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Villagers from Jiexi Jiantan village perform a ritual of “Zha Laoye”, or “Cracking local spirits”, in Chaoshan, Guangdong Province, China, 10 February 2019. Jiexi Jiantan Village celebrates the annual custom of “Zha Laoye” where Laoye are local spirits. Every third day of the lunar New Year, statues of local spirits known as the “Thousand-mile Eye” Laoye and “Ear Following the Wind” Laoye are brought out to the village committee to receive incensed tea offered by believers. By the sixth day of the year, the “Zha Laoye” activities begin with each man holding one of the statues on a chair above his head while run around a bonfire. Two other men light firecrackers strung up on a long bamboo poles and chase the spirit around the bonfire, signifying a bountiful new year. (Photo by EPA/EFE/ZNSEN)
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