What is the custom of Aobaohui?

Aobaohui is a Mongolian custom, which is usually held on auspicious days in April and May every year.

Aobao is Mongolian, which means "Duizi". It is also translated into "Naobao" and "Ebo", which means wood, stone and mound. It is a man-made "stone pile", "earth pile" or "wood pile". In the past, it was all over Mongolia, mostly made of stone or sand, but some were made of branches. Today, this number has been greatly reduced. At first, it was a symbol of people's roads and realms made of stones on the vast grassland, and later it gradually evolved into a symbol of offering sacrifices to mountain gods and road gods and praying for family members' harvest, happiness and peace.

Aobao is a common place for people to pray and sacrifice on Mongolian grassland, and offering sacrifices to Aobao is the most common blessing activity among ancient Mongolians. People often go to Aobao to pray and make wishes, and the recovered leave an old thing on Aobao, indicating that God has conquered the disease. Some Aobao have the function of road signs or landmarks. People who pass by Aobao usually dismount, walk around Aobao three times clockwise, add stones on it, and pray and make wishes at the same time. Over time, some Aobao can be as high as several meters and the surrounding foundation can reach more than ten meters. Extra-large-scale sacrificial activities are generally held on May 13th of the lunar calendar.