We must understand that the process of appreciating a person's heritage of Chinese culture has been ingrained since they were born. Children who lack experience due to lack of interaction with the Chinese heritage community can no longer understand the significance of the fusion of art and sport as their father and grandfather had before. Their enthusiasm has faded due to the lack of attention to our traditional approach. To them the sound of gong drums, symbals is a noise that just worries them, while the sound of these instruments for their ancestors is a splendor and a feeling of fulfillment. The loss in traditional Chinese culture is very evident to them. Lion dance dances with a high culture of creative merit can no longer be lived. Stuff like these should no longer be blamed for them. What is crucial now is that we, who are still here, should be a continuity of the previous generation who have left us to maintain and grow our cultural heritage culture for the younger generation. Lion Dance is one of the western activities that we need to protect in the future. We should be as proud of this culture as our ancestors were.
EIX2002 SOCIOLOGY E-BLOG CASE STUDY
LION DANCE
REFLECTIVE
Current state of lion dance
Lion dance is a significant location for the development of culture. Lion dance stands for longevity as well as for the adaptation of a tradition that embodies the transforming cultures of the Chinese in the subcontinent.
An significant time in our past, lion dance performances were not allowed in Malaysia except during the Chinese New Year for around two decades after the May 13 police brutality of 1969, as they were not considered part of Malaysia's cultural heritage and exempt from cultural identity policy.
In 1974, when then Prime Minister Tun Abdul Razak visited Mao Zedong in Beijing, he was invited to a lion dance performance as part of the welcoming ceremony. This led some influential Malaysian Chinese politicians to begin by expressing their encouragement for lion dance to be accepted as part of our national culture, with the endorsement of Malaysia's Selangor & FT Dragon and Lion Dance Federation, the oldest in the world.
A lion-dance federation in Kuala Lumpur was formed in 1974 after the Prime Minister visit to China with the aim of preserving bilateral relations between Malaysia and China. The federation has boosted its renaissance and the proposed methodology. The Malaysian Federation of Chinese Martial Arts Associations also organized national lion dance competitions. More Mandarin and Cantonese schemes are broadcast nationally and privately owned television. Lion dances are part of the National Day processions and stage presence for international visitors.
Malaysian troops have attained an outstanding results. Since 1996, they have championships at international tournaments held at the Genting Highlands, organized by the Gabungan Tarian Naga and Singa Malaysia (Malaysian Federation of Dragon and Lion Dance). Lion heads made in Malaysia by the East Ocean Trading Co. in Johore (established in 1983) are known to be of top quality, sophisticated and much lighter. They're being exported to other parts of Asia.
Today with an effort to boost national unity, the Dragon and Lion Dance Federation of Malaysia wants the traditional Chinese performing arts to be promoted as national sport.
(Lion head made in Malaysia)
Lion dance today in community
Young Chinese people have fallen out of love with lion dance. People in the past excited to read, maybe because there's little work to be done, or perhaps because television isn't as much as there is today, but for sure they're interested in learning how to represent their personality and community. So, this is the community they bring to society.
Contrarily to the people in the past, there are currently just a few teens who are still participating in lion dance, and there are still those who are not involved.
For those who are curious, it's because they've been educated by their family support since childhood. Some of them have also adopted Chinese culture from their ancestors. In order to guarantee that the heritage does not become extinct, parents ensure that the history and culture is passed on to their children before the next generation. Any interest in lion dance is also attributed to their understanding of the philosophy of Chinese culture. They consider lion dance to be a special style of sport. The longer a person learns to dance to the lion, the more experience he can gain.
Some people are losing confidence in lion dancing because of a few obstacles. For eg, restricted services, parental restriction, complicated methods and obsolete. Old people believe that only someone of good will, zeal and patience can learn the dance properly. Lion Dance is a practice or performance that you can't learn halfway, so you have to thoroughly learn about it, and it may take several years.
Suggestions
(1) Promote parent-child class
For parents who are nervous about the welfare of their children, by promoting parent-child community sessions, they can watch their children during the session and, at the same time, they can attend the class and practice lion dance techniques.
(2) Support the Genting Highlands International Tournament
The 14th Genting World Lion Dance Championship will take place in 2020. Resorts World Genting wishes to advise that the 14th Genting World Lion Dance Championship 2020 proposed for 10 – 12.07.2020 at the Stars Arena will instead be scheduled for 2021 in view of COVID-19.
(14th Genting World Lion Dance Championship)
(3) Making up much of the social media
Social media is the best medium for promoting lion dance, particularly among teenagers. The power of social media will affect and attract them to be involved in pursuing this athletic activity. Also, we should spread the techniques of lion dance and some interesting information about it, since many of us really have no understanding of what lion dance is all about. The method of creating a lion's head can also be marketed as a special art requires more community focus.
(4) Squad or case of the Group
Apart from the current organisations, Malaysia's Selangor & FT Dragon and Lion Dance Federation, there are apparently only a handful who are still participating, such as the Kun Seng Keng Lion & Dragon Dance Association. Thus, by forming a group team or hosting a special lion dance event, people can take advantage of this chance to participate and practice lion dance in their own communities. They should train a strong team work, and they could also tighten their ties.
(5) Collaborate for school or universities;
Local schools are an important venue to foster the tradition of lion dance. We have a significant role to play in educating children about their customs. Local schools should employ a lion dance master to teach students the correct knowledge of lion dance. Lion dance will also be a co-curricular sport in local schools. For eg, the University of Malaya is developing a community, the Um Lion Dance Troupe, to encourage lion dance. Students who have learned well on lion dance will instruct high school students.
(UM students teaching secondary students with basic skill for lion dance)
EIX2002 SOCIOLOGY E-BLOG CASE STUDY
LION DANCE
CONTENT
THE ISSUES AND CHALLENGES OF LION DANCE?
Issue and challenge on lion dance
(high poles around 3 meters for lion dance performance)
(Master Siew is making lion head)
Monday 4 January 2021
EIX2002 SOCIOLOGY E-BLOG CASE STUDY
LION DANCE
CONTENT
WHY IT IS IMPORTANT?
Importance of lion dance
Friday 1 January 2021
EIX2002 SOCIOLOGY E-BLOG CASE STUDY
LION DANCE
CONTENT
WHAT IS LION DANCE?
(Street Art in Seremban from https://asianitinerary.com/street-art-seremban/)
(lion dance in Seremban)
Seremban, Negeri Sembilan is a small town that is quite famous with Lion Dance. For the sake of upholding and preserving the heritage of Chinese martial sport, various associations have been established, among which includes Xuan Long Dragon And Lion Dance Negeri Sembilan Association, Long Yi Dragon and Lion Dance Sports Club.
According to Chinese traditional culture, the lion dance is done to shoo away goblins and demons, and because goblins, ghosts, supernatural forces, and giants like 'Nian' dislike noises, the dance is becoming a perfect addition to the fire crackers' noise.
Lion dance is a popular Chinese dance held on a separate occasion, such as the Harvest Festival (Chinese New Year) for good fortune, as it is presumed that the lion is a propitious beast. The lion symbolizes strength, intelligence, and dominance in Chinese culture. People do lion dances at Chinese festivals or have a big potential to turn blessing and scare away demonic possession. Lion dance is one of the most main motivators of the Chinese New Year. It's made to establish capacity and good luck to the new year. Lion dancing is also a method to develop a festive mood and spread pleasure. Executed in a lion's outfit, followed by the rhythm of pounding drums, clashing mallets and deafening baubles, lion dances mimic the lion's different gestures or show capoeira endurance, depending upon the type.
Type of lion dance
The lion dance has divided into two styles: southern and northern.
The Southern Lion Dance in Guangdong and is a popular stereotype in Hong Kong, Macau. Southern lion dance is a show focused on the nature and significance of the lion, with a focus on behaviors such as scraping, spinning the body, and licking the hair. Antics are lively and humorous, sometimes hilarious. There are also talented actions, such as performing with a ball, which involves swallowing.
Northern Lion Dance is deep ties to "Kungfu", the Chinese martial arts. A juvenile lion is carried out by a single man and an adult lion by a pairing. The costumes are much more durable and perhaps less dramatic to encourage smoother motion. In adult lion performing, the dancer in front with the lion's head is always raised by another to enable the lion rise up. Northern lion dances are more acrobatic, involving tossing, wrestling, leaping, spinning, climbing, or swinging.
EIX2002 SOCIOLOGY E-BLOG CASE STUDY
LION DANCE
INTRODUCTION
Seremban was established as Sungei Ujong (or Sungai Ujong), named after a river of the same name in the vicinity. Though the town was later renamed Seremban. The town is often alternately referred to as "Fu Rong" in Mandarin or "Fu Yong" in Cantonese (Chinese: fitting, literally "hibiscus") in the Chinese-speaking culture.
(Map of Seremban, Negeri Sembilan from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seremban)
Seremban is located about 60 kilometers south of Kuala Lumpur (capital city) and about 30 kilometers inland from the coast. It is situated in the valley of the Linggi River, at the foothills of the Titiwangsa region.It covers an area of 959 km² . According to the 2010 census, there are 514,909 Malaysian people residing in the Seremban administrative district. They compose of 56.4 per cent Bumiputer, 26.2 per cent Chinese and 17 per cent Indian and 0.5 per cent non-citizens. There are 41,026 non-citizens in addition.
(Demographic of Seremban, Negeri Sembilan from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seremban)
The total wage for Seremban is RM 37k. The cost of living in Seremban is 100% higher than the national average. The most common occupations in Seremban are the Operations Manager, Process Engineer, and Account Executive, who pay between RM 4k and RM 107k per year. ON Semiconductor, Nexperia, and NXP Semiconductors Inc. are the most common employers in Seremban.
(Statistic of popular employers in Seremban, Negeri Sembilan from https://www.payscale.com/research/MY/Location=Seremban/Salary)
(Cost of living in Seremban, Negeri Sembilan in December 2020 from https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/in/Seremban)
Seremban has many clinics and medical facilities, including government hospitals and private hospitals. Tuanku Ja'afar Hospital, formerly known as Seremban General Hospital, is a public hospital for the state of Negeri Sembilan. Founded in 1930 with a total capacity of 800 beds and 20 therapeutic specialties and numerous support facilities. The other hospitals include the Columbia Asia Medical Center, which opened in 1999.
Seremban is situated in the valley of the Linggi River, at the foothills of the Titiwangsa region. The soil is usually hilly, and the soil is mainly reddish scorched, suitable for the agriculture of rubber and palm oil, allowing Seremban an agricultural hub for the province. The Linggi River has played an important role in the growth of the region. Mostly during boom of mining operations, the Linggi River acted as the main transport path for tin merchants. Today, this is one of the primary water sources for Seremban and Negeri Sembilan.
