Nathdwara is a famed Vaishnavite pilgrimage site in the Aravalli Hills, fifty kilometers northeast of Udaipur, Rajasthan. Hundreds of thousands of devotees annually visit its central Shrinathji Temple to worship a fourteenth century icon of Shrinathji, a beloved child incarnation of Lord Krishna.\n\nBesides Shrinathji’s sanctum, Nathdwara was also widely known for its unique regional arts—the worship-related pichwai paintings that depict Krishna’s life stories for the unlettered and the reverential semiclassical haveli sangeet music that was sung and played directly to Krishna. The area was also famous for delightful terracotta sculptures that portray sacred images from the countryside and touching scenes of village life.\n\nIn recent years, however, haveli sangeet has lost its following, and few young musicians try to learn its demanding dhrupad-based songs. Similarly pichwai painting and local terracotta arts have fallen on hard times. While there is still a bit of tourist interest in these ancient traditions, the impact of western fashion, mass advertising, and globalized culture have driven both out of vogue domestically.\n\nMost of India’s religious institutions confine their efforts to purely spiritual endeavors, but given Shrinathji’s long intimate relations with the town’s cultural life, the temple took notice of its artists’ plight. The Nathdwara Temple Board, Shrinathji’s managing trust, and trustee Sri Vishal Bava suggested providing some kind of innovative platform for artists to showcase their paintings and crafts on the crowded streets outside the temple.\n\nSri Dinesh Kothari, Nathdwara Temple Board CEO, took this concept and designed a project called Wall of the Lord that used a broad empty stretch on the temple’s own outer wall as a public gallery. Approximately 140 pichwai painters have now completed 63 masterful paintings on this 180 meter expanse, in styles ranging from traditional and devotional to expressively modern. Three exquisite large terracotta murals have also been installed there, and together, these exhibits not only beautify the temple but also offer dramatic visibility, hopefully renewing market demand for struggling local ICH artists.\n\nLaunched on 26 January 2017, the novel Wall of the Lord initiative has already started attracting its own audience as a must-see site of the Nathdwara pilgrimage that reminds visiting devotees of the splendor of their heritage and the inseparable nature of creativity and the divine.\n\nPhoto : Nathdwara painters adorning the temple wall © Lokesh Paliwal

Singapore’s Malay Heritage Centre (MHC) organizes Lintas Nusantara, an annual dance festival that serves as a platform for dance masters and troupes from Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, and other countries in the region to showcase their work and capabilities and to facilitate cultural exchanges among the countries involved.\n\nTo commemorate the tenth anniversary of the festival, MHC will be launching a publication entitled Lintas Nusantara: A Spectacle of Dance and Music in October 2021. The publication will provide a visual record of all the dances performed at the festival and include several essays that aim to provide a deeper understanding of the various dance forms as well as their origins, development, and evolution.\n\nIt will cover a total of twenty-three Malay dance forms performed in Singapore, different states in Malaysia, and different regions of Indonesia. These dance forms include Zapin Sungai Kallang from Singapore; Mak Yong and Tari Asyik from Malaysia; and Pajaga Makkunrai (Bugis), Tari Golek Menak (Yogyakarta) and Tari Gending Sriwijaya (Palembang) from Indonesia.\n\nAs part of the publication’s aim to foster more extensive research into dances from the Malay Archipelago, it will feature twenty-seven essays by academics and researchers from Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, East Timor, and the Philippines. These essays will cover topics such as preserving dance and community traditions; spirituality in dance and movement; forging cultural and community identity through dance; cultural borrowings as expressed through music, costumes, and movements.\n\nLintas Nusantara: A Spectacle of Dance and Music will also include reflections regarding the importance of cultural exchanges in the growth and evolution of dance and music as well as the development of a dynamic Malay dance ecosystem from musicians Thow Xin Wei (Gamelan Singa Nglaras) and Fadhli Ramlee (aluNada Muzik) as well as an interview with Mr. Osman Abdul Hamid, a dance practitioner renowned for his artistic contributions to the Malay dance scene in Singapore since the late 1970s.\n\nThrough this publication, MHC hopes to provide an overview of the wide spectrum of Malay dance forms, contribute to existing research and documentation on Malay performing arts, and promote greater cross-cultural understanding and appreciation of the diverse dance forms from the Malay world.\n\nLintas Nusantara: A Spectacle of Dance and Music is a bilingual publication written in both English and Malay, and interested parties can send their inquiries to Jamal_Mohamad@nhb.gov.sg.\n\nPhoto 1 : Dancers from Guntur Mataram Dance Company (Jakarta) performing the Tari Golek Asmaradana Bawaraga. Photograph courtesy of Malay Heritage Centre\nPhoto 2 : Artist Seni Budaya (Singapore) performing the Tari Gending Sriwijaya with dancers from Universitas PGRI Palembang (Indonesia). Photograph courtesy of Malay Heritage Centre

Cultural heritage had been defined and maintained centered around physical structures or tangible features. It is only recently that the focus has shifted to nonphysical and intangible values of heritage, which incorporate natural, social, and cultural elements. Roles of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) are increasingly emphasized, as it involves the respect for cultural diversity and the representativeness of each cultural heritage, rather than just recognizing excellent universal values accepted by all. ICH has been created, practiced and used by people and has been inherited through generations in a cultural context. The viability of ICH is like a person’s life cycle. As our life is the finite period between birth and death, heritage is also doomed to disappear without a conscious effort to continue the viability of created heritage. Heritage has a finite life and transmission is the force to keep it alive.\n\nKorea is the only divided country in the world. Seventy years have passed since the Korean War, but the wounds of the war and the pain of the division still remain in the hearts of displaced people and dispersed families. Even amidst such a tragedy, there are intangible cultural properties of North Korea that have been transmitted in the South. One of them is “Aewonseong,” a song that has been designated in South Korea as an intangible cultural property of the ibuk odo (which literally means five northern provinces). “Aewonseong” (哀怨聲) reflects the joys and sorrows of life and expresses sounds of sadness and lamentation as the name suggests. People living in the barren areas of Hamgyeong-Do in the North used to hum the song when things were hard and tiring. Currently in South Korea, the song is transmitted by displaced people as a form of a musical performance accompanied by instruments and dance. It allows those people to find consolation and ease their longing for their hometown, thus providing a special sense of identity. Although the song is being practiced differently compared to its original version performed in the North, it still has the same function of consoling people now living in the southern part of the peninsula.\n\nDuring the thirteenth Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the ICH, which was held in Mauritius in November 2018, Traditional Korean Wrestling, ssirum/ssireum was jointly inscribed on the Representative List of the ICH of Humanity. The joint inscription was especially meaningful as it was intended for ‘peace and reconciliation.’ Since 2014, ICHCAP has organized biennial sub-regional meetings of five Northeast Asian countries (South Korea, Mongolia, China, Japan, and North Korea). The participants looked at the status of ICH safeguarding in North Korea and discussed the necessity for stronger exchange and cooperation in the fields of ICH in the region, laying a collaborative foundation for support for North Korea. This year in October, the fourth sub-regional meeting will take place in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, under the subject of the safeguarding of shared heritage in East Asia.\n\nAccording to the ‘Kit of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage’ published by UNESCO, safeguarding activities promote reconciliation through intercultural dialogue and respect for cultural diversity around the practice of living heritage and thus constitute an effective and sustainable way to restore peace and security within society. Even in the situation of national division, the viability of ICH can bring together different parties beyond the border to share a collective memory and the values of heritage. As such, shared heritage can play a vital role in maintaining peace and security in the two Koreas. ICH, which has survived to date and can be shared by both peoples, could hopefully help achieve inter-Korean cooperation and further establish a culture of peace in Northeast Asia.\n\nPhoto : Joining two Koreas © Shutterstock/eamesBot

Tomyam kung, or spicy shrimp soup, is a typical Thai dish that became popular only 50 years ago. Tomyam kung is a hot soup made by mixing various ingredients, including herbs, in boiling water. The basic ingredients include ground cilantro root, lemongrass, galangal, torn kaffir lime leaves, lime juice, fish sauce, bird’s-eye chilies and shrimps. In addition, mushroom, tomatoes, and onions may be added depending on preference. \n\nThe word “tomyam” is a compound word in the Thai language. It consists of two words — “tom” and “yam,” which mean “boiling” and “mixing,” respectively. These two words refer to the Thai cooking process. \n\nTomyam is a traditional Thai dish originating from the country’s central region. The oldest recipe was found in King Rama V’s reign. It was stated that only snakehead fish and stingray should be used in tomyam pla, or spicy fish soup. There are some secondary sources referring to dishes that had similar ingredients and recipes to tomyam kung. However, they still lacked some of the important ingredients that are familiar in the dish today, such as lemongrass, galangal, and torn kaffir lime leaves.\n\nThe very first “tomyam kung” recipe appeared in a book, Khong Sawoei (Thai royal cuisine), written by Mom Rajawongse Kitinadda Kitiyakara. The writer cooked fresh shrimp soup for His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej The Great (Rama IX), Her Majesty Queen Sirikit, the Queen Mother, and the prince and princesses at the Klai Kangwon Palace, Hua Hin, in 1962. The recipe started with the instruction to make a soup from shrimp shells and heads, seasoned with fish sauce, kaffir lime leaves, and lemongrass. This was then strained to retain only the broth, which was poured into a bowl of boiled shrimp and seasoned with lime juice. Ground chilies and more fish sauce were added before serving. \n\nThe precise flavor of tomyam kung has never been fixed; it can be seasoned according to the consumer’s preferred tastes. However, a basic recipe is as follows:\n\nSlice the lemongrass, galangal, tomatoes, chilies, mushrooms, and shrimp\nBring a pot of water to the boil on the stove \nAdd the sliced lemongrass, galangal, and kaffir lime leaves\nBoil for about 5 minutes and then add the shrimp\nAdd the sliced Thai chilies, mushrooms, and tomatoes\nFlavor by adding a little fish sauce and sugar (you can add more if desired)\nTake the pot off the heat and squeeze in the lime juice (if you do this before taking the pot off the stove, the heat will turn the lime juice bitter) \nThere are in fact types of tomyam kung: clear and thick. The clear soup is the original style, while coconut milk is added to make the thick variety.\n\nTomyam kung is a Thai national soup that very popular among both Thais and non-Thais. It has high nutritional value and is not too spicy. Its fragrance derives from vegetables and spices that are thought to help blood circulation, bringing good health. Tomyam kung is a very popular dish in every Thai restaurant. In addition, many popular snacks and instant noodles also use the flavors of tomyam kung. \n\nIn 2011, tomyam kung was inscribed by the Department of Cultural Promotion, Ministry of Culture on the list of National Intangible Cultural Heritage under the domain of Knowledge and Practices Concerning Nature and the Universe. Recently, the government of Thailand is seeking to have tomyam kung listed by UNESCO as part of the country’s cultural heritage.\n\nPhoto : Tomyam Kung ⓒ shutterstock

Whang-od Oggay, a 102-year-old woman from a mountain tribe in the Philippines, is a living instrument in the continuity of pambabatok, an endangered ancient tattooing technique that chiefly constitutes hand-tapping to create figures on the skin. Believed to be the oldest tattoo artist and the last linkage of her tribe to pambabatok, Whang-od became famous in the internationally when she was featured by Dr. Lars Krutak, an American anthropologist who was the host of Discovery Channel’s Tattoo Hunter in 2009. Pambabatok is argued to be at least a thousand year old intangible cultural heritage (ICH) element.\n\nWhang-od is called a mambabatok, derived from the root word batok that means “to hit”. For her hand-tapping tools, she uses a lemon thorn needle or siit that is attached to the end of a small bamboo stick and another shorter stick for tapping the thorn into the skin. The ink she uses is a mixture of water and soot. Pambabatok, compared to other conventional tattooing techniques, is relatively painful. It is done by applying rhythmic and repetitive pricks on the skin using her traditional hand tools. During my personal visit in Buscalan in 2015 to see Whang-od, I noticed that she will begin tattooing the tourists in the first light of dawn and she will only finish at dusk. There would be days when almost fifty people lined up to get tattooed by her. Sometimes she could not eat because of the blood and flesh that she had been tapping all day.\n\nThe traditional designs of her tattoos come from the symbols of nature and geometric figures significant to the Butbut tribe, an indigenous community living in the village of Buscalan, nestled in the lush terraces of the Cordillera Mountains of Kalinga, a province in the northern part of the Philippines. In the olden days, the tribe was known for their headhunting culture. Warriors battled for land and honor to protect their tribe and village. They would cut off their enemies’ heads and as a reward they would be inked with magnificent tattoos that exude valiance when they return triumphantly to their village. The females also received tattoos as a rite of passage and symbol of beauty. Their tattoos transform girls into women; the women thereafter become eligible for marriage and bearing children. The more tattoos women had, the more attractive they were to the men in the village. Some elders believed that the tattoos could also cure infertility and various illnesses. The culture of headhunting and combat slowly disappeared due to modernization and religious influences. Consequently, protecting the vitality of their ritualistic and performance-based practices never occurred to be a social agenda.\n\nWhen a journalist named Grace, niece of Whang-od, realized that the tattooing heritage will be completely lost when her aunt dies, the transmission of pambabatok. Recently, the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) awarder her with the 2018 Dangal ng Haraya Award for Intangible Cultural Heritage to honor her contribution in raising awareness about the Butbut tribe and safeguarding an ICH element of the Philippines.\n\nPhoto : Whang-od Oggay © Royce Lyssah Malabonga

Kutch Mahila Vikas Sangathan (KMVS) was founded in 1989 to foster the empowerment of rural women of Kutch area in Gujarat. In 1993, KMVS organized women from different villages of Kutch to enhance their literacy level. Soorvani is an informal organization of 500 musicians representing 40 different musical forms. The goal of Soorvani is to improve the status and standard of Kutchi folk musicians. Its objectives are to preserve, sustain, revive, energize, and promote Kutch’s folk music traditions. Priti Soni, the contact person for Soorvani, wonderfully described the mission “Sachavu, Jharavu, Beg Vantu Karu” which means “preserve, protect, and promote”.

Maldives Authentic Crafts Cooperative Society (MACCS) is a cooperative marketing handicrafts produced by communities living in the atolls. Based in the capital city of Malé, MACCS was founded by a group of women to assist and promote the development of local handicrafts. Registered in 2011, MACCS primarily facilitates market access for local products. It aims to support and educate communities to revive traditional handicraft forms. The cooperative works with home-based workers and procures finished crafts directly from them.

Khamir was established on 2005 out of a joint initiative of Kutch Nav Nirmaan Abhiyan (KNNA) and Nehru Foundation for Development (NFD) to empower Kutch’s creative industry after a devastating earthquake in 2001. Khamir was originally developed to support craft industries where livelihoods were particularly affected. They also wanted to ensure the sustainability of the necessary resources for growth of handicraft industries. Today, it serves as a platform for promotion of traditional handicrafts and allied cultural practices, the processes involved in their creation, and preservation of culture, community and local environments.

The island nation of Sri Lanka was ravaged by a 26-year civil war (1983 to 2009) that was the result of ethnic tensions between the Buddhist Sinhalese majority and the Hindu Tamil minority. The conflict cost over 100,000 lives and displaced hundreds and thousands of civilians. On this ethic tension and conflict situation Aru Sri Art Theatre emerged with belief that tradition and culture are the tools to bridge the divide between estranged communities and usher in change in the society. They instill their creative energies into the heart of the repertory, producing ethnic harmony concerts and legendary dance dramas. The vision of the team is to develop theatre in such a way that traditional art forms can flourish alongside contemporary interpretations. The belief is that it is as imperative to carry age-old traditions into the new millennium as it is to provide a fertile ground for growth, change and harmony.

Traditional crafts have long been a part of the traditional nomadic culture of the Kyrgyz people, who have historically lived in close connection with nature. For the Kyrgyz people, the natural world was once seen as an inexhaustible source of raw materials and inspiration for the creation of handicrafts.

The culture of the Central Asian steppes expresses itself vividly in the lifestyle of traditional nomadic practices. Mongolian culture has been in practice in the nomadic life and the traditions surrounding the nomad’s home (ger). And it is present in religious celebrations, national festivals, art and crafts, music and dance, language and literature, which form the backbone of Mongolian intangible cultural heritage of Mongolia. Mongolia is filled with valuable cultural properties and intangible cultural heritage of humanity that have been kept or practiced for thousands of years.\n\nGer, Mongolian Traditional Dwelling\nThe traditional architecture of the Mongols differed strongly from that of the settled peoples of Asia and other continents. Centuries ago, there the ger, also known as a yurt, appeared. It still offers shelter to nomads in particular places in Central Asia. Its development and fundamental principles are determined by the specific features of the way of life of Mongol tribes, which made it necessary to evolve a light and collapsible structure to be used as a dwelling or for public functions.\n\nMongolian Language and Literature\nMongolian is the language of most of the Mongolian population and inner Mongolia. By origin, Mongolian is one of the Altaic family of languages, and the history of the Mongolian language is long and complicated. Significant literary work of early Mongolia includes The Secret History of the Mongols, which was published in 1228).\n\nMongolian Religion and Beliefs\nThe Mongols have practiced several religions, of which Shamanism and Buddhism were the most common. The faith in Mongolia is Buddhism, though the state and religion were separated during the socialist period, but with the transition to the parliamentary republic in the 1990s, there has been a general revival of faiths across the country\n\nMongolian Art and Crafts\nMongolian arts and crafts have been passed down across generations from the Paleolithic times to today, leaving behind deep impressions on all facets of life and conscious, aesthetic, and philosophical thinking. Highly developed Mongolian arts and crafts come from the second millennium BCE. The works included sculptured heads of wild animals with exaggerated features. Other items include knives, daggers, and other items of practical and religious use.\n\nMongolian Music and Dance\nMusic is an integral part of Mongolian culture. Among Mongolia’s unique contributions to the world’s musical culture are the long songs, overtone singing, and morin khuur (the horse-headed fiddle). The music of Mongolia is also rich with varieties related to the various ethnic groups of the country. Among the most popular forms of modern music in Mongolia are Western pop and rock genres and the mass songs written by contemporary authors in the form of folk songs.\n\nHorse Culture of Mongolia\nIt is famously known that horses play a large role in the Mongols’ daily and national lives. Common sayings are, “A Mongol without a horse is like a bird without wings,” and “Mongols are born on horseback” these are arguably true words. Even today, horse-based culture is still practiced by nomadic Mongolians.\n\nVisit https://www.toursmongolia.com/tours for additional information about Mongolian culture.\n\nPhoto 1 : Prairie meadow grass inner Mongolia traditional clothing © Batzaya Choijiljav\nPhoto 2~7 : © Batzaya Choijiljav

Kalpak is the traditional headdress of Kyrgyz men. Symmetrically cut, it is purely made up of white felt, with black or red edges. Craftswomen describe the parts of the kalpak’s structure as fire, water, air, and soil, connecting to one another as north and south and east and west.\n\nThe top of kalpak is called the sun ray, a symbol of life. Tassels are added to the top to symbolize the roots of progeny. Lines and patterns, stitched on white felt, have their own semantic content. The kalpak’s color depends on the person’s age or status. Children often wear kalpak with green edges, the color of grass and leaves. Middle-aged men wear brown kalpaks, a reference to the color of soil and mountains. Young men of marriageable age wear red kalpaks. Very wise people or those known for their leadership and justness wear a white kalpak with white edges.\n\nHolders of traditional knowledge say that kalpak a headwear is not only to protect oneself from sun or rain but also to aid men in drawing energy from the universe. As an important part of the Kyrgyz people’s tradition, one can’t give another person his own kalpak, play with it, throw it up, or put it to the ground. It is treated with utmost respect and is usually presented as a gift to esteemed people and relatives.\n\nTo popularize the national headdress, 5 March is designated as the National Day of Kalpak in Kyrgyzstan. Conventionally on this day, schools have lessons on the kalpak, museums and theaters hold presentations on the historical origins of kalpak, and various flash mobs are organized with the participation of activists of youth movements and students to demonstrate the importance of kalpak in Kyrgyz culture. Consequently, kalpak is very popular among men of different ages, backgrounds, and social belonging. The cultural relevance of kalpak is reinforced by a huge number craftswomen producing it, making it available in all part of Kyrgyzstan.\n\nPhoto 1 : Traditional Kyrgyz kalpak cc by-sa3 Prosopee WikiMedia\nPhoto 2 : Kalpak, traditional headdress of Kyrgyz Men ⓒAigine Cultural Research Center