World of the Shaman

Author: Liu Lunwen
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-12-01
Features: The ritual activities of the Taima (shaman) can be divided into three main types: the village collective sacrificial "Jumping Shuaishou," the family vow-repaying "Playing the Bodhisattva," and the individual exorcism "Releasing Evil." Among these, due to the complete change in social organization forms, the Jumping Shuaishou has completely lost its sacrificial nature and has become mostly an annual cultural entertainment activity organized by local cultural institutions. The exorcism function is singular, short in duration, and limited in content. Only the "Playing the Bodhisattva" ritual is the key to understanding the Taima, learning about the original religious beliefs of the Tujia people, and even tracing the original social structure of the Tujia people.
The "Playing the Bodhisattva" ritual of the Taima, according to records from Qing Dynasty local chronicles and investigations by local ethnic cultural workers, was once widely practiced in the You River Basin and surrounding areas. However, due to historical prohibitions and the influence of mainstream culture, its popularity gradually shrank, and the degree of devotion to it decreased. Especially after the Great Leap Forward movement in the 1950s, which brought about a massive change in social structure, the remaining activities in the surviving regions were forced to stop abruptly. Since the 1980s, efforts have been made to rescue and revitalize ethnic culture, and some surviving Taima attempted to restore the activities. However, due to the broken chain of vow-repaying, none of them continued. Currently, spontaneous "Playing the Bodhisattva" activities among the public are extremely rare.