Torch Festival
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The Torch Festival falls on the period between 24th day to 26 day of the sixth lunar month. It is shared traditional festival of the Yi, naxi and Bai peoples in southwestern China.
Torch Festival of Yi people
It is an influential event to Yi people like Spring Festival in Han people's tradition. For three days, men and women, young and old carries flaming torches, engages in varied activities. It is also a good opportunity for young men and women to meet their prospective spouses.
During the festival, torches are erected in front of every household, and a pile of faggots of several meters high is erected in the center of a square. When night falls, and gongs and horns are sounded, people of all ages come forward to ignite the faggot pile. Cheerful flames leap up to the sky, crackling and spluttering. Shouts of joy together with the sound of the gongs and drums make a sea of rejoicing.
Men and women in pairs form rows facing one another on a patch of grass. The men play three-stringed instruments as the women kick and clap to the tempo. Snack vendors take full advantage of the occasion, pitching booths under shady trees where people can rest and take refreshments before carrying on with the day's activities.
This assembly is a good chance for young men and women to find their "Ashima" or "Brother Ahei," paying particular attention to their costumes. Young women wear a stiff, triangular piece of fabric on either side of their headdress to attract the attention of young men, but no young man should ever touch this ornament, or he will be forced to labor for three years at the girl's home. On their wedding day, young women remove the two triangles and lay them flat on top of their heads to symbolize marital peace and happiness.
When a young man chooses a certain young woman, he will snatches away her embroidered belt when she didn't regard it. This practice can be traced back to the ancient Yi marriage custom, where the bridegroom pretends to kidnap his bride. If the young woman returns his love she will allow him to court her. If not, she will put on another belt allowing the man to keep the one he had "stolen."
Please be aware when girls fond here embroidered away.
Torch Festival of Bai People
On the 25th of the sixth month of the Chinese lunar calendar, the Bai celebrate the annual Torch Festival in a special way. They wear costumes and butcher pigs and sheep for a feast. Children dye their fingernails red with a kind of flower root. On the eve of the festival, people get everything ready for the big celebration. They set up a large torch about 20 meters high made of stalks and pine branches. On the top of the torch sits a large flag. Several small flags are fixed around the torch, printed with auspicious Chinese characters meaning peaceful land, favorable weather, bumper harvest, and abundant farm animals. Fruits, fireworks, and lanterns are hung around the torch.
The next day, people first go to their ancestors' tombs and hold a memorial ceremony, bringing offerings and burning small torches and papers that symbolize money. People have dinner earlier than usual. Then, after dinner, the young and the old gather at the village square to watch the big torch and go horse riding. Both adults and children take part in the horse riding. Before they ride away, they go around the torch three times. Those who don't ride the horse go home to enjoy the torches in front of the houses and then elect the most beautiful torch of the village. Young mothers carry babies on their back and walk around the village torch three times to pray for the health of their babies.
At nightfall, the senior people of the village lead the other villagers to offer sacrifices to the torch and to kowtow. After this is done, several young men climb up the torch and light it. In no time, a flame rages, accompanied by drumbeats and the sound of firecrackers. Such a spectacular scene it is! As the fire continues, broken bamboo sticks fall to the ground and people try their best to catch them. Those who catch the sticks are thought of as lucky and are warmly congratulated. The lucky ones entertain the other villagers at their homes with cigarettes, wine, and tea.
The festival reaches its climax with the traditional torch playing. Young men and women hold a torch. When they meet someone, they scatter colophony powder onto the torch fire and the fire flares up. People think this expels whammy from their bodies. Then, young people go to the farms and fields with the torch in the hope of eliminating pests. Near the end of the celebration, people lay torches on the ground and set them on fire. Now it is time for people to jump over the fire three times, one by one. They jump and pray to the god of fire for security and good luck. Finally, they go home filled with excitement and the celebration ends.
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