Xibo "Xili Mom" believes in customs: a long rope

As an ancient minority in the north, the Xibe people have formed relatively diverse forms of worship and religious beliefs with the changes of national history and the integration of other ethnic cultures. Its early religious belief was Shamanism, which included both nature worship, totem worship and ancestor worship. After the Yuan and Ming Dynasties, the Sibo people gradually accepted Tibetan Buddhism. After the Qing Dynasty entered the Pass, the Xibo people were influenced by the Han culture of the Central Plains. The goddess gods, Guan Gong, the Eight Immortals, the kitchen god, and the door god worshipped by the Han people all became part of the Xibo people's beliefs. The original beliefs of the Xibe people have many similarities with those of the northern ethnic groups, but the most characteristic of the people is the worship of "Mother Xili".

What is "Mom Hilly"?

"Sirimama" is not a humanoid deity, but a rope of hemp rope 2.9 feet long, and is tied with various symbols. "Xili Mom" is a family tree chronicle of the Xibe people's rope tying. It embodies the profound Xibe cultural tradition. Its worship activities are the link connecting the national spirit. Paying homage to "Mother Xili" is a common and unique folk belief activity among the Xibe people. In 2011, the Xibo people's "Xili Mother Believes in Customs" was selected into the national intangible cultural heritage list.

During the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, after the Qing government put down the Junggar rebellion, in order to resist the erosion of Tsarist Russia into Xinjiang, it transferred some Sibo people living in Northeast China to Xinjiang to guard the border. On April 18th of the lunar month in 1764, after the parting ceremony was held at the Xibo Family Temple in Shenyang, more than 4000 Xibo officers and soldiers and their families embarked on the journey of moving westward. This group of Xibo people also brought their "Xili mother" to Ili, Xinjiang. Today, many ancient customs of the Xibe people have disappeared in the northeast of their birthplace, but they can still be found in Ili Qapqal Xibe Autonomous County.

网站图片位

Historical origin "Xili Mom" was originally a method of tying ropes for the Xibe people in ancient times, and later gradually evolved into a patron of various clergy functions. "Xili Mom" is translated into "descendants 'mother"."Xili" is a Sibe language that means continuity, and "mother" refers to the goddess and god.

"Xili Mom" originated from the nomadic life of the Xibe people and from long-term production and life practice. The ancient Xibe people lived a life of tribal groups and made a living by hunting and fishing. They have no words. If they remember something, they will carve a symbol on the wood. The Xibe people are popular in ancestor worship. In order to pass on the family line, they also engraved the number of ancestors on wood. But over time, the wood used to remember slowly rotted and lost, making it difficult for younger generations to remember the names and seniority of their ancestors.

Later, people came up with a good way in labor practice, which was to pull a rope at the corner of the house and hang different objects on the rope to record major events that occurred in the family. In this way, generation after generation, there was no interruption, and the younger generation would have a clear understanding of the situation of their ancestors. In the era when there were no words, Xili's mother had the function of tying a rope to record records. It was a symbol of family reproduction and a family tree of the Xibe people in the era when there were no words. After the introduction of writing, the family tree replaced the role of "Mother Xili", and the image of "Mother Xili" was preserved by the Xibe people as a god to bless future generations.

There are two widely circulated versions of the legend of Mother Xili. One version said that in ancient times, the Sibe tribe sent out hunting, leaving behind the elderly and 18 children. The clansmen put the children in leather bags and hung them on the branches of the trees, and were looked after by a girl named Hilly. The hunting people never returned. Miss Xili overcame various difficulties and raised her children. They all formed a family and protected the Xibe tribe people to thrive. The Emperor of Heaven was also moved, so he recognized Xili as his daughter and named him "Xili Mother", becoming the female ancestor worshipped by Xibo people for generations.

Another legend has some historical background. During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, Fan Mingyou, Marquis of Pingling, who had made great contributions in pacifying the north, accidentally discovered that Tuoba Mao had five red moles under his feet. He believed that he must be the true dragon and the emperor, and decided to kill Tuoba Mao to avoid future trouble. Xili's mother, an old domestic slave in Fan Mingyou's family, learned the news and helped Tuoba Mao escape from the Fan family. Later, when Tuoba Mao led his elite troops to rescue Hilly's mother, he learned that after he escaped, Hilly's mother had passed away due to severe torture. Because Xili's mother died under the elm trees in the northwest, later Xibe people placed the shrine at the northwest corner of the west wall of the bedroom.

Cultural connotation "sirimama" evolved from "sirinmama". In Sibe,"sirin" means "vine system";"mother" means grandma or old woman. Together it means "genealogy grandma". Xili's mother is translated as "child mother" in the Xibo people in Northeast China, which means that only with the female ancestor can children and grandchildren continue to reproduce and survive and be passed down from generation to generation; it also contains the meaning of protecting the safety of the family and the prosperity of the people. Therefore, during the New Year, the word "Fu" is posted to "Mother Xi Li", or couplets such as "Blessed be given birth to a wise son, worship God to preserve a man forever" are posted.

The symbolic meaning of "Mother Hilly" is a silk rope more than twenty feet long, called "rope rope". The "rope" is tied with small bows and arrows, small boots, small arrow bags, small toilets, small rocking carts, small rings, Galaha (the back bones of pigs and sheep), etc., each of which is a representative of daily necessities for the Xibe people. A small bow and arrow means a boy. When a boy is added, a small bow and arrow will be added between the two Galahas, symbolizing that the child grows up to become a hunting warrior and a fighting warrior; when a girl is born, it will tie colorful cloth strips, symbolizing that she grows up to become an expert in sewing clothes and doing housework; there are a few girls in this generation, there are a few pieces of cloth strips; if you marry a daughter-in-law, you will hang a small cradle; When the eldest son of each generation is born, in addition to hanging a small bow and arrow, another Galaha is tied to express seniority through homophonic sounds. Adding a Galaha means that another generation has been added; small rocking carts, small boots, etc. mean a full family of descendants; copper coins mean a prosperous life; wooden shovels, wooden forks, etc. mean a bumper harvest in agriculture. The objects on this long rope actually record the prosperity of a family.​

Galaha is also known as "back bone". The homophonic character of "back" is used to express seniority, that is, to add another generation, one Galaha is added. Both ends of "Mother Hili" are tied with elm sticks. The starting end is called the "old man stick" and the end is called the "branch stick". Both must be taken from a small elm tree with a single root to express "Mother Hili"."It is in the family with this surname.

Production requirements The production of "Mom Hilly" is very particular and must be qualified by three generations who have raised grandchildren. The "Hilly mother" of a family may be the same at first, but as the number of generations passed down increases, the "Hilly mother" of different generations will become different because the family members and events that occur will be different.

All the materials made by "Mama Xi Li" are not allowed to be prepared by themselves. They must be found in households with a large population and full generations in the village. The families who are asked for the items must also have both children and children. When making ropes, you must twist two forces in reverse, the left force is four-and-a-half force, and the right force is four-and-a-half force, with a length of 29 feet.

To establish "Mother Hilly", a grand ceremony will also be held. We will kill pigs and sheep, and entertain all parties. Regardless of men, women and children, they will kowtow to "Mother Hilly" and then take their seats at the table. In addition to being used for worship, pigs are used for banquets to relatives and friends, and must not be used for sale.

Ethnic customs

On the first day of the first lunar month, every household of the Xibo ethnic group would worship "Mother Xili" and ask her to bless the safety of the whole family and the prosperity of people and wealth. "Xili Mom" is a symbol of the Xibe people's pursuit of continuous reproduction, and is also a genealogy that records the Xibe family and state. The memorial tablet of "Mother Hilly" is generally located in the northwest corner of the main hall, and its symbol is a silk rope more than twenty feet long. It was worshiped after the general cleaning on the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month. On the second day of the second month of the lunar month, it was put into paper bags and put back in place.

Sacrifice folk activities Sacrifice folk activities mainly include ceremonies such as the celebration of Mother Xi Li's birthday on the 16th of the twelfth lunar month, the tribute to Mother Xi Li on New Year's Eve, and the return of Mother Xi Li on the second day of the second lunar month. In addition to being used for worship, pigs are used for banquets to relatives and friends, and must not be used for sale. The sacrificial ceremony is based on the family, and the elders are orderly and enjoyable.

There is also a complete process to worship "Mother Xili": presenting offerings, honoring incense and singing whip, and the clansmen kowtowing. On the 16th day of the twelfth lunar month or the New Year, the male owner of the family respectfully invited "Mom Hilly" out of the wool paper bag enshrined in the northwest corner of the Westinghouse and hung "her" from the northwest corner of the house. Hang it up, turn back to the southeast corner, and hang it on the citron at both ends with elm sticks. Until the second day of the second lunar month, Hilly's mother was gathered together and put back in the paper bag.

On the 16th day of the twelfth lunar month, it is the birthday of "Mother Xili". In order to thank "Mother Xili" for her protection over the past year, the people of the Xibe people invited "Mother Xili" down and killed Taiping pigs to sacrifice "Mother Xili." Boys or girls born during the year must be tied to ropes on New Year's Eve. When a girl gets married, she will take off the cloth strip and ask her in-law's family for a boar weighing more than 120 kilograms. She will then invite her family members to eat the sacrificial meat and return a pig's back elbow to her in-law's family. If the division is separated, a new mother Haili will be established. She will kill pigs and sheep, and entertain all directions. Regardless of men, women and children, they will kowtow to her mother Haili and then take their seats at the table.

The main course of the "Xili Mom" birthday party is pickled cabbage, pork and blood sausage, as well as bone meat, boiled white pork, etc. It is very unique. The main dishes are from the pig killed in the sacrifice, and all dishes cannot be used in oil. The cooking method is only cooked and stewed, and must not be fried or steamed (you can dip it in garlic sauce or leek flowers), which preserves the original ecological characteristics of the nomadic life of the Xibo ancestors.

Xiaobian's testimony said that "Mother Xili" is not only a folk custom, but also a ceremonial space where the cultural memory of an ethnic group can be continued. It is the basis for the Xibe people to carry out ethnic identity and self-identification; at the same time, every ritual process promotes social unity between people in ethnic society. In fact, every family should have such an object to record the major events of each generation.