During the Lantern Festival every year, the most lively thing in Taijiang County is the dragon dance. Since the Miao people have no written records, it is impossible to verify when the dragon dance originated. According to folk legend, the dragon dance has been passed down in Taijiang County for hundreds of years and is the product of the collision and fusion of foreign culture and local Miao culture. The custom of dragon dance and flower blowing of the Miao people in Taijiang County is held from the fifth to the seventeenth day of the first lunar month every year. In 2021, the custom of dragon dance and flower blowing of the Miao people in Taijiang County was selected as the fifth batch of national intangible cultural heritage representative projects. To talk about dragon dance and flower blowing, let's first talk about the origin of dragon lanterns. Legend has it that the golden dragon made a mistake in making rain, and Li Shimin, the emperor of the Tang Dynasty, dreamed of helping Wei Zheng to kill the golden dragon by mistake. Later, the ten kings of the underworld examined the golden dragon and specially conferred it on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month every year to receive incense and paper money from the people. After the Golden Dragon was conferred the title, it led the water tribes to go out in a procession, with the row of lanterns leading the way to drive away the plague and all disasters from the door, leaving auspiciousness and happiness in the world. Therefore, from the Tang Dynasty to the present, the people have regarded the dragon as a symbol of auspiciousness and happiness. Every year during the Lantern Festival, they weave a golden-horned old dragon with bamboo strips, and use white paper to paste and paint lanterns of various water tribes, such as goldfish, lobsters, and golden turtles. They light candles inside and make them look like they are alive. They play all night long and are very lively, bringing incomparable purple air, peace, and auspiciousness to the people who have worked hard for a year. According to folk legend, during the Yongzheng period of the Qing Dynasty, the policy of returning the land to the people was implemented in the Miao area, and the Taigong Hall was established in Taijiang, which was then passed down to the people of Taijiang. The Taijiang dragon lantern story is rich and colorful, with many types. The various types of dragons are made differently and represent different meanings. It is a rare holy place for the original ecological dragon culture. Straw dragon: Straw dragon is made of straw. A woven straw rope is used to string each dragon body from the dragon head to the dragon tail to form a whole dragon. Lighted wood incense is inserted into each dragon body. Although the straw dragon is not very ornamental, it is the most famous. People believe that it is a real dragon that can reach the sky, so people respect it. Bright dragon is also called joint dragon: The joint dragon is composed of a dragon head and several dragon bodies. The whole dragon body is connected with colorful cloth, and candles or lights are lit inside, which is bright and clear. The joint dragon is flexible and light when dancing. It can move forward or backward, and is deeply loved by people. It is said that the joint dragon originated from the Han dragon in the palace. Hard dragon: The hard dragon uses 3 to 5 bamboo strips as the spine and several bamboo circles as the dragon body, which are connected into a whole dragon with a total length of more than 10 meters. When dancing, it is like a real dragon rolling and riding the clouds, which is very spectacular. It is said that the hard dragon is the local Miao people's own dragon. According to historical records, in ancient times, dragons were used for New Year greetings on the ninth day of the first lunar month. Because the emperor was the supreme ruler, the people had to obey the government when playing with dragons. Therefore, dragons could not be played on the ninth day of the first lunar month. Nine is also the overlapping number of the Miao people, which means many. Therefore, the dragon lantern, an imported culture, has found a cultural integration point in the Miao area and has been prosperous for a long time. On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, when New Year greetings are about to end, dragons and dragon-playing teams organized by various villages gather in Taijiang County from all directions to dance dragons and blow flowers to their heart's content. This is also the climax of dragon playing. Every year on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, people use local homemade flower tubes to wait for the arrival of the dragon along the street. Once the dragon enters the city and the dragon dancers shout "Flowers are coming, flowers are coming", the booing people will rush in with flower tubes in their hands and light them. The flower tubes emit a "whoosh" sound and point directly at the dragon head and body. Suddenly, the flames are surging like waves, one wave after another, and dozens or hundreds of dragons are trapped in a sea of fire. The crowd of onlookers is so lively! The night of dragon dance and booing flowers is called the carnival night of the brave. The dancers are naked and are not afraid of burns from sparks; the booing people are also brave, not afraid of the fatigue and danger of chasing; the spectators are also brave, not afraid of the flower tubes flying everywhere, and they chase and watch closely. No matter men, women, old or young, everyone can dance, boo, and watch. The thrilling and hot scene truly reflects the great spirit of the Chinese heroic sons and daughters. Because the dragon dance and booing flowers ignite the fire of the emotional world in the hearts of the people, the activities often last all night. Around the 17th day of the first lunar month, the annual dragon dance and flower-blowing ceremony is coming to an end. After the dragon dance and flower-blowing ceremony, a grand "dragon transformation" ceremony is held. People bring the dragon to the riverside, and a wizard or a person recites a witch's word: the dragon blesses everyone to live a happy life this year, and hopes that everyone will be lucky and prosperous in the coming year. Then they burn incense, kill chickens, and burn the dragon. Then people use the money they got from the New Year's greetings to buy wine and meat for a meal, which is also called eating dragon meat, and then the festival is declared over. Playing with dragons is very popular in the Miao area of Taijiang. In the past, villages and some social groups in the county would make dragons to play and pay New Year's greetings every year in the first lunar month. In recent years, some villages have faded. In remote villages, adults have gradually stopped playing with dragons, and only children occasionally make straw dragons to play and pay New Year's greetings. The custom of dragon dance and flower-blowing has continued for hundreds of years, and has been continuously carried forward in the integration and coexistence of foreign culture and Miao culture!