecent years， however， academic research and fieldinvestigations have revealed that phoenix boat racingduring the Duanwu Festival holds equal importanceand allure in Honghu City， Hubei Province. It wasrecorded， in the Jing-Chu Suishi Ji， a book on seasonalactivities and customs from the Jing-Chu regionover 1，600 years ago during the Southern Dynasty，that people staged flying-bird boat races duringthe festival. This ancient tradition has persistedand transformed into the modern-day phoenixboat racing. Particularly， along the Jing River in theHonghu region， the dragon boat race along the eastbank and the phoenix boat race along the west bankare considered “living fossils，” preserving the richboat-racing culture during the Duanwu Festival.

每年端午節，洪湖人都會在家門前掛上艾蒿、菖蒲等辟邪驅疫的草藥。鄉民們在享用雄黃酒、粽子、鹽蛋、包子后，會在孩童們的臉上抹雄黃，扶老攜幼一同去新堤觀看鳳舟競渡。

Every year during the Duanwu Festival， the localpeople of Honghu hang silvery wormwood， calamus，and other herbs on their gates to ward off evil spiritsand diseases. After enjoying realgar wine， zongzi（sticky rice dumplings）， salted eggs， and steamedbuns， the villagers apply realgar on their childrensfaces， and the entire family heads for the Xindi Areato watch the phoenix boat race.

相傳，洪湖鳳舟的習俗與清朝時期的西太后慈禧有關。清光緒十四年（公元1888年），在新堤鎮的元宵節花燈會上，內荊河東岸的龍燈以其精湛技藝力壓群雄，河西岸的鳳燈則以其資力雄厚自傲。當時，新堤元宵燈會將鳳燈擺在龍燈之后，有人將此事奏報朝廷，慈禧太后聽聞大怒。

Legend has it that the origin of the phoenix boatrace is linked to Empress Dowager Cixi， commonlyknown as the “West Empress Dowager.” In the 14thyear （1888 AD） of Emperor Guangxus reign， a LanternFestival was held in the ancient town of Xindi. Whilethe dragon lanterns from the east bank of NeijingRiver stood out with their exquisite craftsmanship，the ones from the west bank impressed the audiencewith a sense of luxury through their lavish materials.However， the dragon lanterns were staged in frontof the phoenix lanterns. Empress Dowager Cixi wasoutraged when this was reported to the imperial court.

端午節臨近，當地官員緊急召集商會頭面人物，磋商競渡事宜。有人提出，新堤既有鳳燈之禍，為何不可行鳳舟之福呢？大家聽后，覺得很有道理，于是決定：“我們就借西太后的‘西字之名，讓西岸劃鳳舟?！北荣惍斕?，太后的女使將從宮廷帶來的黃綾系在鳳舟的鳳頭上，以警示鳳舟不能輸。最終，女使帶著滿意的結果回京復命，“龍舟不準勝鳳舟”的習俗就此流傳下來。

As the Duanwu Festival approached， localofficials convened an urgent meeting with majorfigures in the business community to discuss theboat racing event. Some suggested making up for theprevious mistake by introducing a new celebratoryevent in the form of phoenix boat racing， a proposalwarmly accepted by the attendees. It was decided thatthe phoenix boat race would take place along the westbank， as a homage to the West Empress Dowager. Onthe day of the event， Empress Dowagers female envoybrought yellow silk from the imperial palace， tyingit to the phoenixs head as a signal that the phoenixboat must emerge victorious. Ultimately， the envoyreturned to the capital city of Beijing with a resultthat satisfied the Empress Dowager. Since then， thecustom of “phoenix boat beating the dragon boat inthe racing game” has been passed down.

至今，端午節新堤東岸劃龍舟、西岸劃鳳舟的習俗已延續100多年。劃鳳舟是洪湖水鄉人民主要的文化娛樂活動，其起源可能與官府的強制推行有關，但楚人崇鳳的習俗也是群眾愿意接受的重要原因。楚人崇鳳，由來已久，洪湖作為荊楚文化的發源地之一，就更是如此：建筑物、民俗民謠、生活用品和婚喪嫁娶等，隨處可見鳳的倩影。洪湖鳳舟的出現更突顯了鳳在洪湖人民心目中的地位。

With over a century of tradition in rowingdragon boats along the east bank and phoenix boatsalong the west bank， phoenix boat racing has evolvedinto a major cultural and entertainment activity forthe people of Honghu. While the emergence of thisevent may be linked to the authorities mandatoryenforcement， the local peoples reverence for thephoenix also contributes to its popularity. The Churegion has long honored a tradition of revering thephoenix， and this is particularly true in Honghu， acradle of the Chu culture. The image of the phoenix canbe seen everywhere： from buildings， folk songs， andcustoms to daily items， weddings， and funerals. Thephoenix boat racing further highlights the significanceof the phoenix in the hearts of Honghu people.

根據《山海經》的描述：“丹穴之山，有鳥焉，其狀如雞，五采而文，名曰鳳皇……見則天下安寧?！弊畛醯脑O計者依據其中“狀如雞”的記載，確定了鳳舟的形態。鳳舟初為紅色，后改為象征君權的黃色。鳳頭高1米，用黃綾纏裹。鳳尾是用絹布、孔雀尾毛制成的五彩色條。中艙豎有2米高的方斗，斗上插一束柳枝，傳說是作辟邪用，斗下安放鑼鼓。27對橈（náo）子依次排后，頭橈、二橈、三橈略大，其后的橈略小。踩頭者左手扶鳳頭、右手舞黃旗，指揮鳳舟前進。

According to the Classic of Mountains and Seas，“there was a bird residing in the Danxue Mountainthat took the shape of a rooster. Its feathers werecolorful with patterns resembling Chinese characters.It is named Feng Huang （Phoenix）… The appearanceof this creature symbolizes peace and stability in theworld.” The documented resemblance to a roosterserved as the inspiration for the initial designers ofthe boat. Phoenix boats were first designed to be red，but the color was later changed to yellow， symbolizingimperial power. The phoenix head， wrapped in yellowsilk， stands at a height of one meter. The phoenix tailcomprises colorful strips of silk fabrics and peacockfeathers. In the center of the boat， a two-meter-tallsquare container holds a bundle of willow brancheson top to ward off ill luck， with drums positionedjust below. Behind the drums are 27 pairs of paddles，with the first three pairs slightly larger than the rest.The team leader holds the phoenix head with the lefthand and waves a yellow flag with the right hand，guiding the phoenix boat forward.

現在的洪湖鳳舟造型精美、裝扮靚麗，鳳頭形似雞，舟尾形似孔雀開屏；舟身長27.8米，寬1.4米，有艙口31個、橈子27對。船上全員身著黃褂，共59人：踩頭1人，中艙指揮1 人，鑼鼓手2 人，棹手1 人，橈手54人。

Today， the Honghu phoenix boats are moreexquisitely designed and splendidly decorated，featuring a rooster-like head， and a tail that resemblesa peacock in full display. The boat measures 27.8meters in length and 1.4 meters in width， equippedwith 31 drainage devices and 27 pairs of paddles. Thecrew， comprising 59 members， all wear yellow attire：one leads at the front， another directs in the middle，accompanied by two drummers， a direction-leadingpaddler， and 54 paddlers.

在鳳舟下水前，要燃放鞭炮、化紙燒香，以示慶祝和祈福。職業祭祀人為鳳舟開光祭祀，用雞血點鳳頭，畫桃符壓鳳冠，以示求保一方平安。鳳舟還巢時，鳳頭會回望，上岸前人們也要燒香放鞭，名曰“收水”，寓意收納吉祥和福氣。久而久之，這些儀式逐漸轉變為楚地民俗。

Before the boats set sail， people set offfirecrackers， burn paper sacrifices， and light incenseto celebrate and seek blessings. Professional ritualpractitioners conduct a blessing ritual for the phoenixboat， praying for peace in the region. This traditionincludes applying chicken blood to the phoenix headand affixing a lucky talisman to the phoenix crown.Before the boats return to the land， it is orientedin a specific direction， allowing the phoenix headto face backward. Upon landing， people engage inthe shoushui event， marked by burning incense andsetting off firecrackers once again. This symbolicact represents the gathering of good fortune andblessings. Over time， these rituals have graduallybecome integral parts of the local folk customs in theChu region.

1989年以來，洪湖已舉辦四次鳳舟節。1991年，在“洪湖市荷花節”中，洪湖鳳舟榮獲金杯；此后，在荊州、仙桃等地舉辦的百次賽事中，洪湖鳳舟也獲得無數殊榮。2007年，洪湖鳳舟的圖片北上俄羅斯參加“中國年”民俗圖片展，吸人眼球。2009年，洪湖鳳舟的鳳頭鳳尾圖南下中國澳門參加民俗展，艷驚四座。同年，洪湖鳳舟的照片被選入聯合國教科文組織《人類非物質文化遺產代表作名錄》端午節項目圖冊中。2011年6月，洪湖鳳舟被列入湖北省非物質文化遺產名錄。

Since 1989， Honghu has hosted four Phoenix BoatFestivals. In 1991， the Honghu phoenix boat won thegolden prize in the Honghu Lotus Festival. Since then，it has received numerous honors at various events heldin places like Jingzhou and Xiantao. In 2007， images ofthe Honghu phoenix boat attracted visitors attention atthe “Chinese Year — Folk Tradition Images Exhibition”held in Russia. Two years later in 2009， pictures of theHonghu phoenix boat stunned the audience at a folktradition exhibition in Macao， China. In the same year，the pictures are included in the Duanwu Festival Album，a program under UNESCOs Representative List ofthe Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity Project.In June 2011， the Honghu phoenix boat was officiallyincluded in the Hubei Provincial List of IntangibleCultural Heritage.

作為端午文化多樣性的組成部分，洪湖鳳舟改變了人們對于端午競渡中只有龍舟競渡的認知，承載了久遠而豐富的地域文化信息，它凝聚了歷史，經歷了滄桑，演變為一種文化符號和歷史記憶。

The Honghu phoenix boat is a significant componentof the Duanwu Festival culture， which challengespeoples perception that the festival is solely aboutdragon boat races. It carries and reflects the ancient andrich regional culture. Through the vicissitudes of history，it has gradually evolved into a cultural symbol that tellsunforgettable tales from history.

供圖/ 張國浩