Bi Huayu – “Bi Mo” Priest of Yi Ethnic Minority in Shilin County, Kunming 

Bi Huayu -

Bi Huayu – “Bi Mo” Priest of Yi Ethnic Minority in Shilin County, Kunming-01

Basic Information

Name: Bi Huayu(毕华玉): the Inheritor of Ashima
Sex: Male
Race: Yi Ethnic Minority  (Sani people)
Birth: Born in 1953
Hometown: Hei Village, Xijie Town, Shilin Yi Autonomous County, Kunming City(昆明市石林彝族自治县西街镇黑村)

Life Experience

Bi Huayu(毕华玉) is the Inheritor of Ashima,and one of the famous Bimo(毕摩,which means priest) in Shilin County. Born in a Bimo family, he was influenced by his family environment and loved folk ritual and sacrificial ceremonies. When he was 34 years old, he inherited his father’s career, formally worshiped his father and cousin as teachers, and studied Yi language and folk etiquette. When he was 35 years old, he held the funeral ceremony for the first time for a family in the village and was praised. From then on, he began his career as a ceremonial host. Through years of continuous learning, Bi Huayu’s folk cultural knowledge and etiquette have been sublimated. He can host more than 60 kinds of folk ritual ceremonies such as Mizhi(密枝), Nimu(尼姆), funerals, Shuzhu(竖柱), Zhuanbu(占卜) and so on.

Bi Huayu -

Reputation

Bi Huayu was master in Yi and Chinese language. In 1994, he was hired by Shilin County Ethnic Affairs Committee(石林县民族事务委员会) to participate in the collation and translation of ancient Yi ethnic books. He participated in the collation and publication of five sets of ancient Yi ethnic books, including Sacrifices to the Rites(《祭祀》), Sacrifice Words of Mizhi(《密枝祭词》) and Ancient Songs of Diming(《地明古歌》). He also participated in the filming of the Festivals Under the Star (《星空下的节日》) and Healthy Star(《健康之星》) and other TV serials. He had received visits from French, Japanese, American and Korean scholars.

Chinese Version: http://www.ynich.cn/view-ml-13110-806.html
Translated by Translated by Emily -Wang/王海玲