Clan and Family of LISU-2

Serious animosity some times develops in a family, the most serious being between a son and his father. The Lisu ideal is for the son to show his father utmost respect and obedience at all times; he is dependent on him for most physical, social and religious needs. Then the son want to marry, the father pays the bride price. If a son and his family are still living in the father's house, and one of them falls ill, the father decides whether or not to call a shaman.

If the father is a domineering type, serious tensions build up, sometimes to the point where the son kills him. Between 1958 and 1966 there were at least six such incidents. The main factor that deters such behavior is the knowledge that when the father dies he will become one of the son's ancestral spirits, and will be able to take revenge.

Sometimes younger/older brother conflicts develop. A younger brother should accept inferior status. The older brother takes charge of the household in the absence of the father, assigns work to his younger siblings, and even makes commitments they are expected to honor. This often arouses resentment in the younger siblings, and the theme of 'primacy' rears its head.