Bogedawulaji
01 · Historical Records
In 1790, influenced by Tibetan Buddhism, Prince Mash Batu, the Zasag Beile (prince) of Jalaid Banner, sent men to Lhasa to invite the mountain god; he named the mountain Wuliji Chaoketu Wula ('Auspicious Mountain'), designated it the sacred mountain believed in by the entire banner, issued an order closing the mountain, and offered sacrifices there. In the Qing dynasty, the twelve nutuks (a type of administrative unit unique to Inner Mongolia in former times) of the entire banner took turns organizing the sacrifice, which lasted three days.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
The Bogda Wula Worship, also called the 'Sacred Mountain Sacrifice', is an important component of the primitive beliefs and nature-worship customs of the Mongol people. Bogda Wula in Jalaid Banner, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, lies at the southern foot of the Greater Khingan Mountains. After the founding of the Mongol Empire, this place became the domain of Lady Hoelun, mother of Genghis Khan, and of his younger brother Wochijin. According to research, after the death of Lady Hoelun, the people endowed this mountain with her soul and offered sacrifices to it there. In the 'Huayi Yiyu' (Chinese-Barbarian Translation Lexicon), it is called 'Eke Doyang Undur', meaning 'the high mountain for worshipping the mother'. Thereafter, people respectfully called it 'Bogda Wula' (sacred mountain). Its pantheon of mountain gods takes Hilemen Hada as the chief deity, and also includes his divine retinue and their corresponding mountains. The Bogda Wula Worship is held on the 21st day of the fifth lunar month every year. Today, local people still offer sacrifices according to the traditional ritual. The ceremony mainly comprises stages such as preparation, inviting the mountain god, and offering sacrifices to the mountain god. Before the sacrifice, people carefully prepare offerings and adorn the mountain god's oboo (stone cairn) and the sacred mountain with khadag (ceremonial scarves) and prayer flags. There are nine kinds of offerings, including a whole sheep, dried milk curd, khadag, and burning incense. On the day before the sacrifice, the officiants carry the statue of the mountain god to the mountaintop and hold a ceremony, using the khadag to summon good fortune and invite the mountain god to descend. In the early hours of the day of sacrifice, the formal ceremony begins: the mountain god is invited to the oboo, offerings are laid out, sacrificial scriptures are recited, and hymns are sung to the sacred mountain, praying that the five mountain gods will gather to bestow happiness upon the people and ensure favorable weather. After the ceremony, the people circle the oboo three times in the direction of the sun, adding stones as prayers for blessing, and then share out the 'Aadis' (offerings bestowed by the mountain god). After the sacrifice is completed, a Naadam fair is also held, with activities such as Uliger (Mongolian storytelling), folk singing, Mongolian chess, and deer chess, forming a distinctive traditional cultural space. Its rich ceremonial procedures and content also provide a useful reference for research in anthropology, folklore studies, and ethnology.
Offerings and the dressing of the cairn
Offerings are prepared with care and the cairn and the mountain are dressed with khata and banners; nine kinds of offering are counted out, among them whole sheep and dried curd.
Fetching the mountain god the day before
The day before, the image of the mountain god is brought to the summit and khata are offered to invite the deity down.
The rite before dawn
Before dawn the god is brought into the cairn, offerings set, texts recited and songs sung, praying that the five mountain gods gather and grant rain and peace.
Three circuits and the offering of stones
When the rite ends the people walk three circuits in the direction of the sun, place stones on the cairn, and then share the offering given back by the god.
The naadam after the sacrifice
A naadam follows the rite with storytelling, song, Mongolian chess and deer chess, turning the sacrifice into a vast cultural gathering space.
The fixed day in the lunar calendar
The rite falls on the twenty-first day of the fifth lunar month, with the invitation, the sacrifice and the games forming a three-day sequence; the date is fixed while the hosting unit rotates.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
The Bogda Wula Worship is centered on Bogda Wula at the southern foot of the Greater Khingan Mountains within Jalaid Banner, Inner Mongolia; nutuks and villages throughout the banner come to offer sacrifices there. In former times the banner was divided into twelve nutuks, each taking turns to organize the sacrifice for three consecutive days; thus, although the ritual date is fixed on one day, the festivities run continuously. The deity of this mountain is not a lone figure: the pantheon takes Hilemen Hada as the chief god, with his divine retinue and their corresponding mountains all prayed for together during the sacrifice. The sacred mountain bears an older name in the written record: in the 'Huayi Yiyu' it appears as Eke Doyang Undur, meaning 'the high mountain for worshipping the mother'. Later generations came to call it Bogda Wula, the sacred mountain; the shift of one name seemingly settled the legend that the soul of Lady Hoelun had been vested in this mountain during the Mongol Empire period.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
Today, as many as 60,000 people take part in the ceremony each year. As a nature-belief custom of the Mongol people, the Bogda Wula Worship plays a positive role in protecting nature, transmitting culture, promoting social harmony, safeguarding cultural diversity, and advancing cultural exchange. Bai Shuanghu (information from the official inheritor file): male, Mongol ethnicity, born in May 1951, native of Jalaid Banner, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. He has practiced medicine for more than forty years, relieving the ailments of local Mongolian communities while transmitting the traditional culture of the Bogda Wula Worship. In 2002, he led the people in reviving the Bogda Wula Worship and organized experts to determine and standardize the sacrificial site and ritual procedures. Since then, he has organized the people to hold the Bogda Wula Worship every year. Every year he conducts explanatory events on the culture of the Bogda Wula Worship in Mongolian primary and secondary schools in Jalaid Banner. He is a representative inheritor of the Bogda Wula Worship, a national-level intangible cultural heritage item of the fifth national-level batch. In 2013, he founded the Bogda Wula Worship Association of Jalaid Banner and trained more than ten disciples.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Baishuanghu 05-3063
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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