The Unicorn Dance

[Kevin Barkman]

I am wondering if anyone could help with in the symbolism of the Unicorn (Kay Lun) dance. I recently had the opportunity to witness two of these events - one where the Lion and Unicorn entered together (where both the Lion and Sifu's were respectful almost to the point of subservience), and one full performance (which lasted about 10-15 minutes).

It was strange and wonderful. The music was hypnotic and very weird - the dancers stayed far lower to the ground than a typical Lion dance. The logistics seemed to follow the same path as a Lion (without the kowtowing).

Is this dance exclusive to the Hakka martial art traditions or do others practice it as well? Are there North American Unicorn teams?

Thanks in advance for your help!

Kevin

[mantis108]

Kay Lun symbolize civilazation. It is the essence/spirit of fire, which in Chinese is the begining of civilazation. The little red "bulb" as the tail of the Kay Lun represents its essence. Its body "is" the rainbow. That we can see in the colorful "coat" of the Kay Lun. In the Sung or Ming dynasty, the scholar who came first in the national examination would bore the Kay Lun insignia. He would most likely to become the husband of the arch-princess. It is extremely good fortune to have Kay Lun dance.

In the 4 mythical animal dance, Kay Lun is most popular with the Hakka people. Dragon came first on the list. It is a symbol of Royality as well. Kay Lun has a slightly higher "status" than the lion because the lion was a wild animal before in was tamed by the Buddha. Pei Yau is last on the list because it loves to fight.

Being lighter and more agile, Kay Lun holds very low stances. A lot of cat stance and low reverse bow stance. The Kowtow in Kay Lun is done with its cheeks turn to the floor (almost touching) and is done left-right-left. It would circle 3 times and repeat 3 time (if I remember correctly).
In greeting the lion, it would first approach the left side of the lion and "kiss" and then the right side. The lion has to remain low to show respect. That "kills" the legs of the lion dancers big time. It sure is a lot of fun to watch though. I think Meltdawn had done a performance lately. I have yet to see the footage.

Mantis108

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[premier]

****. Lion dance rules. Too bad I have never seen it live and there's not a single guy in the country who could teach it =)

[Paul Skrypichayko]

Mantis108, thanks for sharing your expert knowledge again.

Can you tell me anything more about the Pei Yau? This topic came up on the lion dance mailing list in the last year or so, but I wasn't able to find any clear information. I mentioned that I was told some of the stone statues found around gates, temples, and businesses were Pei Yau, and not Si Ji (lion), Kei Lun (unicorn), or Long (dragon). Another person dismissed this, saying that these statues were "fu dogs". Do you know anything about this?

Can you explain more about these mythological beasts, and how their dance is performed

Pei Yau, actually does not belong to the 4 holy creatures. Pei Yau is a creature that very similar to bear, the male is called Pei and female called Yau. In the old time, it was maily used in the army symbols and also in gambling places, as it is believed that this fiece creature is very powerful.
In Mo(Dance) Pei Yau, it is nearly as small as Kay Lun. Big forehead, eyes suck in, red face, red tongue, green nose and 2 small ears. The dance itself is quite demanding, and usually found in martial arts among "Chui Chow" people and perhaps some "Fui Gin" people.

[Kevin Barkman]

Wow - thanks Mantis 108! Did Sigung Chow Fook's school teach the Kay Lun Dance?

In the dance I saw, the Students performed until about the half-way point, and before the Kay Lun went for the green (same to Lion?) - the Sifu of the school took over (nice switch) and finished the dance.

Anyway, I would like to learn the music itself one day - never heard anything like it!

Cheers - kevin

[mantis108]

Hi Guy,

Thanks, nice to from you guys and the support as well. :)

Wilson is right in that the Pei Yau is not the classical 4 mythical animals. They should be the Lung (dragons), Fung (Pheonixs), Kay Lun (unicorn some versions has 2 horns),and Kwai (turtles). In dance though, the 4 mythical animals are usually Lung, Kay Lun, Shi ji, and Pei Yau. Wilson also explained the Pei Yau connection with the military and Gambling, so won't repeat then. My impression of Pei Yau is like the wolverine - **** nasty. LOL... Thanks Wilson nice info. long time no see, how are things? There are quite a few mythical animals such as Fei Hung (tiger with wings), Yuen Mo (coiled snake on top of turtle), etc... BTW, the Taoist's 3 secrat animals are crane, turtle, and beer.

Kevin, Sifu Chow Fook had a Kay Lun stored in his kwoon. I saw some Sihing played Kay Lun with the other schools during a HK Dragon Style association function. They were playing (not performing just playing) an enraged Kay Lun which was very cool. I don't thing Sifu taught Kay Lun during the latter part of his career. I didn't learn Kay Lun from him. Rather I was shown by other Sihings how the Kay Lun play is like and what's the protocol of approaching Kay Lun. When Meltdwan returns from NY, she may be able to help you with the musical part.

Mantis108

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Hello Mantis108,

Yeah, it's been a long time since we last spoke. How are you?
It is a shame that the Kay Lun and Pei Yau is getting lesser known now. Even in Hong Kong, there are very few people who practice them. You know that in the Tai Po, Lum Village "Dai Chui" which is a Hakka festival that celebrates once every 10 yrs. Which was last yr, and out of the 10 teams of demonstrators, only have 2 Kay Lun team and the rest are all Si Gee...very disappointing, esp in a Hakka festival.

Wilson

[Whinnyth]

I'd really like to know more about it.
I have begun to liondance and I'd like to know more about this..

Do you have a "costume" similar to the one in liondancing?

Is it common in all styles? Or is it very rare?
Should I expect to meet it in my style, Hung Gar?

Thank you in advance,
Sara

[meltdawn]

I know very little about the Unicorn Dance, but I'll share the info.

My master has done the dance for most of his life. He has done it in HK and all over the world to bring good look to the opening of new businesses and other such occasions, so I believe it is not a predominantly fighting animal. I have heard that the dogs stop barking when a Unicorn Dance is coming down the street.

The dance has serious parts and humorous parts. It does "take the greens" with money, and the higher the unicorn must go for the greens, the greater the luck. The dancing looks similar to lion, with much side to side head throwing and shaking. The head is not large and appears to have less of a grimace and more "happy" colors than most lions. It is not huge.

The music is sort of a cross between lion dance and dragon drums, but I've only learned a bit, so I'm not an expert in any sense. We used 17" cymbals, a 12" gong/drum, and the big dragon drum. The gong beats a steady rythym, the cymbals have a "tune" to play, and the drum has a little room for creativity. There are a few set measures and then three "shakings" (drum rolls) to match the unicorn's shaking dip. I hypothesize that one reason for it's rarity may be that the gong sounds like a Chinese word for death, and by some may be taken as a bad omen. But since my master's used it for good luck, I doubt this is the case.

While we were learning, the Chinese would gather around and laugh at us. I guess being white, I have TOO much rythym!!! I got the nick name "Cha Cha Chang". It was great fun, but playing 17" cymbals for 15 minutes straight will kill anyone.

It was fun, and truly exciting to be a part of a foreign culture if only for a brief moment in time.

"Waiting is bad." - Musashi

[Laine Nakachi]

Kevin Barkman ,

The best thing for you to do ,is to check out the lion dance email list .I'm also involved with it too , myself.

Other participants had taken themselves off the list .But to me it's too bad that it happened that way.I'm still on the list under a different name .That's where you'll find all the information on unicorns and their symbolisms and their traditions.For infomation on the North American Unicorn Teams ? Check out the lion dance web site .At http://www.geocities.com/lionscave1/ .

In Honolulu , we also do the unicorn dance , clubs .Clubs like the Chinese Physical Culture Association ( Jung Moo Tai Ouk Oui) in Honolulu .The unicorn dance ,if you did'nt know,came with it's own system of self defense.It's called the unicorn dance.Which is a close range type of fighting method.When the unicorn dance is being performed , it as it's own footwork and stances.In self defense situations the footwork is to trap the opponents leg,while the unicorn practitioner can move in and overcome the opponent.The system has it's own chi kung exercises too.It's a rare form of kung fu , the man who teaches it don't teach any more .

If I'm not mistaken the unicorn bows forward like a lion.But when bowing backwards,it moves in a circular motion.
But go and visit the lion dance web site , it's filled with information on lion ,dragon,peyau ( round face lion ),northern lion,and so forth.Take Care

Sil Lum Kuen
P.S. Although , I'm not from the Chinese Physical Culture Association.I'm with another kung fu / lion dance club in Hawaii.Bye.

[Je Lei Sifu]

As with different schools and different methods of performing lion, I also notice that different schools bow differently with their unicorns.

We also perform the unicorn, and all movements are performed low to the ground. But when we bow, we do low quick shuffling steps foward and to the center in a low dui ma (cat stance), but the 2nd and 3rd bows are do in a low single leg stance first with the left leg raised forward and the unicorns cheek face the ground to the left then switch and repeat on the opposite side with the right lef raised. By the way the 2nd and 3rd bows are done while hopping on the supporting leg.

Peace

Je Lei Sifu :cool:

The Southern Fist Subdues The Fierce Mountain Tiger