Falling on the 24t day of the sixth lunar (农历) month, the Torch (火把) Festival is an important and traditional event for the Yi ethnic group (彝族) in Southwest China. Cheering, singing and dancing, local Yi people and the tourists usually have fun around the fire during the three-day celebration.

The Yi ethnic group started the festival because of their natural respect of fire. The early Yi people lived in high and cold areas in the mountains. For them, fire was an important way to light, warm, and cook. There was an old tradition—before bringing meat home, people must light a small fire outside the door and put the meat over the fire. They believed it could drive away filth (污秽). That's why they had a popular saying, "Everything you eat must 'see' fire." In farming, fire was used to light leaves on the ground to make the land rich.

Nowadays, the Yi people still celebrate the festival and it has become a social event. Every year, several thousand Chinese and foreign visitors come and join the local Yi people. In the daytime, they drink and take part indifferent kinds of activities, like horse racing, bullfighting and so on. When the night falls, everyone holds a torch walks around their houses and fields. Then, they put the torches together to make a big bonfire. Around the bonfires young men and women sing and dance happily.

For thousands of years, the Yi's torch is passed from age to age. Through the festival, the Yi people not only share their joy and thanks for their good life, but also get more people to understand their traditions.