The Manchus are the most populous ethnic minority in Northeast China. In addition to celebrating the Spring Festival, Lantern Festival, Dragon Boat Festival, and Mid-Autumn Festival together with other ethnic groups, they also have their own traditional customs. The Manchus' family sacrifice is a "festival" for each family. This family sacrifice originated in primitive society and was originally held by clans with the same surname and common blood relationship. After the Qing Dynasty, the Manchu population moved to various places, and the branch families living in the same area were the most important sacrificial activities. From the Qing Dynasty to the 1930s and 1940s, the Manchus' family sacrifice has never been interrupted, becoming one of the more common ethnic customs in Northeast China. Family sacrifices are generally held before spring plowing or after autumn harvest, so they are commonly known as "Spring and Autumn Grand Sacrifice". Each time is usually held for three consecutive days. It is held in the home of the clan leader or a clan member with a higher generation, higher prestige and certain economic strength. All the close branches of the clan, except pregnant women and people with serious diseases, must go to participate. One or two days before the family sacrifice, women prepare the offerings, mainly steamed cakes and homemade sake made from yellow rice flour, while men prepare the utensils for the sacrifice. The first day of the family sacrifice is to worship the gods, which is divided into two steps: morning sacrifice and evening sacrifice. The god's seat for the morning sacrifice is set up in the shrine (or god board, ancestor board) on the west wall of the main room. A yellow cloth (satin) curtain should be hung on the wooden frame of the shrine (commonly known as the Yangshou frame). An offering table is set up on the west kang, and offerings such as cakes, biscuits, and wine are placed, as well as wooden square incense dishes, and "Dazi incense" (a kind of incense powder made from annual interest flowers) is burned in the dish. The main priest is the "Shaman" of the family (or Chama, if there is no Shaman, the clan leader will take over. The ceremony generally consists of the main priest reciting the sacrificial words in Manchu, burning incense, setting up offerings, and pouring wine. Everyone kneels down to worship the god in the order of gender and age. If the main priest is a shaman, there are also a series of rituals such as singing god songs and dancing. The sacrificial process in the sacrifice is very unique. According to the system, this kind of big sacrifice must kill pigs to sacrifice to the gods. It should be a boar raised by the family with pure black fur and no diseases. When "offering" to the gods, the pig legs are tied and placed on the offering table in front of the west kang. The main priest pours wine or cold water into the pig's ears. If the pig screams and shakes its head, it means that the god has "received the sacrifice", that is, accepted the sacrifice, and the people participating in the ceremony will be very happy. Otherwise, not only must the pouring continue, but everyone will also... You have to kneel down and beg the gods. After "receiving the animal", the pig is slaughtered, the fur is removed, and the meat is divided into several large pieces according to the parts. The meat is put into a large pot and cooked until it is 70% to 80% cooked. The meat is taken out and put back on the offering table to be shaped like a pig again, commonly known as "decoration". The main priest cuts a few slices of meat for the gods, and everyone kneels down to worship. The meat is then cut into three or four inch square pieces, cooked in a pot, and served on a wooden plate. Participants in the ceremony use their own knifes to cut the meat and eat it, and they are not allowed to dip it in condiments. This is called "eating blessed meat", which reflects the legacy of hunting peoples. According to common sayings, the gods worshipped in the morning sacrifice are Buddha Sakyamuni, Guanyin Bodhisattva and Guandi, but the gods worshipped by each family are not exactly the same. Some also include Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, the Three Fairies, etc. Usually, the number of incense plates placed is the same as the gods worshipped. The altar for the sacrifice is in the northwest corner (or north wall) of the main room, and the gods offered are traditional tribal gods and ancestral gods. Among them, there is a special "back-lamp sacrifice", and the lights in the room must be extinguished during the ceremony. According to folk sayings, it is a sacrifice to "Wanli's mother". Legend has it that she was killed for saving Laohan King (Nurhaci), and she was not wearing clothes when she died, so the lights were turned off to avoid her being shy. The second day of the family sacrifice is to offer sacrifice to the sky, which is held in front of the "Solo Pole" in the courtyard (women are indoors), and the folks also call it "fulfilling a vow". The ceremony on the third day is called "changing the rope". Willow branches should be inserted in the courtyard during the sacrifice. And the descendants' rope in the ancestral box (tied with colored threads according to the population of the family through generations) is tied to the rack, and the other end is tied to the willow branches in the courtyard, in the hope that the family will be like the vigorous willow tree. After burning incense and kowtowing to the ancestral board, the old ropes (thin ropes made of five-colored threads, also called locks) worn by the children in the family are taken off their necks and wrists, and new ropes hung on willow branches are put on them, in order to ask the ancestors to bless them with peace and happiness. During this ceremony, "Foduo Mama" (the goddess in charge of fertility) is also the main object of worship. On this day, the small round cakes made of rice flour are put into the pot and cooked, and the children are asked to scramble to eat them, which is commonly known as "grabbing blessings". It can be seen that the main purpose of this ritual is to leave blessings to future generations. According to some Manchu elders, during the Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China, if children in some areas of Northeast China went to school and encountered "changing ropes" and "grabbing small cakes" ceremonies at home, they could ask their teachers for a day off to go home and participate in the sacrifice.