Maybe you will be surprised, why are there Yao people in Yunnan, Guizhou and other places besides Qingyuan? In fact, the Yao population is about 3 million, mainly distributed in Guangdong, Hunan, Guizhou, Guangxi and even Vietnam, the United States, France and other countries. Due to the differences in language, dress and living environment, Yao people are divided into four branches: Pan Yao, Bunuyao, Chashan Yao and Pingdi Yao, and then subdivided into dozens of small branches. Qingyuan Nangang Paiyao belongs to a branch of Pan Yao.
Millennium Yao Village was built on a steep slope 808 meters above sea level. Yao people used to live in groups, and houses were built one by one, so they were called "Paiyao". Ba Pai Yao is the proper name of Pai Yao who lives in Liannan Yao Autonomous County, Guangdong Province. It refers to eight Yao villages, including Lingpai, Nangang Pai, Hengkeng Pai and Liao Jun Pai, among which Nangang Pai Yao is the leading one, located in a beautiful land.
Yaozhai scenic spot punch card
The first time I came to Nangang Millennium Yaozhai, the stone road was steep and rugged. When I thought of carrying a suitcase and pushing a stroller to the hotel, I suddenly felt that there was nothing cute. When you come here to play, you must go into battle lightly, or you will be tired of carrying heavy things up the mountain.
When we go up the mountain, horses drag heavy things up the mountain from time to time. You should make way in time. On both sides of the mountain road are houses, restaurants and old Yao people selling mountain products. They are in no hurry to stop and buy specialty products. In addition, the mountain breeze is cool and pleasant, and there is no noise from cars coming and going. There is really a sense of tranquility that is isolated from the world.
In order to understand the thousand-year history of Yaozhai, we invited a Yao guide to follow her to visit the scenic spots of Yaozhai and learn about the thousand-year history and culture of Yaozhai.
The tour guide in Yaozhai is wearing a full dress and carrying a black umbrella of Yao nationality. Her clothes are red and black, and her head is embroidered with various patterns and feathers, which is very beautiful ~!
Guzhai Gate:
In ancient times, in order to resist the invasion of officers and soldiers and bandits, Yao Zu built a fence and three stockade gates, each of which was guarded by guards, and outsiders were not allowed to enter the stockade without permission.
We went up the mountain at 3: 30 in the afternoon and passed the Guzhaimen, just in time for the Yao people to welcome guests and propose a toast. This is the highest etiquette for Yao people to welcome distinguished guests. Sister ShaYaoMei welcomed us with wine and singing folk songs. They connected bamboo tubes and poured home-brewed rice wine. Guests coming from afar have to drink rice wine to enter the village.
Before drinking, pour some rice wine on the ground to pay homage to the ancestor of Yao nationality, King Pangu, and finish the wine in one breath.
We just finished drinking rice wine, and the Yao people on the platform next to us sang Yao songs and danced for inspiration. You can dance with them and forget all your troubles and worries.
Passing through Guzhai Gate, I heard a loud Song Yao. Yao women with black umbrellas were singing Yao songs under the big tree. The tour guide said it was a song to welcome us, but unfortunately we couldn't understand it. ...
Temple of Wang Pan:
Wang Pan Temple has been built in all Yao areas, and Wang Pan Temple in Nangang Yao Village is on the top of the mountain, so it is impossible for local people to build a house taller than this ancient temple. There are 365 steps along Gushi Road leading directly to Wang Pan Temple. Yao people walked for more than 20 minutes to the top of the mountain, and we walked slowly for more than 40 minutes.
Wang Pan Temple is just above the leading position, from Zhongmen to Getangping, and finally to the ancient temple, which is the direction of the whole village Long Mai. Wang Pan Temple is dedicated to the ancestor Pangu Wang and Pangu Wang Po of Yao nationality, wishing the Yao people peace, health and a smooth life. Yao people regard Hepo as the "god" of Purdue sentient beings and Huize people, and burn incense and worship sacrifices on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month or holidays.
Ge Tangping:
Getangping, halfway up the mountain, is the center of Yaozhai, where the view is wide and the scenery is beautiful, overlooking the distant peaks. There are also some scenic spots, such as Jinshi, Ancient Diaolou, Yao Jia Tofu Workshop and Yuba Factory.
Getangping is the activity center of the local Yao people, and all the grand activities of Yao Village are held here, such as parties, festivals, songs and dances. They beat gongs, boasted, sang Yao songs and danced dragon dances, and the scene was full of songs and laughter.
Get the stone:
It is said that touching this stone can bring good luck. There are two legends about this stone. One of them was a pharmacist who saved the blind old man. He overheard the old man's goose say that there were four gold bricks in the ditch under the big stone slab behind the house. It happened that he could understand the language of animals, so he went to the house to remove the stone and found four gold bricks.
Ancient watchtower:
The ancient watchtower next to the stone is the best observation point in the village, built to prevent bandits from harassing. The only three-story building in the ancient watchtower has a simple structure and strong defense function. The whole building has no windows but only gun holes. When the guards are guarding, they observe every intersection through the highest window. If they find intruders, they will brag and ring gongs, and inform the doorman to guard the gate of the village.
Dragon Culture Observation Deck:
On the Dragon Culture Observation Deck, you can see the trend of Yaozhai folk houses, and you can also see the distant peaks and mountains.
Nangang kiln is divided into three dragons according to the longitudinal direction of the mountain. From the front of the stockade, surnamed tang lives in Longli on the left, among which surnamed tang is the biggest surname, Deng lives in Longli in the middle, and Fang and Pan live in Longli on the right. In the past, every dragon had a leader, which was equivalent to the patriarch, who was responsible for managing the internal affairs of the dragon.
Ancient sarcophagus site:
In the past, the local Yao people were buried in wooden coffins, which was a symbol of power. Since the Ming Dynasty, only Yao Wang can be buried in coffins.
We came to the ruins of the ancient sarcophagus, not as gloomy as we thought, but on an open platform. Here is the last sarcophagus of King Yao, who did not use it after his death. The rectangular sarcophagus is not long, because the Yao people are short, and the stone building next to the circle is Yao Wang's tomb, and the sarcophagus is to be buried under the tomb.
Hong Xiuquan Missionary Society:
Hong Xiuquan was an outstanding leader of the modern peasant movement in China. If you want to know the history of his missionary activities here, you should go to Hong Xiuquan's missionary home, where the bronze statue of Hong Xiuquan, as well as pictures and utensils are displayed. Before jintian uprising, Hong Xiuquan came to Nangangpai to live here and carried out anti-Qing activities among Yao people.
Yao Lao leisurely:
Here, where the Yao elders discuss, the local Yao people practice the "Yao elders system". "Yao Elders" are elected through democratic elections, and are generally replaced every three years, and are selected from the four major surnames. It consists of Tian Changgong, Tougong, Mr. Zhang Gong, Xiang Gong and Kan Shuigong. However, all kinds of affairs in Yao village are presided over by Yao Lao. In case of major events, a village meeting will be held to make a ruling.
When we came out of the old medicine room, we happened to meet an old medicine man in the stockade. After greeting him, we took a photo with him as a souvenir. How happy we are! !
Yaowangwu:
Yao Wang is the highest leader of Nangang Sect, responsible for the affairs inside and outside the stronghold. If an enemy invades, he is the military leader, and Wu is the last place to live.
Wang Yaojia is the best place for geomantic omen in the whole village. The glazed tiles on the roof are very transparent, which makes the house very bright. The next room is smoked bacon, which makes the population water DC.
There are Yao women selling silverware outside. You can choose your favorite silverware to take home. There is a huge drum on the right side of the platform. The baby patted it a few times and said it was fun.
The fountain of youth:
I happened to find the fountain of youth, and heard the local people say that washing your face with spring water would be beautiful, so I quickly rolled up my sleeves and washed my face, hoping that the next day would be beautiful! There is a legend in the fountain of youth. In ancient times, there was a brother in Yaozhai who couldn't bear to watch his parents grow old. One day, Wang Pan told him that there is a spring in Yaozhai, and drinking it can prolong life. So brother Agui really dug up the spring water, which is constant all the year round, so it is called the "fountain of youth".
Feng:
There are thousands of stone mountains in Li Bai Yao Mountain, all of which are headed by peaks. Eight hundred arhats worship King Pangu with a sense of ceremony.
Wang Feng and Yaozhai echo each other from afar, leading by far. According to legend, a strongman pulled it from other places with a chain. When he passed Yaozhai, Hercules stopped to have a rest. When he woke up, he found that the mountain had taken root and could no longer pull. At the beginning of this year, a fire broke out in Feng, which destroyed the forest on the mountain. When I looked at Yaozhai, I found that there was a little white in the middle of the evergreen tree, which was particularly eye-catching.
Yao Dance Square:
Liannan is the hometown of the world classic music Yao Dance, hence the name Yao Dance Square. Every day, there are performances such as dragon encouragement and Yao marriage customs, and there will be bonfire parties on weekends.
These days, we came to Yaozhai, where we all ate and watched performances. The songs and dances of the Millennium Yao Village in Qingyuan are all non-legacy projects, which are worth seeing! The performance during the day is similar to that at night, except that there is a bonfire party at night.
Yao folk culture
Yao people are good at singing and dancing, and have rich folk culture, such as Long Drum Dance, Wang Pan Festival, playing karaoke bars and so on. All of them are national non-legacy projects, while Yao marriage customs, anti-Yao folk songs and Yao embroidery are included in Guangdong non-legacy projects.
Play the song hall:
Guage Hall is the most grand and largest traditional folk activity of Paiyao in Liannan, which integrates ancestor worship, Qingfeng harvest and other activities, including worship ceremony, singing and dancing, crossing the state, chasing the three monsters, shooting the truth, appreciating the gods and making wishes. Not only that, Lianhetang was also listed as the first batch of intangible cultural heritage by the state.
Paiyao folk songs:
Pai Yao folk songs are an indispensable part of the history and culture of Liannan Yao people, and also the key to the inheritance of ancient Yao people's history and culture. Yao people have no writing, but they inherit Yao culture through folk songs, which is also listed as the intangible cultural heritage of Guangdong Province.
Long encouragement:
Yao's Long Drum Dance has a long history of more than 800 years. In the traditional festivals of Yao nationality, Yao men and women are dressed in festive costumes, with HongLing tied around their waists, white leggings wrapped around their feet, and 1 meter-long flower drums hung. Sometimes flying fast, sometimes leaping tiger, with light and rhythmic steps and strong visual impact.
Marriage customs of Yao nationality;
The arrangement of Yao in Nangang is based on the love of folk songs. The wedding of Yao nationality lasts for three days and nights, including proposal, engagement, recognition of relatives, date selection and returning to the door. The wedding is divided into the processes of frying soybeans, sending the wedding, welcoming the relatives, wedding banquet and recognition of relatives. The whole village came to have a wedding banquet to celebrate. After the bride returns to her family, the groom will invite relatives to dinner, which is the real husband and wife.
Folk activities:
Yao Village is quiet at ordinary times, except for the singing, ploughing and Wang Pan festivals. Yao people dressed up, wore headdresses, played long drums, sang Yao songs, visited Kyushu and played karaoke bars for seven days and seven nights. We came just in time for the Qixi Torch Festival. We watched Agui's sister Sha Yaomei go down the mountain with a torch, dancing with long encouragement and folk songs, and even the baby applauded happily.
Yao embroidery:
For thousands of years, the embroidery technology of Yao costumes has become a living fossil of Yao cultural changes. The dress embroidery of the Yao nationality in Liannan has been listed in the intangible cultural heritage list of Guangdong Province and awarded the title of "the hometown of Yao embroidery in Guangdong". You can see the embroidery of the old Yao nationality in Guzhaimen. You can learn a few tricks when you have time.
Yao costumes:
Compared with other Yao costumes, Nangang Paiyao costumes have the characteristics of bright colors, simple patterns and exquisite craftsmanship. It is also divided into paperbacks and ancient costumes. Paperback is mainly black, supplemented by indigo. Men's headdresses are wrapped in red headscarves with chicken feathers, married women are wrapped in embroidered headscarves, and unmarried girls don't wear headscarves.
Yaozu gourmet
Yao Long table banquet:
Long table banquet is a traditional banquet for Yao people's wedding festivals, and it is the most solemn etiquette for Yao people to receive distinguished guests. We held a long table banquet in Yaowu Square, and two Yao girls brought dustpans to the table.
There are more than ten kinds of Yao cuisine in Liannan, including chicken, duck and pork, and salty and chewy beef jerky. The taste is very distinctive and the weight is very real. When you come to Yaozhai, you must try the long table banquet. Remember to book in advance!
Yao's tofu flower:
When we climbed to Getangping halfway up the mountain, we were panting and sweating, so we went to Yao Jia Tofu Shop to have a rest and experience the fun of grinding soybean milk.
His tofu flower is made of mountain spring water and local soybeans. It's not as smooth as expected, and the taste is very special, which makes us a little uncomfortable.
Yao nationality handmade yuba:
At first, we were attracted by dried yuba. The yuba factory is very small, and we can see the process of making yuba. The process seems simple, but it is time-consuming and labor-intensive.
Yuba is delicious for cold salad, stew or soup. Watching the master work hard, we bought Yuba to take home.
Su Min Yaozhai
The homestays in Qingyuan Millennium Yaozhai are all on the mountain. We found a homestay halfway up the mountain, where we had a wide view, beautiful scenery and a view of the peak.
B&B Yaozhai is run by Yao people. The accommodation environment on the mountain is simple and the price is not expensive. Feel the life in Yaozhai in the evening, get up for breakfast in the morning, visit Yaozhai and find the best scenic spots to take pictures.