Kuba (Mayasvi Traditional Festival)

Kuba is an important venue for traditional festivals and men's gatherings, and serves as the spiritual core of the tribe. Kuba is a grand wooden structure with a thatched roof. On both sides of its ridge and stairs, the Tsou sacred flower 'Dendrobium moniliforme' is planted, symbolizing a marker for the sky god (Homo) to identify the tribe. The adjacent *Ficus superba* is revered as the 'sacred tree' (Yono), believed to be the stairway used by the sky god when descending to the tribe. Currently, existing Kuba structures can only be found in the two major communities of Tfuya and Tapang throughout Taiwan.