How would you react if you were told that your ethnic identity
is wrong and that you belong to an ancient ethnic group that
thrives to this day, or that your home town is the very cradle of
that ethnic group?
Tian Changjie, 53, a member of the Tujia ethnic minority, did
not realize his identity until 1984, when a group of experts from
the State Ethnic Affairs Commission undertook an investigation in
Tian's village and identified Tian as of Tujia ethnic minority
after studying his family's genealogical tree and dialect of his
family. Then he had lived there for more than 30 years as a Han
Chinese farmer/photographer.
"For decades, I considered myself a member of the Han people
living peacefully with the Tujia folks around me," recalled Tian,
who runs China's first private museum of Tujia ethnic arts and
culture.
"Suddenly, I was told that I am one of them! And when I learnt
that my home town of Ziqiu is now widely believed to be the cradle
of the Tujia ethnic group, I decided to do something for the Tujias
and their culture."
Changyang is believed to be the place where King Wuxiang, or Lin
Jun, a mythical leader of the ancient Ba people, ancestors of
today's Tujias and several other ethnic groups found in Hubei
Province, established a kingdom some 5,000 years ago.
Today, the Tujia people are mainly scattered in Sichuan,
Guizhou, Hubei and Hunan provinces.
Over the past two decades or so, with local economic growth and
an influx of tourists, more and more local people, especially the
younger generation, looked at other lifestyles and choose to
abandon their own traditional ideas, and even local costumes and
adornments, Tian said.
"In recent years, Tujia cultural heritage is once again becoming
fashionable. People have started to see their ancestor's traditions
in a new light," Tian continued.
"However, many of them know very little about their traditions.
My museum will help them understand more about this."
Since 1984, Tian has travelled to every corner of his
mountainous county, searching for his ancestors' cultural
relics.
In late 1984, he got the first item for his collection Tujia
clothing from a local family.
The clothes were later found to be ones made during the Qing
Dynasty (1644-1911) and considered to be "an invaluable example of
ancient Tujia women's clothing" by Liu Xiaoyu, a researcher at the
Central China University of Nationalities in Hubei Province.
Liu's remarks greatly encouraged Tian to continue his mission to
find out more about the Tujia ethnic minority.
In January 1986, Tian came across an ancient statue in a
dilapidated temple. This was later identified by experts to be an
icon of King Wuxiang, which existed during the Xia and Shang eras
(c. 21st century-11th century BC) in today's Changyang. There was
also a statue of Madame Deji, his consort.
"According to experts I consulted, no similar object has ever
been found outside Changyang. That made me believe even more firmly
that my home town is the birthplace of the Tujia ethnic group,"
Tian recalled.
However, Tian's mission to preserve his ethnic culture has not
always gone without a hitch.
For instance, in the summer of 1993, Tian was badly injured when
he fell into an animal trap in the Yinlongshan Hills.
But Tian did not give up his search for Tujia ethnic relics. He
returned to the hills and, in a rundown Tujia temple, found a Qing
Dynasty statue of a mythological figure, the "General with Eyes
Wide Open," a close follower of King Wuxiang.
Trekking in the mountains, Tian collected mountain produce and
brought with him some local products from his home village. He got
most of the relics from villagers by exchanging with them his
produce. Sometimes, he took pictures of them and got something he
wanted in return.
Family's support
At first, Tian's family did not support his "hobby," but his
dedication finally persuaded them to give him a helping hand.
Tian's wife, Tang Daoxiu, said that although the family finds it
hard to make ends meet, they are very proud of his endeavors.
"What he is doing is meaningful, so I cannot complain too much,"
said Tang.
In fact, Tian admitted that his wife has been the strongest
supporter of his "hobby."
"Without her support, I may have given up very early," Tian said
with a sweet smile.
In order to amass his impressive collection, Tian has visited
many caves, ancient tombs and old temples around.
In 1997, he published a book entitled "Bashihua" (The Flower of
the Ba People), a collection of folk stories and songs garnered
from elderly Tujia farmers.
By 1993, Tian had collected more than 1,000 cultural relics,
including old books, clothes, weapons, religious items, sculptures,
clothing, furniture and ceramics.
One of the most precious items in his collection is some
4,000-year-old "seashell" money, while he is also very proud of a
stone axe, which archaeologists believe was an implement belonging
to primitive people living in the areas around today's Changyang
County and the basin of the Qingjiang River, now recognized as the
"mother river" of the Tujia ethnic minority.
He has also taken more than 6,000 photos of Tujia people and
their cultural life with his old-fashioned Seagull camera.
Winning recognition
In 1993, after staging his first exhibition of cultural relics
gathered in Ziqiu Township, Tian decided to donate all of the 1,000
items to the local museum.
He then kicked off another round of collecting, and amassed more
than 1,600 items over the course of the next decade.
In July 2000, Tian opened his private museum of Tujia ethnic
arts and culture. When building the museum which cost 70,000 yuan
(US$ 8,642), Tian got support from his fellow villagers and local
government. The three-storey building covers a floor space of at
least 280 square metres, adjacent to his old, one-storey house
constructed with cobbles, clay bricks, straw and bamboo.
Tian is always proud to tell visitors to the museum with free
admission, who number around 3,500 annually, that it is the first
of its kind in China.
The same year, Tian brought his exhibits to the Kunming World
Horticultural Expo on behalf of Hubei Province, where his ethnic
art exhibition won three gold medals in the local culture
sector.
"That made me think that Tujia culture is not inferior to any
other indigenous culture in the world," Tian said.
Tian hopes to bring his collection to a wider audience in cities
such as Beijing, Shanghai and even New York and Paris.
(China Daily July 25, 2006)
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