The village was packed with people that day. Amid the thumping firecrackers and horns, respected elderly people beat gongs to lead the way, while “Tima” was praying to the god. Worshippers, donning traditional Tujia costumes, started their procession towards the Sheba venue, with flags featuring figures of dragon and phoenix rustling overhead.
The event fell into sections of the “Return to Purity”, the “Intangible Cultural Heritage Exhibition” and the “Tujia Celebration”.
![](/d/file/p/2023/03-24/21e3b0c13512f040611dabcdc57eb8f0.png)
The “Intangible Cultural Heritage Exhibition” mainly showcased the Tujia intangible cultural heritage items by their inheritors in Duanlongshan Town and other villagers. It included the Tujia three-person dance, the bamboo pole dance, the tea-picking dance, the waist drum, the whip dance and the hand-waving dance, demonstrating the splendid culture created by the Tujia people over thousands of years.
![](/d/file/p/2023/03-24/aef83ce891aa8b5916f039c566f77fe2.png)
![](/d/file/p/2023/03-24/bf84c544acd6cb187de920c2e696000a.png)
The Sheba Festival is a grand event of the Tujia people to worship their ancestors, which is set on the fifth “Day of Wu” after the Beginning of Spring, when the local Tujia people gather in the funnel-shaped Sheba altar to offer sacrifices to their ancestors and gods, praying for good weather, peace, and prosperity.
![](/d/file/p/2023/03-24/2a7bee54c9e676567c8c21eafdbb37e6.png)
Nowadays, the Sheba Festival has been shortened to one day, but the activities like the ancestor worship, pig slaughtering, Sheba songs singing and dancing are still being passed down in their original form.
In addition to the wonderful performances at the Sheba Festival, visitors can also see displays of local specialty products from Duanlongshan Town, such as small-leaf kuding tea, green-shelled eggs and pure natural honey.
![](/d/file/p/2023/03-24/c2da3e110b7cc08fb3dd3d63549885fc.jpg)
The 2023 Tujia Sheba Festival in Guzhang County will fully facilitate the transformation from “tourism plus” to “plus tourism”, expand the tourism consumption chain, and enhance the cultural tourism brand of Duanlongshan Town. This will enable Duanlongshan Town to integrate into the eco-cultural tourism boutique routes of Xiangxi Autonomous Prefecture at an early stage, in an effort to drive rural revitalization through cultural tourism.