She Huo are entertaining shows dedicated to the Gods of earth and fire performed during the Spring Festival.The activities originated from the worship of land and fire in remote antiquity.The word"she"means the God of Earth,and the word"huo"means the ancestor of fire,in other words,the legendary God of Fire.In China,an agriculture-oriented country,the land is what people's livelihoods depend on.It serves as the material foundation for the survival and development of mankind.
Fire is the source for cooking and heating.It is also indispensable to human survival and development.In the remote past,fire was something with a"soul"in the primitive thinking and therefore was considered a divine matter with special significance and greatly worshiped.That was how fire worship came into being.The primitive worship of land and fire spawned the custom of holding sacrificial rituals in honor of land and fire.Along with the progression of society and people's understanding of nature,such sacrificial rituals gradually took on some human-entertaining elements,evolving into grand-scale folk activities involving a wide variety of entertaining shows.
The folk activities are in two categories according to the forms of performance—processions and drama performances.Processions include those on horseback,riding in carriages,in mountain-like formations and masked processions etc.The processions are aimed at showcasing the variety of figurines and their superb craftsmanship.As for the drama performances,there are shows put up on the ground and those on stilts.The dramas mainly featuring fighting scenes are performed in courtyards.
Traditional drama shows are based on folk legends and operatic stories.It is presented by one person or a group of people in the form of stories,with each story being a round of"she huo".The performers wear facial makeup,donning in special costumes and holding a scepter-like stick.In a"she huo"procession,a person riding a horse leads the way,followed by the"she huo"banner,canon carriers,flag holders,performers and a drum and gong band.
