Manchu and Shamanism

Author: Wang Honggang
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2002-09-01
Features: "From Shamanism to Lamaism": The Mongolian people are a historically long-standing, hardworking, and brave ethnic group that has been living and thriving on the northern grasslands of China. Through long-term historical development, the current Mongolian population in China is 4,802,407 (statistics from 1990). They mainly reside in the rural and pastoral areas of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, with some living in urban areas. The region currently has a Mongolian population of 3,779,000, accounting for approximately 73% of China's total Mongolian population. The majority are also distributed in Bayan Olgii Mongol Autonomous Prefecture, Bortala Mongol Autonomous Prefecture, and Baise Mongol Autonomous County in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, as well as in Kalgan Left Banner Mongol Autonomous County and Fuxin Mongol Autonomous County in Liaoning Province, Qianqiuluo Mongol Autonomous County in Jilin Province, Duer Mongol Autonomous County in Heilongjiang Province, Subei Mongol Autonomous County in Gansu Province, and Haixi Mongol Tibetan Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture in Qinghai Province. A portion also lives in scattered or concentrated communities in provinces and autonomous regions such as Hebei and Henan.
The Yao people have their own language, which belongs to the Hmong-Mien branch of the Sino-Tibetan language family. Due to the complexity of its branches, the languages spoken in different regions vary significantly. The Yao people commonly use Chinese or Zhuang scripts in their regions, as they do not have their own written language.
"Ancestor Worship and Yao Culture": The Yao people share ancestral roots with the "Jing Man" and "Wuling Man" of the Qin and Han dynasties. The religious beliefs of the Yao people vary by region, including natural worship, ancestor worship, and totem worship; some areas also practice witchcraft and Taoism. The architectural styles of Yao houses are diverse, with the most distinctive being wooden houses. These houses are built near mountains and water, with lower front floors and higher back floors, and their orientation is unrestricted. Wooden houses are typically three-storied: the lower floor is used for housing livestock; the second floor is for living; and the third floor stores grains and items. Wooden houses are built without a single nail yet remain extremely sturdy. The interiors are well-lit and well-ventilated, making them very comfortable.
Yao clothing is often adorned with embroidered five-colored silk threads, and it is said that the Yao people "love wearing five-colored clothing." The headwear of Yao women is particularly elaborate. There is the "Dragon Coiling" style, which involves coiling a ten-meter-long embroidered cloth on the head; the "A" shape style, which is made by wrapping an embroidered cloth into an "A" shape, narrowing at the top and widening at the bottom, and decorated with colorful silk threads and beads; and the "Half-Moon" style, which involves placing three "half-moon" shaped silver plaques on the head. There are countless other types of headwear.
The patterns on the upper clothing of Yao men are rich and varied, including depictions of flowers, birds, fish, insects, geometric designs, and human figures. The collars come in round or vertical styles, with open front designs, no buttons, and waistbands. The lower clothing includes long pants, short pants, cloth skirts, and embroidered skirts. Leg bands are an essential part of Yao men's clothing, serving both to protect the legs and to enhance aesthetics.
The Yao people primarily consume rice, sweet potatoes, and taro as their staple foods and enjoy drinking sweet wine. When guests arrive, the host first offers them a cup of sweet wine. There is also a type of sweet wine consumed by Yao women during postpartum recovery, which differs from ordinary sweet wine. It is cooked with ginger slices, brown sugar, and eggs, making it a good tonic. Postpartum women who drink this sweet wine can strengthen their bodies, replenish their blood, and recover their health.
The Yao people have many national festivals, with the most important being the Pan Wang Festival (also known as the Pan Hu King Festival, the legendary ancestor of the She and Yao ethnic groups, said to be a dragon dog named Pan Hu) and the Dan Nu Festival. The Dan Nu Festival is celebrated to honor the creator goddess Miluo Tuo and falls on the 29th day of the fifth lunar month. On this day, families slaughter pigs and sheep, sing, and dance together to celebrate the festival. The Pan Wang Festival commemorates the birth of Pan Wang and falls on the 16th day of the tenth lunar month. On this day, apart from sacrificing to Pan Wang, young men gather to sing and socialize, a tradition known as "singing in the song hall." The song hall lasts for three days: the first day is for sacrificing and parading the gods, with the statues temporarily placed in the village; the second day, unmarried young men and women gather in the square for the "song hall," singing together from morning to night; the third day, all the people parade the statues back to the temple. As night falls, drums and music fill the air, and the song hall concludes in a festive atmosphere.
The folk literature of the Yao people is very rich. "Miluo Tuo" is a famous creation epic; "Pan Wang Songs" depict the vast historical and cultural life of the ethnic group; and the handwritten Chinese manuscript "Ping Huang Quan Die" records the origins, migrations, and farming practices of the ethnic group, holding significant historical value. This series of books consists of ten volumes in total.