village is already asleep. Nothing should be bought on the first day of the Chinese New Year, as this might cause materials to diminish for the new year. On this day, floors should not be swept, rubbish should not be thrown out, friends should not be visited, arguments should be avoided, and knives should not be used to cut food. The lusheng should not be played between the sowing and transplanting of rice seedlings, since it could attract plagues of insects. Meeting a pregnant woman while hunting is considered bad luck. While hunting, the names of animals should not be shouted so that the mountain god is not aroused to protect them. Fish swimming upstream are protected by the gods, and catching one will result in bad luck. Leaving home on the 7th, 17th, or 27th day of the month is unlucky. (This custom is also practiced by the Chinese.) A recently deceased person will rise up if a cat jumps over them. Therefore, all domesticated animals must be kept away from them. Magic and shamanism Rituals involving supernatural elements include dragon dances, spring buffalo dances, and fire prevention ceremonies where ash is placed in boats and sent downstream. Sorcery can be performed in private. There are many purposes of sorcery, such as repelling evil spirits, recovering the soul of a disturbed child, exacting revenge on enemies, and inducing love. Voodoo dolls, borrowed from the Chinese, are made so that pins can be stuck onto them, with the person's name and birth date written on them. The doll is then buried underground after being inserted into a clay pot. White cocks can be used for revenge sorcery. Shamanism is practiced by the Kam and bears many parallels with Miao (Hmong) shamanism. One major duty of shamans is to recover the souls of sick people. Notable Dongs Su Yu () (1907-1984), the first four-star general of the People's Liberation Army Wu Hongfei () (1975-), singer for the Chinese rock band Happy Avenue () Sen Fluke () (1945-), Pastor for the Golden Singers () Li Ting () (1987-), gold medalist in the 10 meter synchronized platform diving at the 2004 Summer Olympics at Athens, Greece Gallery Notes References D. Norman Geary, Ruth B. Geary, Ou Chaoquan, Long Yaohong, Jiang Daren, Wang Jiying (2003). The Kam People of China: Turning Nineteen. (London / New York, RoutledgeCurzon 2003). . (The two main authors are