Thinking this morning about the multi-faceted culture of the Mosuo people, an agrarian tribe living on Lugu Lake in China. There are many reasons to study these unique people of the "Women's Kingdom," with their special method of preserving pork, traditionally sustainable growing practices, brightly colored fabrics, and strongly matriarchal socio-political system. My mind keeps returning to a lovely Mosuo myth involving dogs.
It is traditional for each Mosuo child to be formally celebrated into their 13th year on January 1st, in a feast with specific rituals symbolic of new adult rights and responsibilities. Standing at the support pole for the mother's house, one foot on pork, the other on rice, each child dons the full skirt, or long trousers, of their first set of adult clothing. They complete their step into adulthood by offering food to the household dogs; the first of a lifetime of such formally offered meals. Here is the story behind that ritual.
