Hani dietary taboos

The dietary taboos of the Hani people do not have a unified standard for the entire ethnic group. The core logic always revolves around the three cores of ancestor worship, nature worship, and village public agreements. The rules vary greatly in different branches, different regions, and different scenes. Statements such as "the Hani people are forbidden to eat dog meat" and "you cannot touch Hani wine" circulated on the Internet have problems with overgeneralization.

In the late autumn of last year, I stayed in the terraced fields of Yuanyang and went to seven or eight villages with Zhang Shun, a local Hani friend. When I first went there, I carried the "taboo list" I searched on the Internet. I didn't even dare to use my chopsticks when eating. As a result, I encountered a "slap in the face" on the first day at his house - there was a pot of golden braised dog meat on the table. Zhang Shun's father kept putting it into my bowl, saying that it was a local dog beaten in the mountains last month and it was very good. Later I learned that Zhang Shun’s family belongs to the Nuomei branch of the Hani branch. Due to the hunting tradition in their history, they not only prohibit dog meat, but also cook dog meat to offer sacrifices to the mountain gods at the end of the hunting season every year. However, the Nuobi branch on the other side of the mountain really cannot touch dog meat. It is said that dogs are the benefactors who helped their ancestors carry grain for planting, and eating them will result in retribution. There was a young man who was an e-commerce guy who was collecting red rice. He casually mentioned that he wanted to eat dog meat at the dinner table, and was immediately kicked out by the host. Do you think this difference is big?

As for the relatively unified taboos of the whole clan, they are basically related to the sacrificial scenes. For example, when the village god "Angmatu" is worshiped in February every year, the offerings on the altar are not allowed to be touched, let alone eating. Even the "sacred rice" and "sacred meat" that are later distributed have to wait for the village elders and Mo Pi (the Hani priests) to use the first chopsticks before juniors and foreigners can reach out. The last time I caught up with the long street banquet to honor the village god, I was about to grab the bowl of crispy pork that was arranged in the most even way. The little girl with a red headband next to me quickly tugged on my sleeve and whispered that it was reserved for the village god and could only be used after reciting the sutra. There is also a small detail that everyone agrees on: no matter which branch, you cannot put the bowl upside down on the table when eating, nor use chopsticks to knock the edge of the bowl. The former means pouring rice for the deceased, while the latter implies that the cook has poor skills and disrespects the owner. Last time, a tourist accidentally took the bowl after finishing the meal, and the owner's face darkened on the spot. Later, Zhang Shun was the one who smoothed things over and said that he didn't understand the rules, so it didn't cause any unpleasantness.

Oh, yes, there are also some taboos related to fertility and health. To put it bluntly, they are actually slowly evolved from past life experiences. For example, if a family has given birth to a baby, a red cloth strip and straw will be hung at the door to mark it. When you go in as a guest, don't casually serve the sugar-watered eggs cooked for the mother. The elders say that it will take away the blessing of the baby. In fact, in the past, brown sugar eggs were in short supply. They were originally used to strengthen the mother's health. If outsiders ate them, the mother would not be able to eat them. Gradually it evolved into a taboo that everyone abides by. Also, mothers should not eat sour or cold food during confinement. This has scientific basis even now and is not considered feudal dross.

Nowadays, the generation gap in the village's attitude towards these taboos is quite obvious. For example, Zhang Shun's father, who is over 70 this year, still refuses to eat frog meat, saying that frogs are stewards of the God of the Fields and that eating terraced fields will cause drought. However, Zhang Shun went to university in Kunming and went to eat bullfrog hot pot with his friends in the summer. He said that as long as he respects the God of the Fields in his heart, does not use highly toxic pesticides when growing rice, and does not dump garbage into the ditches, it is better than anything else, and there is no need to be cautious about what he eats. Lao Li from the cultural station in the village also said that many taboos have gradually been simplified now, especially the young people working outside, who are not so particular about it. As long as they don't forget their roots, the older generation won't say much.

In fact, after visiting so many villages, I realized that there are no "iron rules" that cannot be violated. The so-called dietary taboos are ultimately the survival wisdom accumulated by the Hani people for thousands of years of living with terraced fields and mountains. When you are a guest, as long as you have a respectful attitude and ask questions if you don't know, even if you accidentally step on a thunderstorm and apologize sincerely, people will not argue with you - after all, the Hani people are much more famous for their hospitality than these rules.