As a form of performing arts, Xoan singing includes singing, dancing, drumming and clapper beating. It is closely attached to the Worship of the Hùng Kings, founders of the country. Phú Thọ people created Xoan singing and performed it at the village communal houses, temples and shrines worshipping the Hùng Kings in springs. “Xoan” means “spring”. Bearers and practitioners form four guilds, in which the male and female Trum play the most important role; they preserve the songs, select students, transmit the singing styles and repertoires and organize practices. They are also active in introducing and teaching Xoan singing at the four Xoan guilds, and in clubs and guilds. A full Xoan performance cycle includes 3 phases: Worship singing (Hát thờ) with songs praising the virtues of the Hùng Kings and the village guardian deities; Invocation for good health and fortune (Quả cách) with 14 repertoires praising nature, humankind, and the daily life of the community; Festive singing (hát Hội) with songs featuring the couple love. The special characteristic of Xoan is the modulation between singers and instrumentalists at the perfect fourth interval, and it has a simple structure with few ornamental notes. Xoan dance's movements have a sense of imitativeness, illustrating people's daily life activities. After singing at their communal houses from the 2nd - 5th day of the Lunar New Year, the Xoan guilds travel to other communities venerating Hùng Kings to take part in convivial cultural exchanges. Xoan practitioners are organized into music guilds called Phường. The Leader of each guild is called “Trùm”. In the past, only men could be “Trùm”, but nowadays women could also be leaders. The Leaders are in charge of transmission and organization of activities of the guilds. At present, each guild comprises of 30 - 100 members. Men are called “kép”, women are “đào”. As a community performing art, Xoan singing fosters cultural understanding, community cohesion and mutual respect. The Vietnamese Institute for Musicology has collected 31 Xoan songs, and thanks to the efforts of several Xoan artists four guilds have been established. 33 dedicated clubs also exist, and seminars are held to expand knowledge of Xoan.

Viet Nam 2017

Lomba is a popular local New Year celebration observed in the villages of Paro and Haa districts. Lomba is a celebration for the beginning of a New Year, which takes place from the 29th day of the 10th month of the lunar calendar. It is one of the most special annual occasions for the Parops and Haaps, residents of the valleys. The name “Lomba” expresses carrying good luck from one year to another. Ba literally means receiving wealth in one’s hand or to carry something forward, leaving the past behind. Lomba is celebrated by Haaps and Parops as a New Year festival from the 29th day of the 10th month of the lunar calendar. In Haa, Lomba often lasts until the 15th day of the 11th month, while Parops have a shorter celebration until the 2nd day of the 11th month. Although Lomba has been part of the culture of the two valleys for many generations, making it difficult to trace the origin. No specific written text has been found for early observances so far. According to folk understandings, some believe that Lomba began with the arrival of Phajo Drugom Zhigpo in the 13th century, while some believe that it began much earlier when men started working for food. According to Dasho Sangay Dorji (2011), Lomba observed in Paro and Haa districts may be the legacy of the Lhapas, but in some religious texts, the Lomba celebration dates to an influence from Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyel (1594-1651) who consolidated the Bhutanese region into a state in 1649. Himself hailing from Tibet to the north, he first introduced Bhutanese to the celebration of Nyi-lo winter solstice. The day marked the end of the year and welcomed another year of prosperity with bountiful harvest. With adequate food reserve stored on the rooftop, Haaps and Parops began to recognize the day as Lomba and ushered in the beginning of the dry season of winter. Temples and monasteries in the country would have also received the annual provisions of butter, meat, rice and wheat grains on Lomba. Since then, Lomba is celebrated every year, which would make it the earliest New Year festival celebrated in any district of Bhutan.

The name for this festival brings together two words, Lha means god and Soel means offering or prayer. The tradition in Sangbekha is primarily a Bon practice. Bon was a diverse body of localized ritual practices flourishing in Tibet before Buddhism expanded into the region. According to Sam Van Schaik (2013), Bon or the Bonpo religion, only emerged as a unified body of practices when put in contrast to Buddhist practice as the “othered” alternative to Buddha’s teachings. Following the eleventh century, the diverse practices organized and formalized in conversation with contemporary practices. Scriptures emerged, mainly through Terma hidden treasures, and visions of Tertons who discover the treasures such as Loden Nyingpo. Although Bon Terma contain legends that Bon existed before the introduction of Buddhism to Tibet, Van Shaik notes "the 'old religion' was in fact a new religion." Following these developments and reforms of the practices to eliminate animal sacrifices, some scholars consider Bon to be a distinct sub-school within Tibetan Buddhism. Over time, Buddhism became more popular and Bon practice waned. The Bon tradition also existed in Bhutan before Buddhism took hold. Although the Bon tradition is not as strongly recognized by the people of Bhutan, it still existed in every corner of the country, making this tradition one of the oldest in Bhutan. The Bon tradition takes refuge in the earth, rocks, cliffs, trees, sun, moon, stars, etc. are the protectors, and formerly involved offering animals in sacrifice. The Bon practitioners in Wangdiphodrang Dzongkhag or district, such as the communities of Gaseng Tshogom, Khatoekha and Lhashing Tsawa, performed a common ritual known as Lha-soel every three years. The ritual is organized by one of the Pawo male shamen, and Neljorm or Pamo female shaman, of each village. They alternate hosting the program every three years. The organizer of the year prepares for the rituals, tents are pitched near the organizer's house and the Lha-soel ritual takes two whole days. In an interview with 68-year-old female shaman Aum, elder, Kencho Om has been a Pamo for 25 years in Nakey-kha village in Sangbekha gewog, Haa Dzongkhag a district of eastern Bhutan. She said that the Pamos are the same as Nyeljoms and are common throughout central and eastern Bhutan. They are the female mediums who are possessed by local deities. Their job is to diagnose and cure diseases through divination and rituals. It is believed that the abilities of Pamo continuously persist through the family line. When a practitioner dies, the spirit passes to her daughter. However, it depends on the decision of the deity to choose the legitimate “wife” to inherit the role among the daughters or granddaughters. Aum Kencho has no formal education, but learned the and rituals transmitted through their family line. According to her, Pamo play an important psychological and healing role in a rural society where the supernatural is a part of life. They do what others cannot, such as mediate through the mind. The Bhutanese believe that illnesses are due to an imbalance in the various elements that make up the body, and that they are often caused by one of the numerous vengeful spirits associated with certain symptoms that consist of Tsa energy channels, the Lung wind channel, and the Thig-le seed channel in the human body. When these channels unbalance each other, it causes illness. The Lha-soel is held at the beginning of the 6th month (July) and another in the 12th month (January) according to the Bhutanese calendar. It is performed twice a year (summer and winter). In summer, they perform a shortened ritual (Due-pa) in the evening, while in winter they perform a grand ritual (Gye-pa) that usually lasts from evening to the next morning. Although there is no specific time, the ritual is performed either on the 8th, 10th, 15th, 25th and 30th of the month.

Held from March 14-16, since 1926 to commemorate the merits of the village czar Đặng Văn Trước. On the morning of the 14th, they invited the deity from Ong Elder temple to Gia Loc family. After the head of the ceremonial committee asked for the seal, the Chief of the ceremony took the deity out, wrapped it in a new towel, and placed it on the palanquin. After offering Tien Vang is the ceremony of Tuc Yet. Items include: roast pig, live pig, sticky rice, tea cake, flowers, wine. After the drum is poured 'sacred reception', on the background of music, the components according to regulations make offerings to the Citadel. Next is the ritual of blessing and prosperity. The ceremony of building adoration - great boi is an important ceremony. It is indispensable to build adoration drums. The adoration builder is an elderly person who knows the etiquette. The adoration drum must be placed in the right direction to avoid taboos with the celebrant.

The offering of Kathin cloth or Kathin cloth is a ritual that believers or even monks perform rituals in temples to make Kathin cloth. There are two kinds of Kathin as "Choun la Kathin" is small Kathin and "Ma Ha Kathin" is big Kathin. Kathin has a fixed time for offerings. cannot be offered forever like any other cloth. This time, with only one month from the waning days of the first lunar month to the 11th day of the 15th lunar month 12 (12 lunar months), this period is called the transitional period Katin ceremony or festival. We also take place in the temple. Laotians march around the church three times carrying money trees and cloth for the monks. According to the beliefs of the Lao people, This acacia festival is organized for remedies or utilitarian benefits: (1) maintaining traditional good not to cease (2) is followed Buddha draws upon the breed of the Prophet (3) of the Securities and life with Russell kernels night (4) creates solidarity between Buddhist agency (5) a road to heaven and nirvana for themselves.

One of the religions practiced in Vietnam is Buddhism. With that, it is undeniable how scattered Buddhist temples are in this country. During my travel there, we were able to enter these temples and see the intricate the designs of the architecture and how 'golden' the offerings are.