Tujia Timage
01 · Historical Records
The Tima song combines poetry, song, music and dance in one and displays the historical and social life content of the splitting of heaven and earth, the multiplication of mankind, national sacrifice, national migration, hunting and farming and food, clothing and daily life. With a grand structure of tens of thousands of lines, sung in the Tujia language, it is a long epic of the Tujia, sung by the tima, the Tujia shaman, in the rites of thanking the gods and redeeming a vow.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
Taking the tima ri ritual as its vehicle of transmission and handed down by word of mouth from generation to generation, it has a grand structure of tens of thousands of lines. Its singing and narration are chiefly in the Tujia language and belong to a synthesis of verse and prose, with strong literary quality. Its performance includes singing and chanting, antiphonal singing and chorus, and song-and-dance runs throughout, and because its main dance prop is the copper bell it is also called the dance of the eight-treasure copper bells. Belonging to a synthesis of verse and prose, it has strong literary and ritual character and is important material for studying the religious belief and oral literature of the Tujia.
The Dance of the Eight-Treasure Copper Bells
The performance form of the Tima song named from its main dance prop the copper bell.
The Tima Ri Ritual
The ritual that serves as the vehicle of transmission of the Tima song.
The Feats of Climbing the Blade Ladder and Biting Red-Hot Iron
The traditional feats performed by transmitters of the Tima song.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
The Tima song is a long epic of the Tujia, distributed mainly in the four counties of Longshan, Baojing, Yongshun and Guzhang in the Youshui river basin of western Hunan, and is connected with Tujia customs such as nuo rites and the hand-waving dance.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
The Tima song has both display and narrative, both song and dance, a distinctive form with precious aesthetic and cultural value. Today few old artists can sing the whole of the Tujia Tima song, and this ancient epic urgently needs salvage and protection.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Peng Jilong 03-0801
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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