In Matang Village (麻塘寨), a village in the city of Kaili, Guizhou Province, live the Gejia people. The Gejia are an unofficial ethnic minority outside of the fifty-five already recognized in China today. They possess an age-old culture, distinctive and ornate ethnic costumes, unique singing and dancing traditions, and genuine folk customs.

There are about 100 households living in this village, with a population of around 400 in total. According to the customs here, no matter who is building a new house, the neighbors all pitch in to help. This new house is for Wu Yinggui.

Neighbors come early in the morning to help Wu Yinggui build his house

The process takes three days. On the first day, people work together to finish all four sections of the wooden frame. As with many minorities, Gejia people are known for their respect of nature, so before the frames are lifted, the carpenters kill a chicken and burn incense to worship the local god of the land and Lu Ban (鲁班): the patron saint of Chinese builders.

First, the four sections of the wooden frame are constructed

Three fireworks mark the beginning of the lifting process on the second day. Everyone takes their positions, with the young and healthy holding the pillars and the elders looking out for safety on the other side. After the pillars are set up, beams, made from the sturdy Chinese fir, are needed to buttress the wooden frame.

Working together, laborers and members of the community lift the four sections into place

The raising-of-the-beams ceremony begins on the third day. The host family slaughters a pig and prepares a feast—which lasts another three days. The visitors bring gifts, sometimes a bag of rice, sometimes cash.

For the helpful neighbors, the host family cooks a feast

To kick off the raising ceremony, the host selects ten workers who took part in the construction, puts red belts upon them, and drinks a toast to each.

The host selects ten workers from the crew and toasts them for their hard work

To the sound of the fireworks, the beam is lifted slowly. Usually, only experienced workers take on this task; any mistake could not only be dangerous, but ominous. A red bag of copper coins and grains is nailed on the bottom side of the beam, a wish for a healthy harvest and future riches. As workers climb the beam, they recite the “beam-up ode”, praying for safety and peace.

Beams are lifted slowly and carefully, both for the safety and the sanctity of the new home

They then throw a big sticky-rice pie with “wealth” patterns on it from the beam onto a sheet in the middle of the house, hoping to hit close to the owner’s clothes in an attempt to bring wealth to their new home.

After the beams are raised, the workders sit on the beams and play games as part of the celebration

As part of the housewarming celebration, the workers sit on the beams, playing games and drinking, throwing candy, snacks, and cash to the people below.

Workers throw pieces of sticky rice with the character “wealth” on them at the host’s clothes, a small prayer for good luck and fortune

For the owner it is a ceremony of celebration and camaraderie, for those who take part, it is indicative of the communal spirit that they themselves have experience or hope to receive.

At the end of the process, a grand feast is laid out for the community, sometimes lasting more than three days

“Beams Up” is a story from our newest issue, “Romance”. To read the whole piece, become a subscriber and receive the full magazine. Alternatively, you can purchase the digital version from the iTunes Store.