Zhuanshan Festival of Mosuo Ethnic People

The Zhuanshan Festival is held on the 25th day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar. It is the most important festival for the Mosuo people who live nearby the Hulu Lake. The Zhuanshan Festival is also known as the Chaoshan Festival. It is said that the ancestor of the Mosuo people was born on that day. During the festival, the Mosuo people will be dressed in their holiday clothes. They will hold various activities, such as offer sacrifice to gods, singing, dances, archery matches etc. If you want to visit the Lugu Lake, do not miss the Zhuanshan Festival.

Lugu Lake (Lugu Hu) is a beautiful mountain lake and Lige lies right on the water. It is worth coming here even if you're not into hiking as you can relax in the village and go boating on the water. Nearby Luoshui, 10kms away, is a lot more commercialized than Lige. There is some good hiking in the area and a cable car runs up a nearby mountain where there is a cave and troops of monkeys. The road around the Yunnan side of the lake is unsealed and is not that great for cyclists. In the village are many arts and crafts stalls and a combination of Chinese, Tibetan, and Western foodstuffs.
 
This is one of the very important festivals for those Mosuo people living along the charming Lugu Lake. On every 25th July of Chinese lunar calendar, the Mosuo people will wear their finest clothes, visiting the Lion Mountain beside Lugu Lake on foot or horseback. The Lion Mountain is said to be the embodiment of the Mosuo peoples guardian goddess. People will burn joss sticks, hang up colorful prayer flags and offer tributes to their goddess on the mountain. They also hold a series of entertainments such as horse racing, wrestling and singing. At this time, young men and girls will look for their lovers, too.

The Zhuanshan Festival (the Festival of Turning-around the Mountain) is the traditional festival of the Mosuo people. On that day they dress in their best clothes to worship the Gemu Goddess Mountain and pray for the Goddess protection. It is also a time for horse racing, wrestling and antiphonal singing. The young Mosuo people use this time to find their lovers, whom they call azhu (literally ‘good friends’). Girls come of age at 13 – at that time they are given their own bedroom.

The Musuo people of Lugu Lake are revered as the only living matriarchal society in the world. For the Zhuanshan Festival, this Naxi minority sub-group dress in their best clothes to worship the Gemu (Lion) Goddess Mountain and pray for her protection. The day celebrations include, wrestling, horse racing and singing competitions. The Musuo (women) are renowned for their walking marriages, which involves night time visits from one of their companions with whom they will never cohabit. Lugu Hu is a day bus trip from Lijiang.