Tujia village lives by the water.

It is the same choice for human beings to get the moon by being close to the water, and Tujia nationality is no exception. The "water" that lives near the water is first of all drinking water. When building a house, the first thing to consider is whether there are wells and springs nearby. The ancients used to carry water with their shoulders. Although they used bamboo troughs to lead them to their own flow direction, that restriction was too great. It is even more impossible to run running water over mountains and mountains like today's society. Dazhai Lane became Dazhai because this place has high mountains, large forests and many water outlets. In order to get water, most Tujia cottages are built below the mountainside, which seems to be completely consistent with the golden section in the optimization method. In order to store water, everyone in Dazhai Lane has a stone water tank, the big one should hold dozens of drains, and the small one should hold nearly ten pickaxes. Some water tanks are very particular about carving dragons and phoenixes. There are many famous masons in the local area.

The "water" that lives near the water is water, which is irrigation water. The fashionable term is engineering water. Dazhai Lane, located at the dam side of a thousand acres of fertile land, is a typical example. In the past, people were proud of soaking in the fields in winter, because there were fewer people and more land at that time, soaking in the fields in winter was self-supporting and fertile, and there was no need to plant a small season after drying the water. In our Tujia inhabited area, there are not many yards with more than 100 households, which are generally scattered in three ditches and two forks. That's because it depends on that rice field. Of course, many Tujia villages are short of water, and their staple food is corn. Some are due to war migration, some are due to ecological destruction, and the population has increased dramatically, resulting in an imbalance between human and water resources.

The "water" that lives near the water is the water transported by water. Tujia nationality is originally one of the five barbarians, and brook is another expression of water. In the past, waterway was the main carrier of people's traffic, and it was waterway that prospered traffic. Any big market town must be close to the waterway. Yanhe County and Sinan County are all products of Wujiang River, and these ancient towns, such as Hongdu, Siqu, Qitan and Chaodi, all benefited from the water transport of Wujiang River. Gongtan ancient town is an ancient town with complete transshipment service. Because it is too dangerous, ships have to unload here. The same is true of Chaodi Town, except that it lost its original function and original appearance because of relocation.

Living near water is not unique to Tujia people, but it is definitely the choice of Tujia ancestors to build houses. The choice of rivers, streams and mountain springs, coupled with ethnic migration, made Tujia people separated from plains, hills and plateaus. It is also because of the proximity to water that Tujia people have developed a tradition of paying attention to hygiene and being diligent in farming and weaving. It is precisely because of the distance of water flowing and rushing that Tujia talents are flexible, open and cheerful. In addition, Tujia people know the relationship between water and trees, so they advocate "Feng Shui". The wind is a tree, where there is a tree, there is water. Therefore, Tujia cottages are generally surrounded by green trees, and bamboo and wood are planted in front of and behind the house. When the treetops are big, they are called "Feng Shui trees", or sacred trees, or vertical shrines. They burn incense and paper all the year round, which makes people afraid to cut them down. Still don't worry, I nailed water rake nails everywhere on the trunk, so that people can't cut them.