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Documentary photograph by Liuxingy, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.Source / rightsWikimedia Commons · explicit-license

Zhaojue County

Southwest · Liangshan

Yi Cloak and the Torch Festival Silhouette

A felt cloak called charwa that is coat, blanket, mattress and uniform at once

Liangshan Yi dress pairs a pleated wool skirt with the charwa, a dark felt cloak worn draped and never buttoned: in the August Torch Festival it turns every dancer into a moving silhouette against the fires.

  • black felt cloak
  • pleated skirt
  • torch-fire silhouette
Spring

Sheep shearing and felt making

Spring shearing feeds the felt workshops where charwa are rolled and pressed by hand.

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07 · travel note

Yi Cloak and the Torch Festival Silhouette

City anchorZhaojue County

Best time
August for the Torch Festival; spring and autumn for workshop visits without festival crowds.
Stay
Two to three days in the Zhaojue-Butuo corridor

A way throughBase in Xichang or the Zhaojue county town; the villages around Butuo and Zhaojue hold the main Torch Festival fires.

On the wayFly to Xichang, then road east into the high valleys; county towns have basic hotels and the markets are walkable.

With respectCharwa belong to their owners like a coat, not a costume: ask before trying one on, and expect the answer to be a story about whose wool it is.

An elder in a dark felt Yi cloak and cap, profile against the light in a Liangshan valley.Real scene

Seasonal experience

Torch Festival night in a Zhaojue valley

Watch the silhouettes against the fires

Follow the village procession at dusk, stand back from the main bonfire, and watch the charwa-clad dancers turn — the felt edge catches firelight in a way no other garment does.

Why now
The cloak’s drape is a status and region code: the pleat count, the fringe length and the darkness of the felt all carry information locals parse at a glance.
Time needed
One festival night plus a workshop morning
Plan before you go
The Torch Festival date follows the lunar calendar (around August): confirm the official county schedule before travel, as village events vary.
Photo: Liuxingy / Wikimedia Commons
Official tourismLiangshan Prefecture People’s Government