Chapter 20 Section 6 Tug of War

Tug-of-war was originally called "leading hook" or "hook strong" in ancient China, and it is a very attractive physical activity.At first, it appeared as a military skill for boat warfare in ancient water armies.So, what is the relationship between tug-of-war and boat warfare?We can find the answer from "Mozi·Lu Wen".During the Warring States period, Chu State, a big southern country, had interlaced water networks, so boat warfare became an extremely important way of combat. However, when Chu State and Yue State engaged in water battles, they often encountered a headache. That is to say, the state of Chu is upstream and the state of Yue is downstream. In this way, it is very difficult for the Chu army to control the formation of its warships, especially to retreat when encountering unfavorable situations, while the Vietnamese army can use the current to retreat quickly when it is unfavorable. , Therefore, the Chu army has been defeated repeatedly.At this time, Gongshuzi (that is, Lu Ban), a famous engineer in the Warring States Period, just happened to go south from Lu State to Chu State. Knowing this situation, he designed the "hook strong" utensil.Use this device to prevent the enemy ship from approaching your own ship when it is advancing, and when the enemy ship is defeated and wants to escape, it can hook the enemy ship.In this way, the two ships will pull each other on the big river, entangled with each other, and the soldiers can show their talents, and they have to win or lose before they can stop.The tug-of-war evolved from the military training of the Chu army, which used strong hooks to pull against each other. It became a festive entertainment activity on the Lantern Festival and Qingming Festival, and tug-of-war was used to pray for a good harvest.

In the Tang Dynasty, the tug-of-war reached an unprecedented scale. The number of participants and the intense atmosphere of competition were unmatched by later generations.Xue Sheng, a Jinshi of the Tang Dynasty, wrote an "Ode to Tug-of-War", which vividly described a tug-of-war held during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty: the hemp rope used for this tug-of-war was thick and long, as long as four or fifty feet long, piled up like a hill.Many small ropes are separated from the main rope, and more than 1,000 strong and brave wrestlers appear on the stage, each with a small rope tied to his chest, and the flag stands in the middle.In the fierce competition, these burly men were sweating profusely, their faces were red, their toes were stuck in the mud, as if they were about to step on the ground, the generals roared like tigers, and the civil servants stared at each other. Applause, for a moment, the earth shook and the mountains shook, the scene was very spectacular.Due to the unique warm atmosphere and exciting and grand scenes of tug-of-war, it has become a kind of festival entertainment loved by all walks of life.In the fourth year of Jinglong (710 A.D.), Tang Zhongzong organized a tug-of-war competition in which high-ranking officials and dignitaries participated. Then watch with the queen and princess.In the tug-of-war competition, people fell all over their backs, and the older ones couldn't get up for a long time. Zhongzong laughed out loud.In the end, the team on the east side won because of more nobles, and the west team refused to accept the request for a heavy sentence, and was not allowed ("Fengshi Wenjianji").In the Tang Dynasty, there was also women's tug-of-war. In February 708 AD, Li Xian, Emperor Zhongzong of Tang Dynasty, once organized a tug-of-war for court ladies.

Compared with the large-scale and majestic tug-of-war of the Tang Dynasty, it is probably the traditional tug-of-war of the Koreans in Northeast my country. The Koreans call this game "Suo Zhan".It is a celebration of a good harvest that takes place between two villages.The tug-of-war rope is made of straw and rattan. Since there are thousands of participants, not only the main rope (mother rope) must be long, but also many small ropes (child ropes) must be tied to the main rope.The mother rope is three to four hundred meters long and about half a meter thick.It is really not a small project to make such a giant rope, and it was made by the villagers from both sides of the competition.The sub-rope is relatively small, and both parties prepare it separately.During the competition, there was a festive atmosphere, with loud gongs and drums, and instrumental music played in unison. Villagers from nearby villages gathered in the competition venue, cheering and cheering, and it was very lively.

Because tug-of-war is simple, practical, joyful and festive, it is deeply loved by people of all ethnic groups in China. It has not only become a traditional festival entertainment of many ethnic groups and has been passed down to this day, but also has developed various forms.For example, the Kyrgyz people have a traditional tug-of-war called "Guolibuha", which takes the form of one-on-one personal confrontation.Tie the two ends of the cow hair rope together, and put them on the back of the necks of the two tug-of-war players who are standing with their backs facing away.During the competition, the tug-of-war is on his hands and feet, trying to crawl with his back and pulling his opponent.The tug-of-war also holds goat horns in its hands to increase pulling power.

Sports activities similar to tug-of-war include waist pulling popular among Hani, Lahu, Sala and many other ethnic minorities, which is also a contest of body strength.During the competition, two competitors stood facing each other, bent down and stretched their arms, crossed and hugged each other's waist. The referee gave an order, and each tried their best to uproot the opponent while trying to make themselves stand firm. The traditional Tibetan "pulling the stick" or "pushing the stick" is the same type of exercise. Two people sit facing each other on the ground with a wooden stick in the middle. Both sides stretch out their arms, arms crossed, and hold the wooden stick tightly.Then straighten your legs, push the soles of your feet together, pull the pedals with your arms, and pull the opponent's buttocks off the ground.