"Sasui" is the most solemn and grand sacrificial activity of the Dong nationality. It is mainly distributed in the Dong villages in Zhaoxing, Long'e, Shuikou, Shangzhong, Yandong, Maogong and other towns in Liping County, Guizhou Province, and the neighboring Rongjiang County and Congjiang County in Guizhou Province, as well as the Dong areas in Longsheng County, Sanjiang County in Guangxi and Tongdao County in Hunan Province at the border of Guizhou, Hunan and Guangxi. The legendary "Sasui" altar, namely the "Sasui" holy mountain, is located in Shangdiping Village, Long'e Township, Liping, Guizhou Province. Sasui is the incarnation of an ancient Dong heroine, and there are many legends about her. She is not only a social god who protects the country and the people, and blesses the prosperity of people and livestock, and the harvest of grains, but also the supreme goddess of the Dong nationality. Legend has it that there was a heroine with outstanding achievements in the history of the Dong nationality, and everyone respectfully called her "Sa" (Dong language, the same below). There are several theories about the origin of Sa. One is that it is the distant grandmother goddess of the Dong nationality. With her miraculous fertility, she gave birth to the sky, the earth, the gods, and all things in heaven and on earth. The second is the goddess Nuwa in the Dong mythology, who created the only two siblings in the world, Jiang Liang and Jiang Mei, and only after they got married did humans come into being. The third is the heroine Bi Ben, who said that a long time ago, there was a lonely Dong girl in Pingrui Village at the mouth of the Nai River. Her name was Yangxiang. When Yangxiang was just eight years old, she herded sheep and ducks for her uncle. There was a poor and kind old man named Guan Gong in Pingrui Village. Guan Gong saw that Yangxiang was pitiful, so he guided her to Liujia Village to find her uncle Jiuku. Yangxiang came to Liujia Village, but she didn't know that Jiuku had been killed and escaped. With no relatives to go to, Yangxiang was taken in as a domestic slave by Li Congqing, a local Han official and rich man. The Li family had a long-term worker named Du Nang. Yang Xiang and Du Nang had the same fate and sympathized with each other. As time went by, they developed a mutual admiration for each other. Li Congqing saw that Yang Xiang was outstanding in talent and both in appearance and character, so he had evil intentions and wanted to marry Yang Xiang as a concubine. Du Nang learned about it and rescued Yang Xiang. They escaped from the tiger's mouth. They fled to Luosi Village and were taken in by the kind-hearted Tianba Grandma (Goddess Grandma). Du Nang and Yang Xiang lived a happy life in Luosi Village, with the man farming and the woman weaving. Soon they gave birth to a daughter named Bi Ben. One day, Yang Xiang, Du Nang and other villagers went to Jiulong Mountain to dig a fish pond (or dig a house foundation) and dug up a piece of glittering magic iron. Du Nang took it back and asked someone to make a big knife, which was called the Jiulong Sword. When Li Congqing learned about this, he used the excuse that digging a fish pond destroyed his family's earth and dragon veins, so he took advantage of everyone's unpreparedness and sent his servants and thugs to Luosi Village to occupy the fish pond and beat Yang Xiang to death. Li Congqing was so aggressive that he wanted to kill Du Nang and take the sword. Shi Dao, another Dong helper of Li Congqing, learned about this and rushed to Du Nang at night to inform him. Du Nang was so angry that he could not bear it any longer. He decided to take advantage of the enemy's unpreparedness and invite all the villagers of Luoshi Village to attack Liujia in the middle of the night. Guan Gong learned about it and rushed to offer advice at night. He also gave Bi Ben a magic fan that he had treasured for many years. In order to avenge his wife and mother, Du Nang and his daughter captured Liujia Village in one fell swoop and killed the enemy. Bi Ben saw that Shi Dao was honest, hardworking, capable, and skilled in martial arts, so she married him and gave birth to two daughters, Suo Pei and Suomei. Wang Shu, the housekeeper of Li Congqing, deceived Shi Dao's trust and killed him. Bi Ben found out and killed Wang Shu. Li Dianlang, the son of Li Congqing, was an official in the court. When he learned that his father had been killed and his land had been divided up by the Dong people, he petitioned the emperor to send 80,000 soldiers to attack. In order to seize the precious sword, Li Dianlang sent people disguised as "La Han" (young men) from afar to Liujia Village to sing and sit with Suo Pei and Suo Mei at night, and deceived them into giving him the Nine Dragon Sword. Du Nang lost his precious sword and could not resist the enemy, so he died in battle. Bi Ben was outnumbered and led the villagers to retreat to Jiucengyan. Li Dianlang chased to Jiucengyan with the "golden seal". Bi Ben's magic fan also lost its power, and she fought desperately with the enemy. In the end, she and her two daughters died in battle and sacrificed themselves in Nongtangkai (Nongtangkai, the Chinese name "Nongxiang Mountain", is located in Liping County, Guizhou Province. It originated from Sanxingpo at the junction of Guizhou, Hunan and Guangxi provinces (regions), and passes through Hongzhou, Leidong, Shuikou, Long'e and other towns in Liping County, Guizhou Province). After Bi Ben died, she turned into a goddess and continued to lead the people of Dongxiang to fight against the enemy. She finally killed Li Dianlang, defeated the officers and soldiers, and won the victory. From then on, Bi Ben became the patron goddess of Dongxiang, and people respectfully called her "Sa Sui". In the mutual relationship of Dong culture, there are still 28 versions of Dong folk literature with "Sa" as the theme (meaning "grandmother", a general term for female gods with spirits in all things). They can be roughly classified as protecting land, protecting villages, protecting people and animals, protecting water sources, protecting production, expelling diseases, governing everything, and other ghosts and gods, which constitute the "Sa" god series of Dong society. The ancient songs, legends, classics, rituals, customs, taboos, etc. inherited from the worship of these "Sa" gods have been closely integrated with people's daily lives in Dong society, forming a long-standing "Sa" god worship phenomenon, reflecting the three development stages of the long primitive religion through nature worship, ancestor worship and Sa Sui goddess worship. The evolution of the sacrificial form can be roughly divided into three corresponding stages: the first stage was mainly centered on primitive land worship, reflecting people's natural worship of the land; the second stage was mainly shifted from natural land worship to ancestor worship, and began to use the form of "tomb" to replace land worship with ancestor worship, fully demonstrating the protective role of "Sa" in the social life of the Dong people; the third stage was mainly centered on ancestor worship, using the form of "tomb", reflecting the Dong people's experience of losing and regaining the land. In the field of Dong religious thought, the goddess Sasui has the greatest influence, the deepest roots, the highest status, and the greatest prestige. She is the object of devout worship of the Dong people and is regarded as a sacred and inviolable supreme god. In the past, when the common people encountered a long drought, they would go to the Satan to pray for good weather, peace and prosperity. The worship of Sa in the song hall in the first month of the year was held to pray for the appearance of the god Sa, drive away insect disasters, and bless agricultural harvests. The Dong people's sacrifices to Sasui can be divided into the following types: Ordinary sacrifices: On the first and fifteenth day of the lunar calendar or during festivals, every household in the Dong village goes to the Sadang to burn incense, offer tea, offer pork, burn paper money, etc. Some villages have land in the Sadang, and have special people or households in rotation to perform sacrifices. The special person who performs sacrifices is generally the oldest or most senior elder in the village who enters the Sadang according to strict Sa-sa rituals to burn incense and light lamps for the Sadang every morning and evening, praying for Sasui to protect the whole village from the bad luck, the prosperity of livestock, and the good harvest of grain. Travel sacrifices: Dong villages have always had the custom of collectively visiting each other (called "Wei Ye") and competing in Lusheng between villages. When they go out of the village as guests or compete in Lusheng, they all go to the Sadang to hold a sacrificial ceremony to ask for its blessing. Wartime sacrifice: If the enemy attacks, all the men and women with combat capabilities in the village will arm themselves and go to the Sadang to hold a ceremony, asking them to protect themselves and defeat the enemy; some will hold symbolic military exercises. At this time, all the young men in the village will wear golden chicken tail feathers on their heads, wear green clothes and white pants, hold guns, swords, spears and arrows, and go to the Sadang to offer tea one by one under the leadership of an elder. Then they will pick a leaf of evergreen and stick it on their heads, then line up and stand in a solemn manner, listening to the village elders reciting the "Sacrifice Words" and "Expedition Invitation". After the recitation, they will rush out of the village with the sound of iron cannons and shouts. Some will fight with volleys, some will set off volleys of cannons, and some will shoot volleys of arrows. At this time, all the men, women, old and young in the village will also rush out, or set off firecrackers, or beat gongs and drums, or shout to cheer, forming a fierce "war" scene. When the "battle" is over and they return "victorious", the leaders will poke a straw "human head" with a spear, indicating that they have killed the enemy leader. At this time, the reed pipes were blown, firecrackers were blasted, gongs and drums were loud, and men, women, old and young in the whole village came to welcome their relatives who had returned triumphantly. The expeditionary team returned to Sadang and hung the "human head" in front of Sadang for public display. Young men and women in the whole village held hands and danced the "Duoye" dance again, singing the stepping hall song praising Sadang. A small sacrifice once a year, a big sacrifice every three years: The time of sacrifice varies from place to place among the Dong people. Some are on the first day of the Lunar New Year, the third day of the third month, or the community festival, but it is said that there is a small sacrifice once a year and a big sacrifice every three years. When holding a sacrifice, pigs and chickens are slaughtered, incense tables are set up, incense, wine, meat are offered, paper is burned, reed pipes are blown, firecrackers are set off, and the priest is asked to recite the words of the sacrifice to Sadang. During the big sacrifice, some villages are closed for three days, and pomelo branches and leaves are hung at the village gate, and strangers are strictly prohibited from entering the village. During the festival, fireworks are prohibited. The whole village eats glutinous rice cakes and pickled fish prepared in advance. People gather at the Drum Tower to sing "Doye", play the Lusheng, tell stories, and remember the merits of their ancestors. Some wear ethnic costumes and gather in front of the Sa Altar to hold a grand sacrificial ceremony. They use flints to strike flints to make fire and light moxa fire, which symbolizes that the first Holy Mother brings light and happiness to the Dong people. Then each housewife takes the fire back to her home to make fire and cook. On the first day of the Sa Sa Festival, some people also need to find two young men born in the same year and month, and go up the mountain to cut two bamboos of the same size, length, and knots to hang banners. On the second day, the grandfathers and grandmothers over 60 years old in the village are invited to sing songs beside the Sa Altar. The grandmothers wear bamboo earrings, bamboo bracelets, bamboo collars, and maple thorn balls in their heads. It is said that this is to commemorate the hard life of their ancestors when there were no silver coins. On the third day, an 18-year-old youth is selected to climb a tall tree to take a magpie's nest made of small sticks and bring it to the Satan to start a fire. Then each household goes to the Satan fire pit to take the fire home, which symbolizes good luck. Singing Doye Festival: In Dong villages, young men and women in each village have the custom of visiting each other and competing in singing and singing. When competing in singing and singing at the side of the Satang or Gulouping, the first thing to do is to sing a Doye to praise and worship Sasui to show respect for Sasui. The content of the Ye and song praising Sasui is basically the same, but the tunes are different. Sasui is the national religious belief of the Dong people for thousands of years. In the Dong area, everyone worships Sasui and believes in Sasui, which has been passed down from generation to generation. The worship of the goddess Sasui is the product of the secular development of the primitive religion of the Dong people, rooted in the family organization based on blood group and the village organization based on geographical group. The family organization is based on the blood individual family, and the village organization is built on the basis of the family organization. Therefore, all members of a family or village naturally formed a group that believed in the goddess Sasui. The village leader was the village elder. Music and singing were the language of the soul. The Dong people only had language but no writing. People's oral history was mostly represented by "Ga" (al). Dong songs include "Ga" (al), which means ballads, "yees", which means songs and dances, "nyonc", which means legends, "lix", which means rhyming words, "jenh", which means rap, and "yik", which means Dong opera, etc., which constitute the basic form of Dong literature. "Sanghal", which means the singer, has become the representative of the inheritance of the spiritual civilization of the Dong people. "Sangjun" and "Sangxi" are often the famous "Sanghal" in the local area. No matter what form of Dong literature, the Dong people's reverence for "Sasui" runs through it, showing the wisdom represented by "Sanghal" and the praise for "Sasui" that has been passed down from generation to generation. When the priests inherited the polytheism and ancestor worship, there appeared priests who were different from ordinary people. Especially when worshipping the goddess Sasui, there were people who mastered the classics, understood the "Dong Book" which recorded the Dong sounds in Chinese characters, and were familiar with the calendar of their own ethnic group. They became people who specialized in "Duo Teng", which was called "Sang Teng" (sanghdaengc) in the Dong language; there was "Denssax", which means the master of the grandmother, meaning the foundation of the Sa god or the owner who was responsible for taking care of and offering sacrifices to the Sasui altar. In the southern region of the Dong nationality, every village has an altar for offering sacrifices to "Sa", and when a new village is built or a village has not yet been built but Sa is set up, as well as when a village rebuilds a Sa house and builds a new Sa house, a Yin-Yang master must be invited to set up the position of Sa. Then, in the Sa house, a small pile of planed wood chips for ignition is prepared. A person whose birth date, month, day and time are the same as the current year, month, day and time, the so-called "Heaven and Earth Flow", uses the primitive method of making fire to strike the flint with a flint in the dark midnight, and ignites a blazing fire in the Sa house. At this time, each household in the village, which had already extinguished the fire, comes to the Sa house to receive the fire, to show that everyone is the descendant of Sa who inherits Sa's cooking smoke. Sa is the supreme goddess worshipped by the Dong people. There is a specific sacred mountain, Sa Sui Mountain. Every village that builds a Sa altar must go there to take a stone, which means "inviting Sa's soul". Every village has her "altar" "Ran Sa", and sacrificial activities are held every year. When offering sacrifices to Sa, there are cultural and entertainment activities such as playing the reed pipe and stepping on the song hall "Doye". Sa is a supreme god among the Dong people in the entire Dong area. It is a religious belief and spiritual sustenance. Due to the influence of various political factors from the 1950s to the 1970s, religious beliefs and sacrificial activities were regarded as "feudal superstition" and were -. The Sasui Festival activities were almost extinct. It began to recover in the 1980s. However, due to the impact of foreign culture, many young people are no longer enthusiastic about the Sasui Festival activities. Most of the elderly who know about the Sasui Festival activities are old, and there is no successor to the priests. The Sa altars in many villages no longer exist, and the Sasui Festival customs are on the verge of extinction. (No pictures yet, welcome to provide.) (No pictures yet, welcome to provide.)