The Spirituality of the Hui Ethnic Minority

The Great Mosque in Xi’an
The Great Mosque in Xi’an

Though the Hui people are not defined by their Islamic faith, the vast majority of them are Muslim. This means they worship at mosques, follow priests known as imams, and worship the holy book called the Quran. Although throughout history many of their mosques have been destroyed due to religious persecution, since 1949 they have been allowed to build them and worship freely.

All Hui communities will surround a mosque and the older mosques tend to be a mixture of Han Chinese and Central Asian architecture, while the newer ones are purely Central Asian in design. One of the finest examples is the Great Mosque in the city of Xi’an, which perfectly amalgamates elements of Chinese and Central Asian architecture.

Some Hui people claim that Islam is the only religion through which Confucianism should be practised and thus accuse Buddhists and Taoists of heresy. However, other Hui people, particularly those who follow the Sunni Gedimu and Yihewani branches of Islam, burn incense during worship, which is thought to be the result of Taoist and Buddhist influences. Many of the other Islamic ethnic minorities, such as the Salar, regard this as a heathen ritual and denounce it.

The Hui are the only Muslims in the world who are known to have female imams and, while male imams as known as ahung, female imams are known as nu ahung. They guide other women in prayer but are not allowed to lead prayers like regular imams.

 

Hui Ethnic Minority

hui-ethnic-01

With a current population of approximately 10 million, the Hui are the 2nd most populous of China’s 55 ethnic minorities. Although following Islam is not necessarily a criterion for being Hui, this ethnic group is largely made up of Muslims and this is part of what makes them so unique. They are spread throughout China, with the largest concentration in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region and several sizeable communities in the provinces of Gansu, Qinghai, Xinjiang, Yunnan, Shandong, and Shaanxi. While all of them speak Chinese, some of them have retained the ability to speak Arabic and use it predominantly during religious activities. After all, being fluent in two of the world’s most notoriously difficult languages has to have its advantages!

Unlike several of China’s other ethnic minorities, the Hui bear great resemblance to the Han majority. In fact, very little separates the two ethnic groups besides the Hui’s religious beliefs. For example, Hui people conform to Islamic dietary laws and will not eat pork, which is the most popular meat in China. However their appearance and dress does not differ hugely from their Han counterparts, which begs the question; what makes them so different from Chinese Muslims? The answer lies in their illustrious past as traders and military men.

The term “Hui” comes from their original name of “Huihui”, which was used during the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1912) dynasties. It is thought to originate from the early term “Huihe” or “Huihu”, which was used during the 8th and 9th century to describe anyone from the western Uyghur State. Though these Uyghurs were not exclusively Muslim and are not directly related to modern-day Uyghur or Hui people, the term “Huihui” was applied to any foreigner who came from the west.

Thus the Hui people have a direct link not to China but to Central Asia. They have a varied ancestry that includes Arab, Persian, Mongol, Turkic and other Central Asian ancestors and their origins can be traced back in two ways. Some Hui people descended from Arab and Persian traders, who arrived in China via the Silk Road during the Tang Dynasty (618-907). Around the 7th century, some of them eventually settled in cities such as Guangzhou, Quanzhou, Hangzhou, Yangzhou and Chang’an (modern-day Xi’an) and were referred to as “fanke” or “guests from outlying regions”. Wherever they settled, they built mosques and public cemeteries. Over time they intermarried with Han people and converted their partners to Islam but largely assimilated with Chinese culture.

Other Hui communities, such as those in Yunnan and northwest China, trace their origins back to Mongol, Turkic and other Central Asian settlers who arrived in China during the 13th century. When the Mongols undertook their western expeditions during the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), they drafted in large groups of Islamic peoples from Central Asia. The aim was for these people to settle as scouts in parts of western China and act as livestock breeders until they were needed for military purposes. We don’t know exactly how the ability to raise a cow would benefit their skill as soldiers, but perhaps that’s a moo-t point.

They were also allowed to build mosques and they came to form an aristocratic class directly under the Mongol rulers known as the “Semu”. Thus they had a profound influence on military, political, and social affairs during the Yuan Dynasty. However, in spite of their new found power, many imperial laws prevented these Muslims from practising several Islamic customs, such as the eating of halal meat. This lack of religious freedoms eventually prompted several Hui people to turn on the Mongols and ally with the Ming Dynasty. In fact, it wasn’t until the Ming Dynasty that the Hui people were even recognised as a distinct ethnic group!

Nowadays Hui people live in large, exclusively Muslim communities that usually surround a mosque. This can be anything from villages to streets or whole quarters in major cities. They normally have both a Chinese name and an Arabic name, although they predominantly use their Chinese names. In spite of being religious people in a largely secular country, they have been widely accepted since 1949 and there is even a Hui Culture Museum in Yinchuan City, Ningxia.

Read more about Hui Ethnic Minority:

Hui Spirituality       Traditional Dress       Other Customs

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Traditional Dress of Uyghur Minority

 

Uyghur dress

The traditional dress of the Uyghur people is deeply intertwined with both their history as traders along the Silk Road and their devout belief in Islam. In particular, two pieces of clothing have become symbolic of the Uyghur ethnic minority: the chapan and the doppa. The chapan, a variant of the caftan, is a long coat that is worn over the clothes during the winter months. It is typically worn by men and comes in a variety of colours, from muted blues to fiery reds. Intricate patterns are embroidered on the exterior and, instead of buttons, the chapan is bound by a large cloth band around the waist.

The doppa is a square or round skullcap that is worn not only by the Uyghurs but also by the Kazan Tartars, the Uzbeks, and the Tajiks. The cap itself is usually black or white, although other colour variants do exist, and it is traditionally embroidered with vibrantly colourful patterns, much like the chapan. Older Uyghur men are known to grow long beards and wear a much taller version of the doppa, which is fringed with fur at the bottom.

While men sport the chapan, women wear exquisitely embroidered long-sleeved dresses that billow out at the waist. Popular embroidery motifs include vines, pomegranates, moons, arabesques, and geometric patterns. Golds, reds, and blacks are the most popular colour combinations, although pinks, greens, blues, purples, and even tie-dyes also feature. To complement these luxurious dresses, Uyghur women don plenty of jewellery, including large earrings, bracelets, and necklaces.

Young girls tend to braid their hair in a number of long plaits, as this is regarded as a symbol of feminine beauty, while married women usually wear two plaited pigtails affixed to the head with a crescent-shaped comb. Although it is still reasonably uncommon, some women will wear the veil in-keeping with their Islamic faith. Both men and women wear silk slippers or leather boots, depending on the season and the occasion. From shimmering satins to rich silk threads, the opulence of the Uyghurs’ traditional dress is undeniable!

 

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The Uyghur Ethnic Minority

Uyghur ethnic

With a population of over 8 million, the Uyghur people are easily one of the largest ethnic minority groups in China. The majority of them reside in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, although there are substantial constituencies of them in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Turkey. Smaller communities of Uyghurs can be found throughout the world, even as far as Germany, Australia, and the United States! They live primarily at the base of the Tianshan Mountains, with an estimated 80% of Xinjiang’s Uyghur population occupying territory surrounding the Tarim Basin. Outside of Xinjiang, the largest community of Uyghurs in China can be found in Taoyuan County of Hunan province.

When it comes to religion, they predominantly follow the Sunni branch of Islam and subscribe to the mystical Islamic tradition of Sufism, although they tend to distance themselves from other Muslim groups in China, such as the Hui people. Compared to China’s other ethnic minorities, the Uyghurs are profoundly physically diverse, ranging from people who look ethnically European or Middle Eastern to those who have a far more East Asian appearance. This physical diversity points to a difficulty in defining exactly what makes someone a member of the Uyghur ethnic group.

In the Turkic Uyghur language, the word “Uyghur” literally means “united” or “allied”, which is somewhat fitting when you consider that the Uyghur group is actually a melting pot made up of a multitude of ancient peoples! The term “Uyghur” was first used during the Northern Wei Dynasty (386–535) in reference to a clan of the Gaoche people, who were a group of Turkic tribes. Later on, the Gaoche became known as the Tiele people.

Historically, the Uyghurs were a nomadic tribe who spent much of their time as vassals to larger and more powerful ethnic groups, such as the Mongolians and the Han Chinese. However, that wasn’t to be the case for very long! In 734, the Turkish Khaganate (682–744), which had once ruled much of the area on China’s northern borders, started to fall apart and numerous Turkish subject tribes vied with one another to annex its valuable territory. After a lengthy period of warfare, the Uyghur people emerged victorious and established the Uyghur Khaganate (745-840). At its peak, its territory stretched from the Caspian Sea right through to Manchuria. Yet, rather confusingly, anyone who was a citizen of the Uyghur Khaganate was designated a Uyghur, regardless of their ethnic heritage.

It was at this time that the Uyghur people were influenced by Sogdian refugees and converted to Manichaeism. Their situation at one of the crucial stops along the Silk Road meant that trade blossomed in the Uyghur Khaganate, and this trading culture is still evidenced by the many lively markets throughout Xinjiang. Unfortunately, after a brutal famine and a civil war, the empire was overrun by the Kyrgyz people and collapsed in 840. The Uyghur refugees were forced to flee and ended up settling in the area surrounding the Tarim Basin. They established the Kingdom of Qocho (856–1335) and eventually converted to Buddhism.

As time went on, they gradually intermarried with the local people and became the Uyghur ethnic group that we know today. Islam arrived into China sometime during the 7th century and was widely spread by the Kara-Khanid Khanate (840–1212), which was a Turkic dynasty that ruled an area in Central Asia known as Transoxiana. By the 17th century, the majority of Uyghurs had finally adopted Islam as their main religion. The region where they lived, which was once known as East Turkistan, didn’t become part of China proper until it was conquered by the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912) in 1864 and renamed Xinjiang or “New Territory”. The small community of Uyghurs that currently live in Hunan province are descended from Uyghur soldiers that were sent to the region during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) to help quell a local rebellion.

UyghurNowadays, the Uyghurs are well-known for their rich culture and fascinating customs. Throughout Xinjiang, visitors are consistently dazzled by the bright colours of their traditional dress, the sumptuous aroma of freshly grilled kebabs, the beauty of their local mosques, and the sprightly sounds of Uyghur musicians. In particular, a type of musical performance known as the 12 Muqams of the Uyghur people was designated by UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2005, proving the impact that these people have had on local culture. In short, a trip to Xinjiang simply wouldn’t be complete without indulging in the opulence of Uyghur culture.

 

Read more about Uyghur Ethnic Minority:

Uyghur Spirituality       Traditional Dress       Festivals       Marriage Customs       Performance       Craftwork

 

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The Customs of Bouyei Ethnic Minority

Even something as commonplace as building a house is imbued with symbolic customs in Bouyei culture. First, a specialist will be invited to select an auspicious place to build, ideally a location beside a mountain and a river. However, the house should not only back onto mountains but should also face them, and the shape of these mountains is particularly important.

The mountains behind the house should look like guarding lions, defensive dragons, or nobleman riding on horses, while the mountains in front ideally must look like dragons fighting over jewellery, dragons playing with pearls, a thousand horses returning to their stables, or the God of Longevity rising up. Luckily, the area where the Bouyei live is surrounded by strangely shaped Karst mountains so, even if your chosen mountain doesn’t exactly look like two dragons arguing over a silver necklace, you can just say it does!

bouyei dragonA propitious day will then be chosen to erect the house and one month before this day a carpenter will prepare the house’s structure. When the day finally comes, a sacrifice will be made to Lu Ban, the God of Carpentry. The main beam, which is decorated with red silk, will then be carried from the father-in-law’s house to the building site and accompanied by an orchestra, as well as a team of acrobats. In other words, this beam gets a grander entrance than most celebrities! Once the beam has been fixed, a singing and dancing ceremony will take place, followed by a feast. After the festivities, a shrine dedicated to the family’s ancestors and the Kitchen God will be positioned in a central part of the new house.

In some Bouyei communities, an annual ceremony known as “inviting the dragon” is still practised. Before the ceremony, villagers will gather offerings for the dragon in the form of food and wine. Then a local priest, known as a Bumo, will sit down and recite the appropriate prayers. Once he has finished, the village chief will carry two eggs and bury them at the foot of two posts. In Bouyei culture, the yolk of an egg symbolises gold and the white signifies silver, so overall the egg represents wealth. Thus, while the eggs are being buried, the villagers all sing: “Keep the gold and silver that we bury, and don’t let anyone take it”. It may not be the most spectacular gift in the world, but at least the dragon can have a decent omelette!

bouyei funeralFunerals in Bouyei communities are notoriously complicated procedures. Once a person has died, their relatives bath them, comb their hair, and dress them. The corpse is then placed on a bed, where friends and relatives can pay their last respects. The funeral begins with a priest performing a ritual where he asks the dragon to help the deceased’s soul on its way to the underworld. Then a bull is slaughtered and its meat is shared by everyone except relatives of the deceased. The Bouyei believe that this bull will help the soul of the deceased plough fields in the underworld, although we dread to think what kinds of crops they grow down there!

Finally the priest will conduct an “opening the way” ceremony, where he indicates the passage that the soul must follow in order to reach its ancestors. The priest will then lead the funeral procession to the grave site accompanied by the sound of horns and drums. Paper money and incense is burned in honour of the deceased before they are buried and the burial is punctuated by the sound of a bronze drum, which will be beaten three times a day after the burial. The Bouyei believe that this will help carry the soul to its ancestors, as the belief that the bronze drum can communicate with the underworld is widely spread throughout China and Asia. After three years, the person’s remains are disinterred and the bones are placed in a clay urn for reburial.

There are also a number of taboos in Bouyei culture. For example, the first time thunder is heard each year, it is forbidden to do any type of farm work for several days; a woman must never return to her parents’ home to give birth; and the corpse of anyone who has died outside must not be carried back into their home.

Marriage Customs of the Bouyei Ethnic Minority

 

bouyei wedding 01

Under the feudal system of the past, a Bouyei youth’s love life entirely depended on the discretion of their parents as almost all marriages were arranged. Fortunes appear to have changed for the Bouyei, as now they are largely allowed to marry for love! Nowadays fairs and festivals provide the perfect opportunity for unmarried men and women to mingle, sing songs together, and find a suitable partner.

If a woman is attracted to a man, she will often throw a ball to him made of silk strips, which she will have embroidered herself. This indicates that the man is free to pursue her and, if the man returns her affections, he will ask her on a date. Bouyei men are no strangers to romance, as these dates are almost exclusively spent singing love songs! After several of these songful dates, the couple will usually announce their engagement.

There is also a popular folk tale in Bouyei literature about how women should choose which man to marry. First a young woman must sew seven bags, each about ten inches long, with large fabric handles. She must then fill each bag with a different grain; one with long grain rice, one with glutinous rice, one with millet, one with rice bran, and so on. After preparing all these bags, one could even say the woman had become a cereal filler!

At an appropriate time, the girl would then pitch the bags out to her suitors, or suitor if she wasn’t all that lucky, and ask them to pick one up. The man who selected the bag full of rice bran was the one she should marry, as this was the gods’ way of indicating he was a diligent and honest man. Though this custom isn’t taken seriously, it is sometimes still practised today as a bit of fun.

bouyei wedding02Bouyei weddings are two or three day affairs with much singing, dancing, and delicious food. The Bouyei often marry very young and it is commonplace for children as young as twelve to already be married! However, directly after the wedding the wife will return to her parents’ home and this arrangement usually carries on for 3 to 5 years, but can be extended to 7 or 8 years!

The wife will only go to live with her husband on one of three conditions; when her parents decide; when she becomes pregnant with her first child; or when she elects to wear a special hat known as a jiagu[1]. Customarily, once the jiagu has been worn, the wife must return to her husband’s home, so women are sometimes the target of sneaky hat attacks!

In the area near Mount Biandan, Guizhou province, they practice a custom every year during April, August or September where the man’s mother and sister, or two of his female relatives, will bring a chicken and a jiagu to his wife’s home. While they are there, they will sneakily try to unclasp her hair and put the jiagu on her head! If they are successful, she must return with them to her husband’s home. If not, they have to try again another time. In some cases, it is also acceptable for the husband to simply creep up on his wife and un-braid her hair. We’re not sure how all of these sneaky customs came to be, but we can’t imagine it inspires much trust between husbands and wives!

 

[1] Jiagu: A special headdress made by wrapping decorative fabric around a bamboo shell-shaped frame.

 

Festivals of Bouyei Ethnic Minority

 

Like many of China’s ethnic minorities, the Bouyei celebrate several of the traditional Chinese festivals, including Spring Festival. They also follow a few of the Zhuang’s festivals, such as the Ox Soul Festival, but have a few festivals of their own, which normally revolve around their religious beliefs and may differ depending on where you are.

The Sanyuesan Festival

The Sanyuesan Festival bouyeiThough the Zhuang ethnic minority also celebrate the Sanyuesan Festival, the two versions of this festival have vastly different origins. The name “Sanyuesan” literally means “March 3rd” so it’s unsurprising that the festival is held on the 3rd day of the 3rd month according to the Chinese lunar calendar, although it usually falls sometime during April in our calendar. The festival honours the God of the Mountain and on this day villagers will make sacrifices to him in the hopes that he will protect their livestock and provide them with a good harvest in the coming year.

As with all good festivals, they celebrate by singing, dancing and having a feast. Five-coloured rice is the feature dish and it is made using rice that has been coloured red, black, purple, white and yellow using natural plant dyes. In fact, this rice looks so marvellous that it’s hard to tell whether you’re meant to eat it or appreciate it as a work of art! In the Bouyei villages near Guiyang they normally hold a song contest and they believe that the winner will be blessed by the gods with a golden throat, which endows the singer with the ability to scare off harmful pests and birds from their crops when they sing!

The June 6th Festival

The June 6th Festival bouyeiLike the Sanyuesan Festival, this festival revolves around a particular date, namely the 6th day of the 6th lunar month. However it actually falls sometime during July according to our Gregorian calendar. It is a time for the Bouyei people to worship the God of the Fields, the God of Land, and the God of the Mountain as well as the legendary Pangu, who created the earth according to Chinese mythology and supposedly died on June 6th. Typical offerings to the gods include paper figures, paper horses, wine, meat, and a type of rice dumpling known as zongzi. In some regions, the plough, rake and other farm implements will be placed in a shrine in the hopes that they will be blessed. Along with making sacrifices, people celebrate by dressing in their traditional outfits, singing in antiphonal style and dancing to the rhythm of several instruments.

The Chabai Singing Festival

This festival takes place on the 21st day of the 6th lunar month and so usually falls sometime during July. It’s a huge event where tens of thousands of people will gather from neighbour villages, counties and even provinces to engage in a series of singing competitions. Just when you thought X-Factor was an original idea, it seems the Bouyei have been doing it for years! During the day, the contests will be held in an arena but in the evening they will be performed in the courtyards and homes of the local villagers.

The festival dates back to the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and is celebrated in remembrance of two young lovers named Chalang and Baimei, whose names are combined in the festival’s title. Chalang and Baimei fell in love at first sight but a local landlord, who coveted the beautiful Baimei, killed Chalang and kidnapped the girl against her will. The landlord forced her to marry him but, during the wedding, she set fire to the landlord’s house and threw herself upon the flames. Baimei’s devotion to her lover Chalang even after death is a testament worth honouring, but probably not repeating!

Fang Ji or “To Visit Several Houses”

This is more of an annual ceremony than a festival and it takes place on the 1st day of the 6th lunar month, so it also falls sometime in July. Before the ceremony, all of the villagers will contribute some money to pay for the wine, pigs, and chickens that will be used as sacrifices. A bumo or local shaman presides over the ceremony and performs invocations asking the gods to protect the village and its people.

The bumo will visit every house in the village and at each house he will ask “Does the demon leave, or not?” To which another bumo will reply “He leaves”. So, if you ever have a demon squatting in your house, don’t call in an exorcist, just politely ask him to leave! Once the bumo have cleansed every house, they will place a talisman at the village gate which will prevent evil from entering. In the evening, all of the villagers will gather at the temple of the God of the Village and take part in a sumptuous banquet, where they will eat, drink, sing and dance late into the night.

 

 

Traditional Dress of Bouyei Ethnic Minority

bouyei dress 04

From dragons and fish to mountains and rivers, the motifs embroidered on the Bouyei’s traditional dress are deeply symbolic and all harken back to their religious beliefs. Young Bouyei men tend to wear short, long-sleeved jackets that button down the front accompanied by long trousers, with scarves made of black or lattice cloth wrapped around their heads. Their clothes may seem somewhat underwhelming, but the Bouyei women’s superior fashion sense more than makes up for it!

bouyei 02Their traditional dress is incredibly varied and depends on what region they live in. In Guizhou they can roughly be split into four styles: Northwest, Southwest, Central, and Eastern. In the Northwest, the women prefer a short black jacket that is secured on the left side by a band rather than buttons. This jacket will be beautifully decorated at the cuffs and on the front with batik[1] patterns, and is complemented by a pleated skirt made of batik cloth. This is accompanied by a turban and glittering silver jewellery. And, if you want to know whether that pretty Bouyei girl is married or not, just look at her apron! Unmarried women will wear a plain apron, while married women wear aprons that have been embroidered with a floral pattern.

The Central-style is characterised by long, green trousers and an abundance of silver ornaments, including hairpins, earrings and bracelets. Women who live in the Southwest will either wear trousers with a long-sleeved blue jacket or a coat with a long, pleated batik skirt. The sleeves, front, and shoulders of the coat are normally bedecked with either batik or embroidery, making the Southwest-style the most elaborately decorated of them all!

bouyei dress03Finally, the long term contact in the East with the Han ethnic majority has meant the Eastern-style differs very little from the Han traditional dress. Here the women wear a dress and trousers, both trimmed in lace, accompanied by a turban. In Zhenning County, Guizhou province, the Bouyei women sometimes wear a special type of hat known as a jiagu. This hat is made by wrapping batik fabric around a bamboo shell-shaped frame but only certain women are allowed to wear it.

Unmarried women will braid their hair and then partially or fully cover it with a black, embroidered turban. However, only when a married woman has returned to her husband’s home and given birth to their first child will she wear the traditional jiagu. In Bouyei culture, husbands and wives can remain separated after their wedding for up to 8 years! So it’s unsurprising that this special hat means so much to them.

Once a married woman has put on the jiagu, she must officially leave her parent’s home and go to live with her husband. Many married girls enjoy continuing their free lifestyle and so refuse to wear the jiagu, much to the chagrin of their husbands. So these women are often the target of tricky surprise attacks!

bouyei dress 01Every year, during April, August or September, the man’s mother and sister, or two of his female relatives, will bring a chicken and a jiagu to his wife’s home. While they are there, they will sneakily try to unclasp her hair and put the jiagu on her head! If they are successful, she must return with them to her husband’s home. If not, they have to try again another time. In some cases, it is also acceptable for the husband to simply creep up on his wife and un-braid her hair. So next time you’re looking for a date in a local bar, just try popping a hat on the girl’s head!

 

 

[1] Batik: A cloth-dying process whereby a knife that has been dipped in hot wax is used to draw a pattern onto the cloth. The cloth is then boiled in dye, which melts the wax. Once the wax has melted off, the cloth is removed from the boiling dye. The rest of the cloth will be coloured by the dye but the pattern under the wax will have remained the original colour of the cloth.

 

The Spirituality of the Bouyei Ethnic Minority

BOUYEI 01

The Bouyei predominantly follow a polytheistic indigenous religion which incorporates features of shamanism[1], animism[2], and ancestor worship, as well as the Zhuang ethnic minority’s religion of Moism. Local priests or shamans are known as bumo and are often called upon to perform exorcisms, conduct funerals, or chant scripture at festivals. Yet these bumo do not making a living from religious activities, and will work primarily as farmers just like other members of the community. At least they know their crops will be blessed!

BOUYEI BUMOThere are also female shamans known as yaya, who carry out divination ceremonies and exorcisms. Unlike the bumo, the yaya are not formally trained and instead discover their unique abilities after suffering from a severe illness. It is only then that they are able to notice the demons that surround themselves and others, which probably comes as quite a shock after recovering from a major infection!

The dragon and the fish have a special place in the Bouyei’s folk religion as they are believed to be relatives of the Bouyei’s ancestors. And you thought your family was weird! According to one of their legends, the Bouyei people originated from a dragon woman who was impregnated by a man. In keeping with this legend, to give birth to a boy is known as “having a dragon” so many women will embroider dragons on their clothes in the hope that they will have sons. They believe that dragons are everywhere, and are always careful not to disturb them. For example, before they erect a new house, they will ask the dragon to leave first and only invite it to return once the house is built.

A rather more disturbing and less magical legend recounts the story of an ancient ancestor who impregnated a fish, hence why they regard fish as relatives. For many centuries the Bouyei did not eat fish because, according to another legend, a boy who once ignored his mother’s advice and ate a fish was then subject to numerous disasters; perhaps because that fish was his second cousin!

Regardless of whether you’re half fish, a quarter dragon or just a normal human being, family matters to the Bouyei people. In keeping with their tradition of ancestor worship, every house will have a tablet dedicated to the resident’s ancestors where offerings of food and wine will be made on any important family occasion or during festivals.

Totem Pole of bouyei minorityAll religious ceremonies revolve a sacred book known as the Mojing, which is a collection of songs. The longest ceremonial song is reserved only for funerals, where it will be sung by a bumo. Their most important religious ceremony is known as “bringing the souls of the dead out of purgatory”, which lasts seven days and seven nights and can draw crowds of more than 10,000 people! It is actually a sequence of several ceremonies designed to worship 36 of their deities.

A small pig will be sacrificed to each of the deities but other offerings depend on the specific deity’s importance. For example, some will have a whole chicken sacrificed to them while others may only receive an egg or a piece of meat. Some of the choicest offerings are reserved for the Mother Goddess, their fertility deity, and the Goddess of the Flower Forest, who distributes “flowers” or children to parents.

On top of this grand ceremony, there are other, simpler ceremonies throughout the year in honour of specific deities, such as the God of Water and the God of Fire. However, the most revered deities are the God of Land and the God of the Mountain, also known as the God of Insects. The God of Land controls the harvest while the God of the Mountain can punish people by sending pests or animal spirits to destroy their crops. Every Bouyei village will have temples dedicated to these gods and annual festivals are held in their honour.

bouyei culture 01The importance of children is tantamount and so there are a staggering twelve Mother Goddesses in the Bouyei pantheon. They are in charge of protecting children until they reach the age of twelve and each of the goddesses corresponds to a geographical location; for example, there is the Mother Goddess of the Bed, the Mother Goddess of the Fields, the Mother Goddess of the Rivers, and so on. Each goddess protects children in their designated location and it is believed that, if a child doesn’t worship these goddesses properly, they will become sick or the target of misfortune. In this instance, their parents will call a yaya, who will carry out the necessary appeasement ceremonies.

Every Bouyei village will also be flanked by a large banyan or camphor tree and a stone shrine dedicated to their ancient ancestor Baogendi. Both the tree and Baogendi are thought to protect the village and are thus honoured with a small ceremony during every festival. Sometimes people will place small animal figurines, such as horses, sheep, or pigs, inside Baogendi’s shrine as he supposedly has the power to bless people with livestock.

 

 

[1] Shamanism: The practice of attempting to reach altered states of consciousness in order to communicate with the spirit world and channel energy from it into the real world. This can only be done by specialist practitioners known as shaman.

[2] Animism: The belief that all non-human entities, including animals, plants, and even inanimate objects, possess a spiritual essence or soul.

 

Dai Ethnic Garden

Dai Ethnic Garden

Deep within the Ganlan Basin, obscured by the verdant tropical jungles that loom over the banks of the Lancang River, the five small villages of the Dai Ethnic Garden have thrived for hundreds of years. They are just 28 kilometres from Jinghong, the capital city of Xishuangbanna Prefecture, and all of them are occupied by ethnically Dai people. The basin benefits from the hottest climate in Xishuangbanna and is able to sustain numerous tropical plant species, which is what earned the place the name “ethnic garden”. It is in fact more of a theme park, where visitors can learn about Dai culture and visit traditional Dai villages.

The villages are called Manjiang, Manchunman, Manting, Manzha, and Manga, and together they house approximately 300 families and 1,500 villagers. They consist primarily of traditional Dai buildings, which are square, two-storey houses that are built on stilts and made entirely from bamboo. The ground floor is used as a storehouse and stable for livestock while the upper floor is used as a living space. The upper floor is normally 2 metres off the ground and can be reached via a wooden ladder, which can make ascending the house with a hot cup of tea quite a challenge! Yet this is how the Dai people will undoubtedly welcome you, as they are known for their incredible hospitality. The Dai ethnic minority are traditionally Buddhist and so every village has its own Buddhist temple. It is important to note that you should take your shoes off before you enter any Dai home or temple, as a sign of respect.

Dai handicrafts are on sale throughout the villages and performances of Dai folk songs and dances, as well as other folk customs, occur regularly on the main stage. There is even a recreation of the Water Splashing Festival every day at 3pm, where visitors can join the Dai people near the fountain and throw water at each other. It’s one of the more delightful festivals celebrated by China’s ethnic minorities and nothing compares to the sheer joy of dousing your friends with buckets of water. If you want to extend your stay, there are plenty of guesthouses in each village that are sure to welcome you.

MANJIANG TEMPLEManjiang

In the Dai language, the word “man” means “village”, while the word “jiang” means “strips of bamboo”. The Dai people commonly strap bamboo strips to heavy items in order to help carry them. According to local legend, long ago one of Buddha’s ancestors came to this village and commented on a stone, which he said had a particularly auspicious aura. He asked the locals if they could carry the stone to a small hill by the river, thus making the hill a holy place for people to visit. The stone was far too heavy to move simply by pushing it, but with the help of bamboo strips the locals were able to carry it up the hill. Buddha’s ancestor was elated and renamed the village Manjiang in honour of this good deed.

manchun templeManchunman

The name “manchunman” translates literally to mean “the village of gardens”. That being said, bizarrely Manchunman is not famous for its gardens but rather for the magnificent Buddhist temple at its centre. The Manchunman Buddhist Temple is over 1,400 years old, making it the oldest temple in Xishuangbanna, and stunning painted murals of Buddhist legends further enhance the value of this sacred place.

Manzha

manzha templeYou’ll be pleased to know that the word “manzha” translates to mean “cook’s village” so, if you’re looking for some tasty Dai dishes, this is the place to go! In ancient times, the tribal leader of the region would set aside a special village that was only to be inhabited by cooks. These chefs would train for years to prepare suitably delicious meals for the tribal leader. If you think having your own chef is indulgent, imagine having a whole village of them! Nowadays the villagers welcome visitors to try their local cuisine, which has been honed to perfection over hundreds of years. The 200-year-old Manzha Temple in the village is also worth noting, as it is one of the only Buddhist temples in existence that contains images and statues of monks but none of Buddha himself.

manting templeManting

Although the name “manting” means “court garden”, the village was once commonly known by its nickname, Peacock Village, thanks to the many tame peacocks that once populated Manting. Nowadays the village has become particularly famous for its White Pagodas and Buddhist Temple, which date all the way back to 669 AD. The statue of Buddha in the temple is said to be the largest in the Ganlan Basin.

Manga

mangaIn the Dai language, the name “manga” inexplicably means “going to the fair”; a name that seems completely unconnected to the village’s history. It is believed that Li Daorong, a man of the Han ethnic group, married a Dai woman and established the village. Thereafter, many Han people came from Guangdong and Guangxi to settle in Manga. Gradually members of the Han and Dai ethnic group mingled and so now many of the villagers are a mixture of these two ethnic groups.

The Manga Temple, hidden in the forest behind the village, looks almost like a pavilion. Regardless of what time of day it is, the interior of the temple is always drenched in darkness and must be lit by candles or lighted lamps. Two door-gods flank the entrance and, deep within the temple, there lies an offering stand where locals can worship Li Daorong. On March 6th or July 7th every year, the Dai and Han people from Manga will bring a pig’s head, a cockerel, joss sticks, and paper money as sacrifices to Li Daorong.

Ganlan Basin xishuangbannaThe Peacock’s Tomb

According to local legend, in the 1960s a golden peacock inhabited the Ganlan Basin and, when it died, it brought great wealth to the local people. As a symbol of their appreciation, the people buried the peacock together with the treasured sword that once stood at the centre of the five villages. On the 14th day of July according to the Dai calendar, male villagers carry a pig’s head and wrapped rice to the tomb as offerings to the peacock. A large banquet will then be held and a memorial service for the peacock will take place.