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Participants in the “Changdeok Palace Pharmacy” program on Monday at the 7th Royal Culture Festival make herb pouches with herbs used in Oriental medicine. (Kim Hye-yun/The Hankyoreh)

The 2021 Royal Culture Festival kicked off its nine-day run last Saturday and will run through next Sunday. The festival, marking its seventh anniversary this year, has attracted about 3.8 million visitors since it began in 2015 and is the largest cultural heritage festival in South Korea.

Participants in the “Changdeok Palace Pharmacy” program on Monday at the 7th Royal Culture Festival make herb pouches with herbs used in Oriental medicine. (Kim Hye-yun/The Hankyoreh)

Under the slogan “Palace, heals the mind,” the festival features various offline events organized around the theme of “rest” at Gyeongbok, Changdeok, Deoksu, Changgyeong and Gyeonghui Palaces as well as the Jongmyo Shrine – all in central Seoul. The festival also features online events which will run until the end of the year.

Participants in the “Changdeok Palace Pharmacy” program on Monday at the 7th Royal Culture Festival make herb pouches with herbs used in Oriental medicine. (Kim Hye-yun/The Hankyoreh)

The programs include a movie screening event titled “Cinema Palace” on the front yard of Heungbog House at Gyeongbok Palace, where King Gojong of the Joseon Dynasty greeted foreign diplomats; meditation sessions titled “Shimkung, Shimgung” inside the five palaces; a creative writing and drawing event at Jibbok House in Changgyeong Palace, where King Jeongjo of Joseon enjoyed reading books; and “Changdeok Palace Pharmacy,” where participants can touch and examine herbs and ingredients used in Oriental medicine.

For more information, visit www.royalculturefestival.org.

By Kim Hye-yun, staff reporter

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