The question of how villagers’ beliefs are transmitted has been studied by various scholars. Most research results are based on fieldwork investigating traditional methods of transmission and villagers’ recognition and behavior that continues from the past. However, a currently practiced belief shows many differences to the past, and it is closely related to the changing patterns in villagers’ lives. These changes may be optimistic, but in many places, they have caused discontinued transmission.
Ths paper aims to explore this newly created village ritual. It will focus mostly on the reason and purpose for creating the new ritual. This religious action is not an expression of a past belief; its development came about for a different reason-namely, tourism. However, it is noteworthy that the village that is the main research target of this paper is a good example of how rituals can develop for secular reasons.
Jiwidong village in Gwangju city did not originally have any village rituals. However, when the area had been designated as a flood basin,
many villagers had to relocate. People living on high land could stay, but people in low-lying areas had to leave. To overcome this unpleasant separation, the villagers decide to make new ritual to invite the relocating villagers in to a new village. They enjoyed time together by playing various folk games.
It is interesting to note that the villagers decided to practice a ritual dedicated to a mountain god in addition to performing the Daljip-taewooki, the burning moon house ritual. In comparison to neighboring areas, the date and time for the ritual and the manner of practice are completely different. This is because the villagers chose the ritual mainly to create unity among the people who remained and those who left, instead of following the traditional ritual. In the case of Daljip-taewooki, normally the moon house is built with tree branches or vines, but in Jiwidong, it is made of a pile of earth using forklifts. so it is in the shape of a bowl.
The newly created village ritual is recognised as a means of strengthening solidarity among villagers, rather than representing traditional beliefs. Additionally, the Daljip-taewooki is used for advertising the village’s cash crops of the village. Villagers barbecue and serve food to the people from outside and they play together all day. Certainly, the present paper is limited in scope. Furthcr studies on evaluating this new village ritual’s functional variations and its transmission method need to be conducted.