The traditional Nu festivals include the New Year Festival, the Fairy Festival, Ruwei Festival, and the Festival of Mountains .
The Fairy Festival, also called the Flower Festival, is a traditional festival celebrated by the Nu people who live in the Gongshan County in Yunnan Province. The festival lasts for three days. The legend goes that the Nu River often flooded in ancient times. A Nu girl named A-Rong, inspired by the web of a spider, created a kind of rope-bridge, by which the people could conveniently cross the river. Coveting the beauty of A-Rong, the chief of the Hou tribe tried to force her to marry him. A-Rong wouldn't agree, so she escaped into the mountains and eventually turned into a stone statue in a cave. To honor her, the Nu people celebrate Fairy Festival on March 15th every year.
A Nu girl with flowers on her head on the Flower Festival. (Photo from news.yntv.cn)
Nu people place bunches of azaleas and flowers at Fairy People Cave to honor A-Rong on the Flower Festival. (Photo from nujiang.cn)
When the festival comes, people will pick bunches of azaleas and place them at a cave called Fairy People Cave. After the memorial ceremony, they drink together at home. The Nu people, young and old alike, dress up in their best traditional costumes, hold fresh flowers, and gather together in the open air, singing, dancing, and telling stories. There are also ball matches (a kind of football match), crossbow competitions, etc.
Nu people hold the crossbow competition on the Flower Festival. (Photo from nujiang.cn)
A Nu woman weaves Nu blanket on the Flower Festival. (Photo from nujiang.cn)
The Spring Festival lasts about 15 days from the end of lunar December to the beginning of lunar January. It is often celebrated by the Nu living in Yunnan Province. Before the festival, households in every village are busy butchering pigs, making soft-rice dumplings, brewing wine and cleaning their courtyards. On New Year's Eve, before eating, they put corn and dishes of food on a three-legged barbecue. On top of the three legs, three cups are put and also three pieces of meat, then the family members, either young or old, pray for a good harvest and strong livestock for the upcoming New Year.
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