According to a local old man who is familiar with Miao culture, the most primitive social grass-roots organization of Miao nationality is drum. The leader of this unit is Wang Miao, and the role of Nuo teacher is equivalent to the chief's staff and assistant. During the migration of this ethnic group, the Nuo teachers used their stunts of "going up the mountain with knives" and "going down into the fire" to prove to their people that their leaders would not be afraid of any difficulties. Walking into Suojia Miao Village, the villagers surrounded photographers from all over the country. The reporter noticed that among the onlookers, in addition to the villagers, there were several people wearing red robes. A villager told reporters that these people are extraordinary "wizards" who can perform some stunts that ordinary people can't do. Just when the reporter was curious about the costumes of these "witches", a local old man told the reporter that the costumes of these "witches" originated from the image of Tang Priest. According to legend, the Tang Priest returned from the West to become a Buddha, and he had the ability to catch ghosts and exorcise demons. Therefore, these "wizards" believe that they can catch demons and exorcise them like Tang Priest.
Led by the villagers, we crossed a small river that flows through Miao village, and then crossed a small forest. An iron ladder nearly 20 meters high stands on the grass beach. The cross bar of this iron ladder consists of 36 sharp blades. The title of "Daoshan" is worthy of the name. It is said that only by climbing this "knife mountain" barefoot and unscathed can we prove the "magic" of the "mage".
A "mage" looked up at "Daoshan" and seemed to be mumbling something. Then he picked up a bowl with a mouthful of water and sprayed it at Daoshan, chanting that he would wipe the remaining water in the bowl on the bare feet of Daoshan and another "mage". The barefoot "mage" bowed around and finally bowed to Daoshan, holding the knife ladder, climbing the blade with both feet in turn, climbing steadily to the top of Daoshan, and stretching out his legs from time to time to show everyone his safety soles. After crossing the "knife mountain" to the ground, the "mage" once again showed everyone his soles, only the traces of the blade, which is the feet of ordinary people without thick calluses.
I've seen this kind of performance on TV before, but I certainly have to dispel my doubts when I watch the live performance this time. With a little prejudice, the reporter reached out and touched the blade that the "mage" had just climbed up. To the reporter's surprise, these blades are not as old and dim as expected. Although it is not as sharp as the kitchen knife at home, it should be no problem to scrape it on the blade with a little force. What makes people climb the "knife mountain" and walk on the ground? The reporter asked the "master" who had just boarded the "Daoshan". The "master" kept his mouth shut, saying only that the stunt originated from the local "Nuo teacher".
It takes considerable courage and skill to step on a sharp knife barefoot.
Since there is a performance of "going up the mountain", several local "wizards" will certainly show us foreign guests their stunt of "going down the mountain to put out the fire" to prove that they have nothing to hide. The assistant of the "mage" took out several plowshares in the nearby burning bonfire and put them on the grass in turn. When the hot plow touched the grass, it emitted thick smoke. After thinking for a while, a "mage" walked barefoot on five hot plowshares. Perhaps because we didn't believe our eyes, the "mage" repeated the performance three times.
According to the local people, the "mage" must recite a spell before performing, so as to ensure the safety when going up and down the mountain in flames. The general content of the spell is "please master" Only by turning over the "mountain of knives" composed of 36 knives and walking down the "sea of fire" can you become a "mage". Listen, but reporters certainly don't believe in "spells". These "stunts" can of course be explained by modern science. Jack Luo, an accompanying photographer who used to be a local tour guide, told reporters that she thought these "stunts" had certain skills. Take "Up the Mountain" as an example. When hands and feet touch the blade, they must contact smoothly, increase the contact area as much as possible and reduce the force per unit area. The most important thing is that your hands and feet must not slide on the blade, otherwise, just like we cut meat at home, pulling the blade back and forth is easy to cut the meat. Of course, even if you know these skills, it is not easy to "climb the mountain". After all, the feeling of cutting feet is beyond the tolerance of ordinary people. As for the mystery of "going to the sea of fire", the former local tour guide is just a guess. It is estimated that the contact time between the sole of the foot and the plow is very short, so as not to be scalded. But barefoot on such a hot plow, even if the time is short, I believe no one will try it easily. In the past few days, the mystery of "fire" has always been a mystery in the hearts of journalists.
A few days later, the activities of collecting wind in Guizhou ended. On the train leaving Guiyang, a friend named "Stone World" chatted with reporters. "Shi Jie" is a native of Guiyang, and his identity as a donkey makes him an expert in Guizhou. He said that he was familiar with the Miao kings in several Miao villages, and told how the Miao kings in Miao villages were respected. The reporter asked for advice on "going to the fire". "Stone World" told reporters that "master" had a necessary procedure before "entering the fire", that is, washing feet in the river. Speaking of this, the reporter who used to be a physics teacher suddenly realized that the secret is a simple "heat transfer" principle, just like burning ice cubes into boiling water needs to absorb more heat energy than boiling water of the same quality. The purpose of soaking feet is to reduce the temperature of feet. It will be safer for cold feet to contact hot plowshares for a short time and will not be burned.
Science was not popular in the past, so "Nuo teachers" should master more knowledge and skills. Just like this, "Nuo Shi" is regarded as a knowledgeable folk herbalist and even a bridge between man and god. They used traditional methods to protect the peace of the village. Today, even if Nuo skill only becomes a unique skill, it is still necessary to exist. After all, it is a civilization that has lasted for 5,000 years.