Korean Traditional Game : Deungbul Nori

🏮 Korean Traditional Game Series 49

Deungbul Nori (Chorong Kyeogi)
(등불놀이 · 초롱 켜기 · Korean Lantern Light Play)

---

🕰️ 1. Introduction

Deungbul Nori (등불놀이), also known as Chorong Kyeogi (초롱 켜기 · Lantern Lighting), is one of Korea’s most beautiful and heartwarming traditional night-time plays.
It was especially popular during festive seasons such as Chuseok (harvest festival) and Jeongwol Daeboreum (the first full moon of the lunar year), when the soft glow of lanterns filled the dark sky.

Children made and carried paper lanterns (chorong) lit by candles, walking together through fields and village roads.
The gentle light symbolized warmth, hope, and the wish for brightness in life — both literally and spiritually.
This game, though simple, embodied a sense of wonder: turning darkness into joy through shared light.

---

🪄 2. How to Make and Play

1. Making the lantern (Chorong):
   Children used thin paper, bamboo frames, and strings to craft small lanterns in shapes of circles, stars, or animals.
   Inside, a candle or oil wick was placed to create a flickering light.
2. Lighting the night:
   As evening fell, children gathered to light their lanterns one by one, protecting the small flames from wind with their hands.
   The warm glow turned the night paths golden, and laughter echoed through the fields.
3. Playing and walking:
   Some played games like “whose lantern burns the longest,” while others sang traditional songs such as
   “불 밝혀라 초롱 밝혀라, 밝은 세상 오너라!” (“Light the lanterns, bring the bright world!”).
   When the candles finally burned out, it was said that all bad luck of the year disappeared with the smoke.

---

👀 3. Example from Life

On a cool autumn evening, children gather with their handmade lanterns.
Soft paper glows red and yellow, reflecting on their smiling faces.
They walk side by side through rice fields, their small lights dancing like stars fallen to earth.

In the quiet night, their voices blend with the sound of crickets —
“Look! Mine’s still burning!” one laughs, while another’s lantern gently goes dark.
It is a simple, fleeting moment, but one that glows in memory — like light carried through generations.

---

🌏 4. Similar Traditions Around the World

• China: Lantern Festival (Yuanxiao Jie), celebrating the end of Lunar New Year with glowing paper lanterns.
• Japan: Toro Nagashi, floating lanterns to honor ancestors.
• Thailand: Loy Krathong, where candle-lit baskets float down rivers as symbols of renewal.

These festivals, like Korea’s Deungbul Nori, share the belief that light brings hope — illuminating not just the night, but the human heart.

---

💌 Closing Words

Deungbul Nori teaches us that even a single candle can brighten the darkness.
It celebrates warmth, community, and the courage to bring light where shadows fall.
In every softly glowing lantern, one can feel the timeless wish of Koreans — for peace, togetherness, and bright tomorrows.

---

📌 Note
This is a creative cultural content from the Misojieum Story Blog (kor-telling.com).
Please do not copy without permission.
Sharing is welcome with proper source citation.