Na-xi & Mo-so, II : "Rites".
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
pp. 103-126 Chuan-kang Shih : "Mortuary Rituals and Symbols among the Moso".
p. 120a # of layers of squares of 4 logs each required for hollow pyre
for a __ |
# of layers |
man |
9 |
woman |
7 |
p. 120b general rule for deciding the place of cremation
season |
direction of cremation-site from village |
spring |
east |
summer |
south |
autumn |
west |
winter |
north |
"It is widely reported in Chinese ethnographies that each Moso lineage used to have its common burial ground." [If so, this would relate to before cremation came into vogue.]
p. 122a lifting of mourning requirements after the funeral
"Female members of the household could take off the linen thread on their hair and divide the single braid into two. |
Male members could wear caps again if they wanted. |
But not until the forty-ninth day from the day of cremation could all members of the household wash their hair or have their hair cut." |
"It was believed that it took forty-nine days for the soul to travel back to the ancestral land."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
pp. 127-138 Zhang Xu : "A Naxi Cremation Ceremony".
p. |
when the cadaver is female |
when the cadaver is male |
|
136 |
the cadaver is placed for cremation with the face pointing __ |
downward |
upward |
137 |
__ logs of firewood are burned during the cremation |
7 |
9 |
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
pp. 139-172 He Limin & He Shicheng : "The Dto^-mba` Ceremony to Propitiate the Demons of Suicide".
pp. 141-142 pictorial repraesentations of deities
p. |
deity |
identity |
141b |
Ssa`w-yi^-wua^-de^ (chief of the gods) |
Maha-kala? |
Ha`>-yi^-ku`>-k>u` (9-headed 18-armed deity) |
||
K>a^w-z`e^r Mi`-gyu' (4-headed deity suppressing suicide-daimones) |
4-headed Praja-pati ? |
|
Le`r-gyu^-kyi'-gyu^ (warrior-deity suppressing Te`r-daimones) |
||
Yu^-ma` (protective spirits) |
[360 winged Wer-ma (p. 307, n. 410)] |
|
To^-mba^ S`i'-lo^ (founder of religion) |
sTon-pa gS`en-rabs |
|
Ndu` (active male principle) |
yan |
|
141b-2a |
Ssa`> (passive female principle) |
yin |
142a |
O`-ha`r Mua^n-ndshe^r (Green Dragon) |
p. 143b To^-ma^ (dough-figures) of deities
parched barley-flour deity-figure |
identification |
Ssa`w-yi^-wua^-de^ ["Supreme Deity" -- p. 145] |
|
O^-ko`-a^w-ko` (great god of first cause) |
Adi-deva? |
Ha^>-du`> O^-p>e`r (great god with white bones) |
Citi-pati? |
O^-gyi^-k>o^-pu` (father of great god Ssa`w-yi^-wua^-de^) |
|
To^-mba` S`i’-lo^ |
|
Le`r-gyu^-kyi`-gyu^ |
|
Yu^-ma` [protectors – p. 145; with weapon-rack – p. 144] |
{cf. weapon-rack at Ithake } |
K>a^w-z`e^r Mi`-gyu’ |
|
parched buckwheat-flour deity-figure |
identification |
5 Te`r |
|
5 Ma`-de^ [males] |
5 Mara-s = 5 Kama-s? |
7 Ma`-de^ females |
Mari-s? |
Dsa`> |
|
Za`w |
|
Tu:` |
|
wind [Ha^r] |
Vayu? |
p. 145 attributes of 6 kinds of daimones
attribute |
daimon |
winged |
Za: |
black |
Du:` |
red |
Dsa`: |
planets |
Za`w |
water |
|
hanging |
Ts>u^ |
litany
pp. 150a, 152a, 153a classes of spirits |
P>e`r |
Ssa`n |
|
Na^w |
|
Wu` |
|
pp. 150a, 152a classes of gods |
O^ |
Ha^> |
|
p. 152a classes of daimones |
of suicide by hanging [Ts>u^ (p. 171a)] |
of love-suicide [Yu` (p. 170a)] |
|
Tu:` |
|
Tsa`> |
|
Ku^>-ts>u` [‘star’ (p. 150b)] |
|
Za`w |
|
Te`r |
|
La^ |
|
cloud [Kyi` (p. 139b)] |
|
wind [Ha^r (p. 145)] |
p. 154a the Te`r
they have __ |
||
heads of |
deer |
|
tails of |
snakes |
|
wings of |
chickens |
|
they became __ |
||
in white clouds |
cranes & eagle |
|
in snowy mountains |
leopards & tigres |
|
in fir-tree forests |
deer & mountain-asses {cf. ass frustrating Pri-apos (GM 20.b)} |
|
in jungles |
bears {cf. bearskin of Tuphon (GM 36.b)} & feral swine |
|
in pine-tree forests |
muntjak & musk-deer |
|
in brush-wood outback |
ring-necked pheasants & golden pheasants |
|
in farmlands |
wildcats (bobcats) & foxes |
|
at house-gateway |
left a footprint 9-handspans long; left a fingerprint 7-handspans long {"instead of fingers ..." (CDCM, s.v. "Typhon")} |
(of the pairs of animals, since Te`r is paired (on pp. 154-6) with La^, therefore apparently the 1st of each pair is the Te`r, while the 2nd is the La^ --
/TE`R / = [Bodish] /GTER/ ‘treasure’ {cf. jewel-orchard-fruit of <ala-ud-din = the orchard-tender Pri-APos (apos ‘pear’ -- pq), cf. also Eur-ops ‘broad opulence’ (grandfather -- CDCM, s.v. Telchis – to APis ‘pear’ the father of Thelksion < *GhaLC^si- : [<arabi^] QaLaH. ‘yellowness on teeth’ (cf. yellowness of ripe pear), QaLiH. ‘superannuated ass’ (LA-L 3:486b) [<ibri^] QaLLaH.at ‘kettle’ (for storing treasures?)}, cognate with [<arabi^] GayTaR ‘midget’ (LA-L, 1:243), i.e., a [Norse-style] dwerg treasure-guardian;
/La^/ = [Bodish] LHa, cognate with [<arabi^] >al-LaHH)
{cf. Tuphon / Tupheus, who had ass’s head (instead of deer’s) which "touched the stars" (cf. Kartwelian stag-god whose antlers reached the sky), snake’s body, and was winged (GM 36.a) –
/TUPHon-/ < /*THUPH-/ < /*DUBH/ is cognate with [Samskr.ta] /...-dunDUBHi/ (name of father of Sarva-artha-siddha = [W]ORTHros, cognate with /VARDHA-mana/ maha-vira; cf. Artamis [W]ORTHia worshipped at Sparte – GM 116.c; SW-R), and with [<arabi^] /DUB/ ‘bear’}
p. 157b the Te`r "wish ... to cut off the ears of human beings." {cf. Simon Petros (Kephas)}
GM = Robert Graves : The Greek Myths. 1955.
CDCM = Pierre Grimal (tr. by Maxell-Hyslop) : A Concise Dictionary of Classical Mythology. 1990.
LA-L = Georgii Wilhelmi Freytagii : Lexicon Arabico-Latinum. Beirut, 1975. 4 vols.
SW-R = http://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.cgi?path=309861078584008
p. 154b spirit-generals, skilled in war, with myriads of spirit-soldiers
nationality of general |
name of general |
Bodish |
Wu`-mbu`-wu^-ha`> |
Bai |
Lu^>-bu`-lu^>-s^e^r |
Na-xi |
Wu^-z^o`u-wu^-to^ |
{this generalship is, of course, Daoist}
p. 157b the black pig, named Ss^-mbu^ Bu`-na`, of the Te`r
spreadeth disease & calamity everywhere. |
||
hath __ |
which __ |
|
"dug up the mighty foundation stones" |
"press down the eartb." |
|
"damaged by rubbing the mighty pillars" |
prop up the heavens. |
|
the black pig’s __ |
are like unto __ |
|
eyen |
"constellations twinkling" |
|
bristles |
"great forest of fir-trees" |
|
mouth |
"great black cavern" |
{cf. "Black Pig Society" in Guinea; [Kemetian] god SWTH as black pig]
p. 160a god Ndu` & goddess Ssa`>
deity |
Ndu` |
Qa`> |
dwelleth in __ |
north |
south |
rideth __ |
white horse |
black ox |
for whom we make __ into an offering |
butter of red cow |
wheat-flour |
p. 161 deities enticed [by the odor of burning animal-bones – p. 160b]
p. |
deity |
identification |
161a |
K>a^w-z`e^r Mi`-gyu’ danced for [of cypress-tree (p. 165)] |
|
for remote ancestor Ssa^w-la^-a^>-pa` a "pine tree with three branches" is erected" |
S`iva in pine-forest? |
|
Za`> having a nest of bird-eggs |
Vinata mother-bird? |
|
163a |
Ts>u` having palisade |
Asura-s of defense? |
164a |
Ssu` to whom is offered milk |
Sarama drinking milk? |
164a-b |
Ma`-de^ for whom are shot 5 arrows |
Kama of 5 arrows? |
165a |
Te`r-ko` protective tutelary spirits |
is.t.a-devata? |
165a |
Ba^>-d>a` warrior-gods |
Guhyaka-s? |
Du:^-p>e`r Ssi^-ngu^> white-as-concb lion who discovered sacred nut-tree |
lion-face on front of temples? |
|
K>wua^--tu:`-mbe`r-ndzi^-zo^ Gyi^ thunder-&-lightning god of chestnut-tree |
Parjanya thunder-&-lightning god? |
|
La^-le^r-du`>-ndzi^ Mbue^ [earthquake-goddess (p. 145)] "terrestrial being, wife of Gyi^" of chestnut-tree |
Pr.thivi earth-goddess? |
|
166a |
Nda^w-la^>-mua^n-ssa`w Mi’ (of Nda^w-la^>-lu:^-p>e`r village) was |
|
166b-167a |
bride carried off, by white whirlwind to her left and black whirlwind to her right, "to a rocky outcrop" |
Oreithuia carried off by Boreas "up the slope of the Acropolis" (GM 48.b) |
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
pp. 189-208 Yang Fuquan : "The Ssu’ Life Gods and their Cults".
p. 190b deities in the vicinity of the hearth
deities |
function |
Yu` |
ancestor-spirits |
Ssu’ |
life-gods |
No’n |
spirits of domestic animals |
O`-ma^>-ha`> |
spirits of grain |
p. 190b "fastening the life gods’ thread onto the hands of the god of the hearth" {cf. thread spun by the Moirai to indicate life-span}
pp. 194b dreams by prospective in-laws, praesaging the marriage
on the caerimonial ground a pair of great which conch-shells; lightly swept the white clouds with bamboo-brooms. |
in the 9 layers of clouds, a pair of white cranes circling in flight, crying out together. |
digging nuggets of gold out from the 9 layers of soil. |
a pair of small golden-colored hounds which barked together with glee. |
on ‘Eagle Mountain’ leading hounds in the chase. |
p. 195-198 sites anointed with butter for marriage-ritual
p. |
site |
195a |
bamboo-basket |
sacred rock of Ndu` |
|
pagoda |
|
ladder |
|
jointed arrow-shaft |
|
arrow-head |
|
flag reflective like mirror |
|
yellow-wood god-shrine |
|
195b |
men’s platform |
mother’s platform |
|
3 range-stones |
|
195b-6a |
5 brethren-gods & 5 sistren-goddesses |
196a |
‘Heaven’s prop’ (main pillar of house) |
forehead of kneeling groom |
|
196b |
forehead of kneeling bride |
the measure for grain |
|
the brass padlock |
|
197a |
the keys |
the butter-churn |
|
197b |
the chopper |
the bow |
|
197b-8a |
door of main room |
198a finally, the leftover butter is handed over to the bride by the priest, saying :"I give you back ninety-nine pats of butter." As the bride is putting the butter back into the storeroom, the priest saith :"I pray that the host’s family will have ninety-nine binsful of provisions and ninety-nine chestsful of clothes." {cf. 99 rivers in [Yi] tale "seven Sister and Serpent Prince", cap. 1 http://people.cohums.ohio-state.edu/bender4/courses/7html/default.html }
p. 198a ritual to worship Dso^ Ffu’ (the god of the hearth)
offering to the deities:- |
Mua^n-lu'> Ndu` A`>-p>u^ (white-haired spirit) |
La^>-tki^ Ssa`> A`>-dzi` (long-in-the-tooth [long-life] spirit) |
p. 198b imported flowers
flowers |
from __ |
p>u'-na` ('black felt') |
O^-dso^ (Tibet) |
yi^-pu^ ('silken') |
Yi^-c^>i (Kun-ming) |
p. 199a the 12 flowers of the 12 months
month |
__ ba`w (‘__-flower’) |
Jan |
mbu^-dshu^ (peach) |
Feb |
lu^> mbu^ |
Mar |
nyu^> le`r (turnip) |
Apr |
yu'-tsu` |
May |
ha`>-t>i^ |
Jun |
t>o^-ho` |
Jul |
ssi^-le^r |
Aug |
mbue^-bo^ |
Sep |
ki^-p>e`r (white rice) |
Oct |
mbue^-p>e`r (white artemisia) |
Nov |
ssi^-nda`w |
Dec |
ssi'-k>a^w (plum) |
pp. 199-200 trees felled in Be^r-de^r (sacred ‘White Land’ = [Chinese] Bai-di)
p. |
tree |
ritual object made from tree's wood |
199b |
khyu'> ('juniper') |
pagoda of life-gods |
bamboo |
basket of life-gods |
|
200a |
mbue^-s^i` ('yellow oak') |
bridge of life-gods |
t>o^ ('pine') |
ladder of life-gods |
|
bamboo |
arrow-shaft of life-gods |
|
go^-lo' |
flag-pole of life-gods |
|
juniper |
incense for life-gods |
p. 200b apportionment to beings of life-spans by Mua^n-lu^-Ndu` A'>-fu^
life-span, in years |
being |
myriad myriads |
"sleepless rock" |
thousand myriads |
water |
ten myriads |
juniper |
one myriad |
pine |
thousand |
fir |
hundred |
yellow oak |
hundred |
bamboo |
30 |
horse |
20 |
ox |
p. 202a the 4 Naxi clans as 4 sons of Ka^w-la`>-ts>u’>
Ssu’ |
Yu` |
Ma` |
Ho` |
p. 202a directional keys of deities
direction |
color of key and of door |
key-wielding deity |
east |
conch-white |
K>o`-ts>a’>-tsa^>-mbu^ |
south |
turquoise |
Ssa’>-z^i^-ma^>-nu’ |
west |
black jade |
Na’-ssa`>-c^>u`n-lu’ |
middle |
mottled |
T>a’-ma^>-ssi^-ka^w |
pp. 209-235 Christine Mathieu : The Moso Ddaba Religious Specialists".
types of religious practitioners
p. |
practitioner |
nature |
209b |
daba ‘priest’ |
hereditary; performer of domestic rituals |
211b |
soma (shaman) |
can "fly"; "deal exclusively with gods" |
z^eda (medium) |
cannot "fly"; "deal only with ghosts", and "require the help of translators ... to interpret the arcane recommendations they provide whilst in a trance state." {= "speaker in tongues" & "interpreter of tongues" in Pentacostal inspiration from the Holy Ghost } |
|
213a |
ha-daba [‘bishop’] |
who formalized the office of each daba |
pa-daba (diviner) |
"the diviner who could see the malevolent spirits who cause illness and other troubles." |
|
pu:-daba (exorcist) |
"knew how to chant the texts to exorcise malevolent ghosts." |
pp. 216a-b ritual paraphernalia
"red garments" |
"five-lobed crown" |
p. 216b 2 types of caerimonies
caerimony |
deity |
purpose |
bu: |
gala ('deity') |
samskara-s |
di |
ce ('malevolent spirit') |
exorcism |
pp. 216-217 numerics of caerimonies
p. |
numerics of litourgia, under 5 topical rubrics |
|
216b |
1st |
30 bu: dedicated to deities or to ancestors |
2nd |
17 bu: samskara-s (rites of life-cycle) |
|
3rd |
7 bu: concerned with hunting |
|
217a |
4th |
2 focused specifically on the daba |
5th |
47 di addressed to various ghosts |
p. 217a specific ghosts
ghost |
who __ |
Natibiguma |
blurreth person's eyesight |
Mbosami |
maketh bad death |
Guburume |
causeth dumbness |
Cosseishuahami |
female, causeth fights in village |
Mbi |
damageth crops |
p. 217 festivals
p. |
date |
festival |
of __ |
217a |
2nd mo. |
Remugu bu: |
peace of hunters with mountain-god Remugu |
3rd or 4th mo. |
Za bu: |
hunting-god Zagala |
|
217b |
5th d. of 5th m. |
wa~limiwayizze |
medicine |
27th d. of 7th mo. |
niamiche |
Mountain-goddess Gamu |
|
10th mo. |
gulessozz6e |
shepherds |
|
217a |
26th d. of 12th mo. |
kus^e |
|
New Year's eve |
litegas^ai bu: |
13-year-olds |
p. 217b harmful magic
"it is possible to make someone sick by ... sticking pins into a doll fashioned into the victim's image." |
"The gu is ... an invisible animal which was reared from the most venemous insects and reptiles and has a craving for making people fall ill. The gu is passed down from generation to generation, ... from mother to daughter." |
p. 218b types of divination
Par ('divination') |
its practice |
Ce-wuge |
scapulomancy [with goat-shoulderblades – p. 233, n. 25] |
Bamada |
12 split twig-halves : on each twig-half, the interior side is female, the exterior side is male |
Lu-par ('stone-divining') |
24 stones |
So~wa-par ('rosary-divining') |
beads |
Arwo~ |
eggs |
p. 219a actions taken by the deities against Daji-ghosts ("who come riding from over the mountain ranges to prey on the Moso")
"Whether the ghosts hide in the cracks of the sky ... |
They cannot escape the fiery eyes of the gods, |
The silver pupils of their eyes. ... |
The gods ... will pierce the hide of the black goat, |
... will kill the small black pig, |
... will kill the black rooster." |
p. 220a the 3 energies
energy |
function |
kulu |
'life-span' |
mu:to |
"where a person is at on any particular day." |
wa~li |
"When a person dies, his or her wa~li divides into nine parts and at least one of these parts becomes incarnated into an animal. The wa~li, however, reorganizes itself as an ancestor forty-nine days after death ... Ritual usage reserves the northeast direction to the place where the ancestors live, between the north, the point of death, and the east, that of rebirth. ... in the ancestral land Se-ba'anawa which ... lies ... northeast". |
p. 221a the several directions for migration of the souls of the dead, as determined by clan
clan |
locality of clan |
destination for soul |
Hu = Na-ri |
Fen-ke |
Se-ba>anawa {cf. [Iban] SEBAyAN} |
(most) |
Yu^>-ndsu`-po'>-lu'>-k>o^ / Yu^>-ndsu` Mbe`r-ma^> Ko^ |
|
Da-don |
Emaniu |
|
Ludi |
west : Gama>ayagui |
"The roads of the other Moso clans, the Chu, Ba, Ngwa amd Yan were lost."
p. 222a the 2 heavenly princesses from whose "two half-monkey children" are descended the Mo-so
Mumi-jiajia-mi & Mumi-gugu-mi |
p. 222a the 5 caelestial daba
Mabuzeru |
Sebadake |
Qiusegala |
Zigugala |
Wosiaijeguo |
p. 222b tribal aequivalents in legendary founders of religions
[Labei] Doba S`air = [Naxi] To^-mba` S`i’-lo^ |
[Moso] Mabuzeru = [Naxi] Mua^n-po`-dzi^-szu` = [Eya] Mabuzes`u |
p. 222b Mabuzeru
Mabuzeru |
non-Yunnan aequivalent |
was born from beneath his mother’s left armpit, while she placed her hand on the yoda tree. |
ditto, for Lao Dan. |
"The ghosts put him in a big copper pot ... to boil him in oil, but he did not die." "The ghosts ... said: ‘... let him ... fry us, we will not die eiher.’" |
similar motif in Popol Vuh. |
p. 223b directional deities
direction |
deity |
[zenith] |
Mulu Abadu ‘Great Heaven’ |
east |
Gassiseba |
south |
Naceisser |
west |
Sermagu |
north |
Weissakoba |
p. 223b animal-goddesses
mother-tigress La-mu |
mother-snake Z^e-mu |
frog Z^ekaba-mi [feminine – p. 226b] |
lioness-goddess Sege Ga-mu (a "mountain ... whose feet bathe in the waters of Lake Lugu.") |
p. 225b hero who escaped the deluge
Codeiliusso = [Naxi] Ts>o`-za^>-lu’>-gu^>g |
p. 225b deities of parts of the house
location in house |
deity |
whole house |
Re-gala (‘house-tutelary’) |
land whereon house was built |
Da~-gala |
N-E corner in Labei; behind hearth in Yon-nin |
se (‘ancestors’) |
hearth |
Ssa-mbala = [Bodish] THAB-LHA = [Naxi] Dso^-ku:’-dso^-z^i` |
foot of 3-footed iron stove |
Gua~-gala |
beam supporting platform whereon people sit around hearth |
Hualipu:-gala |
columns which support house |
male Dura-sso; female Dura-mi |
stove in women’s side of house |
Pu-gala |
inflated pig’s belly, suspended above hearth |
Sebe (who protecteth the house from fire) |
{Daoist, Slavic, and Roman religions have deities located in parts of the house}
p. 226b heroic deities of Garud.a myths
deity |
protagonist |
Z^ec^egar-mi (feminine) eagle-deity [Garud.i] |
Z^essewoper the snake-child of Remugu |
Z^ekaba-mi the frog-child of Z^essewoper |
|
Palassu |
Za-gala |
p. 229a apportionment of animal-species between 2 brethren
Abadu divided the animal-species between the 2 brethren :- |
||
Palassu received the domesticated species; |
Remugu received the feral species. |
|
Remugu send his snake-child Z^essewoper to block up the water-holes of Palassu. |
||
The eagle Z^ec^egar-mi took the snake out, and dropped it into the sea. [p. 234, n. 44 "the snake then broke into thousands of pieces" {cf. common eastern Melanesian myth of the islands being fragments of a broken snake}] |
||
Remugu slew a hunter of Palassu; in retaliation Palassu made war, until Majjayule arranged a compromise :- |
||
Whatever game-animals Palassu’s hunters could catch was his; |
what they could not catch was Remugu’s. |
|
"when Remugu and Palassu made peace, they sacrificed a huge wild white pig. Bodvleper is thus eaten in communion to signify the peace offering". |
p. 229b deities who hinder hunting
"Remugu is not at all helpful to Moso hunters and, in fact, the Moso always keep their hunting plans secret from him. |
The morning of the hunt, they speak in whispers [so as] not to be heard by the hearth god Ssabbala who could report to Remugu. |
Should anyone see a snake or a frog (who are Remugu’s children), the hunting expedition will be called off because they too will report to the god." |
pp. 230-231 the deity who abetteth hunting
p. |
|
229b |
It is Za-gala who helpeth the hunters to catch game-animals. |
Za-gala "decided to steal some of Palassu’s chickens" |
|
229b-230a |
Palassu, however, struck Za-gala as he came "out of the chicken coop. |
230a |
He hit him across the face with a stick and split his lip open, which made his mouth look like a hare’s." |
Za-gala rideth "on the back of the deer." |
|
Around the mounted Za-gala are 9 mountains : Za-gala [i.e., his deer-steed] "can jump from this mountain to that mountain." |
|
230b |
49, consisting of 7 each of 7 animals :- |
wild oxen, wild swine, bears, muntjak, river-deer, tigres, leopards. |
|
231a |
While on the hunting-expedition, the hunters whistle to Za-gala to come to their aid, for whistling is Za-gala’s language. |
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Michael Oppitz & Elizabeth Hsu : Naxi and Moso Ethnography. Vo:lkerkundemuseum, Zu:rich, 1998. pp. 101-234.