Phu Tho Province, Vietnam
Farmers re-enact the scene of silk production during a ritual ceremony as part of a cultural fertility...
Farmers, in traditional costume, re-enact the scene of silk production during a ritual ceremony as part of a cultural fertility ceremony at the Tro Tram temple in Vietnam's northern province of Phu Tho, 100 km (62 miles) northwest of Hanoi February 2, 2012. The ceremony, which involves placing a wooden dowel symbolising a penis into a wooden block symbolising a vagina, is northern Vietnam's only fertility ceremony and it is organised annually by rice farmers to worship fertility parts on midnight between the 11th and 12th days of the first month of the lunar calendar. According to cultural researchers and the elders in the village, after the ceremony people leave the temple and may have free sexual encounters with others without jealousy for one night. Villagers believe that a successful ceremony will help them have a productive year in agriculture, livestock and the development of the community. Picture taken February 2. REUTERS/Kham (VIETNAM - Tags: SOCIETY)