Source: CCTV.com

08-26-2008 10:12

The “Mukulian” is a traditional folk instrument of the Daur people. There are only a few people alive today who can play it. Jia Zi, curator of the Axi’er Daur Nationality Culture Center in Tacheng, in Xinjiang, is one of them.

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As a child, Jia Zi was taught about Daur history and traditional culture. He loved to sit beside the old folk artists, listening to them playing and singing the beautiful ancient ballads. The artists would also tell stories about the westward march of the Daur. Thus he learned that the Daur had originally lived in China’s northeast. But in 1763, to strengthen the country’s borders, the Qing government had enlisted 500 Daur and 500 Ewenke officers and soldiers from the eight banners of Buhate. They became part of an army that was sent to guard the western border in Yili.

And so Jia Zi’s ancestors trekked from the Changbai Mountains and the Heilongjiang River in northeast China to the country’s border in the northwest. Many legends are told about that long journey westward.

The Qing government selected the finest young men to be sent to Xinjiang. Among them was a young man from a family that owned two horses, one yellow, the other dappled. The family decided to give their son the stronger yellow horse to ride when he left. However, during the journey the horse left its young master and eventually returned to its home. People say the horse was homesick.

But the sight of the horse returning to its home caused great sadness among the Daur.

Today, more than 2,500 Daur people are living in Axi’er Daur Nationality Township. The story of the Daur’s westward march has never been forgotten here. With time, Axi’er has become known as the “Home of Colourful Clouds”, chiefly because of a song written by Jia Zi.

The Daur people of Xinjiang dream of one day seeing the mountains and fields their ancestors left in tears. Homesickness is sometimes described as a kettle of wine that never quenches the thirst or a poem that never ends. Jia Zi describes the ancestral home of the Daur as forever a song in their hearts. However far away they go, every note lingers as a dream harboured by the generations.

Today Jia Zi and his family are attending the wedding of a young couple in town. The bride is Jia Zi’s niece. It’s the custom among the Daur people of Axi’er that, when a family holds such an event, almost all the other families in town will help out. For many years Jia Zi has played his mandolin on important occasions. The wedding hasn’t started yet, but the whole town is already a scene of happiness.

It’s time for the bride to dress in her wedding gown. In accordance with Daur tradition, the parents of the new couple will preside over the wedding. Jia Zi says that Daur weddings have been losing some of their unique features in recent years. He is worried that the traditional Daur wedding may become a thing of the past.

The bride, Xiaxia, and her groom, Ao Lei, both work in the city of Tacheng. They have agreed to their parents’ suggestion, that their wedding be a traditional Daur occasion.

Daur people place great emphasis on respecting the elderly. Having toasted the bride’s parents and uncles, the couple must then drink to the other elder relatives. Only then can the bride leave.

The bridegroom’s family have sent a carriage for the bride. Xiaxia, with a red veil covering her face, sits in it. Her elder brother’s wife and some young people are accompanying her. The bridegroom rides on horseback in front. Everyone in the carriage is cheering and singing.

The carriage passes along streets and alleyways and finally reaches the bridegroom’s house. The people accompanying the bride excitedly rush into the courtyard.

To welcome the group, the bridegroom’s family have sent people to wait in front of the house with glasses of liquor.

Everyone drinks to the new couple. Only those who have drunk the liquor are permitted to pass through the bridegroom’s door.

The guests and the bride’s entourage enter the house to the sound of firecrackers. Now it’s the turn of the bridegroom’s parents, who have dressed specially for the occasion, to drink to everyone present.

The guests gather in the courtyard of the bridegroom’s house. They are waiting to see the bride lift her veil. The bride waits in silence for that happy moment. She will become a member of the bridegroom’s family only after her elder brother’s wife has lifted her red veil.

The wedding feast starts after the bride has been unveiled. The male and female guests sit at separate tables. They frequently propose toasts to congratulate the young couple. The bridegroom’s parents also toast the guests. The feast is punctuated by singing and cheering.

By the end of the dinner, most of the guests are a little drunk. Men and women, old and young, all get up to dance. The wedding reaches its climax. The best dancers are rewarded with another drink.

The wedding will last late into the night.