Elopement, Fleeing Marriage, and Self-Sacrifice for Love: The Strange Marriage Customs of a Naxi Family

Author: He Jiaxiu
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-06-01
Features: The Naxi people have coexisted with the Jinsha River for two thousand years. The people are like water, and the water is like the people. The ethnic group has the character of the river, and the river is personified by the ethnic group. The Jinsha River has become the embodiment and synonym of the Naxi people. In the Dongba scriptures and folk tales of the Naxi ethnic group, there are many beautiful and moving stories about the Jinsha River. One story goes like this: In ancient times, Mount Juyong and Mount Haba were brothers, and the Jinsha River was their younger sister. The older brother Juyong was honest and simple, the younger brother Haba was clever and capable, and the younger sister Jinsha River was a beautiful and graceful girl, renowned far and wide. The beauty of the Jinsha girl attracted hundreds of young men to seek her hand in marriage, and love songs were sung day and night. But the Jinsha girl was not moved by any of them, because she had fallen in love with the son of the sea in the east where the sun rises. Her parents did not want their precious daughter to marry far away, so they asked Juyong and Haba to take turns guarding her. The two brothers agreed: the older brother would guard the first half of the night, and the younger brother would guard the second half. Whoever failed would be mercilessly beheaded. After several months, one night, the sky was as dark as ink, and it was the younger brother Haba's turn to guard. The Jinsha girl sang gentle and melodious songs, and her older brother Juyong was so captivated that he fell into a trance when she sang the eighteenth song. The Jinsha girl slipped away quietly from the canyon beneath the two brothers' feet, and the eighteen songs she sang turned into the eighteen dangerous rapids of Tiger Leaping Gorge. When Juyong and Haba woke up, they were filled with regret. According to ancient custom, Juyong wept as he beheaded his younger brother Haba. From then on, Haba became a headless mountain, and Juyong grew white with sorrow. His tears turned into the famous Black Water and White Water rivers. Another version of the Jinsha girl's story goes like this: After hearing the story from an old man on Mount Juyong about how the prince of the East Sea had wasted away from love and longing for her, the Jinsha girl decided to go to the East Sea to be with her beloved. The old man of Juyong accompanied her, but he traveled a hundred miles in a single step and arrived at the beautiful Lijiang first. Looking back, he saw that the Jinsha girl was still nowhere to be found and fell asleep. He slept for tens of thousands of years. The Jinsha girl arrived at the foot of Mount Juyong and playfully scratched the old man's instep, which blocked her path. The old man Juyong swayed his big foot, creating a narrow gap—this became Tiger Leaping Gorge. From then on, the Jinsha girl went eastward along the gorge and married the son of the Dragon King of the East Sea. Another version of the Jinsha girl's story goes like this: The beautiful, wise, and affectionate older sister Jinsha girl left her younger sister Nujiang, who had a temper, and her third sister Lancang River, who was quick-tempered. She turned eastward. One day, the Jinsha girl came before Mount Juyong and Mount Haba, only to find her path blocked by two rough men. The Jinsha girl quickly thought of a plan, knowing that no man dislikes a beautiful girl. She sang a lingering love song, but Juyong and Haba had just returned from an affair with the Goddess Gemo three days ago and paid no attention to the Jinsha girl, who was disheveled and exhausted. The two rough men even covered their ears in annoyance. The Jinsha girl had no choice but to use flattery, but the two men just stared blankly and refused to let her pass. She pleaded for three days and begged for three nights. The older brother Juyong grew tired and dozed off, saying to his younger brother Haba, "Brother, I'm a bit sleepy. Let me rest for a while. You must keep a close eye on this fleeing demon girl!" Haba, while agreeing, was already lost in the dream of his affair with the Goddess Gemo and soon fell asleep. The clever Jinsha girl quietly raised a wave and gently bit Haba's foot. Haba's foot withdrew, and the Jinsha girl slipped out quietly, rushing into Tiger Leaping Gorge, laughing with joy. The furious Juyong woke up and slapped Haba, who shrank in height from then on. Juyong turned around and faced Haba with his back, while his face turned toward the Lijiang Plain. In the many stories of the Naxi people about the Jinsha River, the Jinsha River is a wise, beautiful, and affectionate girl. She is sometimes joyful and rushing, and sometimes gentle and graceful. With her wisdom and tenderness, she overcomes the temptation and obstruction of hundreds of "mountain companions" along the way, determined to meet the son of the Dragon King of the East Sea in the east where the sun rises. She pursues her grand goals, lives freely, and plays hide-and-seek with the mountains under the sun and moon, creating beautiful and wise stories day and night. Clearly, the Naxi people personify the Jinsha River in their stories. The Jinsha girl is actually the embodiment of thousands of beautiful, wise, hardworking, kind, and tender-hearted Naxi women. The stories of the Jinsha girl are the stories of Naxi women, and the Jinsha River will always flow with beautiful and moving tales of the Naxi women. P3-5