Relationship between Tu Zhang Dwelling villages and their natural environment is very harmonious, and Tu Zhang Dwelling villages are ecological homesteads fitting for inhabitation.
Houses were built along sunny hill slopes, distributed along hillside and layer upon layer. Fountains from mountains flow into village across every house. Green foliages, for example, golden bamboo and brown Loquat, were extensively planted, and the environment was clear and mellow. According to a Hani's ancient song, three tiers of palm trees should be planted at village's head, three tiers of golden bamboos should be planted at village's house. Around village, the forest was luxuriant and strongly fragrant. Terraced fields before village extended to hill foot, and when it is season for transplanting seedlings, water field seems like bright mirrors with brilliant and silver light glittering under the sun. Terraced fields are masterpiece of Hani people. Since thousands of years, in abnormally hard environment of high mountains and valleys, Hani people had accumulated and created a suit of planting experience and pattern on terraced fields. They built banks according, to natural ecological situation, while having introduced never-dried springs into terraces.
In early spring, terraced fields were like clusters of bright pearls spread from the sky; in March or April, layers of terraced fields were like blocks of green tapestries; in end summer or early autumn, mature paddies were golden yellow. In the Ailao mountain ranges these terraced fields sometimes reach hundreds of stages and stretch around several mountains and the scenery is spectacular. Some scholars said that ˇ°the success of digging up terraced fields made Hani nationality's social and historical development process changed dramatically, they eventually settled down from rambling-travel furrowing and long time slash-and-burn farming, and produced new living mode and value and philosophy, whose core is terraced-rice-farming cultureˇ±.
Terraces had melted into Hani peoples" life and they had deep relationship with terraces. There is a folk saying of Ailao Hani nationality, saying that "terrace is chap's face". Whether a chap is handsome is not determined by his appearance but by his tilling skills. If he is well versed in bank's building, mound's shoveling, and land's plough, he should be appreciated by everybody, and would naturally win girl's love. Whether a girl is beautiful or not, is not decided by her appearance, and also partly by whether she can work in terrace.
In fact, Hani people' hardworking and wisdom are not merely exhibited in digging up terraces, and what is more important is that they created terrace culture. The spiritual essence implied by this culture is appreciating nature, conforming to nature and kindly treating nature.
The Tu Zhang Dwelling at mountainsides also harmoniously melted into the nature eco-system, and found its fit position. That "areas at up mountain are suitable for herding, those at middle mountain are suitable for dwelling and those at down mountains are suitable for furrowing" is the best annotation for this village gathering mode. This village layout was repeatedly mentioned by Hani ancient songs and adages, for example, "'Fields should be farmed at mountain foot, babies should be produced at mountainside". "Huge mountain ridge, green mountain, beautiful water, few disaster; dense forest is hard to carve out a way, monsters also do not dare to enter village, all descendants of Hani people love to build village on mountains".
On all Hani villages' backward mountains, there is a tract of green woods, Hani people look it as deity forest, and people pray to it for the peace of village, health of villagers and good harvest of terraces every year. So, protecting mountain forest become their austere and natural hope and request. Hani people also pay attention to harmonious relationship between village population and resources. Their village generally is not very big, has about several hundreds of families. With the population increasing, part of them should be separated from the village, build village basing on the same mode at another mountain, and dig up terraces. This village development mode also indicates local people's comprehension and adoption to the nature on the other hand.
Tu Zhang Dwellings and those sceneries resembles fairyland, villages like a big garden. Like the Ailao mountain people's soul, the Tu Zhang Dwelling had melted into the nature and been converted to natural fairyland. |
