The opening ceremony of the Bimo Culture Exhibition Hall, a Young Bimo training course and the official launch of Lijiang Yi ethnic group Bimo textbooks were held in Xichuan village of Ninglang county in Lijiang on Oct 19.

Bimo refers to shaman of the Yi ethnic group, and concerns supernatural beliefs, with magic playing a major role in daily life such as in treating illness and also in exorcisms.

The Yi are animists and they worship the spirits of ancestors, fire, hills, trees, rocks, water, earth, sky, wind and forests.

Yang Yiben, vice-chairman of Lijiang Municipal Committee of the CPPCC, conveyed his congratulations, saying that China has 56 ethnic groups, among which the Bimo culture of the Yi ethnic group is an important part of the country's soft power and a significant basis for the further development of ethnic culture.

Yang also said that he hopes these initiatives will contribute to the transmission of Bimo culture from generation to generation, and that Xichuan village will be declared an important base of Lijiang's intangible cultural heritage.

The local government has taken a series of measures to reduce the influence of modernization on Bimo culture, and the new training course and Bimo textbooks are expected to benefit the preservation of the culture.

Edited by Niva Whyman