Yi people's original religion and culture

Author: Zhu Wenxu
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 have lived and thrived 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 primarily 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 Bayanbuluk Mongol Autonomous Prefecture, Bortala Mongol Autonomous Prefecture, and Baise Mongol Autonomous County of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, as well as in Kalgan Left Banner Mongol Autonomous County and Fuxin Mongol Autonomous County of Liaoning Province, Qianjiang Luoerhe Mongol Autonomous County of Jilin Province, Duer Mongol Autonomous County of Heilongjiang Province, Subei Mongol Autonomous County of Gansu Province, and Haixi Mongol Tibetan Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture of Qinghai Province. Some also live in clusters or scattered in provinces and autonomous regions such as Hebei and Henan.
The Yao people have their own language, which belongs to the Hani-Kadai language family and the Miao-Yao branch. Due to the complexity of its dialects, there are significant differences in language across various regions. The Yao people commonly use Chinese or Zhuang scripts, 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 periods. 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 for living quarters, and the third floor for storing grain and items. These houses are built without a single iron 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 five-colored clothing." The head ornaments of Yao women are particularly elaborate. There are the "Dragon Coiling" style, which involves coiling a ten-meter-long embroidered cloth on the head; the "A" shape, made by wrapping an embroidered cloth to form a narrow top and wide bottom, with colorful silk threads and beads tied on top; and the "Half-Moon" shape, which involves placing three half-moon-shaped silver plaques on the head. There are countless other types of head ornaments.
The patterns on Yao men's and women's upper clothing are rich and varied, including depictions of birds, flowers, fish, insects, geometric designs, and human figures. The collars come in round or vertical styles, with open front designs, no buttons, and a belt tied around the waist. 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 special 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 nutritional supplement. Postpartum women who drink this sweet wine can strengthen their bodies, replenish their blood, and recover their health.
The Yao people have numerous national festivals, with the main ones 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 sacrifice 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 practice known as "singing in the song hall." The song hall lasts for three days: the first day involves sacrificing and enacting rituals, with the deity's image temporarily placed in the village; the second day, unmarried young men and women gather in the square to sing in the song hall, with paired young men and women singing together from morning to evening; the third day, all the villagers parade the deity's image 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 rich and diverse. "Miluo Tuo" is a famous creation epic; "Pan Wang Songs" depict the broad picture of national history and cultural life; and the handwritten Chinese manuscript "Ping Huang Quan Die" records the origins, migrations, and agricultural practices of the ethnic group, holding significant historical value. This series of books consists of a total of ten volumes.