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Traditions
Bendigo Chinese Association – Easter Festival Parade
The Chinese Procession has been a major part of the Easter Processions since 1871 and a dragon known as ‘Loong’ first appeared in 1892. The name Loong simply means Dragon. ‘Loong’ retired in 1970 (but reappeared in 2001 for the centenary of Federation parade in Melbourne) and is now on display in the award winning Golden Dragon Museum.
Loong’s replacement is Sun Loong and first appeared in 1970. Sun Loong is the longest Imperial (rain) Dragon in the world.
There are 7 sections to the present Chinese part of the Procession which display the costumes of the Lead, Philosophy, Military, Princess, Student, Dragon, and Dragon attendants. Some of the regalia can be seen in the Museum today.
The Chinese on the Bendigo goldfields brought Loong from Canton to aid the local charities. But before a dragon can appear at a procession, he has to be “awakened” from his year long sleep. A great deal of noise is required to waken him. This is done through the use of fire crackers and the banging of drums and other instruments.
Wong Loong
The first part of the “awakening” takes place a week before Easter with the ceremony of “Wong Loong” (Dragon Blessing), when the dragon is blessed by three elders of the Bendigo Chinese Association and fed with Pomelo leaves to the accompaniment of lion dancing, drums, cymbals, dancing and martial arts. The “Wong Loong” ceremony takes place before invited guests from all over Victoria and the Chinese community. This is an occasion for members of the Bendigo Chinese Association to say “thank you” to their many friends for their support throughout the year.
Awakening of the Dragon
The second part of the awakening, which is a unique experience in Bendigo, is performed in front of large crowds who gather to watch the “awakening” which takes place at Bridge Street on the afternoon of Easter Sunday. This sets the happy tone for the long awaited appearance of the dragon.
In order to do this, much lion dancing, dragon dancing, folk dancing and music-making provides a colourful venue for young Chinese from all over Australia to display old traditional dance movements performed with traditional musical accompaniment. Some of our invited teams include the Chinese Youth Society of Melbourne, Hung Gar Yau Shu, and Chung Wah Association (Darwin).
The 'Dance of the Lions' gives the performer an opportunity to display intricate and symbolic movements. The dances of the lions are designed to tease the dragon to a state of “awakeness”. Along with the lions, firecrackers are used as it is necessary to make a lot of noise to wake an Imperial dragon. At the end of all the dances, a finale of 100,000 firecrackers is used to ensure that the Imperial dragon is awakened.
Torchlight Procession
The Bendigo Chinese Association has been part of the Torchlight procession since it first commenced in 1893.
Easter Monday
In 1869 the citizens of Bendigo organised the first festival and procession fair to entertain themselves and their families and to raise money for the hospital and the home for the aged, the Benevolent Asylum. By 1871 this had become an annual event, the Bendigo Easter Fair (now known as the Bendigo Easter Festival), and marked the first year that the Chinese community joined in the festivities.
In the early 1870s Chinese participated in the procession by dressing in richly embroidered costumes, and carrying colourful banners in all shapes and sizes which were specially made for them in China. The procession would start from Ironbark Camp, which housed one of the largest Chinese settlements, and gradually wind its way to Camp Reserve (now Rosalind Park) where the fair was located.
In 1879 (They started the fundraising for the costumes in 1879 but the parade with the imported costumes was in 1882) when attendances were falling, the Chinese community contributed a one mile long oriental pageant to back up the Easter Fair. It was reported in the local paper that there were over 1000 meticulously made-up and beautifully robed Chinese men and children that had participated. A Chinese opera was presented over three days, feasts of Chinese delicacies were offered to the Europeans and many of the customs and traditions usually reserved for Chinese festivals were presented.
So important to the Chinese was the grand procession on Easter Monday that up to 3 pounds was donated to the hospital for a place of honour at the head of the procession. The Chinese section of the procession, which by tradition was the last of all those participating, became a drawcard of the fair and contributed to its monetary and social success. On various occasions it was led by such eminent men as Dr. James Lamsey (Lam See), the interpreter Ah Poo, and Chung Ley the headman of the Emu Point camp.
1892 saw the first reported appearance of a dragon in Bendigo, the 30 metre imperial dragon, which the Chinese community brought out from Fat Shan, a Canton province, as a gift to the citizens of Bendigo. The procession and dancing of the dragon has become the centre point of the Easter Fair and has helped unite the citizens of Bendigo into one close unit, as all citizens of Bendigo, not only Chinese, can participate in the dragon procession.
Loong, the oldest dragon, served the Bendigo Chinese community well for many years, but has now been replaced by Sun Loong (new dragon), over 100 metres of imperial dragon which is the longest in the world. As well as Loong and Sun Loong, Bendigo has other dragons which no longer appear at the processions.
The multi-ethnic members of the Bendigo Chinese Association who are responsible for the care of Loong, and the dragons that have followed, as well as the magnificent memorabilia and regalia collected over the years, spend much time and research to make the dragon procession as authentically Chinese as possible, with appropriate dancing, music and noise.
Chinese New Year
Chinese New Year starts with the New Moon on the first day of the new year and ends on the full moon 15 days later. The 15th day of the new year is called the Lantern Festival, which is celebrated at night with lantern displays and children carrying lanterns in a parade.
New Year's Eve/Day are celebrated with the family because it is a time of reunion and thanksgiving. The highlight of the celebrations was traditionally with a religious ceremony to honor Heaven and Earth, the gods of the household and the family ancestors.
The most vital of the rituals it the sacrifice to the ancestors because this unites the living members with those who had passed away. The ancestors are remembered with great respect because they were responsible for laying the foundations for the family's fortune and glory.
To acknowledge the presence of the ancestors, New Year's Eve is celebrated with a dinner arranged for them at the family banquet table. The spirits of the ancestors, and the living, celebrate the onset of the New Year as one great community. This feast is called "surrounding the stove" or weilu. This symbolises family unity and honors the past and present generations.
The information, layout and images on this website are protected by copyright, trademark and other forms of intellectual property rights. Unless indicated otherwise, copyright, trademark and other intellectual property rights in the information on this website are owned by the Bendigo Chinese Association Inc. 2008.
Website created by Troy Henderson
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