CHINESE ROOTS, FENG SHUI, STORYTELLER | LIM MENG KOK 师傅 | FORGOTTEN HERITAGE | LION HEAD MAKER in KL

#马来西亚老夫子狮头制作 #disappearingcraftsman #lionheadmaker

This interview is conducted in Mandarin and Cantonese.
English subtitles have been added for your viewing pleasure.
本次采访以普通话进行。

Kuala Lumpur-based Master Lim Meng Kok, is one of the few remaining lion head makers in Malaysia.

Started as just a means to support his young family to generate a better income compared to working at an ice cream factory. Master Lim was repairing damaged lion heads to supplement his income and slowly learned the art form of making them himself. No one taught him, it was from the time spent repairing lion heads and based on his keen observation skills which enabled him to create these masterpieces. 1982 saw the birth of Lo Fo Chi Enterprise 马来西亚老夫子狮头制作, churning out highly sought after Foshan heads.

A nod to our Chinese heritage and governed by feng shui law, different elements, rituals, and stories related to the art of lion dance, let's dig deeper together with Master Lim to form an understanding of this art form.

The lion will always pay respects to the four cardinal directions bowing to the east, south, west and north. 
Chinese believe that the doorway to a building is a portal between the inside and outside world. Outside the door represents the society which cannot be controlled whilst the inside represents peace, harmony, family, business and those aspects that can be controlled. When coming to a door the lion will bless the right side first, then the left and finally the top of the door where the name of the business is. The doorway is blessed in this order as looking out from the business point of view represents the mythical animals that protect the premises.

The saying in chinese is “Jor cheng loong, yau bak fu”, or left side green dragon, right side white tiger. Entering the premises using the left foot 1st because of left representing green dragon, leading a benefactor gui ren 贵人, if entering using the right foot, which represents the white tiger, it's considered not auspicious to lead a xiǎorén 小人, a contemptible person of vile character into the location of performance.
In the ancient Chinese doorway was a step that stopped the water from coming in, this was known as the river or moat to the outside world. This moat must not be stepped on as it would bring bad energies in the premises. The lion must always jump over the moat. 

During the performance besides plucking and spitting greens, there might be instances where the lion 'meets' a snake or centipede or even a crab. The crab can be a 'live' muddie and the snake or centipede can be made by arranging mandarins and chillies or cutlery etc. This year being the year of the snake, the lion dancer who is born in the year of the snake, can't be incorporating 'killing' a snake as part of the performance.
As for the lion challenging a 'live' crab in a duel for the performance, it will be relevant if this scene is set at a restaurant business. The sentiment says otherwise if this is performed for someone who requires their arms to fight, the crab losing its dominant claw by the lion is set to fail. 


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