From August 5th to 20th, the "Eshan County 2023 Torch Carnival Tourism Festival coupled with the 6th Yi Ethnic Group Flower-Drum Dance Art Festival" will be held grandly. A total of 22 activities will be initiated to reveal the unique charm of the Eshan ethnic culture of Yi Ethnic Group from multiple and comprehensive aspects.

By Pu Xuewen

More than 20 intriguing and colorful activities launching

This year, Eshan County learned from previous successful experiences, retaining the traditional activities such as drilling wood to make fire, fire passing ceremony, ancestor worship ceremony, cultural evening performances, and flower-drum dance competition. Fireworks, drone performances, Yi ethnic group thousand tables banquet, Xi’e music festival, marvelous stone exhibition, pomegranate festival in Chahe Wenshan Village, and other numerous innovative events are added.

22 colorful activities are infused with the local features of the Yi ethnic group, and modern elements in the aspect of technology are incorporated as well to meet the needs of different groups.

By Shi Guisheng

Yi ethnic group torch festival is to be ignited on August 10th

At 9:09 am on August 10th, Eshan County will hold a fire drilling ceremony at the Daxi Shenshan Mountain Fire Altar in Tadian Town. The fire will spread throughout the land of Yi people, followed by the ancestor worship ceremony in the Apudumu Cultural Park. Subsequently, it then will be passed on to Ethic Unity Square, where the main torch located in the center of the square will be Ignited.

As the main torch burns, thousands of people will sing and dance around the torch to celebrate the annual Yi ethnic group torch festival and enjoy an unforgettable night of torch carnival together.

Thousands of people dancing together

During the Yi ethnic group torch festival, you can embark on a journey to experience the flower-drum dance and witness thousands of people reveling in the torch night.

Flower-drum dance is called "Zhebobi" in Yi language. It is the most widely spread and most significant folk dance in Eshan County. Flower-drum dance can be traced back to the end of the Qing Dynasty, boasting a long history of more than 100 years. This dance is indispensable in festivals, new year greetings, parties, new streets opening, celebrations, and other occasions.

During the torch festival, Eshan County will also host the Yi ethnic group flower-drum dance art festival in order to inherit and protect it. The dancing teams from eight towns in the county will gather together to present wonderful and colorful flower-drum dancing performances for the guests with high enthusiasm and cheerful beats, promoting this type of unique dance. More tourists are expected to participate and further appreciate the remarkable glamour of Yi ethnic group flower-drum dance in Eshan County.

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(Editors: Carina, Amy)