Life etiquette in Fuyang paper-cutting
The four stages of life rituals, namely birth, wedding, birthday celebrations and funeral, are an indispensable part of every life journey. In these four links, Fuyang paper-cutting carries important etiquette and customs culture.
Speaking of birth customs, in the social structure with thousands of years of farming culture as the core in the Fuyang area, the ideas of "carrying on the family line" and "preferring sons over daughters" are very prevalent. When a boy is born, he is said to be "very happy", and when a girl is born, he is said to be "a pot cook". Within three days of giving birth to a baby, red eggs should be sent to the mothers family to announce the good news. On the 8th or 12th day, the mothers family will give gifts, including old hens, eggs, brown sugar, rice yeast, childrens clothes, shoes, hats, socks, etc. The gifts must be wrapped in bright red paper-cuts. When the full moon comes, she will go to her parents' house to stay for a few days before calling the full moon away. If the newlyweds have not had children for two or three years, or if they have given birth to several girls in a row, they will have to give birth to a child (Fuyang peoples way of asking for a child is called "Shuan'er"). For Shuan'er, a whole set of etiquette and customs has been formed. On any day between the first and the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, the men of the village are invited to come forward and burn incense and pray at a nearby temple. Then they bring back a clay doll and put a paper-cut paper on the home to wait for good news in the coming year. (Paper-cut work "Qilin Sends Off a Child") The style of Shuan'er is still popular in Fuyang. This kind of ritual paper-cutting reflects the local peoples simple understanding of reproduction.
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Paper-cut work: Qilin giving birth to a son, Cheng Jianli
Marriage is a critical moment to connect the past and the future. It is the beginning for everyone to break away from childishness, move toward maturity, and assume responsibilities. It is also an important turning point for the inheritance of the family line. In the countryside of Fuyang, the festive atmosphere of the wedding room is by no means inferior to the Spring Festival for a family. The process of folk marriage customs has formed a series of folk cultural items expressing wishes and prayers. Of course, all this depends on paper-cutting experts. During the wedding, lights will be decorated inside and outside the house, inside and outside the courtyard. Red double happiness stickers will be posted on the windows and doors. The decorations will be colorful, lively and joyful. (Paper-cut work "Mouse Marriage") Most of the things in the new house come from the dowry from the mothers family. Dowry utensils, beddings, lamps, basins, etc. must be affixed with bright red wedding flowers (Paper-cut work "Happy Flowers"), put red peanuts and fruit cakes in the suitcase. The peanuts must be raw, and the fruit cakes cannot be cooked. The word "raw" is auspicious. The embroidery on the brides clothes, shoes, hats, headwear, quilts, pillows, and tents are generally handmade by the bride, and the original source of these embroidery is paper cutting. A folk song widely circulated in Taihe area of ??Fuyang shows the importance of paper-cutting for brides and weddings.
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Paper-cut work Mouse Marriage (detail) Cheng Xinghong
Yes, yes, yes, Nanyuan will marry a beautiful aunt.
He has clever hands, a fair face, and two pairs of scissors.
Hing a peach, the peach has hair,
Hing an apricot, the apricot is sour,
A butterfly flies into the sky!
From this ballad, we can see that the brides paper-cutting skills are very superb. On the tip of her scissors, the peach hairs grow, the apricots are sour, and the butterflies can fly into the sky. Young women in Fuyang usually copy some patterns from relatives, friends or companions of their elders and make paper-cuts. However, in some cases, in order to seek novelty and difference and gain recognition and praise from others, without the ability to innovate on their own, women have no choice but to turn their attention to the market, and professional paper-cutting artists emerge in response to the demand. According to field research, most of the paper-cuts that paper-cut artist Ge Tingyou bought on the streets in the 1980s were "happy flowers", and his paper-cuts decorated countless weddings. (Paper-cut work "Happy Flowers")
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Paper-cut work Xihua (tea vase flower) Cheng Jianli
Fuyang people have the traditional virtue of respecting the elderly and caring for the young since ancient times. In the old days of Fuyang, people could be called "longevity" when they reached sixty. Be sure to celebrate on your birthday. Wealthy people celebrate their birthdays more grandly. They set up longevity halls in their homes, put up lanterns and streamers, and hang the words "Fortune is as long as the flowing water of the East China Sea, and longevity is as long as the southern mountains."There are couplets of "Old Pine". In the middle hang a collection of paper-cut patterns celebrating birthdays such as "Hundred Years of Life" and "Songs and Cranes Prolong Years". Fruits are offered in the hall, and candles and incense are burned. The deceased sits in the main hall, and their children, relatives and friends worship in turn. . Birthday gifts generally include birthday couplets, firecrackers, candles, birthday wine, birthday peaches, birthday noodles, etc. The birthday ceremony of poor families is simpler, but the paper-cut "Hundred Birthday Picture" will also be hung in the hall. (Paper-cut work "Birthday Picture") At the same time, Fuyang peoples birthday gifts vary according to their age. For example, when an old man turns 66 and his daughter and relatives and friends come to celebrate his birthday, he must prepare 6 large steamed buns, 6 pounds and 6 taels of pork, as well as pastries and wine. It is a kind of gift. It is commonly known as "Sixty-six, eat a piece of meat". The number given by the daughter must match sixty-six, which means longevity; there is a folk saying in Fuyang that "seventy-three, the undead ghost will come to haunt". The old man eats a piece of meat. Fish can help you survive the concept of life and death. As the saying goes: "When you are sixty-three or seventy-three, eat a carp and jump away." Therefore, when the old man is sixty-three or seventy-three years old, his children should buy him a carp. Go to celebrate your birthday. These birthday gifts should be decorated with meaningful paper-cut birthday flowers.
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Paper-cut work Xihua Ge Tingyou
Funeral is an important event in life rituals. When someone dies, people often tie paper into various objects and characters, such as boys and girls, and burn them at the funeral or bury them with the deceased. Some paper-cut lace will be affixed to the bases of these boys and girls. . The clothes and shoes given to old people will also be embroidered with meaningful patterns (the paper-cut work "Golden Water Bridge"). The "flag" cut by Mr. Yin Yang, who presides over the funeral, is also white paper-cut for the spirit of the deceased. When relatives and friends express their condolences, they should send firewood and write "messages" (paper horses, paper figures, mountains of gold, mountains of silver, etc.) to relatives.
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Paper-cut works wishShou Tu Ge Tingyou
The above-mentioned life etiquette and customs activities of Fuyang people are inseparable from the "universal" handicraft of paper-cutting. An important turning point in the lives of Fuyang people
