Tujia Sheba Festival celebrated in Guzhang County

On March 21, the 2023 Tujia Sheba Festival was held in Tianjiadong Village, Guzhang County, Xiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture, Hunan Province.

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”. The “Return to Purity” section included ritual ceremonies like the dragon gate sacrifice, the ancestral temple sacrifice, the god temple sacrifice and the send-off sacrifice. It was interspersed with performances such as the copper bell drum dance, the Tima invocation song, the Tima sweeping song, the peace song, the sweeping dance and the hat dance, to commemorate the glorious achievements of the Tujia ancestors and pray for their blessings and protection.

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. The “Tujia Celebration” consisted of four parts: waving hands, playing dragon lanterns, the lion dance and eating disaster-free rice. The first three activities showcased the happy life of the Tujia people in the new era, the unity and hard work of all ethnic groups, and the beautiful scene of jointly building a harmonious and beautiful modern China. The last one was a prayer for good weather and peace for the coming year.

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. In the past, after the gong was struck three times, the iron cannon fired seven times, and the drum was sounded long, the Sheba team would set off for the Sheba field under the guidance of “Tima”, unfolding the three-day and three-night celebration. The Tujia young men and women also deepened their friendship and found their partners through activities such as singing and dancing.

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. These specialty products are an important result of Duanlongshan Town’s active implementation of the central government’s policy on rural revitalization, focusing on industrial development and increasing farmers’ income through various measures. All 11 villages in the town have formed their own distinctive industries, which have effectively promoted the implementation of rural revitalization in Duanlongshan Town.

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.