Changyang holds ceremony to worship Tujia ancestor Lin Jun

By Shen Yuan, Yichang International Communication Studio

Yichang's Changyang Tujia Autonomous County began their annual festival to worship their ancestor Lin Jun.

Yesterday's opening ceremony of the 4th Lin Jun Cultural Tourism Festival was divided into two parts: the torch lighting and the worship ceremony. 

During the first part of the festival, four fire guards jointly lit a torch that signifies the "Fire of Ba Culture.”
 

Scene of the torch lit ceremony

Then, representatives of the Tujia descendants held a ceremony to honor their ancestors. This all acts as an expression of their determination to pass on and promote the culture of Lin Jun and the Tujia.

Scene of the worship ceremony

Lin Jun, born around 4,000 years ago on the Wuluozhongli Mountain in Changyang Tujia Autonomous County, was the founder of the Ba state. Since his time, the Ba and their descendants, the Tujia, have flourished here, eventually forming what is now known as the Tujia ethnic group, whose members can now be found across Hunan, Hubei, Guizhou and Chongqing provinces.
 

A statue of Lin Jun

The Tujia Minority is one of 55 minorities in China. It has an ethnic language, but no ethnic script, and therefore use the Han Chinese script. According to the census done in 2010, the population of the Tujia was 8.35 million, accounting for 7.34 percent of the total national minority population and ranking them as the eighth largest among all ethnic groups in China.

The "Lin Jun Culture" truly represents the Tujia people's spirit of defying all odds.

Wuluozhongli Mountain is located in the Qingjiang River Gallery Scenic Resort. In this scenic resort, the 150 km Changyang Section of the Qing River is like an art gallery winding through the green mountains. Traveling through the area by boat is both convenient and eye-popping, offering a unique perspective of the river, mountains and surrounding scenery.  

A picture of the Qingjiang River Gallery Scenic Resort
 

The cultural tourism festival will last three days, during which activities such as the cultural tourism integration boutique show will be held.