Yushu folk custom

Consanguineous exogamy: Both patriarchs and common people practice strict consanguineous exogamy. Anyone who is related by blood of father or mother is forbidden to get married. This is quite different from the custom of allowing cousins to marry in some ethnic groups in the past.

Family system: Tibetan families in Yushu are mostly single families with a small population, and there are few large families with several generations living together.

Love: Young men and women are relatively free to socialize before marriage, and there is generally no problem of parents arranging marriage. Even if the parents match, they should get the consent of both men and women in advance and not force marriage. The annual Tibetan New Year, Jockey Club and Temple Fair are all good opportunities for young men and women to love each other. The way to express love is often the duet Rye.

Divination: Tibetans must do divination no matter what they do. Marriage is a major personnel matter, and the first step is naturally divination. It is mainly to predict whether the birthdays of men and women coincide, choose a good day for marriage, and calculate a good time to meet the bride.

Seeing the bride off: On the wedding day of Pudding, the bride will put on new clothes, accompanied by one or more wedding envoys (called Ye Zhi in Tibetan) and bridesmaids with good morality and eloquence arranged by her uncle and brother. On the way, if you meet someone carrying water and cow dung, you think it's lucky. The host was happy to send something, and even gave Hada a thank you. If you meet a person carrying an empty bucket, you think it is unlucky. After seeing off relatives and welcoming people who are not too far from home, a toast ceremony is held, which is called vault in Tibetan and the bride's house will send the wedding. The bride usually has to arrive at her husband's house before sunrise. There are cypress branches on the door of the husband's family, a white carpet on the ground, and a lucky number in the middle. When the bride dismounts, she must step on the Yongzhong. When you enter the door, you should bring back the milk bucket filled with fresh milk or the bag filled with cow dung with your mother-in-law. After seeing the bride and groom enter the courtyard, the bride and groom took the mascot and circled the mulberry stew table three times. The crowd shouted Lagaro (meaning victory of God), waiting for someone to order mulberries. When I first came home, I ate pasta or bracken, which is called Kazuo in Tibetan, and then I entered the formal wedding banquet.

Dowry: Dowry depends on family circumstances. The rich pay more attention to the 1999 wedding marked by fine horses, brocade, top rock sugar and fat sheep. They are often accompanied by expensive clothing and jewelry and a large number of land cattle and sheep. Poor people sew new clothes and marry them. Like Tibetans in other areas, Yushu Tibetans have a wide range of taboos, involving all aspects of life. These taboos have become an important part of daily customs and folk culture. Therefore, it is necessary for foreign tourists to understand Tibetan folk taboos and make their tourism activities more meaningful. Here are some taboo customs:

Natural and animal taboos: it is forbidden to cut down and dig trees, flowers, herbs and kill animals around holy mountains and temples; Avoid stirring the spring water or washing things in the spring water; It is forbidden to kill vultures; Avoid slaughtering released cattle and sheep and riding horses.

Marriage and daily life taboos: pregnant women are forbidden to visit other people's homes or attend weddings; Avoid eating animal meat; Marriage between people of paternal and maternal descent is prohibited; Avoid male and female zodiac grams; Avoid talking about sex-related topics in the presence of father and daughter, mother and child, brothers and sisters.

Funeral and religious taboos: family members or villagers are forbidden to laugh, sing and dance after death; Within 49 days of mourning, family members are prohibited from washing their hair, bathing, drinking and dressing up; Usually avoid mentioning the name of the deceased; Don't take off your hat, make noise or knock the bell and drum, and don't enter the hall; It is forbidden to cross the cassock, scriptures, instruments, etc. Smoking, drinking, spitting and urinating are prohibited in the temple; Avoid turning temples, pagodas, sacred mountains, mani stone piles and prayer wheels counterclockwise; Avoid blowing and yawning on offerings and butter lamps; Avoid using paper with words, especially scripture paper, to wipe things or use it as toilet paper; It is forbidden to put Buddha statues and scriptures under the bed or trample them.