To England!

To London, packed like sardines! XD

As this notice is published, I will be boarding a plane to London for a week of guqin master-classes with Prof. Zeng Chengwei of Chengdu Conservatory of Music, who teaches for one week annually in the Asian Music Circuit (AMC) program of Chinese music, attracting fans and players worldwide to this event.

I will be keeping progress updates and journals of this event as I have arrived, and will return to Toronto by August 2nd.

I wish all readers of this blog, and members of Torguqin, a pleasant and safe summer, and venture into new encounters!

Juni Yeung, FXKQS

Toronto Guqin Society

2 Essays from Minghua Tang Blog

In this post are the translations of two essays, titled:

“The Particular Nature of “National clothing” in China, and its Relations with the Han Chinese” (国服在中国的特殊表现，及其与汉族的关系), and:
“The Formation Period of Han Chinese Ethnic Clothing, and the Archaeological Barriers to Clothing in Historical Dramas” (汉族民族服饰的形成期 与 历史剧服饰的考古屏障)

Both by Zhong Yi, Founder and President of Ming Hua Tang Clothing, a subdivision of Eurasia (H.K) Ltd.

Editor’s note: As one of the leading researchers and makers of authentic Hanfu, Mr. Zhong’s take on the rise of the Hanfu movement and redefining “Chinese” culture is clear-minded, as he takes a cold, clean separation from “Han=China” which has dominated the stream of academic thought to this day. His perspective brings out the question of redefining the scope of “Chinese” studies and the cultural domain and rights of the people.

Chinese Expert Relegates July 5 Xinjiang Incident to Three Types of Inequality

The Xinjiang Incident’s causes are due to Unequal Ethnic Policy, Unequal demographic Policy, and Unequal Economic Policy (Original in Chinese, posted July 8, 2009)

By: YI Fuxian, MD, PhD
Translated: Juni L. YEUNG, FXKQS 

She Li, The Archery Ritual

Translated from Yi Li and Tianfeng Huanpei‘s Han Chinese Traditional Ritual Revival Proposition Project.

The Archery Ceremony.

 

Archery Ceremony

 

Nature

 

Chinese civilization honours its forefathers and the roots of its civilization by commemorating and sharing its past role of a hunter in a ritualized competition of archery. Following the downfall of traditional rituals, this originally widespread ceremony held by civilians to greet important guests has all but disappeared. However, other countries in the Sinosphere has maintained this tradition, and is best known by the Japanese counterpart today as Kyudo.

 

The point of the She-Li, or Archery ceremony, is to demonstrate to the public (and the King, in the past) the virtue of the shooter – the Chinese believe that it is not in the quality of the bow, but in the moral resolve, ethical virtue, spiritual refinement, and proper physical condition combined that makes an outstanding person to shoot properly, and is a testing stone to his (or her) ability to serve and lead others. With this philosophy, Confucian scholars have turned this weapon of war into a tool of peace and education.

 

The Archery Ceremony is not a competition or a game: Aside from the personal spiritual refinement (“If one fires but misses the target… one should find its causes from within[1]”), it also raises personal awareness and alertness to his or her surroundings, and giving a sense of temperance and responsibility to maintain social order, with the bow giving a chance to its beholder a feel for (lethal) power. More details of the meaning and benefits of ritualized archery can be found in the Book of Rites (禮記 Li Ji), under the chapter Meaning of Archery (射義 She Yi).

 

Guan Li, the coming-of-age ritual

Translated from Yi Li, and Tianfeng Huanpei‘s Proposition for Revival of Han Chinese ceremony Project:

A Coming-of-age ceremony at a Confucian tutelage.

The Guan Li (冠禮, lit. “headpiece/coronation ceremony”) is a traditional rite by the Han Chinese to signify the coming of age or adulthood of the receiving participant. According to the Book of Rites, males are of age by 20 and females by 15 (in which their ceremony is called Ji Li 笄禮, lit. “hairpin ceremony”), but in context of modern-day societal standards, 18~20 years of age is the ideal time for the ceremony for both genders, with standardized routines to signify the equality between the two.

 

With the onset of Westernization, the function of this rite has been split into two other rituals: Convocation and marriage, as per Western standards. While Japan and Korea retains a statuary day and ceremony of the same purpose (Seijin no Hi, on January 15 for Japan; third Monday of May in Korea), the practice is generally lost in the Chinese communities, partly due to effects from Queue Order and the Manchurian invasion of 1644, the disfavouring of tradition in the early 20^th century, and the opinion of technical incompatibility with Western practices today.

 

With the rise of living standards in China today, the Chinese people are beginning to rediscover their diverse heritages. Even as the leading ethnicity in the PRC, the Han Chinese tradition is often overlooked as a mysterious or stagnant culture, but little was done to make it more understandable and relatable, until the traditional clothing revival movement (Hanfu Movement) started in 2003, popularizing the clothing before the influence of the Queue Order and bringing back civil rituals to mainstream society.

Hanminzu.com and 275+ Baidu forums removed, Chinese free communication paralyzed

The anthromorphization of censorship: Green Dam Girl (綠ba娘), image from Sankaku Complex.

From the temporary Hanwang (http://hanminzu.5d6d.com):

【公告】汉网常务理事会关于汉网被关闭的说明

在众所周知的新疆乌市7.5骚乱发生后，汉网经受了访问量超负荷运行和海量技术性攻击。7月8日国务院新闻办进行网络监管，全国一批网站因为涉及乌市骚乱而被“和谐”，汉网也在其中。我们正在努力恢复汉网，希望网友们、同胞们帮助和支持。在此，我们沉痛哀悼在骚乱中罹难的同胞，期望我们的民族和祖国强大昌盛。 联系人：大汉之风   联系方式：QQ 287495266，手机 13917692573，电子邮箱 hwanghaiqing@hotmail.com                                                                 汉网常务理事会                                                              李理 舍园华胄 天蝎凤凰                                                              东门    ljn      冠军侯                                                                红天  曾德纲  大汉之风

 

Translation:

“[Announcement] Hanminzu.com Moderating Staff’s statement on the closure of the site

Due to the widely-known Xinjiang Urumqi riot of July 5, Hanminzu.com (Hanwang) has suffered from operational overload from visits, as well mass DDoS technical attacks. On July 8, the State Council Information Office of the PRC has enacted total virtual monitoring, and a group of websites across the nation have been “harmonized” due to the mentioning of the Urumqi Riots. Hanwang was among one of them.

We are trying hard to restore Hanwang, and we hope that friends and comrades assist and support us. To this, we deeply grieve for our fellow countrymen who have fallen in the ruckus, and we hope to see our nationality [ethnicity] and our Motherland become strong and prosperous.

Contact Person: Dahan Zhifeng
Contact method: QQ287495266, Cell [Shanghai] 13917692573, email hwanghaiqing@hotmail.com.
(Signature translation skipped)