How Koreans once welcomed New Year — like royal demon hunters

On the English-language website of the National Gugak Center, “Narye” is described as a royal exorcism rite, a year-end ritual and celebration through which Korean ancestors sought to drive out evil spirits and welcome the new year. From that brief introduction, one can expect a traditional, palace-scale version of “KPop Demon Hunters.” Historical records trace Narye back to at least the year 1040, the sixth year of King Jeongjong’s reign in the Goryeo Kingdom (918-1392). The record does not des