The Bimo Records Apr 1, 2006

In China’s remote Liangshan, three Yi “bimo” priests struggle with changing times. The feared “cursing” bimo, once invoked to harm or heal, has lost his calling under new bans. The “soul-calling” bimo, healer and mourner, bears private grief after four failed marriages before fathering an heir. And the “official” bimo—both priest and Party cadre—falls from power when he unlawfully rigs a village election. Tradition endures amid upheaval.