The ''Miryang baekjung nori'' () is a festival held in the Korean city of

Miryang Miryang (perhaps pronounced as Milbeol using Idu script), formerly also spelled as 推火郡 (probably pronounced as Milbeol or Miribeol using Idu script), Milbeol (密伐) and Milseong (密城), is a city in Gyeongsangnam-do Province, South Ko ...

to celebrate the holiday of ''

Baekjung The Ghost Festival, also known as the Zhongyuan Festival (traditional Chinese: 中元節; simplified Chinese: ) in Taoism and Yulanpen Festival () in Buddhism, is a traditional Taoist and Buddhist festival held in certain East Asian countrie ...

''. Whilst ''Baekjung'' is a national celebration, the specific festivities in Milyang are regarded as one of the

Important Intangible Cultural Properties of Korea The Intangible Cultural Heritage (, ''Muhyeong Munhwajae'') are aspects of intangible culture that the government of South Korea has officially designated for preservation in accordance with the 1962 Cultural Property Protection Law. They are p ...

. ''Baekjung'' is a Buddhist festival of the dead, known in Japan as

O-Bon or just is fusion of the ancient Japanese belief in ancestral spirits and a Japanese Buddhist custom to honor the spirits of one's ancestors. This Buddhist–Confucian custom has evolved into a family reunion holiday during which people retu ...

, but in Korea it also has elements of an agricultural holiday as well. It is characterised by prayers to the gods of agriculture; masked dances and "hoe-washing", a form of carnival in which the roles of landlord and labourer are reversed. ''Baekjung'' falls on the fifteenth day of the seventh month. The festivities at Miryang begin with a shamanic ritual of supplication to the agricultural deities by the village elders, to purify the area and ensure a bounteous harvest in the coming autumn. This is accompanied by vigorous drum music (''nong-ak''). A pole called a ''nongshindae'', similar to a

maypole A maypole is a tall wooden pole erected as a part of various European folk festivals, around which a maypole dance often takes place. The festivals may occur on 1 May or Pentecost (Whitsun), although in some countries it is instead erected at ...

, is raised, and the participants circle it and offer prayers. The food and drink offerings are then shared among the celebrants, and a number of traditional dances are performed, including the Dance of the Aristocrat (''Hallyangmu'') and the Dance of the Cripple (''Pyongshinchum''). These dances tend to be comical satires of their subject, and often include improvisation and impersonation. Other activities also take place, including the ''gejuldarigi'' or "spider tug-of-war", which is unique to Miryang. The festival closes with a performance of the Five Drums Dance (''Obuk-chum''), a traditional farmers dance which is also a prayer for good health and a good harvest.

References

{{reflist Important Intangible Cultural Properties of South Korea Festivals in South Korea