The Trần Thương Temple Festival is held from August 18 to 20 (lunar calendar), at Trần Thương Temple - the place to worship Hưng Đạo Đại Vương, his family and generals who contributed to the resistance war against the Yuan-Mongol army and also the place where Hưng Đạo Đại Vương chose to build a food warehouse, providing food for the army. The festival features many traditional rituals such as: The ritual to ask Đức Thánh Trần for people to open the Temple and organize the festival; The local people's worship and worship of the Saint; releasing flower lanterns at Trần Thương Lake; the spiritual ritual on the anniversary of Đức Thánh Trần... The most special feature of the festival is the food distribution ritual held on the night of January 14 and early morning of January 15 with the following rituals: The ritual of carrying food from the food warehouse into the temple for the ritual; the torch lighting and incense offering ritual by delegates and people and the ritual of carrying food into the secret ritual at the back palace, to recreate the history of "distributing military food" to reward the army of the Trần Dynasty when they defeated the Yuan-Mongol invaders for the third time.

The Lang Suong Temple Festival is held at Lang Suong Temple, Trung Nghia Commune, Thanh Thuy District, Phu Tho Province; on the birthday of Duc Thanh Tan, January 15. In addition to the main festival, the Lang Suong Temple Festival is also held on the death anniversary of the Holy Mother on October 25 (lunar calendar). On the morning of January 15, the hamlets carry the offerings to the temple and gather into a procession of the commune, marching from the temple to the Da River with the purpose of taking Da River water to perform the ceremony and welcoming the adoptive mother of Thanh Tan from Ba Vi to attend the birthday party of the Saint. The community organizes a unique "water procession" ceremony with hem customs such as kite flying, abstaining from calling "hanh". They also organize the Saint procession, the army running game, the cow sacrifice ceremony in the form of a folk performance. The performance process here is both a performance of the legend of Tan Vien such as the Saint procession, the army running game, the cow sacrifice ceremony... and carries the meaning of agricultural beliefs such as the "water procession" to the temple. The offerings to the gods include raw pork, grilled beef, wild chicken, sticky rice, boiled liver, grilled meat, stewed meatballs, and bamboo-tube rice, reminiscent of the simple cooking methods of the Van Lang - Au Lac people. During the festival, there is a phenomenon of looking at "the wind blowing the flags" to recognize that the saints and gods have "returned" to the community. In addition, there are many cultural and artistic activities, folk entertainment games such as: Tug of war, volleyball, crossbow shooting, cockfighting, fire pulling and rice cooking competitions, throwing balls... Lang Suong Temple Festival is an affirmation and continuation of the preservation and promotion of the role of the cultural hero - Duc Thanh Tan Vien Son - formed in the early period of Vietnamese culture and civilization. With its unique spiritual values, Lang Suong Temple Festival was included in the List of National Intangible Cultural Heritage by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in 2018.

National Intangible Cultural Heritage, Republic of Korea Sandae Nori refers to a mask dance performed in the central region of Korea. It is part of Sandae Dogamgeuk, which used to be performed in Seoul and Gyeonggi-do. It is composed of dances, pantomime, and gags, and is performed on the lunar calendar dates of Daeboreum (January 15), Dano (May 5), Baekjung (July 15), and Chuseok (August 15). Songpa was a commercial center of Gyeonggi-do. It is said that the play was frequently performed at the time Songpa Market reached its prime about 200 years ago and has continued to develop and to be one handed down to the present day. The play is composed of seven acts. Prior to the commencement of the play, members of the troupe march, playing music, to the site of performance to entertain spectators along the way. The overall composition, dances, and masks used are similar to those of Yangju Byeonsandae Nori (Mask Dance Drama of Yangju), but certain masks, dances, and characters distinguish it from the other. In Songpa Sandae Nori, 33 masks made of gourd, pine skin, and paper are used.

National Intangible Cultural Heritage, Republic of Korea Yaryu is a custom of Ogwangdae (mask dance drama) that was first performed in inland areas of Gyeongsangnam-do but spread to Suyeong, Dongnae, and Busanjin. Yaryu literally means playing in an open field. This mask play was performed by non-professionals such as villagers. Suyeong Yaryu is performed by villagers when the full moon rises on the night of January 15 on the lunar calendar after holding a sacrificial rite for mountain guardian deities, village spring water, and the spirit of General Choe Yeong. Two hundred years ago, a naval commander had a troupe of clowns in Bamma-ri, Chogye (present-day Yulji-ri, Deokgok-myeon, Hapcheon-gun, Gyeongsangnam-do) play a round of merrymaking for his troops in a naval compound. This is said to have been the origin of Suyeong Yaryu. The performance is composed of four acts: Nobleman’s Dance, Yeongno Dance, Dance of an Old Couple, and Lion Dance. Prior to the play, the troupe marches, playing music, to entertain spectators along the road to the site of performance. At the end of the performance, they collect the masks used and burn them as a rite of praying for the peace of the village. Characters appearing in the performance are 11 in all, four from the noble family, a son of the head of a clan, Malttugi (a servant), Yeongno (a therianthropic character), an old woman, a concubine of an old man, a lion, and a tiger. The performance includes a satire about nobles and deals with the problem of concubines. In contrast with the other Yaryu, it does not have a leper dance, but it does include a lion dance, which is missing from the other Yaryu. Suyeong Yaryu is a play performed by masked performers. It is a ritual and satirical play with artistic quality performed by villagers.

National Intangible Cultural Heritage, Republic of Korea Yaryu is a custom of Ogwangdae (mask dance drama) that was first performed in the inland areas of Gyeongsangnam-do but spread to Suyeong, Dongnae, and Busanjin. Yaryu literally means playing in an open field. This mask play was performed by non-professionals like villagers. Dongnae Yaryu was performed on the evening of the full moon of January 15 on the lunar calendar, supposedly to pray for a good year for crops. Dongnae Yaryu was said to have been started about 100 years ago after its cousin performed in nearby Suyeong. Now performed as an entertainment, it is composed of four acts: leper dance, gag exchanged between a yangban (nobleman) and Malttugi (servant), Yeongno (therianthropic character)’s dance, and old couple’s dance. Members of the troupe march to the site of performance while playing music. The main subject of the performance is a satire about nobles. The masks are made of gourds. The chin part of the masks is made movable, moving upward and downward while its wearer delivers a gag. The play is performed to the accompaniment of percussion instruments, which play exorcist music. Malttugi’s dance and nobleman’s dance are the leading performances. Obangsin (Deities of the Five Directions)’s dance, satire about deprave monks, and lion dance -- which are usually included in Ogwangdae mask dance drama -- are not performed in Dongnae Yaryu.

National Intangible Cultural Heritage, Republic of Korea Gossaum Nori (Loop Fight) is a fierce type of men’s game performed in Chilseok Village, Daechon-dong, Gwangju around the full-moon period of January 15 on the lunar calendar. “Go” in Gossaum means a tall loop-shaped structure made of twisted straw rope that two opposing groups of males push against each other. Upon finishing preparations for the “battle,” including the making of the go (loop), villagers gather together, hold a sacrificial rite, and pay visits to houses for madangbalbigut (performance of treading on the courtyard). They march, playing farmers’ music to create a joyous atmosphere. Each group raises and lowers the go to show off that it can outdo the other in the battle. The two leaders, seated at the top of the go, give commands to their people carrying the go, while their lieutenants cheer on the members of their group by waving flags. The group that makes the opponents’ go touch the ground wins the battle. If the battle ends in a draw, the groups meet again on February 1 and engage in a tug-of-war with the straw rope used to make the go. Gossaum has been handed down as a rite of praying for a good year for crops and as an event intended to bolster the spirit of collaboration among villagers. The name of the event was changed to Gwangju Chilseok Gossaum Nori in September 2005 to distinguish it from similar games held elsewhere and also to indicate the name of the village designated as the site for this important intangible cultural heritage.

National Intangible Cultural Heritage, Republic of Korea As a folk play performed in Andong around the full moon period of January 15 on the lunar calendar, it is said to have stemmed from the battles between Gyeon Hwon of Later Baekje and King Taejo (Wang Geon) of Goryeo. Villagers select good trees to be used for the play in nearby mountains toward the end of the preceding year, hold a sacrificial rite for mountain deities, fell them, and carry them to the village. Since the thickness and solidity of the trees are decisive factors of the battle, they work on the trees under tight security to prevent opponents from getting information on the trees. The village is divided into two sides according to their place of birth. On the event day, farmers’ music is played to arouse people’s interest. People stand on their side of the battle and try to discourage the other side by raising the wooden structure they made. The leaders of the two sides stand at the top of the raised structure set up against that of the opponent team. They balance their body by holding the string tied to the top of the structure and give commands to their team. The team that makes the opponent’s wooden structure fall to the ground wins the battle. The beauty of the play lies in the spirit of fair play. If any participant in the play is in danger, both sides immediately back off and get him out of danger before engaging in the battle again. As a mock battle among males, Andong Chajeon Nori displays the martial spirit kept by the people in Andong. It is also a rite of praying for a good year for crops. The winning side will reportedly enjoy better harvest in the year.

National Intangible Cultural Heritage, Republic of Korea Ogwangdae refers to a mask dance played in southern areas. “O” in the name Ogwangdae is said to have stemmed from Ohaengseol (Five Element Theories). This was one of the rites villagers performed at the beginning of the year in the lunar calendar. On the night of the New Year’s Day, people held the rite of Cheollyongje (Rite to the Heavenly Dragon). On the night of the year’s first full moon (January 15 on the lunar calendar), they performed jisin bapgi (“earth spirit treading”) followed by the Ogwangdae Dance. Gasan Ogwangdae is composed of six acts, Obangsin (Deities of the Five Directions)’s Dance, Yeongno Dance, Leper’s Dance, Nobleman’s Dance, Monk’s Dance, and Dance of the Old Couple. The play includes satire about nobles harassing commoners, depraved monks, and male chauvinism as it appears in the custom of allowing a man to take multiple wives. Gasan Ogwangdae Nori is distinguished from the versions performed in other areas, as it includes Obangsin’s Dance with the story that the husband dies at the end of the play unlike the other versions in which the wife dies. One or two lepers appear in the other versions, but this one, performed in Gasan-ri, Chukdong-myeon, Sacheon-si, Gyeongsangnam-do, has five lepers who dance, sing, and engage in tujeon nori (card game).

National Intangible Cultural Heritage, Republic of Korea People in Bukcheong, Hamgyeongnam-do (in North Korea) engaged in a folk play, wearing lion masks on the night of the full moon of January 15 on the lunar calendar thinking that a lion, a powerful animal, could drive away evil spirits for them. Lion-masked people from neighboring villages gathered together and competed with one another. Since the team from Toseong-ri, Cheonghae-myeon, Bukcheong-gun did better than the others, the play gradually disappeared in the other villages. The mask play had come to secure its rightful place among Koreans since the Three Kingdoms Period. Those from the North continued to play it, mostly in Seoul. The mask play was started with young people carrying torches on the night of January 14 and was continued until the daybreak of the following morning. On January 16, they would pay visits to the houses of well-to-do people as prearranged. Upon entering the property, they would go around the courtyard in a line and start dancing. Then, a lion-masked person would join them. The “lion” would go into the inner room and the kitchen and make a gesture of eating someone alive. Then, the lion would return to the courtyard and engage in a lively dance. The lion would make a big bow to the deities kept in the house as requested by the owner of the house. When the lion would pretend to fall down exhausted, people would call an eminent monk to energize it by reciting a phrase of Buddhist scripture or have an herbal doctor apply acupuncture. Upon regaining strength, the lion would dance again with all the others. Participants included those acting as yangban (noblemen), a freakishly tall person, a humpback, a petty local government official, a dancing boy, a dancing woman, a monk, an herbal doctor, a scholar, etc. The dancing boy, the dancing woman, the monk, the herbal doctor, and the scholar appeared without wearing a mask. The musical instruments used were tungso (six-holed vertical bamboo flute), buk (drum), jing (large gongs), and janggo (hourglass-shaped drum). A mask dance performed in Bukcheong often uses tungso as a main instrument while samhyeon yukgak (three strings and six wind instruments) is used in Gyeonggi-do and kkwaenggwari (small gong) in Gyeongsang-do. The owners of the house would have their children ride on the back of the lion based on the belief that it would make them live longer. Money or grains donated by the houses visited by the troupe were used as scholarship fund for children from needy families and to subsidize expenses for senior citizen associations and cover the expenses for the lion play. Bukcheong Saja Noreum is focused on merrymaking, featuring movements more powerful than other lion dances.

National Intangible Cultural Heritage, Republic of Korea On the occasion of the event, the village is divided into two sides: those living in the east section of the village and those living in the west. The winning side will reportedly enjoy better harvest in the year. The play used to be performed around the full moon period of January 15 on the lunar calendar; now, however, it is performed along with a tug-of-war competition during the March 1 Cultural Festival, held to commemorate the independence movement carried out with the locals in Yeongsan, which played a leading role during the colonial period. The event is said to have started from the wish to stop the evil power of the two nearby mountains, i.e., Yeongchuksan and Jagyaksan (also called Hambaksan), which look like two bulls confronting each other. With the approach of January 15 on the lunar calendar, villagers flock to a nearby mountain and fell a 10m-tall tree. A pyramid-shaped structure is made using a log and straw rope that people will carry on their shoulder, with the leader of the team, together with two lieutenants, standing at the top of it, giving command to fight the opponent. A wooden carved bull head or a mask is put on the top of the structure. Prior to the commencement of the battle, farmers’ music is played to create a delightful atmosphere. The team that makes the opponent’s bull head fall to the ground wins. Yeongsan Soemeori Daegi is a local folk play performed to pray for good harvest.