Shamanism is a folk belief activity developed on the basis of primitive beliefs. Circulating in China's northeastern and northwestern border areas to manipulate the Altaic language family Manchu-Tungus, Mongolian, Turkic languages in many ethnic groups, Oroqen, Ewenke, Herzhe and Daur ethnic groups to the early 1950s still preserved the beliefs of the religion. It has had a significant impact on the production, life and social customs of these peoples in various fields. Because the Tungusic language called the shaman a shaman, so this title. Shamans were once believed to have the ability to control the weather, prophecy, interpret dreams, tell fortunes, and travel to heaven or hell.
Basic Concepts
Soul Concepts
The belief that all kinds of objects in the world have souls, and that the changes in nature that bring people misfortune and good fortune are manifestations of the will of various spirits, ghosts and gods.
Shamanism believes that man has several souls. The Hezhen believe that there are three souls:
1) the soul of life (good luck). It is given by the God of life, it is always with the human life***, and when a person dies, he or she leaves the body forever and disappears.
②The soul of thought (Hani). For people in waking thoughts and dreams, it is temporarily away from the body and other souls to meet. It does not disappear after death, and the shaman must be asked to send it to the netherworld so that it will not haunt the world and harm people and animals.
3) Spirit of Transmigration (Fagaku). The spirit of reincarnation is given by the God of reincarnation, according to the character of the person after death, or reincarnation as a human being, or reincarnation of plants and animals, women are infertile, miscarriage, that they do not have the reincarnation of the soul, or the soul was taken due to the soul. Each of the above mentioned souls is only heard but not seen.
The Altaians and Yakuts called the souls and beings "Teng", "Sunay" (or "Sur") and "Kut". The Yakuts called the soul and life "Teng", "Sunay" (or "Sul") and "Kut", believing that all living things have Teng, and that once it leaves the body, the person dies. Sune is unique to humans, it makes them think, will and feel, and it can leave the body and wander around during sleep. Inanimate objects have Kut inside, can give them feelings and will, sheep pen stables with Kut, livestock will be prosperous, the owner will be rich, if it is attached to the shepherd's whip stick, the disease and the evil wolves will not dare to harm the herd. They also believe that the human soul, especially the soul of the dead, can interact and communicate with all kinds of souls or spirits in nature, and even transfer to each other; the spirits of the dead like to be attached to the living body or attached to other objects, so as to make them change.
Deities
Shamanism often gives fire, mountains, rivers, trees, the sun, moon and stars, thunder and lightning, clouds, ice, snow, wind and rain, rainbows and some animals to personify the imagination and mystical spirit, as the master of nature and the earth's gods. In particular, the concept of ghosts and gods formed by the dead spirits of ancestors and the fear caused by various diseases and deaths on earth are the core of the shamanistic concept of deities. It is believed that all kinds of spirits have wills, desires and lusts just like human beings, and that there is a distinction between good and evil, which cannot be disobeyed or violated. Various types of deities have different attributes and functions, each master of their own business, each side, the status of the general equality, rarely subordinate, the vast majority of the hierarchical difference, there is no master of all God. But in the feudal society of Mongolia, Manchu and Daur ethnic shamanism, the emergence of the concept of God (Tengri), gradually rose above the position of the gods.
Some ethnic groups, with the development of private ownership and the influence of the outside class society, gave new connotations to some of the ancient gods. The Oroqen's "Jiyaqi", originally a god that blessed the reproduction of livestock, became the god of wealth, which is worshipped in every household; a few upper-class people used to work as officials in the local organizations of the Qing Dynasty, which made them believe in a variety of Yamen gods, whose statues are mostly the images of officials.
In some of the ethnic groups that entered the class society, there appeared the god of poor birth. Inner Mongolia Huisomu region Ewenke people have been enshrined Ha Yin God, is said to be a pair of poor old couple of poor food and clothing, after death into a god, mostly for the poor to worship; Zhuozhi God is a slave, lifelong for people to raise cows for milking, old age, fell to his death in the cow dung, died after being enshrined as a god, the image of the god is painted on a rectangular board of the old man and the calf with the milk cow. Whenever the milk cow became ill and did not produce milk, the owner offered sacrifices to it.
The concept of the three worlds
The Hezhe thought that the universe is divided into three worlds: upper, middle and lower, the upper heaven, where the gods reside, and is divided into seven layers, with the most authoritative gods residing in the top layer; the middle world is where the people, animals and plants are located; and the lower world is the netherworld, and is divided into a number of layers, which are inhabited by the ancestral spirits, the spirits of the dead in general, and small and large ghosts, respectively. Humans are caught in the middle and are subject to the blessings of the gods and the hauntings of the ghosts. Only the shaman, a witch, can reach the upper and lower realms and unblock the three realms.
Beliefs and Worship
Worship of Nature
①Worship of Fire. Believe that fire comes from the heavenly realm, the most sacred, clean, but also the most friendly, can wash all the dirt, drive away the devil, divination, etc., any religious rituals can not be separated from the fire, a variety of offerings should be offered to the fire god first a little bit. Yakut thought only with the flint fire is sacred and pure. Altaic people pray to the fire and say: you are a part of the sun and the moon. The first thing the Ewenki bride does when she marries into her husband's house is to bow to the fire of her husband's house and introduce herself to the fire god of her husband's house on her own accord. Oroqen people call the fire god as "good offices to Ba Rukan", legend has it that it is an old woman, who offended her can not light the fire, so it is forbidden to poke the fire with an iron or a sharp stick, and it is forbidden to spit, splash water and pour dirt into the fire; when you have a meal or drink wine, you first throw a little wine and meat in the fire in honor of the god of fire.
②Worship the mountain. Mountain was once the clan tribal ancestral home or place of origin, and dominate all kinds of beasts. Ancient Turkic Khan every year with the tribal chiefs to the ancestral habitat of the cave to kill sacrifices, known as the sacrifice of the holy mountain. Oroqen, Ewenki hunters believe that the beasts belong to the mountain god (white nacha) kept, daily can hunt what kind of beasts and hunted more or less, all rely on the god of the mountain to give. Legend has it that the mountain god can turn into a tiger or an old man to help the people. It often wanders in the mountains and forests, so when you go hunting in the mountains, you are forbidden to make noise so as not to offend the mountain god; when you pass through old forests and steep cliffs, you have to pray to the mountain god for good luck. The mountain pass tree is often cut off the bark, painted into a picture of the mountain god's face, for the passing hunters to bow down and worship, offer meat and smoke, and to its mouth smeared with animal blood and meat grease.
3 worship the sun, moon and stars, wind, rain and lightning. Ewenki people say that the sun comes out of the place there is a white-haired old woman, breasts are huge, all children are given to her. Oroqen people kowtow to the sun god (Delechin) in the Spring Festival every year, and kowtow to the moon god (Beiya) on the 15th or 25th day of the first month of the lunar calendar to pray for a year of peace and prosperity. They also believe that the Big Dipper can give people a long life and they should bow to it. Ewenki people say the wind is the north of the wind goddess old woman fanning the big dustpan. Oroqen people believe that crossing the place where the cyclone is blowing will offend the wind god, which will lead to madness and crooked eyes. The rain god is often called the Dragon King, there are countless scales on the body, each scale contains more than a hundred quintals of water, rain is the Dragon King sprinkler. Daur people every year to open the net fishing, are to sacrifice the Dragon King, praying for a good harvest. Herzhe people think that thunder and lightning is "Lei Gong", "flash mother", Lei Gong pounding anvil striking the devil, flash mother aside with a mirror to shine the demon. Oroqen people are forbidden to approach the trees struck by thunder, so as not to offend the god of thunder and illness. Whenever the summer rain affects the hunting, the hunters see the rainbow and kneel down to pray for clearing.
Worship of animals
Ewenki and Oroqen people are exceptionally reverent of bears, which are considered their ancestors and are forbidden to be hunted. Later, guns were introduced, hunting bears gradually open, but whenever the hunt to the bear, are to hold a ceremony, cut off the bear's head, placed on the tree stand, we kneel down on it to honor the smoke kowtow to pray: grandfather! (Female bears are called grandmothers.) Are you asleep? Don't blame us, we don't mean to hurt you, it's a mistake to kill you (the style pretends to be killed by people of other nationalities). Don't be angry with us, and give us more luck in the future. Bless us with more wild animals! We kowtow again and again and burn grass to smoke the bear's head, believing that in this way the bear's spirit will be far away. Then the pack returns with the bear's meat. The hunters entered their own place, made a "ga ga" shout, people then gathered together, set up a fire to cook the bear meat, while eating, making imitation crows "ga ga", "coo coo" sound. After eating, the bear bones are wrapped in wicker and carried by men to be buried in the wind, followed by mourners who pretend to be weeping. The Korean people have an old legend that magpies are their ancestors. The Daur people offer sacrifices to the twelve Duvalan gods, which are twelve animals perched on twelve plants, in large religious ceremonies.
Worship of Ancestral Gods
The main body of shamanistic worship. Oroqen people each clan has its own ancestor god, mostly the clan's deceased great-grandfather above the male ancestors. Oroqen, Ewenki, Daur, Hezhe and Mongolia and other nationalities on the ancestral god of the name, have a similar voice or homologous characteristics. Clan shaman is often called "good offices Jiao Ru" shaman, meaning that the ancestors passed down. They are seen by the ancestral god and when the shaman of the people, ZongLing clan of the main body of the ancestral god, to hold religious ceremonies, to invite the ancestral god to descend attached; with the ghosts and gods when the war, must rely on the power of the ancestral god. This is the recent survival of the shamanism of the same characteristics of the ****.
Under the dominance of the concept of ancestor god worship, the explanation for the illness of human and animal is added to the ancestor god. At the same time, they pay special attention to the signs of dreams and daily phenomena, which are regarded as omens of good and bad fortune from the ancestral gods, and therefore provide for many sacrifices, taboos and superstitions.
Sacrifices
Olai Nalen
Traditional shamanic ceremonies are grand ancestor rituals, in which all members of a clan or tribe pray for the safety of animals and people and for a good agricultural and pastoral harvest. Clan new shaman to lead the ceremony is often held at the same time. Ewenke, Oroqen, Daur and other ethnic groups held in the spring, also known as "April meeting". At that time, people carry cattle and sheep, meat, grain and wine to participate in the party for several days.
Erguna River forest area of Inner Mongolia Ewenke people held an ancestral ceremony, the ancestral god idol hanging in the treetops, east and west sides were hung on the sun, the moon and geese, cuckoos and other wooden models of a tree between the rope hanging reindeer or jail and other beasts, throat, tongue, heart, lungs, kidneys and limbs and tails, the beasts head toward the ancestral god; forbidden to four-pawed beasts they believe that ominous for the sacrifice. The trunks of the trees near the place of sacrifice are smeared with animal blood. The Ewenki people of the steppe often meet in the eighth month of the lunar calendar. The venue is decorated like a forest scene, and the offerings are abundant. During the party, they enjoyed singing and dancing, horse racing, wrestling and making love. Shamans wearing god clothes, masks, to each household jumping god chanting that drive away evil spirits and good luck, the master of the house to them to throw yogurt for good luck. Daur people in the party on the third day of the "Kuje" ceremony, when the shaman will be the clan men, women and children gathered in one place, around a leather rope, three times to tighten the leather rope and then relax, if the quality of the rope length each time there is an increase in the number of omens, that is, is considered to be prosperous; people from the rope out of the bottom of the drill, can be free of disaster. That night, the shaman imitates the movements and chirping of birds of prey, holds a blood-eating ceremony, and smears the blood of cows and sheep on the mouths of the idols of the gods for blessings.
Begging for "umai"
The ritual of catching the soul of a baby. In the ancient Turkic language, the word "乌表" contains the meaning of placenta, the Yakut people believe that it is a kind of auspicious bird, offering bird wheat can make the prosperity of the people. Erguna River Ewenki children with serious illness, that the soul of the sick child went to another world, must be reindeer, Jail as a sacrifice, please shaman held a ceremony to ask for Umei, to catch back the soul. At night before jumping god, kill a black reindeer for shaman to find the soul of the ride. Jumping God, the tent lights out fire, the shaman in the dark running back and forth in search of the shape, and then light the lamp to look at the shaman's drums, such as children's hair, meaning that the soul of the sick child has been retrieved, the parents that is to snatch the hair, wrapped in clean cloth clamped in the armpits or cushion in the buttocks, do not allow it to fly off. The next day, they kill a white reindeer to sacrifice to the ancestral god Maru. They carve the umai, a symbol of the child's soul, into a small sparrow shape out of wood and sew it onto the back of the child's clothes along with the image of the god Maru for good luck."
Send the soul
Oroqen and Ewenki people funeral, more shaman to send the soul of the ceremony, that is, tie a straw man, tied to a number of thin lines, wearing mourning clothes of the deceased's children or other loved ones to lead a line, the shaman also hold a line of incantation prayers, the deceased, do not love the family of the old, and quickly leave. Then use the sacred stick will line - a break, try to throw the straw man far, that the soul of the deceased will go with it. After the body into the coffin, placed in the forest wind burial, or burial. Hezhe buried soul, do a small wooden man wearing clothes, on behalf of the dead, incense burning paper offerings, or please shaman jumping god, with meat and wine to entertain friends and relatives for three days. The third day by the shaman shot three arrows, for the dead souls to indicate the direction to the underworld.
Praying for prey
Ewenke, Oroqen hunters are not good for hunting, often held these ceremonies, that is, the willow preparation of deer, jail model, placed in the usual worship idol position, with a bow and arrow or unloaded slugs of the hunting rifle to the model, the presence of members of the clan or family members have to say: hit! Got it! The hunter then pretends to skin and gut the animal and puts it on a trellis for sacrifice. Or at night, in the hunting ground on an empty pot, the hunters to the moon knocking prayer, the next morning to see what kind of animal hair in the pot, that may be hunting what kind of beasts. In winter, when it is difficult to hunt the fine furred beasts with high economic value, they will ask the shaman to pray to the god of Jiguok to give them good luck
Praying for rain and stopping the rain
The Ewenke people in the forest area will put the woodpecker killed in the water, with its beak facing upwards, and then hang it on the tree, which is thought to be able to get the rain. Take the pine tree strip spike, upside down tied to a thin wooden pole, and then one end of a thin piece of wood perforated with a rope, fast hand shake, the sound of the wind, that can be blown away from the dark clouds, stopping the rain and letting go of the sun.
Spells and spells
According to the legend, the grassland Ewenki people only need to know the name and age of the enemy or the thief, then they can ask the shaman to recite the spells, and use the oil to make a triangular "Chagdol" on a mahogany plate, and when the other side does not notice, they throw it in the direction of the person who is cursed, and they believe that they can make the cursed person by applying such sorcery (Zatkha), and they can make the person who is cursed to do the sorcery to do it. It is believed that by practicing such sorcery (zatkha), one can bring misfortune to the other person. If the other party is aware of this, they can retaliate in the same way. Legend has it that some of the shaman in the jumping gods to drive away the ghosts, but also often show "spells", such as bare feet in the charcoal fire or walking on the steel knife, tongue lick the red hot iron, throw the fire flame, or cut their lips and tongue, the blood sprayed on the patient's face, and so on.
Divination
In the belief that shamanism is quite prevalent in the ethnic groups, a variety of ways. There are gun divination, bone divination, chopsticks divination, etc., Huisomu region Ewenke people and "strainer aunt" divination, mainly divining the sick what kind of offenses against the gods and the lucky and the lucky and the lucky and the lucky.
Jumping God
Jumping God in the shaman, jumping God is generally carried out in three cases: first, to cure people; second, to teach the new shaman; third, to hold the ceremony of sacrificing God.
The ritual of the shaman's healing is like this: in the evening, in the "Xianrenzhu" where the patient lives, people sit around and light a woody plant before the jump to emit fragrance and purify the dirty air, so that the spirits can come.
The shaman wears a sacred garment and a sacred hat, holds a drum in his left hand and a mallet in his right, and sits cross-legged in a special place in the northwest corner of the "Tadaram," while the patient sits in the southeast. Shaman before inviting God, eyes half open and half closed, after a few yawns, began to beat the drum, and then get up, while beating the drum, while jumping, while chanting, the tone is extremely deep. The shaman sings a line, "Zale" (two gods) and the people who participate in the ceremony accompanied by chorus. Drums gradually tighten the shaman jaw shivering, teeth clenched grating, eyes closed tightly, shaking around, showing the pain when the gods possessed the situation. At this time someone took out a ball of red-hot coals, placed in front of the shaman's feet, for the god to lead the way. The shaman's drumming suddenly stopped, and his body was shaking, which was a sign that the god was possessed. This is a sign that the god has possessed the body. At this time, the possessed god is the ancestor god, who asks through the mouth of the shaman, "What is the matter that you have invited me here?" "Zalie and the patient's relatives answered on his behalf: "Because someone is sick, the ancestors have been summoned to come and see him." The shaman then beats the drums and chants, and by invoking the gods one by one, he finds out which god the patient has offended. Shaman mentioned the name of a god, the patient could not help but tremble, it is thought to be the god in the haunting of the patient; sometimes the god of the haunting through the mouth of the shaman, recognizing that he did, asking for some kind of sacrifice, the patient's family rushed to agree, promised to get well after the return of the wish. Some shaman see the patient's condition is serious, let the patient lying naked on the bed, to its body spray boiling water, called "Alqin Dalan". If the soul of a critically ill patient is considered to be the evil god, the shaman with the help of the power of the ancestral gods, in the imagination of the expedition to the battlefield, fighting with the evil spirits, the patient's soul back, the patient can be saved. Shaman jumping time varies, depending on the severity of the patient's symptoms, as short as half an hour, as long as 1 to 2 nights. Some shaman can not fight the evil spirits, asked another shaman to jump god.