A strange funeral custom of the Baiku Yao people: killing cattle and burying them with them

Baiku Yao is a branch of the Yao nationality, named after all men wear knee-length white trousers. They mainly live in Bawei and Lihu Yao Township in Nandan County in northwest Guangxi and Yaoshan Township in Chaoyang District in Libo County in Guizhou Province, with a total population of about 30,000. Baiku Yao has been recognized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization as the nation with the most complete preservation of national culture and is called the "living fossil of human civilization."

Baiku Yao has simple folk customs and unique funeral customs. Cutting oxen, playing bronze drums, and dancing the old monkey dance are the rituals Bai Ku Yao holds for the deceased. The entire funeral was tragic and solemn. The atmosphere of the sacrificial ceremony was solemn and solemn. This traditional funeral custom of Baikuyao is not only an expression of the survivors 'condolences for the deceased, but also a common ancestor worship activity for everyone.

The day before the cattle cutting funeral, bronze drums were played to "open the way" for the dead, so that more people could hear the drums and come to the funeral voluntarily. In Bai Kuyao's mind, cutting oxen and sending funeral rites is to respect and honor the elderly. They believe that cattle are the crystallization of their predecessors 'entrepreneurship and should accompany their predecessors. When cutting cattle, relatives and friends from all over the world came to participate in this solemn ceremony.

Before cutting the cow, first tidy a wooden stake about 2 meters high, use a bamboo trap on the wooden stake, then tie the cow's nose with an iron ring, and tie it with a long hemp rope around the circle so that the cow can rotate around the wooden stake. Before cutting down the cattle, the families of the deceased lined up according to men and women, each feeding the ears of grain in their hands to the cattle, worshiping and crying. Finally, the wizard who presided over the ox-cutting ceremony sprinkled white rice and recited the merits of his ancestors, the experiences of the deceased, and the remembrance of the deceased by future generations. After reading it, the cow cutter took the cow cutter from my uncle and swung it to chop the cow. After tying the cow, he took the cow's blood and poured it into the prepared wine. Then he filled it with the cow's blood with a bamboo slip. To respect the drummer, relatives and friends, and everyone.

Real shot of Baikuyao funeral customs