Exploring the Mysterious Dongba Script and Culture
A  soulful  encounter  with  an  ancient civilization

​According to the Dongba scriptures, a long, long time ago, the Naxi ancestor Chonren Lien first married a beautiful vertical-eyed goddess. Together, they gave birth to flowers, grass, trees, snakes, insects, fish, birds, and other creatures. The vertical-eyed goddess became Shu — the Mother of Nature. Later, the ancestor married a horizontal-eyed goddess, and they gave birth to humankind. The horizontal-eyed goddess became the Mother of Humanity.

From then on, Shu resided in the mountains, rivers, and streams, while humans lived across the vast lands. Shu and humans were half-siblings, sharing the same father but different mothers, and they coexisted peacefully. However, as time passed, humans grew increasingly greedy and relentlessly exploited Shu — setting fires to forests and destroying nature. In response, Shu began to retaliate mercilessly, bringing disasters upon humankind time and again.

Eventually, humans turned to the Dongba religious master Dingbashiluo for help. He sent the guardian deity, the Great Roc, to mediate. With its aid, humans and Shu signed a pact to live in harmony and not harm each other. Humanity was thus able to survive. The Great Roc then made its home in the Hanyibada tree at the foot of Mount Junaluoluo, the sacred mountain.

Since then, the Naxi people have held a grand annual ritual known as “Shu Gu” to offer their apologies and express gratitude to Shu, the deity of nature.