Mongolian folk customs and taboos

? There are about10 million Mongolians in the world. Their language is Mongolian, and half of them live in China. As a member of our national family, Mongolians have formed many folk customs and taboos in the long historical process.

First, folk customs

1. The traditional living room of Mongolians is yurts. The yurt has a circular spire, consisting of a circular wall (Hana) and an umbrella-shaped top frame, which is covered with wool felt and fixed with wool rope; The wall and umbrella frame are nailed with wooden poles; There is a skylight (Gao Tao Nau) on the top of the bag, which is ventilated and transparent; The doors are small and wooden, mostly facing south or southeast. The yurt can be disassembled and transported, which is very suitable for nomadic life.

? 2. The traditional Mongolian costume is Mongolian robe. Right-handed, with edges, long and wide, high collar and long sleeves, belt and leather boots. The summer robe is a cotton silk single-lined robe, red, yellow and dark blue; The winter robe is a sheepskin robe with wool face; The hem of men's and women's robes can't be opened, and the belts are made of red and green satin; Men's belts are often decorated with knives, irons, snuff bottles and so on. Women's hats and jewelry are often inlaid with jewelry and silver ornaments, which is elegant; I like to wear soft and simple cowhide boots, reaching to the knee.

? Farmers wear cloth clothes, such as open robes and cotton-padded clothes. In winter, there are many felt boots and high boots are rare, and the custom of tying the waist has been retained. Most men wear blue and dark brown hats, and some people tie their heads with silk. Women usually wrap their heads in red and blue headscarves and wear conical hats like men in winter.

? Unmarried women split their hair from the middle of the front and tied two hair roots with two big round beads decorated with agate, coral and jasper.

? 3. The ancient war crown is a popular high hat among Mongolian women in Yuan Dynasty. About a foot long, cylindrical, wrapped in silk fabric, with different colors and varieties, and decorated with all kinds of jewelry and beautiful peacock hair. According to the "ancient war crowns" worn, we can identify their identity and social status. Women wearing this crown can be seen in the movies Kelpolo and Genghis Khan.

? 4. Mongolian boots are clothing crafts. There are leather boots and cloth boots (mohair boots). Marco Polo's Travels wrote: "You know, Khan Fen 13 times gave12,000 pieces of baron's robes, and a pair of camel leather boots named Burrell, embroidered with silver silk, which is quite ingenious." The burial boots are fragrant cow leather boots, decorated with the intestines of a flower disk.

? Women's cloth boots are often decorated with flower patterns such as apricot blossom, Shandan and peony, bergamot, D pattern, eight colon pattern and cloud scroll pattern.

? 5. Wrestling clothes and boots for wrestling competitions. Including vest, trousers, trousers and colored silk belt. The vest shows the chest; Pants are wide; Pants are rich in patterns, such as moire pattern, plant pattern, longevity pattern, five bats holding longevity and so on. The pattern is rough and powerful, and the color contrast is strong; Underwear is relatively fat, using 10 meter fabric, which is beneficial to heat dissipation, avoids sweat sticking to the body surface, and also adapts to the characteristics of wrestling, so it is difficult for opponents to wrap their legs. Pants are sewn with tough and strong cloth or flannel, and knees are sewn with various pieces of cloth, which is generous and solemn and indicates good luck.

? All parts of the clothing are properly matched and integrated, which has brave national characteristics.

? Wrestling boots are special shoes for wrestling. Tough and thick, with a belt on the boots. When wearing, tie the soles and boots tightly to prevent them from slipping off when kicking, and it is easy to hook each other.

? 6. Hospitality etiquette. Mongolians regard grand and enthusiastic reception of guests as a virtue. Their hospitality ceremony includes greeting, handing snuff bottles to each other (this kind of ceremony has gradually disappeared after liberation), drinking and so on. Whether visiting guests or passers-by, when guests arrive, they first greet each other.

? The host sat down, and the hostess served a bowl of fragrant milk tea, and put on all kinds of milk food, fried rice, mutton and so on. During which toasting is essential. Milk tea with hada, silver bowl filled. When toasting, raise your glass with your right hand, hold your elbow with your left hand, and respectfully hand it to the guest.

? Offer Hada: The recipient should also bend down to take it with both hands, or bend down to let the giver hang Hada around his neck. Guests should put their hands on their chests to show their gratitude to the giver.

? 7. Wedding. Mongolians attach great importance to weddings. Although different regions have different forms, they are all grand and lively. The wedding customs in pastoral areas are more distinctive. When they get married and return to the man's house, the bride and groom don't get out of the carriage. First, they went around the yurt three times. Then, the bride and groom have to go through the fire and be baptized by Vulcan, which indicates the innocence and firmness of love and the prosperity of their new life. When the bride and groom enter the yurt, they first worship the Buddha stove, then meet their parents, relatives and friends, and then comb their hair after the ceremony.

? 8. Funeral customs. Generally, there is no spiritual bed, no offerings, no mourning, no paper money, no funeral music. There are three traditional funeral methods: celestial burial, cremation and burial. At present, burial is widely carried out, and the dead are put into new clothes, or wrapped in white cloth, or put clean, ghee-coated and used articles of the dead in coffins before being buried in cemeteries.

Second, taboo.

? Taboo is a cultural phenomenon produced by a nation in the process of reproduction. As a people on horseback, Mongolians live on grass and live a nomadic life, which is their distinctive feature. In the long-term grazing and hunting life, this nation has gradually formed some unique taboos, including: fire taboo, water taboo, illness taboo, death taboo, stepping on the threshold, touching the head, beating the dog, being a guest and so on.

? (a) Taboos originated from worship: water taboo and fire taboo.

? As we all know, Mongolians worship natural things and think they are gods. Especially for the sun, moon and stars, heaven and earth, I have deep feelings and incomparable admiration. Since ancient times, Mongols have held ceremonies to worship Vulcan. They often hold grand sacrificial ceremonies during weddings, funerals and festivals.

? All phenomena related to fire have been deified by Mongols. Therefore, there are many contents related to fire taboos, such as: it is forbidden to roast feet, shoes and socks on the stove; Don't insert the knife directly into the fire; It is forbidden to throw unclean things into the fire; Don't sprinkle water on the fire, let alone spit or trample it out; Don't play with ash or throw away cigarette butts on the kitchen fire; You can't strike the stove hard, because that's where Vulcan lives, and you can't disturb him.

? Similarly, Mongolians worship water and think that water is the most sacred god in nature. For Mongolians who live on weeds, water is the source of all life on the grassland. Therefore, Mongolians are forbidden to shower in the river; It is forbidden to wash women's dirty clothes in the river; It is not allowed to throw dirty things into the river; Especially by the river, it is taboo to urinate and defecate, which is considered as disrespect to the gods.

? (2) Taboos caused by fear: getting sick, dying and beating dogs.

? In addition to their admiration for nature, Mongolians are also full of awe for some natural phenomena. Mongolians live in a vast plateau area, with cold and lack of oxygen and a bad living environment. In order to avoid natural harm to people, such as injury, death, property loss, etc. People of the nation have some taboos.

? When the Mongols are seriously ill, they usually erect spears outside the yurts and wrap black felt at the ends of their hair. Or hang a rope on the left side of the yurt and bury the other end of the rope on the east side of the yurt. The purpose of these two brands is to tell the people clearly that there are seriously ill patients at home and guests are not welcome.

? Although birth, aging, illness and death are natural laws and human nature, Mongolians still have inexplicable fears about death. Once a family member dies, everyone present can't enter the leader's tent before the new moon appears, otherwise it will bring bad luck to the leader.

? At the same time, the Mongolian people prohibit the use of the word "death". When an elder dies, he usually says "the past". If the child dies young, it is called "abandoning the child". In addition, the deceased can't show his face and needs to cover his face with white clothes like Hada. Don't let animals near the dead; You can't bury your dead relatives on the side of the road and so on.

? Mongolians have a very close relationship with animals, and spend most of their lives with them. Some of these animals can bring them wealth, such as horses, cows and sheep. Some bring them losses, such as wolves and jackals. Mongolians are taboo to mention wolves, which are generally called "wild dogs" or "that thing".

? But dogs are the most loyal partners of Mongols. They regard dogs as friends and don't allow people to hurt them at will. Even if you are a guest in a Mongolian family, you can't hit a dog when it barks or bites you. You must wait patiently for the master to drive it away for you. Of course, Mongolian people are forbidden to kill dogs, let alone eat dog meat, otherwise they will be regarded as unclean people.

? (3) Other taboos

? 1. Help yourself. Guests should pay attention to their clothes when entering yurts. Don't tuck their skirts under their belts with sleeves. Don't go in with a whip, put the whip on the right side of the yurt door and stand upright; Don't step on the threshold, you can only cross it with one foot (this comes from the ancient tradition of entering the Khan yurt. If someone accidentally steps on the threshold of King Khan, he will be put to death immediately. Don't enter private rooms without permission.

? Mongolian children are also afraid of being touched. In their eyes, their hands will be contaminated with many unclean things. Touching the child's head with your hand will bring bad luck to the child and cause the child to get sick. In addition, don't praise the master's children and livestock.

? 2. tea. The host will present a bowl of milk tea to the guests first. Guests should get up slightly and pick it up with their hands or right hands. Never pick it up with your left hand, or it will be considered impolite. When the host pours tea, if the guest doesn't want tea, he should gently touch the spoon or spout on the edge of the Sichuan bowl, and the host will understand the meaning of the guest.

? Mongolians drink milk all their lives, so they have formed unique rules. They can't eat dairy products with chopsticks, they can't be too full when they bring milk tea to others, and they can't hold milk with their left hand.

3. Toast. Guests can't avoid drinking, otherwise they will be considered impolite to the host and unwilling to be honest with each other. Guests should immediately catch the wine, dip their ring fingers in the wine and point to the direction of heaven, earth and stove to show their respect for heaven, earth and Vulcan. If you don't want to drink, you can touch your lips to show that you have accepted the friendship of your host.

? 4. communication. Mongolian herders prefer double to single, so if you give gifts to your master, it is best to give each item in pairs. When you go to the herdsmen's house, please say hello to the owner first, and then ask about the weather and livestock. Even if there is something unpleasant at that time, say something auspicious.

? Clothing taboo. The hat is the sacred headdress of the Mongols. Therefore, they are most taboo to throw their hats everywhere, or to touch or play with other things. It is considered unlucky that the hat they are wearing suddenly falls to the ground. For Mongolian men, girding is a symbol of authority and masculinity, so Mongolian men are forbidden to wear robes without belts.

? Dating taboo Mongolians attach great importance to the first, eighth and fifteenth day of the first lunar month, which is related to some Buddhist theories. Generally, there are no weddings these days, and patients will not travel far. People who have recovered from illness should be alert to the recurrence of old diseases.

? Hinder. Mongolian women can't go home to visit before the full moon. The sign they put up at the door is: Give birth to a boy, and hang branches wrapped in hada or cotton cloth on the right side of the door; If it is a girl, the red cloth is hung on the left side of the door.

? Of course, the Mongolian people with a long history have many other taboos, which are the unique symbols and symbols of this nation. In today's great ethnic integration and unity, only by understanding the taboos of other ethnic groups and learning to respect and fear each other can we better enhance mutual understanding and meet the bright future of loving families.