Crossing the Tongji Bridge

138.Crossing the Tongji Bridge

Nominating Unit: City of Foshan

Every lunar January 16th, the country folk of Foshan cross the Tongji Bridge to pray for favorable climate and good luck. According to the historical records, Tongji Bridge, one of the first bridges built in Foshan, was initially a wooden bridge that was built with the funds raised by the nearby villagers. In the Ming Dynasty when Tianqi was the emperor, the Minister of Revenue Lidai who was once a countryman advocated rebuilding the bridge, which was later called ‘the Tongji Bridge’. The bridge bestrides Foshan stream, connecting four villages. People can go to their neighboring towns through the bridge, which is an important route for the commerce and trade communication in Foshan. Business people usually cross the bridge to pray for good luck and favorable business environment, which has gradually become a custom. As the saying goes, “If one succeeds in crossing the Tongji Bridge on lunar January 16th, he will be happy and lucky throughout the year. ”

The Tongji Bridge in ancient times was composed of the bridgehead (nine steps) and the bridge tail (13 steps), which means low cost but great profits to the business people. After the rebuilding of the bridge, the windmills backed up by auspicious clouds and bats were engraved on the drum-shaped bearing stones at the end of it, and the artifacts the eight immortals held when crossing the sea were engraved on the bridge deck. Apart from this, there is a fruit basket arched by a stone elephant head on the bridge mast which contains pumpkins and peaches of immortality that signifies people’s wishes of preventing calamities and seeking safety.

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Every lunar January 16th, people in Foshan, men and women, old and young get together and walk to the Tongji Bridge. Some burn joss sticks and scent candles at the shrine of the Earth God, some play firecrackers, others walk to the Guanyin (the goddess) Temple of Nanji to burn joss sticks and worship the God. Men usually draw divination sticks and women often pluck away the ribbons of the festival lanterns at the shrine to pray for a new baby or wealth. Whoever crosses the bridge will take a windmill which means good luck and a lantern or lettuce which signifies having a change of luck or becoming wealthy. When crossing the bridge, one must walk until the end of it and cannot go back, and then go along Daji at the end of the bridge, through Weidou, to Ao’kou and then go back.

Crossing the Tongji Bridge was originally a non-governmental activity of praying for good luck in Chancheng of Foshan and its neighboring towns. After the active advocating and guiding of the departments concerned, there are an increasing number of people who take part in it. The number of participants exceeded 400, 000 in 2006, which made this activity the grandest among all the traditional folk customs.