The Hakka ‘Dragon Bombing’ tradition culminates in Taiwan’s Miaoli County during the Lantern Festival.
Taiwan News
Date: 2017/02/10
By: Keoni Everington, Taiwan News, Staff Writer
TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Miaoli Hakka Lantern Festival’s “Dragon Bombing” (火旁
Hakka “Dragon Bombing” (Miaoli Dragon Bombing Facebook page)
龍) tradition, in which dragon teams dance for fortune and glory under a maelstrom of fireworks, is one four largest Lantern Festivals in Taiwan and will be reaching its grand finale this weekend.
The Hakka people (客家人), one of Taiwan’s key minorities, hold a unique festival of dancing dragons in western Taiwan’s Miaoli County to mark the end of the Lunar New Year consisting of six stages: constructing the dragon, dotting its eyes, welcoming the dragon into homes and businesses, dancing the dragon, bombing the dragon, and burning the dragon.
Many Chinese communities around the world hold dragon dances to celebrate the Lunar New Year, however it is only in this community that they “bomb” the dragons. The rationale is that the more explosive the dance and the more hits the dragon gets hit by fireworks, the more luck and prosperity (愈炸愈旺) there will be for those who come close. [FULL STORY]
