Materials
practice
ICH Materials 719
Publications(Article)
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Nordic Safeguarding Practices: Safeguarding from Civil SocietyWhat do sauna bathing, folk dance tikkuristi, rag rug weaving, picking mushrooms and snow games have in common? They are all part of living intangible cultural heritage, present in the everyday life and celebrations of the people in Finland. They are practised by people of all ages, in different corners of Finland. And yes, they are very much alive! \nAll of the Nordic countries have ratified the UNESCO Convention on the Safeguarding the Intangible Cultural Heritage. Web-based inventories have been created in all of them to make it possible for strong standing of grass-roots communities to create more awareness for their ICH and to dig deeper into safeguarding. This paper looks more closely on the example of Finland with its Wiki-Inventory for Living Heritage. As a good example of Nordic cooperation, the web platform Nordic Safeguarding Practices is introduced.Year2019NationSouth Korea
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NEPAL: Reducing dropout rates through integrating local practices into school activitiesPanshakanya Secondary School, located in the Chhauni area of Kathmandu, has developed an extra-curricular programme around the students’ living heritage. Many schools in Nepal have adopted a similar approach and there is a growing demand for a curriculum that better reflects local practices. This request for local content may soon be granted by the ministry of education.Year2020NationNepal
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Mak YongThis ancient theatre form created by Malaysia’s Malay communities combines acting, vocal and instrumental music, gestures and elaborate costumes. Specific to the villages of Kelantan in northwest Malaysia, where the tradition originated, Mak Yong is performed mainly as entertainment or for ritual purposes related to healing practices.YearNationMalaysia
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Bringing the Stories of Vietnam to the WorldGlobalization, the age of information, and a prime era of technology where cultures and meanings collide—it is strange how we often find ourselves disorientated with it all, the local versus the global, the familiar versus the foreign. Just so, the narrative surrounding Vietnam has quite a “foreign” presence among the international audience, and even domestically to some degree. The first images people think of when it comes to Vietnam are perhaps the war, or maybe they’d focus on the cuisine and natural scenery thanks to the effort of tourism footage in more recent years. The image is either of the country’s trauma-bound identity or a paradise land of amazing landscapes. While not entirely wrong, those narratives don’t fully reflect the complexity of a Vietnam that was, is, and will be. Telling a diverse and complex Vietnamese story in an honest and caring manner is one of the goals of Cultura Fish; it’s a direct result of our very lived experiences of interacting with our peers from across the globe and within the country.Year2022NationViet Nam
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THE ART OF MASKS AND MAKEUP IN HAT BOIHat boi is a Vietnamese intangible traditional performing art that has taken shape and developed during Vietnam’s history and is still preserved. It is form of traditional opera which has a five-hundrend-year-old history. It contains features close to the cultures of many other countries in Asia.Year2019NationSouth Korea
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Different Communities in Nepal Celebrates Shrawan Shukla PurnimaNepal is a diverse country, which is reflected in the rituals, traditional festivals and practices. Even the same day is celebrated by different ethnic communities with different practices and even name it differently. One of the examples is the celebration of full moon on Shrawan Shukla, which fell on 22nd August this year. Different communities within Nepal celebrated this day in different ways.\n\nFor the shamans of ethnic communites: Tamang, Magar, Rai, Limbu, and Gurung, who are commonly known as Jhakris, Shrawan Shukla’s full moon day is an important day. They perform special rituals in the various temples. In the sacred sites like Gosaikunda Lake in the mountain, there is an annual fair. Shamans trek to those sites and perform rituals along with singing and dancing the whole night. Also the junior shamans get graduated from the senior shaman after special rituals. Besides shaman many trek for days to reach those sites for this day and watch the shamans perform and pay homage to the site.\n\nBrahmins celebrate this day as Janai Purnima. On this day they change the sacred thread called Janai, which they wear on their body. People are seen taking bath in the holy rivers and lakes, after performing the rituals and changing sacred thread. Many Hindus also tie a sacred thread on their wrist with the Brahmin priest. Many priests are seen within the premises of different temples (either Hindu or Buddhist), tying the threads on the wrists and putting tika (mixture of vermilion and uncooked rice) on the forehead in exchange of some offerings.\n\nMadeshi communites of Nepal celebrate this day as a Rakshaya Bandahan or Rakhi. This is the special day for brothers and sisters as sisters tie a sacred thread with decorations on the wrist of brothers. Brothers showers sisters with gifts in return. This is a beautiful ritual to strengthen the bond between siblings and celebrate. Brothers and sisters travel a long distance to reach the place of their brothers/ sisters to celebrate this day. Rakhi is also celebrated in most of the communiites in India as well. Now a lot of non-Madeshi communites in Nepal are also celebrating this ritual of tying rakhi on brother’s wrist. This tradition is now crossing the ethnic and communal boundaries, and setting the example of cultural acceptance.\n\nLikewise, Newa communities of Nepal celebrate this day as Kwati Punhi. On this day nine different beans soup are eaten known as Kwati, which literally translates as hot liquid. Also the offerings of these beans mixtures to different deities and temples are done. Traditionally the day to eat protein rich food was set after the laborious work of monsoon in paddy field.\n\nThe same day Newa community also performs the rituals called Byā jā nakegu, the ritual to feed rice and beans to frogs. This is an ancient farming tradition, which is still continued in the outskirts of cities of Kathmandu. Farmers believe frogs help in bringing rain that is important for paddy planation. Still many farmers are seen will small portions of beans and cooked rice in small green leaves and leaving in the field.\n\nThis day not only reflects the cultural and ethnic diversity in Nepal but also deep-rooted connection of nature, people and practices. Either be it a Shaman ritual or Hindu rituals of changing sacred thread, all have associations with nature. Not just the continuity of the practices but we also need to teach the underlying message of nature conservation and suitability to the younger generations.\n\nPhoto : Hindu Priests tying sacred thread to people in the premise of temples © Monalisa MaharjanYear2021NationNepal
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Dao Mau: Ritual of the Mother Goddess in VietnamDao Mau, the Mother Goddess ritual, is an ancient Vietnamese ritual that has been around since the sixteenth century. For the first time, Dao Mau ritual was performed on 18 August 2017 in Sofia, Bulgaria. The performance was organized by the Embassy of Vietnam in Sofia in collaboration with the State Cultural Institute to the Minister of Foreign Affairs. The ritual pays tribute to three spheres of the universe: heaven, water, and earth (mountains and forests).\n\nLieu Hạnh is a leading Mother Goddess figure in Vietnam. Referred to as the Mother of the World, she is a nymph who descended to Earth, lived as a human, and became a Buddhist nun. The biggest annual festival celebrated is held in Phu Day Temple, Nam Dinh Province. The Mother Goddess ritual includes music, songs, dance performances; performers are dressed in traditional Vietnamese costumes.\n\nIt is believed that practicing this ritual maintains culture, history, and heritage as communally shared richness. The ritual encourages good nature in each individual and enhances the connection among community members. Worshipping the Mother Goddess is also a sign of appreciation to the role and contribution of women in society. Recognized by UNESCO, this Vietnamese ritual was inscribed on Representative List in December 2016.\n\nPhoto : Practices related to the Viet’s beliefs in the Mother Goddesses of Three Realms © UNESCOYear2017NationViet Nam
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Chubja Tsanchoed- Oral narration textThe term Tsan-choed means invoking or appeasing the deity and making various offerings in honor of the deity. Chubja Tsan-choed is an event celebrated by the communities of Bje-shigang, Damchena, Chubja-kha and Hungrel-kha. On this occasion, people from these communities pay their respects to the deity by making offerings to it, thus asking for further protection from the deity for the following year. \n\nTsan is a local patron deity of a particular community who is worshipped by the people for their protection and welfare. These deities are often worshipped as Ke-lha (worshipped from birth as a protective deity) and Yue-lha (deity of a specific community). In addition to the specific dates designated to pacify the deity, people visit and offer prayers during illnesses, deaths, births, long journeys, or times of misfortune. The deity is also invoked by women who are barren and request the deity's blessing for a child. Often, after the woman becomes pregnant, the child relies on the deity for protection during its birth. \n\nChubja Tsan (local deity), known as Tashi Pema/Pema Dendup, is considered deaf but endowed with the power to bestow worldly blessings. According to oral sources, the reason for his deafness was that Chubja Tsan and the Tsan of Zache-kha village had conflicts and quarreled long ago (the cause is not known). The Zache-kha Tsan hit the Chubja Tsan on his ear and made him deaf, while in return the Chubja Tsan hit the Zhache-kha Tsan on his eyes and made him blind. For this reason, even today, the people from Zhache-kha light a fire during the Tsan-choed (ritual to invoke the local deities), while the people from Chubja have to make loud "oooo" sounds in front of the Tsan's home. And the people of the two communities do not visit each other's Lhakhangs (temples). \n\nThe timing of the Tsan-choed depends on the purpose of its patrons, but for Kay-lha it takes place twice a year; the first time immediately after the Paro Tshechu (Mask Dance Festival, which occurs in the third lunar month) and the second time during the autumn season. In the latter offering, a Phued (first share) of the harvest is usually offered to express gratitude for the blessing of a bountiful harvest while asking for his protection in the future.YearNot yet publishedNationBhutan
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Woven Sail of Lamotrek AtollFor centuries, the people of the central Caroline Islands have relied heavily on their voyaging canoes as their primary means of transport. They made voyages to islands near and far to obtain food, tools, and other valuables. In some instances, following devastating natural calamities, their canoes are used to relocate to a different island as was the case for the Carolinians who now reside in the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas (CNMI). Today, the art of canoe building and traditional celestial navigation continues in these remote islands of the Federated States of Micronesia. Although at a smaller scale than what it used to be, the important knowledge of their ancestors is being passed on to younger generations. Waa’gey is a community-based organization working with island communities to transfer traditional skills and knowledge. Realizing the challenges brought to the shores of Micronesia by globalization and environmental issues including climate change and rising sea levels, the people of Lamotrek Atoll in Yap worked with Master Navigator Larry Reigetal and his crew to build an outrigger canoe named The Lucky Star1.. Using only traditional seafaring methods and no modern navigation technology, the eight-man crew led by master Reigetal braved storms and powerful ocean currents to travel over five hundred miles to Guam over five days to showcase the Micronesian culture at the Festival of Pacific Arts in May 2016. After the festival, the crew sailed back to Lamotrek over a period of ten days.\n\nThe crew brought along a traditional pandanus sail woven by the people of Lamotrek to use during the festival and to display the skills used to create it. The entire process of weaving the sail took more than six months, with over thirty people contributing to its construction. Due to modern seafaring technologies, the traditional weaving techniques in Lamotrek had not been in practice for over half a century. However, through this project, Waa’gey was able to enlist the help of a 95-year-old Maria Labusheilam, the last master weaver in Lamotrek. She taught the skills to twenty women apprentices, led by her daughter Maria Ilourutog, granddaughter Pualina Lairegiyalo, and daughter-in-law Esther Letalimepiy. The men of Lamotrek, led by Xavier Yarofaliyango, cut and stretched the leaves and stitched the sail together. Labusheilam died two weeks after passing on the knowledge. She did not see the final outcome of her work. The pandanus sail is woven from the Pandanus odoratissimus (screwpine) commonly grown on beaches of tropical islands. The leaves are harvested, dried under the sun, and stripped into single fibers. They are then woven into longer strips of sheets that are then strengthened by stretching and wrapping the sheets around coconut trees. The sheets are then sewn together with sennit twine ropes made from coconut fibers. Sail weaving is not the same as weaving sleeping mats, as they need to be doubled and overlapped to ensure strength and durability.\n\nThe sail was displayed at the University of Guam and the Honolulu museum. It is now in Hawaii and will make its way to New York where it will be the main art display at the UN Headquarters during the Ocean Conference. It will then travel to Europe, Asia, and Australia before making its final voyage to the Federated States of Micronesia in 2018 to sail the MicroGames torch in Yap . It is autographed by all the people from Lamotrek and the president of the FSM, H.E. Peter Christian.\n\nPhoto : Master Navigator Larry Raigetal and his crew entering Guam harbor on their canoe the Lucky Star during the opening ceremony of the 12th Festival of Pacific Art and Culture © Waa’geyYear2017NationMicronesia
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Interconnectedness of Culture and Craft (Tais) in Timor-LesteCeremonial cloth known as tais (traditional handcraft) has been woven in Timor-Leste for generations. Weaving traditions are considered key social functions for strengthening familial bonds. Textiles handcrafts are an invaluable expression of traditional knowledge and East Timorese culture. The designs and techniques to produce textiles have been handed down matrilineal lines recording a woven narration of the culture, lore, paradigms, and stories of Timor-Leste’s history.\n\nTraditional textile cloths are traditionally given by one Timorese woman to another as a mark of respect or symbol of repentance. From Timorese ancestors’ time, a woman learns how to make tais so that when she gets married, she can make tais for ceremonies or to sell in the barter market. Meanwhile tais led important role for Timorese children, and the local knowledge has been transmitted across generations. In Timor-Leste, transmitting weaving knowledge from mother to daughter is interwoven within a cultural system of collaboration and respect, where women, men, and young people work together to share cultural practices in a way that benefits the entire community.\n\nTais place a significant value on the process of feto-sa and umane in Timor-Leste’s cultural context (relationships between two families having marriage, and they establish a bond of obligation between the marrying families). Tais were also used on occasions such as funerals and kore-metan ceremonies (funeral anniversaries usually held one year after death).\n\nBoth dyeing and weaving are intimate social processes, usually done by a group of women. Women who are isolated in villages both socially and economically usually work together as team to work on obtaining a common goal. This reflects a broader social structure in Timor-Leste, where people once built their societies on a system of connectedness and community, a set of values and beliefs surrounding kinship, ceremony, spirituality, and weaving. The weaving, wearing, and use of the textiles are essential to the Timorese sense of being and was a way of asserting their differences in the past.\n\nWaving Techniques\nThe designs and color used to make a tais vary. For instance, in eastern part of Timor-Leste tais is mainly woven from cotton using a combination of plain weave and ikat techniques. Ikat is a dyeing technique used to pattern textiles that employs resist dyeing on the yarn prior to dyeing and weaving the fabric. In ikat the resist is formed by binding individual yarn threads or bundles of yarn with a tight wrapping applied in the desired pattern (ikat means “to bind” in the Indonesian language). Long, narrow panels of cloth often take months or years to complete. Concern with the dyeing process, usually the giant pestle is used to pound leaves and bark for a new batch of natural dyes.\n\nIn the western part of the country, weavers have used a tapestry weaving technique called mnaisa to weave small sections of belts for the past four years, which is the overall process of using natural dyes.\nIn tradition, the colors chosen for any one cloth depend on the occasion and where it will be worn. In the villages, weavers use endemic plants to color hand-spun cotton; however, the lack of raw material for dyeing and increasing availability of polyester fibers and synthetic dyes are changing the way tais is made.\n\nThe practice of the weaving traditions have declined dramatically due to globalization and post-conflict isolated conditions in Timor-Leste. The lack of participation of young peoples on the weaving process and the lack of the society awareness and government support to enact ICH as a priority national action plan has created challenges on pursuing safeguarding implementation.\n\nPhoto 1 : The Kingcraft, Tais weaving in Timor-Leste Ⓒ i0.wp.com/thekindcraft.com\nPhoto 2 : Baucau weaver, East part of Timor-Leste Ⓒ Abraão Ribeiro MendonçaYear2020NationTimor
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Full Moon July in Vietnam: Wandering Soul’s Day and “Vu Lan” DayOver thousands of years, the Vietnamese have held a deep belief in the lunar calendar. Although most of today’s activities are scheduled in the Gregorian calendar, they still keep track of dates in the old way—many traditional cultural activities are organized based on the lunar calendar.\n\nThe fifteenth day of lunar July is known as Wandering Soul’s Day or “Vu Lan” Day (Parents’ Day) in Vietnam. This is Vietnam’s second largest annual traditional festival after Lunar New Year, and it is celebrated by participation in various religious rituals and humanitarian activities.\n\nCelebrations aside, lunar July brings a few fears to Vietnamese hearts too—it is also known as “Ghost Month.” Vietnamese people are very superstitious, and almost everyone believes in ghosts and spirits. Therefore, with all the hauntings, Ghost Month is thought of as an unlucky time and, it is considered a bad idea to do anything important during this period. This concept comes from folk beliefs related to Buddhism that during the first half of the month, the gates of the underworld are opened, allowing ghosts to roam freely on Earth and make trouble for the living. On the full moon, they have to return, and the gates are closed again.\n\nIn Vietnam, Wandering Soul’s Day is taken very seriously. All through Ghost Month, deceased relatives will find their way back to visit with the living. Offerings and prayers bring them back, and they will then bless their relatives. Meanwhile, “lost ghosts” that have no home, no offerings, and no prayers will wander around, lost and lonely. They may be ones without relatives, forgotten by descendants or dead without having been buried carefully. These things will make them cruel and place curses of bad luck on strangers. For that reason, the Vietnamese practice activities related to their beliefs in order to appease the ghosts, and not to upset or make them angry.\n\nVietnamese families will prepare two feasts during the fifteenth day of Lunar July. The first is offered early, usually at noon, to ancestors. The second, often offered sometime after sunset, is dedicated to the “lost ghosts.” This is the only day of the year that they can feast. Because they cannot eat proper food, the living often give the ghosts white porridge. Many people also visit temples to pray, some bring offerings and donations to feed these ghosts.\n\nIt may seem strange to most, but Wandering Soul’s Day also happens to be Vu Lan Day (Parents’ Day). Vu Lan Day began with the legend of Maudgalyayana (Buddha’s leading disciple), known as Muc Kien Lien in Vietnam. After his mother died, Muc Kien Lien, by means of his supernatural power, saw that she had been reborn as a hungry ghost in the realm of hell as a result of her evil actions in her past life. He pleaded with the Buddha to save his mother. Buddha instructed his disciple that only a combined effort by all Buddhist monks could soothe the suffering of the tormented soul. He then directed Muc Kien Lien to organize an assembly of monks so that Muc Kien Lien could make offerings for the benefit of his mother’s soul. Thus, the accumulated spiritual merits resulting from the prayers of all monks helped his mother awaken; consequently, she obtained liberation. Hence, the fifteenth day of Lunar July is when people pray for forgiveness for their parents’ misdeeds.\n\nPeople pay homage to their parents and ancestors, whether they are alive or dead. The custom is that you spend time thinking of your mother’s great heart and are thankful. People whose mothers have passed away will wear a white rose on their shirt during the day while others will have a red one. In addition, they will try to avoid killing animals and will eat only vegetarian food. They will also offer food and other items for the poor. This very simple custom is practiced widely throughout the country and is a very sacred and deeply unique mark of the Vietnamese culture.\n\nPhoto 1 : The offerings for ghosts © Hoang The Phuc\nPhoto 2 : Wearing roses in the Vu Lan Day ⓒ Hoang The PhucYear2019NationViet Nam
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ICH as a Metaphysical Product: The Case of Wualai Silversmith Village in ThailandWualai Silversmith Village is located along Wua Lai Road, Hai Ya, Muang, Chiang Mai, Thailand. The village is well-known for handmade silver products. People in the village have been making silver goods for a hundred years, after they moved from Bagan (an old city in Myanmar). After farming, most of the villagers spend their free time as silversmiths. Family members are involved in creating silver products for trade and their daily life. Almost every household is also a workplace for creating silver goods.\n\nNecklaces, bracelets, paddles, and trays are some of the most common products of the Wualai Silversmith Village. However, the silver bowl or salung is most representative of their identity. In the past, these silver products were used to represent family wealth, especially for a grand occasions. With unique and sophisticated patterns and styles of the villagers’ silver products, for example, Kratin flowers, pineapples, twelve zodiac signs, Ramayana figures, and animal patterns, Wualai silver products became famous.\n\nIn May 2018, I went to the village to observe the process of making handmade silver bowls and interview a number of silversmiths. The silversmiths explained that there are many steps in making a silver bowl, and it takes days or weeks to finish one. The most difficult stages are forging and carving. A few days are commonly needed to forge a silver bowl by hitting silver coins or bars. Those responsible for forging should be demonstrably strong, patient, and resilient against hot temperatures.\n\nOn the other hand, there are two kinds of carving expertise. One in creating the patterns; the other is in detailing the bowl to be seen as three-dimensional. Not everyone easily learns and practices these skills. This impracticality is why it is difficult to continue the practice of creating silver products in Wualai. In addition, the cost of materials has also caused a decrease in practitioners and successors.\n\nThe local government is now concerned about safeguarding this intangible cultural heritage element. To act upon the problem, they created a silver product safeguarding network, which includes schools, temples, and other relevant institutions. Local knowledge on making silver products has recently been introduced as a part of academic curriculum. Relevant pedagogical programs are offered in schools, temples, and non-formal educational centers. The Ministry of Culture of Thailand also promotes the safeguarding of silverware as a metaphysical product or something priceless and invaluable. This is specifically helpful to the Wualai walking street, a space built by the villagers to commercialize their products. The Wualai walking street is visible every Saturday, beginning in the late afternoon and ending before midnight.\n\nPhoto 1 : Forging a silver bowl in Wualai Village, Thailand © Ratchda Sukka\nPhoto 2 : Firing up silver molds in Wualai Village, Thailand © Ratchada SukkaYear2018NationThailand