Si Gangli

Name of Chinese national intangible cultural heritage: Sigangli

Applicant: Cangyuan Wa Autonomous County, Yunnan Province

Item No.: 561

Project No.: i-74

Time of publication: 2008 (second batch)

Category: Folk Literature

Region: Yunnan Province

Type: new item

Applicant: Cangyuan Wa Autonomous County, Yunnan Province

Protection unit: cultural center of Cangyuan Wa Autonomous County

Introduction to Sigangli

Applicant: Cangyuan Wa Autonomous County, Yunnan Province

Sigangli is a kind of oral literature which is widely spread among the Wa people. It takes Cangyuan Wa Autonomous County of Yunnan Province as the center and is widely spread in the wa inhabited areas of neighboring counties and surrounding countries.

"Sigang" means cliff cave, "Li" means coming out, "Sigangli" means coming out of the cave. It is said that in ancient times, people could not get out of the closed cave. Mo Wei, the Almighty God, appointed the sparrow to peck open the cave. The mouse led away the tiger that was guarding the cave. The spider blocked the big tree that did not let people out of the cave. Only in this way can people get out of the cave and live and multiply everywhere Sigangli covers myths, legends, stories and many other forms of Wa folk literature, covering astronomy, geography, human customs, etc. it is the most important material to study the world outlook, world outlook and outlook on life of Wa ancestors. Sigangli integrates the history, culture, art and religion of the Wa nationality. It has important academic value in the study of the social and historical development of the Wa nationality and the concept of the Wa nationality's humanistic morality. Under the influence of modern life style, Sigangli's living inheritance chain is facing the crisis of rupture, which is in urgent need of protection.