Folk custom in Bazhong, Sichuan: Climbing on the 16th day of the first month.

Mountain climbing on the 16th day of the first month is a local traditional folk festival in Bazhong City, Sichuan Province, which originated from the custom of Ba people traveling on the 16th day of the first month. Climbing the mountain is the good wish of the local working people to ward off evil spirits, avoid disasters and pray for blessings.

Sichuan province's second batch of intangible cultural heritage list "going up the mountain on the 16th day of the first month".

Mountain climbing on the 16th day of the first month is a local traditional folk festival in Bazhong, which originated from the custom of Ba people traveling on the 16th day of the first month. "Jingdi wins at the age of four" wrote that "women walk in groups in Yuanxi, praying to avoid disaster. The former holds incense and makes people say that all diseases are exhausted. " It is reported that in August of the first year of Tang Yonglong (AD 680), Wu Zetian demoted Prince Li Xian to Shu Ren and went to the remote Daba Mountain Bazhong. Since then, every year on the 16th day of the first month, the prince has to go to Nankan Mountain and Wangwang Mountain, and look to Chang 'an in the north to pray for his family. The people felt sorry for the prince's emphasis on agriculture, sympathized with the feelings of the people and invited him to accompany them to climb the mountain. This has been a custom for a long time, and it has not faded from generation to generation.

Another article in Bazhou Chronology and Customs states that in the Qing Dynasty, "On the ninth day of the first month, people gathered at Wangshan Mountain to burn incense, and on the 16th, women went out of town, called" Walking away from various diseases ",and Iola Temple had a big gathering to worship Buddha. There are two round caves in front of the mountain, which are called caves for childless women to throw things at, depending on whether they pray for their heirs. " This shows that the custom of climbing mountains in Bazhong has been followed for thousands of years.

folk custom

The customs of climbing the mountain on the 16th day of the first month in Bazhong are: visiting the mountain to worship the temple, worshiping Buddha, touching longevity, digging holes for children, and picking cypress diseases on the body or head to exorcise evil spirits. Because of sightseeing in the mountains, I usually bring food and drinks to my family and friends for a picnic. Because Chongyang climbed the mountain on September 9, Bazhong people regard the 16th day of the first month as the first "climbing festival" in a year.

Mountain climbing on the 16th day of the first month contains many traditional folk activities, which provides valuable materials for studying the local folk history, folk beliefs and folk culture in Bazhong. With the continuous progress of society and years of prejudice against traditional culture, some traditional customs are on the verge of extinction, such as "digging holes for children" and other folk activities. With the passage of time, other folk cultural activities with research value are also in danger of extinction.