In the Buryat tradition (and in the Mongolian as well), “shamans” were not pure shamans in the classical sense of the word. Those involved with medical affairs were considered mediums between the lower sphere of the Eternal Blue Sky (Khukhe Monke Tengeri) and land inhabitants. Eternal Blue Sky worship was a traditional religious belief of Mongolians. Cross-cultural influences with the neighboring Tunguso-Manchurian people, whose religious traditions may be identified as classical forms of shamanism, introduced the ideas of ‘shaman’ and ‘shamanism’ to the Mongols.

Angkor in Cambodia is a World Heritage Site (inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1992) renowned for its archaeological and architectural significance. It contains artistic masterpieces of Khmer sculpture and design and is known for its regional influence of Khmer art. The tangible heritage aspects of Angkor have received global recognition and have been the focus of remarkable international conservation and restoration efforts in recent decades. Angkor, however, is also the site of lesser-known, yet unique, forms of intangible heritage, many of which have links to the Angkorian and pre-Angkorian periods. Over the past four years I have researched the intangible heritage of Angkor and potential mechanisms for its safeguarding. Many of the forms of intangible cultural heritage researched are intricately associated with the daily activities of people who live around the monuments of Angkor. These activities are related to the belief system of local Khmer and are often deeply intermingled with Buddhist and animistic values as well as familial and agricultural knowledge.

Based on the accumulated experience over the course of fifteen years since the adoption of the 2003 Convention, Southeast Asia is well known for its diverse and abundant intangible heritage. Many states in this region have already initiated ICH safeguarding plans with active participation of communities.\nHowever, a number of Member States are still having difficulties employing community‐based safeguarding plan and programs. In implementing the 2003 Convention, much attention should be paid to build capacity to support and safeguard a wider range of ICH Stakeholders, including communities, group, and individuals.\nTherefore, this session will provide an opportunity to share experiences and discuss on the roles the community should exercise in safeguarding ICH. In this session, we will discuss the following questions: (1) Do ICH communities, groups, individuals, and practitioners fully recognise the spirit and significance of the 2003 Convention? (2) Are they subsequently assigned to embody appropriate roles?

"The Cau Ngu Festival Ngu Loc is one of five coastal communes of Hau Loc District in Thanh Hoa Province, located in the Northern Central Coast region of Vietnam. This is the most densely populated place in Vietnam, with traditional fishing and seafood processing pro- viding work. Daily life is shaped by long-standing customs and traditions with coastal characteristics. This culminates in the unique cau ngu (cau means “worship” and ngu means “sacred whale”) festival, held annually from the twenty-first to the twenty-fourth day in the second month of the lunar calendar."

Kalaripayat is considered one of the earlier martial art systems in Asia. Even though it had a larger geographic range at the time of its origin in South India, it is now restricted to the state of Kerala.Many terms are used in the literature to refer to Kalari including “Kalarippayattu,” “Kalaripayattu,” “Kalaripayat,” and so on. The term “Kalaripayat” will be used in this chapter. There are different theories regarding the origin of the word kalari. It is variously said to originate from the Sanskrit word khaloorika (“training ground”), the Tamil word kalam (“storage place for paddy”), or the Malayalam word kalari (“place where Kalaripayat is practiced”). Payatt or Payat may have originated from the Tamil word payil (“to become trained, accustomed, practice”) or the Malayalam words payiluka (“to learn, speak”), payttuka (“to exercise in arms, practice”), or payattu (“fencing exercise, a trick”). It may be noted that the original name of the martial style was “Payattu Kalari” and that the word “Kalaripayat” has only been used since the 20th century.

ICCN, Interurban Cooperation Network for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, is an international organization of local governments and cultural institutions which includes 31 states, 29 cities and 34 associations. Its main objective is the protection of the intangible cultural heritage around the world and the promotion of sustainable local development. Moreover, it also seeks to achieve cultural peace through mutual understanding and intercultural dialogue between the different populations that are part of it. Julio Nacher shared some good examples of cultural events that successfully held in pandemic situation.

The scale of traditional herbal medicine knowledge in East Asia is enormous. One example that shows us this is the work of Seo Yu-gu (1764–1845), a Confucian scholar of the Joseon dynasty in the nineteenth century. He wrote Imwon-Kyungjeji, an encyclopedia compiling almost all the contemporary East Asian knowledge. This book was nicknamed Britannica of Joseon because it covered the overall knowledge fields of human life—agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, cooking, brewing, construction, civil engineering, crafts, calligraphy, music, commerce, and medicine. Surprisingly, about half of the entire work is about medicinal knowledge, occupying 1.2 million characters of the total 2.5 million characters. This means half of the traditional knowledge in East Asia is related to the treatment of diseases and maintaining human health.

The artistic world of traditional culture of Central Asian peoples is determined by contents that lie in certain historical periods and, at the same time, remain outside history. Contemporary science allows us to study the originality of the art of people in Central Asia, which is important for an objective reconstruction of the general picture of the art’s evolution. Historical and social changes cannot be studied without a clear understanding of cultural integrity and the perception of the artistic laws of culture and its context in this or that socio-historical period.

Since 2014, NGOs has been playing an important, if not decisive, role in ICH safeguarding, and the UNESCO Convention 2003 was implemented in Ukraine. The development center “Democracy through Culture,” the independent think-and-do tank engaged in cultural policy issues, including cultural heritage, took a core part in preparing the periodic report of Ukraine on the implementation of the Convention 2003 (approved at the eleventh session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in Addis Ababa, in 2016) and coordination of all stakeholders.

For Cambodians, like many peoples in Asia, rice is indispensable and firmly attached to socio-religious life of the people. Besides being the principle daily staple, rice—either husked or unhusked, cooked or uncooked—is a necessary ritual material in every religious ceremony. Interestingly, rice is considered to be female in gender. By nurturing an individual person in the form of cooked rice, she is considered Preah Me (August Mother). In addition, rice is venerated in the form of a goddess called Neang Propei.1 She is worshipped for good harvest and prosperity. \nNeang Propei is no doubt a local adoption/adaptation of the Indian God of Wealth and Prosperity, Vaishravana. Such complex socio-religious aspects involved with rice demonstrate how important rice was and is in everyday life of rice-farming commu-nities, concerning how to obtain enough rice for each year. Besides various techniques and tools that were created, rituals and games are also performed to reassure suffi-ciency of rice. For Cambodian rice-farming communities, those rituals and games are associated with animistic beliefs or are animistic oriented. Examples of these include Loeng Neak Ta, Da Lean, and Chlong Chet.2.

There are many aspects and dimensions to do research on Myanmar lacquer. Myanmar lacquerware has been studied by both local and foreign scholars from artistic and historical points of view. This research highlights the history of Myanmar lacquer, lacquer industry, and its prospects. Myanmar lacquer has a long history and remains as an active cultural phenomenon. But there are very few people who make a living from the lacquerware business. The main problems are the lack of market and scarce resources (labour and raw materials). This research’s objectives are to be able to preserve the traditional Myanmar lacquerware industry, to make it widely known internationally about the process of making Myanmar lacquerware, and to cherish the intangible cultural heritage of Myanmar. It also aims to show and record the current situation of lacquerware industry and to find ways of helping lacquer industry survive the challenges it faces today. In this research, a review of the relevant books, library survey, and field study are done, in addition to interviews with lacquerware makers, taking photographs on many aspects of Myanmar lacquerware, and foreseeing its prospects. The research areas focused on are Bagan and Kyaukka village.\nKey words: lacquer in Myanmar, Bagan, Kyaukka village, industry, production

In many cultures, there is a concept of expected gendered roles where people perform certain functions, parts, or kinds of a cultural or social activity according to their gender. Men are expected to be strong and masculine, and employ the roles which are more related to hard labor, leadership, and literacy. Women, traditionally, assume feminine and maternal characteristics and roles in supporting men in their social events. Although these notions of gender qualities and roles differ from culture to culture, it is often found that the traditional customs which dictate who can and cannot participate in specific parts of the culture are often bounded by gender stereotypes and taboos.