The culture of rituals and festivals is rich in characteristics. The Lisu people call the annual festival "Cao Shi". Nujiang region of the Lisu people in the new China before the establishment of the main to the observation of the weather to determine the time of the New Year, so there is no uniformity, determine the date, but generally in the summer calendar, December 5 to the first ten of the first month of the following year within this period, that is, the cherry blossom season. During the New Year Festival, it is customary to pound indica rice and glutinous corn poi, and brew fragrant water wine. In order to pray for good weather and good grain harvest in the coming year, every family should put a little of the first mortar pounded indica poi on the peach, pear and other fruit trees; some places let the dog eat a small bowl before eating, which is said to express the respect to the dog for bringing the grain seeds to the human world. The first day of the festival, young men and women around the world to dress up, gathered to belong to the village of the public **** place - playing field, held crossbow shooting, dancing, singing and other activities, this is a young men and women spit out their love for each other, betrothal and friendship a great opportunity. Young men and women are often superior archery skills to win the love of the girls, some young men and women are beautiful dance and melodious song to express the love of both sides. Once each other have love for each other, each other to gifts. Many young men and women are fixed for life through this activity.
During the Spring Festival, the Lisu people of the Nujiang River Canyon, there is a "spring bath" of the fashion. Where there are hot springs along the banks of the river, are people gathered to bathe in the place. Go to the "spring bath" people, are to bring food, luggage in the hot springs not far from the place to set up bamboo huts, or find a cave to rest. Generally have to live in the hot springs on three or five days, some bathing five or six times a day, that is to eliminate diseases, enhance immunity, in order to have enough energy to put into the new year's labor production. In the hot springs area near the six banks, as early as more than a hundred years ago, the formation of a mass "spring poetry contest". At that time, singers from dozens and dozens of miles nearby would gather here to compete in poetry and song. The singers from dozens and dozens of miles around would meet here to compete in poetry and song, and at the same time, they would taste the delicious food and wine that each of them had brought to the festival. The "Cuoshi Festival" has been designated as the Nujiang Lisu **** with the celebration of a national holiday, the time for the annual calendar on December 20th. During the festival, there are singing competitions, crossbow shooting competitions, over the zip line competition, on the mountain of fire show and the annual "bath pond will".
Dehong, Tengchong Lisu people every year on February 17 of the lunar calendar over the "knife pole festival". Two days of activities, the first day "under the sea of fire", with chestnut firewood burned into a pile of coals, the show began, five people barefoot around the coals jumped out and jumped in, and then "playing fire roll", that is, rolled on the coals; "wash fire face ", that is, holding up the coals to wash their faces; finally, the iron chain burned in the coals was passed around in their hands, called "pulling the fire chain", and the crowd danced together after the performance. The next day "on the knife mountain", the 32 sharpened long knives, horizontally tied to two 4 feet high thick chestnut poles into the shape of a ladder, the top of the red flag, firecrackers, firecrackers in a firecrackers and drums in the beginning of the show.
The Harvest Festival is also an important festival for the Lisu people. Every year from the ninth to the tenth lunar month, when the new grain and corn begin to be harvested, families cook wine to taste the new. Men, women and children gather in the village square, burning bonfires, the old man playing the pipa, Yueqin, singing and dancing, recounting ancient history; young men and women dance in a circle, dancing while drinking wine, singing and dancing, and then leave in joy.
Part of the Lisu people, as Christian believers, will celebrate Easter in April, Thanksgiving in October and Christmas in December. Due to the influence of other ethnic groups around them, the festivals of the Lisu in the leaning area are similar to those of the nearby Han, Yi, Bai and Naxi ethnic groups. In the first month of the lunar New Year, people first feed salt to the plowing oxen to show respect for their hard work throughout the year. June over the torch festival, August over the Mid-Autumn Festival.
There are many customs and taboos in the Lisu area that were formed before the founding of New China. For example, Lisu women can not burn firewood with pitchforks after pregnancy, or the child will be hare lip; back firewood can not be back with pigweed, or the child will be born out of the water; can not eat cucumber seeds, or the child will be green spots on the body; can not cross the rope of the tethered horse, or the child will not be born, and so on. As the Lisu will not calculate the date of birth of the baby, many children are born in the field, next to the ground. If the baby is born at home, it is usually delivered by the mother of the mother; if the mother is old or dead, the mother-in-law will deliver the baby; if the mother-in-law is not available, the baby will be delivered by a sister of the man's or woman's family. In the absence of the mother-in-law, the woman's sister or the man's sister will deliver the baby. If the sister is not available, a suitable elderly person from among the relatives will be found. The baby's placenta was considered to be the dirtiest and was immediately buried a mile away. Nowadays, with the progress of society and the improvement of medical and health conditions, these taboos have gradually lost their influence.
The basic form of marriage and family among the Lisu is monogamy. The form and process are characterized by more unique features. Young men and women enjoy greater social freedom before marriage, more populous villages, it is customary to use the newly built empty rooms or repair shacks, for young men and women's social activities to provide convenience. Young men and women to the night can be free to such a room to play the string, singing tune, late into the night everyone around the fire and lie down. Sometimes, such social activities can also be carried out in the guarding of crops in the hut. Girls to thirteen or fourteen years old to perform the "skirt ceremony", after the skirt ceremony can participate in such social activities.
In the past, men and women were usually engaged at a young age by their parents, and some were even betrothed. The bride price was heavy. The right of aunts and uncles to prioritize marriages was also prevalent. The Lisu people have a saying: "The biggest tree is the cedar tree, the biggest person is the uncle." Therefore, it is customary to ask for a woman's uncle first. Today, Lisu young men and women are free to marry, and marriage and family are built on the basis of free love.
The individual family is the basic unit of Lisu society. The family generally consists of two generations of parents and unmarried children, with the son building a separate house from the date of marriage or one year later. According to Lisu custom, the youngest and the only son do not live apart from their parents and have the right to inherit their parents' final property, so the eldest and the second son must live apart from their parents in order to create the preconditions for the youngest son's property inheritance. Elderly couples who have no children may adopt a son, with preference generally given to close relatives, and individually to those from other clans. Adopted children can enjoy the right to inherit property; if they die of old age without children, the property goes to one of the closest relatives in the family; daughters do not have the right to inherit property, but if they are recruited into a family, their son-in-laws can inherit the property with the consent of the clan. If the daughter is married, she can only share her mother's 1 string of beads and some ornaments.
Lisu people died in the earth burial, unnatural deaths line cremation. After the death of the old man, the village stopped working for two to three days, the village residents and family members to bring wine, meat and food to the home of the deceased to offer condolences, and to help wash the face of the deceased, combing hair, change new clothes. The body of the deceased parked at home for one or two days, up to seven days. During the period of parking, offerings should be made 3 times a day, each time rice, meat, cold water, 3 bowls each. Before the burial, the village people should go to the home of the deceased to dance for the dead funeral dance ("Shi Beideng").
The date of burial is usually chosen to be buried on Rat, Rabbit, Snake, Monkey, Rooster and Pig Days. At the funeral, the body is carried by four people and the body is placed on the trunk of a chestnut tree, nine for men and seven for women. Two young people in front of the knife to open the way, the family to send the funeral to halfway that is to return. Villages and families have public **** cemetery, in the public **** cemetery to choose a piece of flat land, dug a grave pit, placed around the boards, the body that rests on it, the head in a high place, lying on the side facing the sun out of the earth to fill in, do not base the mound, some areas affected by the influence of other ethnic groups, have begun to base the grave.
Tomb arrangement order, male in the left, female in the right, according to the generation from right to left horizontal columns, after the dead also according to the generation in order to the back of the arrangement. The shape of the tomb is high and wide at one end, low and narrow at the other end of the long way, the size of the tomb depends on the age of the deceased. If the deceased is a man, the burial shall be used in his lifetime machete, crossbow, arrow bag, tobacco bag, etc. hanging head of the tomb for the burial; if it is a woman, will be used in life weaving tools, linen hanging bag, needle and thread, cooking utensils hanging head of the tomb.
Lisu men and women are very rich in clothing and regional characteristics. Before the founding of new China, most of the Lisu men and women in the Nujiang area wear self-woven homemade linen clothes, only a few wealthy families and upper-class people wear cotton clothes. Weaving hemp tools are very simple, the weaving frame is just two horizontal and two straight four sticks built, some with four wooden columns inserted into the ground, the upper end of the two sticks, that is, for the "loom". A handy woman can weave about 6 feet of 5-inch-wide linen cloth every day.
Lisu women's clothing is very beautiful and generous. There are two styles of clothing: one with a short shirt on, wearing a skirt underneath, skirt length and ankle, skirt folds a lot; the other with a short shirt on, pants underneath, pants outside the front and back to tie a small apron. The women's shirts are long and waist-length, placketed, full round flat collar, no buttons, plain lapels open, cold days are covered with hands, or with neck beads or shells, mussels and other ornaments pressed. Some of the black cloth edging, clothing for the white, black and white match is extremely beautiful. Because of the differences in the color of the linen worn around, and divided into black, white, flower Lisu 3 kinds. Gathered in the Nujiang River around the white, black Lisu women, generally wear right-over-oblong blouse, linen skirt; married women wearing large copper earrings, long shoulders, head to coral, material beads for decoration. Young girls like to use a small white shells adorned with red thread braid; some women also like to wear a string of agate, sea shells or silver coins in front of the chest, the Lisu language called this chest decoration for "pull white Ridi". Lushui area of the "black Lisu" women do not wear long skirts, tops right obeisance, waist tie a small apron, pants, green cloth head, ear wearing a small coral a kind of jewelry. Yongsheng, Dehong area of the "flower Lisu", dress is more colorful and beautiful. Women are happy in the blouse and long skirt embroidered with many lace, head wrapped in a flower cloth turban, earrings large copper or silver ring, skirt length and the ground, walking, swaying swing, look graceful. Sichuan Dechang region of women at a young age, the top of the head to stay 3 pointed hair, and then increased year by year, to the age of 15 full. The top of the head with wool woven into the band woven into the bucket hat, Lisu language called "my bottom", two braids of hair ring good tie in the "my bottom" under; left and right ears each pierced with a hole, marriage, each ear with a silver earrings, the top made of self-woven dyed cloth, the collar edge of the flower 7 to 20; the lower body with a skirt, under the skirt inside the sticking to the bottom of the skirt. The body wears a skirt, under which a white cloth, 5 inches wide, is glued inside, and 6 circles of flower patterns are pricked out with flowery threads, and the waist is tied with a red and black belt made of wool.
Before the founding of New China, the Lisu men's clothing around the linen shirt or short shirt, pants knee-length, some with a green cloth wrapped around the head, some stored hair braids wrapped around the back of the head. Headmen or individual men from wealthy families wore a string of large red coral in their left ear to indicate their social status. All adult men like to wear a machete on the left side of the waist, the right side of the waist hanging arrows bag, arrows bag made of bear skin, monkey skin. Dechang's Lisu men to leave a small bundle of hair on top of the head, others touched unlucky. Clothes for the top and bottom pants, woven with hemp. After the founding of new China, especially since the reform and opening up, the Lisu people's clothing raw materials have undergone fundamental changes, hemp has been almost extinct.
Lisu housing in different areas have different forms of construction. The Nujiang area and the Yanbian area of Sichuan Province, the Lisu people's housing is mainly gabion houses and wooden houses; Lijiang, Dehong and Sichuan Xichang and other areas of the housing is mainly earth and wood structure. The gabion houses, also known as the "thousand-foot landing houses", are built by erecting dozens of wooden stakes on the slopes, laying wooden boards on top of the stakes, surrounded by gabion fences, and covered with thatch or wooden boards. The house is generally divided into two rooms, the first door for the guest room, the center of the house set up a large fire pit, the top of the iron triangle or 3 stones, as a support for cooking, guests to the fire pit are sitting around. The second room for men and women's bedrooms, generally do not allow outsiders to enter. If the children get married, some of them will build a new house, while others will expand the size of the house, with the parents living in the inner room and the children living in the outer room. Underneath the gabion houses, they are usually used as stables.
Diaspora in Lanping, Wisi around the Lisu people, most like to live in a wooden house. The shape of this house is very much like a large wooden box, surrounded by about 5 meters long and 20 centimeters thick corrugated horizontal frame. The method: the length of equal logs broken into the ends of the concave-convex type, and then stacked into a rectangle for the walls, the four walls on the ground to support the housing beams, fixed with a crossbar. The whole house can be used without an inch of iron nails, nor leave a gap, can be described as ingenious. Larger houses are divided into two, small only one. Often open the door on the side, the center of the fire, the family is lying around the fire. The roof is covered with wooden boards, and the boards are tightly pressed with stones to prevent them from slipping.
Lisu in the interior, by the Han, White, Naxi and other ethnic influences, most of the more durable earth wall house. To wood as a pillar, with the earth punch wall around and become, generally open a small window, the roof covered with grass or wooden planks and become. The four walls of the earth walled room with red soil mixed with straw rushed into, due to the strong firmness of the punch extrusion, can be used for decades; some houses covered with wooden boards, tiles have long been damaged, but the earth wall is still hard as iron.
Lisu natural calendar, very rich in national and regional characteristics. They use the mountain flowers open, mountain birds cry, snow and other changes in natural phenomena, as a judgment of production seasonal weather. The Lisu people divide the year into two seasons, dry and wet, the dry season is generally from the end of the rainy season in November of the first year to the onset of the rainy season in February of the following year, and the wet season is from March to October of the calendar, which is the period of rising temperatures, rain and humidity; the year is divided into the following categories: the month of blossoming flowers (March), the month of birdsong (April), the month of burning the volcano (May), the month of hunger (June), the month of gathering (July and August), the month of harvest (September and October), the month of cooking wine (November), and the month of cooking wine (September and October). , the month of cooking wine (November), the month of hunting (December), the month of New Year's Eve (January), the month of building houses (February), and other 10 festivals.
The Lisu are a people who can sing and dance. The literature, music and dance created by the people in their long struggle against nature and the ruling class, in their daily labor and love life are rich in distinctive national characteristics and a strong flavor of life. Through these vehicles, the history and important production and living experiences of the Lisu people have been passed down from generation to generation and have become an important part of their spiritual life.
Folk songs are a favorite artistic activity of the Lisu people. In the words of the Lisu people themselves, "If you don't eat salt, you can't eat it, and if you don't sing it, you can't sing it". Folk song has almost become the Lisu people's "second language", whether in a variety of production activities, or marriage and funeral, the Lisu people have to sing, and even sue or mediate disputes, but also often used to sing the tune of the way to solve the problem.
Lisu folk song according to its genre and form, can be roughly divided into six categories: (1) the ancient song (Lisu language called "wood scraping cloth"), more widely circulated, the more famous tune has "production tune", "ancient war song", "the ancient war song", "the ancient war song", "the ancient war song", "the ancient war song", "the ancient war song", "the ancient war song", "the ancient war song", "the ancient war song". The more famous tunes include "production tune", "ancient war song", "bridge building tune" and "fleeing marriage tune", etc.; (2) love songs, which are sung by young men and women in groups, and also sung by young lovers at the time of the rendezvous, called "by Ye Ye", which are sung in the Lisu language. By Ye Ye Ye", tunes are sung by young men and women when they are resting from their labor in the fields, accompanied by pipa or lute strings, such as "lute strings" and "pipa tunes", etc.; (3) Sai Songs are impromptu songs sung by young men and women on New Year's Day or at gatherings, with tunes like the joyful and unrestrained "Pipa Song". Like to use the cheerful and spirited "Bay Department Bay" or "scrape wood heat"; (4) sacrificial songs, is to sacrifice ancestors or ghosts and gods when singing the tune; (5) funeral songs, is to mourn the dead sung by the tune, the lyrics of the moving, mournful and tragic tunes. According to the different funerals, it is customary to have a "crying song", "send the spirit song", "elegy" of the points; (6) Songs, is the new China after the establishment of the Lisu people created folk songs, mostly in the form of a contrast between the old and the new to express the spirit of the Lisu people. (6) Songs, which are folk songs written by the Lisu people after the founding of New China, are mostly in the form of contrasts between the old and the new, expressing the Lisu people's love for the new society. The Lisu folk songs have their own style of singing, often using a lot of trills when singing short notes, and singing long notes in a straight and simple way, with a thick and low tone, making people feel that they have a deep inner strength.
In the Lisu musical life, musical instruments are an important part. The more popular instruments include the pipa, the mouth string, and so on. The pipa is an ancient instrument popular among the Lisu folk, and one of the people's favorite instruments. The shape is roughly the same as the Han Chinese pipa, with a smaller body (some are square). There is no fixed pitch division on the handle, only a small point of rosin as a pitch mark, with 4 metal strings. The strings are plucked with the thumb and forefinger. The mouth string is also a traditional Lisu musical instrument, loved by every young man and woman. String body is about 3 inches long, half an inch wide bamboo made of a groove, the center carved up a spring, the player against the mouth gently blowing, so that the sound of the shrapnel in the mouth to cause **** sound, and then the breath adjustment to make the tone become soft, melodious. Although the volume of the mouthpiece is small, it is very beautiful, especially when played in the dead of night, accompanied by softly singing or chanting, it is even more beautiful and beautiful.
The dances are colorful and reflect the daily life of the Lisu people, their struggle against nature and their open-mindedness. For example, there are the monkey fist dance, the pigeon water dance and the bird king dance, which imitate the movements and habits of animals; and the wedding dance, the laundry dance and the heel dance, which express the daily life of the Lisu people. These dances are accompanied by pipa, mouth strings and so on; there are also some dances without accompaniment of mute dances such as heel dance and production dance, such dances, most of them are expressed through the movement of the lower limbs, with fewer arm movements, and a pair of two people touching each other's heels to grasp the rhythm of the heel impact. Because of the vivid image of the dance, the dance pattern is rich in change, coupled with the dancer's joyful and full of emotion, so that the whole scene seems very warm.
Lisu dance form is a collective dance, such as production dance, heel dance, men and women in a circle, dance steps according to the circle to carry out, accompaniment in the middle (accompanist also with the dance). Sometimes two people dance opposite each other, but the movement is the same, just one in and one out. Wedding dance, cut millet dance steps are slightly different, men and women stand separately in a row, marching not to the circle as a standard, men and women in two rows sometimes marching side by side, cross, and sometimes one into a retreat, echoing each other. The Lisu dance is mostly inseparable from these two forms. Lisu dance movements are robust, lively and varied. A variety of dance accompaniment combined with the content of the dance, the use of rhythmic strong 2 beat or 2 beat, 3 beat mixed rhythm, so it appears enthusiastic and unrestrained, and rich in spicy, rough passion, showing the distinctive ethnic characteristics of the Lisu dance.
The Lisu people have also created a lot of distinctive characteristics of the nation, colorful folklore, mainly oral literature, to sing and tell the way of oral heritage down. Myths and historical legends about the works, such as the "business chronicle", "our ancestors", "the legend of the Hengduan Mountains", "the story of the opening of the earth", etc., from different sides of the face of the Lisu ancient society, recounting the Lisu people in their childhood on the universe, human society, a variety of interpretations and views, but also celebrate the Lisu ancestors in the struggle with nature to show the At the same time, it also celebrates the heroism and indomitable dedication of the Lisu ancestors in their struggle against nature. The Lisu narrative poems are rich in themes and contents, usually with complete storylines and distinctive characters. For example, the "Rouzimu Scrape" ("Reunion Tune") has more than 1,500 lines, which, with a realistic approach and vivid language, makes a profound revelation and a powerful accusation against feudal sale and marriage. Riddles, proverbs, epigrams and children's songs, which are popular among the people, are also part of Lisu folk literature. Because they usually have the function of teaching production, life experience and educating people, they are loved by the Lisu people and have been passed down from generation to generation.
The Lisu people generally believe in primitive religion, which is based on nature worship and the concept of the soul, and exists in the Lisu area in the form of animal sacrifice in case of disease and disaster. In recent times, Christianity and Catholicism have been introduced to the Nujiang area, and some Lisu people have turned to Christianity, while a small number of them are Catholic.
The Lisu people practiced nature worship. In their concept, the mountains, rivers, sun, moon, stars, plants and animals are "gods" or "ghosts" dominated. As a result, the mountains have mountain spirits, trees have tree ghosts, water has a water god, almost all natural phenomena have become the object of their faith and worship. They divided the gods and ghosts into several categories, and the main ghosts were the dam ghosts ("Ushani"), the house ghosts ("Haikuani"), the mountain ghosts ("Misni"), the water ghosts ("Edusni") and the water ghosts ("Misni"), and the water ghosts ("Misni"), and the water ghosts ("Misni"). "Edusni"), dream ghosts ("Migani"), blood ghosts ("Chakani"), road ghosts ("Gaguni "), devils ("Nipaimuni"), and Tiger Clan ghosts ("Yakuduni"), among more than 30 others. All of these are the illusory reactions in their minds of those external coercive forces that rule people in their daily lives. It is also a manifestation of the weakness of the Lisu ancestors in their struggle against nature and society during the historical period.
In the long-term primitive religious activities, the Lisu people gradually formed a group of shamans who were not detached from labor. Sorcerers are divided into "Nipa" and "Nicuipa" two kinds, the difference between the two, only in the former can "see" ghosts and incantations to "drive away" or "kill" ghosts. The only difference between the two is that the former can "see" ghosts and use incantations to "exorcise" or "kill" them, and therefore has a higher social status. Some of the headmen are also "ni pao". In addition to preside over the rituals, they also for the people divination and fortune-telling. Divination has a bamboo stick trigrams, sheep bone trigrams, shell trigrams, chicken trigrams, pig liver trigrams and so on more than 10 kinds. Some sorcerers engaged in ritual activities, according to the size of the ghosts and gods, the residence and hobbies of the different types of targeted ritual songs to be sung. Witches in the ritual activities, wearing a long linen shirt, head wearing a large hat, hat bundled with two large goat horns, back with a long knife, long knife covered with a piece of felt or linen, hand waving a long bamboo pole.
The Lisu concept of ghosts and gods is simple but unique. On the one hand, that everything in the world has a spirit, and believe that everything in the universe is dominated by the sky god (Mis) and elves (Ni) and sway, and therefore fear the Mis and the "Ni", and sacrifice to them; on the other hand, in the process of sacrifice, but also shows a contempt for ghosts and gods, such as the use of words harshly attack the "Ni". Such as drought, the first sacrifice to pray for rain, such as drought again, then held a ceremony to scold the dragon; when someone is sick, first pray for the "Ni", and then do not heal the scolding of the "Ni", drive "Ni" to cure the disease, and so on.
Yunnan lisu clan totem, there are tigers, bears, monkeys, sheep, snakes, birds, fish, bees, buckwheat, hemp, tea, bamboo, teak, frost, fire and so on more than 20 kinds. Lisu also fire, frost as a totem to worship. Some clans are named after plants and animals, but do not take them as objects of worship. Such as fish clan is due to the members of this clan is good at fishing and named; buckwheat clan, hemp clan is known for growing buckwheat, hemp. Into the class society, totem worship gradually weakened, or only retained some symbolic remnants of the form.
In the early 20th century, Christianity and Catholicism were introduced to the Nujiang Lisu area by English and French missionaries. Because it has a unified classic, but also has a more complete form of liturgy, and its advocacy of certain precepts and creeds and Lisu traditional moral norms coincide, so in the Nujiang Lisu gradually spread among the middle. After the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, the People's Government advocated the freedom of religious belief under the premise of "Three-Self Patriotic Principles", and Christianity has been spreading. Christianity has now become the Nujiang region, most of the Lisu people in the broader faith in the religion.