Online Hosting of Dongdaemun-gu Pungnyeon Giwon Seonnong Daeje Ceremony

On the 24th, Seonnong Daeje Held to Pray for Overcoming COVID-19... Ceremony Conducted Without Audience Only

At the Seonnong Daeje held in 2019, traditional Seolleongtang is being served.

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] Dongdaemun-gu (Mayor Yoo Deok-yeol) announced that the ‘2021 Seonnong Daeje,’ marking the beginning of the year’s farming season, will be held on the 24th.

Hosted by Dongdaemun-gu and organized by the Dongdaemun Cultural Foundation, the ritual ceremony of the event will be conducted under the supervision of the Seonnong Daeje Preservation Committee.

Seonnongje is a ritual where the king himself offered sacrifices to Shin Nong, the god of farming, and Hu Jik, the god of grains, praying for a bountiful harvest for the year. The ritual was discontinued during the Japanese colonial period but was restored in 1979 by dedicated residents of Jegi-dong, who began holding the ceremony once a year.

The main event, held annually around Gogu (Grain Rain) in April, has been conducted in the form of a national ceremony centered on Dongdaemun-gu since 1992, and since 2019, the Dongdaemun Cultural Foundation has been hosting the event.

Last year, the Seonnong Daeje was completely canceled due to COVID-19, but this year, in addition to praying for a bountiful harvest, the 29 ritualists of the Seonnong Daeje Preservation Committee will perform only the ritual ceremony to pray for overcoming COVID-19.

Due to the COVID-19 situation, auxiliary events such as the ritual procession and Seolleongtang sharing event will be omitted, and the audience will be completely restricted.

The ritual will be held for about 90 minutes starting at 10:30 a.m. on the 24th, proceeding through the ritual steps of Jeonpye Rye, Chohun Rye, Ahun Rye, Jonghun Rye, Bunhun Rye, Eumbok Rye, and Mangyo Rye.

The Dongdaemun Cultural Foundation plans to film the ritual ceremony and upload the video to the Dongdaemun Cultural Foundation’s YouTube channel to ease the disappointment of residents who cannot attend due to the no-audience event.

Yoo Deok-yeol, Mayor of Dongdaemun-gu, stated, “Amid the ongoing crisis caused by COVID-19, we could not give up on our mission to inherit our local traditional culture, so we decided to hold the event on a reduced scale. Although we cannot hold the Seonnong Daeje together with many residents in one place, I hope residents will watch the Seonnong Daeje through the video and pray for a bountiful harvest and overcoming COVID-19.”