The sancheonje festival being just around the corner, the village chief of Duma-ri, Hongcheon, Gangwon-do is out at the market, accompanied by several residents of his village. They are busy shopping for ingredients needed to prepare sacrificial offerings. This festival dedicated to mountain spirits is a village-level event whose costs are paid from the village's communal fund. Up until 20 years ago, costs for this ceremony were paid with income generated by selling crops from village-owned fields.

When they are done with shopping at the market, they stop by at a pig farm in a nearby village to purchase a pig. Since Dureungsan where they will be performing the rite is a female mountain, they must sacrifice a boar, not a sow.

In the days leading up to the rite, those who will be participating in it have to stay away from all impurities. They must hang a ritual straw rope, which is believed to have the power to ward off evil spirits, outside the gate of their house.

[Interview] I really can't go anywhere. Even when I go to the outhouse, I must check to see if anyone is passing by my house. I am allowed to drink though. But, I am not allowed to get intimate with my wife.… Smoking is strictly prohibited. If you smoke and lie about it, the rice cake won't get cooked.…. This is a centuries-old tradition….

Dumi-ri is a typical Gangwon-do village, enveloped by rugged heights. It includes several small mountain hamlets nearby in addition to the village proper.

Before heading out to the village shrine, the participants bathe themselves and put on proper attire. Both when they leave home and how they dress on the day of the rite are dictated by mountain spirits. This is because in the days leading up to the sancheonje, human beings are not supposed to do things in any way they please. People living in mountainous areas have learned to fear and respect nature. Staying in tune with the natural environment is especially essential for their ability to cope with the severe winter climate.

A candle is lit on top of a large rock outside the shrine. This rock locals call “shaman rock” is the guardian of the shrine. The spirit rock is thus notified that the mountain spirits’ rite will take place on this day.

Once inside the shrine, they place a large rice cake in its own steamer on the altar.

When the rice cake is not well cooked or not properly done, this is believed to bring misfortune upon the village. To avoid this from happening, all participants must cleanse their body and mind and stay away from impurities.

Interestingly, chestnuts and fruits are offered at the altar unpeeled.

When the fully-cooked rice cake is placed on the altar, the preparation is almost complete. This year, the rice cake turned out great. It seems to have been cooked just right. That is probably because all the participants have made sure to stay clear of impurities. Smoking just one cigarette can ruin the rice cake. Can such a belief be simply dismissed as superstition? As a community that has observed this custom for hundreds of years, they must know a thing or two about what to do and what not to do.

The ceremony ends with soji, during which the participants burn sheets of mulberry paper on which are written their prayer for the welfare of the village and prayers for their own households; a step necessary to ensure that the prayers are heard.

(Sound of soji)

They start by burning the prayer sheet for the village, then personal prayers for individual households.

After the ceremony at Sanjidang, sacrificial offerings are taken to Sanjedang where they will be performing another rite.

The rite at Sanjedang concludes when the ears and the snout cut off from the pig's head are thrown into the valley, and a knife is stuck into the pig's mouth.

The participants now descend the mountain, but after a brief rest at home, they again set out, this time, for Butguji where another mountain spirits’ rite is scheduled to take place.

Until not long ago, each village held their own mountain spirits’ rite. But, nowadays, due to a continuously shrinking local population, people of Dumi-ri increasingly hold a joint rite with the residents of nearby Butguji.

When the participants return home at the dawn of the following day, the first thing they do is remove the ritual straw rope hanging outside their gate. This means that all rituals are now over until next year. Villagers gather to share the sacrificial food, which is consumed together with a warm, comforting soup.

Two days later, the pig that was sacrificed for the ritual is boiled to treat village elders to its meat. They sit down over a hefty meal of boiled pork to discuss the affairs of the village. The atmosphere is warm and cheerful. The village ritual thus becomes also a village festival.

The custom of sacrificing to mountain gods has survived in many other mountainous communities across the country, where it is known as "sancheonje" or "sansinje." This custom passed down in communities where people strive to live in harmony with nature rather than at variance with it epitomizes Korea's nature-friendly culture.