Hani New Year's Festival: "MiSuoZha"

TaoChiDe" (a program fares like the western "trick-or-treating", meaning asking for treats literally)
The wildly known "trick-or-treating" during the Halloween holidays in western countries is not alone in this unique world here comes our Hani people's "trick-or-treating", called "TaoChiDe" in China.

As all the main events held by the whole village are supposed to come to an ending at the end of the second day of "MiSuoZha", the third day is totally free on children's bent to have fun.

The program "TaoChiDe" begins with a team of children taking along all kinds of containers, from baskets and buckets to bags, drumming and beating, laughing and yelling, coming joyfully ahead to the first house they have decided to visit. The team is always headed by an elder boy, for all the families of the village are supposed to be visited that; it's difficult for them to keep in order without a "leader".

Hearing on the children's arriving, the housewife would willingly take out some meat or cakes and smilingly put them into children's containers. Then singing and dancing, children leave and continue their "fighting" ahead to the next house. No matter it is a bowl of rice, a piece of cake, a hand of vegetable, or some meat and wine, children can always win some "spoils" from each house they visited. However, it happens sometime that the housewife is coincidently on her own housework and can't spare time to treat the children that the team would stream and shout at the house while drumming and beating, till finally they get their treats from the family. On another occasion, if some family is missed and forgotten to be visited by the children, the family members would get very mad.

There's also a legend about this program. It is said that "WeiZhiShiPi", the gods from the heaven, are supposed to come down by riding red horses to celebrate the festival "MiSuoZha" together with Hani people. As all the gods are so busy on visiting one family after another that their horses get lost. So they ask all their assistant soldiers to look for them on the day of "DieZongZong" (Hani styled feast by connecting tables together in the open and villagers enjoy dishes offered by each family together). Thus, these soldiers would be too busy looking for the horses to enjoy the great feast, and have to ask every family for treats on the next day--the children are in fact visiting each family for the soldiers' sake. Maybe that's the reason why all the families are so happy to be visited and become mad if they are not.

"TaoChiDe" is doubtlessly the most "festival" program during "MiSuoZha", because it belongs to children, whose only wish of the festival is getting fun from it. It's true that adults play the main role during the festival, but children are definitely the biggest beneficiaries.

(Edit:Ruby)