What's with the Mosuo people?

Mosuo people belong to Naxi nationality, mainly living in ninglang county, Yunnan Province and Yanyuan, Muli and other counties in Sichuan Province, with a population of about 40,000. The population of Ninglang Mosuo is 1.5 million, mainly living in Yongningbazi near Lugu Lake. The language, dress and marriage customs of Mosuo people are different from those of Naxi people west of Jinsha River. According to "History and Geography of Yuan Dynasty", Yongning area on the border of Sichuan and Yunnan was once ruled by Tubo, and tribes settled here in the early Tang Dynasty, which lasted for 3 1 year since the early Yuan Dynasty, about 700 years. Yongning is called "Alan" in Tibetan and "Ludi" in Mosuo. Yuan Shizu Kublai Khan passed through Dali when he made his expedition to the south, and was named Yongning. Yongning began to set up Yongning House in Yuan Dynasty, and was later promoted to Yongning House. Because Mosuo tribal leaders led the people to submit to the army and fought side by side with the army, they were awarded the titles of Yongning Tusi and XiangTusi. After the Ming, Qing and Republic of China, until the democratic reform in 1956, a Tubo was spread to 38 chieftains. The family organizations of Mosuo people in Ningbo County are mostly paternal families in Cui Yu, Xinyingpan, Daxing, Hongqi and Hongqiao, and they live together with other ethnic groups. The Yongning residential area near Lugu Lake still retains the remains of matriarchal couples' marriage. Children begin to live from their mother's side, and their lineage is calculated according to their mother's side. Men don't marry, women don't marry, only "xia" (husband and wife) relationship.

Mosuo people are used to living by mountains and rivers, and their houses are all made of wood, commonly known as "wooden houses" in the local area. Traditional flavor foods include pork belly, pickled fish, Surima wine and so on. Mosuo area used to be dominated by agriculture and animal husbandry, and it was also good at driving horses for commercial and cottage industries (textile, sewing, brewing, milking, butter making, etc.). However, due to the economic stage of feudal lords, the level of productivity was low and the economic development was slow. Since the democratic reform, great changes have taken place in the construction of various undertakings in Mosuo area, and people's lives are flourishing.

The traditional festivals of Mosuo people include Spring Festival, Dragon Boat Festival, Chaoshan Festival, ancestor worship festival, animal husbandry festival and land worship festival, among which the Spring Festival and Chaoshan Festival are the most grand. Every family with boys and girls over the age of 12 will hold a rite of passage on the first day of the first month. Mosuo people call it "gift giving" or "blanket giving", that is, wearing pants or skirts. Every year on July 25th of the lunar calendar, Mosuo people in Yongning will dress up to walk or ride to worship the Goddess Mountain beside Lugu Lake, which is called "Zhunv Mountain". During this period, there will be horse racing, wrestling, duets and other activities, and a picnic on the mountain. Young Mosuo men and women will take the opportunity to make friends with xia.

The primitive religion of Mosuo people is called "Daba religion", which is closely related to Dongba religion of Naxi people in Lijiang. However, the development of Daba religion is slower than Dongba religion, and its form is also named after the wizard Daba. It has no systematic teachings and scriptures, no religious organizations and temples, only dozens of chanting, and another divination scripture (commonly known as "Several Scriptures") is written with 32 original pictures and characters of different forms. According to textual research, Tibetan Buddhism was introduced into Ninglang Mosuo area from Sichuan Tibetan area in the late Song Dynasty and early Yuan Dynasty, and gradually developed into their main religion. The Sakya Sect (Flower Sect) and the Kagyu Sect (White Sect) of Tibetan Buddhism were first introduced, and the Gelug Sect (Yellow Sect) was introduced in the Qing Dynasty. Thanks to the support of the local feudal rulers, the Gelug Sect's power and influence rank first among all sects. The Tibetan Buddhist activities of the Mosuo people in Yongning are managed by the local chieftain, and the upper monks in the temple can't participate in the chieftain's rule, so politics and religion are relatively separated. However, the administrative power of the temple must be held by the immediate family members of the Tusi, generally by the brothers of the Tusi, and the hereditary system is implemented, so that the feudal Tusi rule and religion are integrated, utilized and interdependent, but the system of integrating politics and religion has never been formed.

Mosuo people can sing and dance well, and the most popular one is "Jiaju Dance" (commonly known as dancing). "A" means beauty, "Ju" means dancing, dancing for beauty. The leader played the bamboo flute to accompany the dancers, and everyone faced the fire. Men and women are holding arms tightly, their fingers locked, dancing and singing counterclockwise, and sometimes shouting. The atmosphere is cheerful and warm.