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Korean Traditional Religions

Belief in a world inhabited by spirits is probably the oldest form of Korean religious life, dating back to prehistoric times. There is a rather unorganized pantheon of literally millions of gods, spirits, and ghosts, ranging from the "god generals" who rule the different quarters of heaven to mountain spirits (sansin). This pantheon also includes gods who inhabit trees, sacred caves, and piles of stones, as well as earth spirits, the tutelary gods of households and villages, mischievous goblins, and the ghosts of persons who in many cases met violent or tragic ends. These spirits are said to have the power to influence or to change the fortunes of living men and women.

Shamanism elicits negative perceptions among most people. During the Confucian Joseon-era, it was considered a poisonous ideology that deceived and confused people. When western civilization and Christianity made it into Korea, shamanism began to symbolize superstition and primitiveness. Subsequently, the gut?, the most important ritual in Korean shamanism, vanished for the most part. Fortunately, a few gut rituals have been preserved after they were designated as the nation’s important intangible cultural properties. These days, shamanism is categorized as one of the local religions and many regard it as the inspiration for Korean traditional art. It’s a fact that a large part of Korean traditional music was influenced by shamanistic music.

Shamans, most of whom are women, are enlisted by those who want the help of the spirit world. Female shamans (mudang) hold kut, or services, in order to gain good fortune for clients, cure illnesses by exorcising evil spirits, or propitiate local or village gods. Such services are also held to guide the spirit of a deceased person to heaven. Often a woman will become a shaman very reluctantly--after experiencing a severe physical or mental illness that indicates "possession" by a spirit. Such possession allegedly can be cured only through performance of a kut. Once a shaman is established in her profession, she usually can make a good living.

Many scholars regard Korean shamanism as less a religion than a "medicine" in which the spirits are manipulated in order to achieve human ends. There is no notion of salvation or moral and spiritual perfection, at least for the ordinary believers in spirits. The shaman is a professional who is consulted by clients whenever the need is felt. Traditionally, shamans had low social status and were members of the ch'ommin class. This discrimination has continued into modern times.

Animistic beliefs are strongly associated with the culture of fishing villages and are primarily a phenomenon found in rural communities. Shamans also treat the ills of city people, however, especially recent migrants from the countryside who find adjustment to an impersonal urban life stressful. The government has discouraged belief in shamanism as superstition and for many years minimized its persistence in Korean life. Yet in a climate of growing nationalism and cultural self-confidence, the dances, songs, and incantations that compose the kut have come to be recognized as an important aspect of Korean culture. Beginning in the 1970s, rituals that formerly had been kept out of foreign view began to resurface, and occasionally a Western hotel manager or other executive could even be seen attending a shamanistic exorcism ritual in the course of opening a new branch in Seoul. Some of these aspects of kut have been designated valuable cultural properties that should be preserved and passed on to future generations.

Various shamanistic practices are well-developed in Korea. Korean shamanism has deep roots in folk beliefs from ancient times. It is closely related to ancient rites offered to the gods of heaven and has, over time, become infused with Buddhist tradition.

Korean shamanism focuses on solving the problems of daily life through communication between humans and the spiritual world, with shamans acting as liaisons. Shamanistic rituals and rites (referred to as ‘gut’ in Korean) still hold much significance and are still widely observed today.

The 'gut' is a rite in which the shaman offers a sacrifice to the spirits and, through singing and dancing, begs them to intercede in the fortunes of the world. The shaman wears a colorful ritual costume, speaks while in a trance as a spiritual oracle, and sings and dances to the accompaniment of music.

There are three characters that are necessary to perform the 'gut': those from the spirit world, believers praying to those spirits, and the shaman mediating between the spirits and the believers. Specifics of the 'gut' vary depending on the ‘gut’s’ region of origin and the expressed purpose of the ‘gut,’ but the most representative shamanistic rites are the 'byeolsin gut,' which asks the gods for peace and an abundant harvest, the 'byeong gut,' for the recovery of sick family members, and the 'nara gut,' which asks the gods to meet the needs of the king. There is also the 'village gut' that brings together local townspeople to perform ancestral rites ceremonies; festivals are also held to bring regions together. Gangneung is one area that still holds the 'Gangneung Dano Gut' every May 5th of the Lunar Calendar.

Remnants of shamanism are still live and well in modern society. The 'mudang' (a shaman, usually female), 'jeomjip' (fortune telling establishments), 'gut,' and 'saju cafes' (fortunetelling cafes) all are parts of modern society that point to Korea’s traditional shamanistic culture. The overall strength of shamanism has decreased partially due to the spread of Christianity in Korea, but many people still visit a fortuneteller before making a big decision or when faced with a difficult situation. Employment, examinations, and wedding matters are all common reasons for people to see fortunetellers. It is said that fortunetellers can tell both the positive and negative aspect of a person’s future and give good counsel. Some fortunetelling establishments have become so well known for their accurate predictions that they are often frequented by celebrities. The Miari area is home to many fortunetelling establishments in Seongbuk-gu. Recently, many young people have been going to 'saju cafés' to have their fortunes read while enjoying a cup of coffee. All you need to do is tell the fortuneteller your time and date of birth to start your reading. Sinchon, Apgujeong, and E-dae Ap are hot spots for 'saju cafes.'

The Korean people still consider traditional shamanism important and have designated it an official ‘important intangible treasure.’ Many regions hold festivals to carry on this important tradition, including Gyeongsangbuk-do Province's 'Hahoe Byeolsingut Tallori' (traditional masked-dance drama), which asks the gods of the village for peace and a plentiful harvest. The port city of Busan holds the 'Donghaean Byeolsin Gut' and the province of Gyeongsangnam-do holds the 'Namhaean Byeolsin Gut' to pray that fishermen bring in a bountiful catch. These festivals have all been named ‘important intangible treasure’ as they help preserve the culture of shamanism.

“Changbutaryeong” is a song sung by changbus or male clowns, during shamanistic rituals performed in Seoul or Gyeonggi-do Province. Typically, shaman priestesses perform gut services while men are in charge of the music. These male musicians are called changbu. “Changbugeori” is a process that serves the god of Changbu, or the god of these male musicians or clowns. The Changbu god is known to ward off misfortunes year-round and protect the shaman priestesses. Professional singers took this melody and changed the lyrics to express the futility of life, excitement of love and disappointment of a breakup, turning the song into a folksong loved far and wide.

The original lyrics of “Changbugeori” list clowns from all over the country and shaman priestesses casting spells and warding off disasters all through the year. In the folksong version, the lyrics become more down-to-earth about different emotions one experiences throughout life. That is why people nod in agreement or exclaim in awe when they listen carefully to the words. That is what you should do with the next song. This song, also from the Gyeonggi shamanistic ritual, was performed when worshipping a high-level god. The beat may be a little different, but the tune progresses similarly to “Changbutaryeong.” It is assumed that at the end of the Joseon Dynasty, shaman priestesses modified “Changbutaryeong” into a classier version for shamanistic rituals held in the royal palaces. Its lyrics say, “The court is filled with loyal vassals and each household has devoted sons and daughters. Siblings are harmonious and families are happy. Friends are faithful and people will enjoy generations of peace and prosperity with holy monarchs.”

“Daegamnori” is a service for the daegam gods. Generally, the word “daegam” refers to a high-ranking official of the Joseon era. But some people claim that the word “gam” in “daegam” came from an ancient word “geom” which means a god. So in this case, “daegam” actually means a large or a high-level god. Several daegam gods are mentioned in “Daegamnori,” including Teojudaegam, that protects one’s home and Dodangdaegam that safeguards a village. These daegam gods are so generous and easily moved that when villagers offer them plenty of food and entertainment during the rituals, they bless the mortals with large amounts of good fortune and riches.

While traveling in rural Korea, it is not uncommon to come across bird figurines sitting atop tall wooden poles, frightening human face sculptures, or large trees with multi-colored cloths and wishing paper hanging from their branches. They are ancient religious symbols of village guardians that are usually placed at the entrance of villages. They also represent the human desire to connect with the divine that is still deeply imbedded in Korean culture today.

Sotdae are tall wooden poles with bird figurines on top. According to ancient records, shamans and priests of a sacred place called Sodo first erected sotdae as a symbol of sanctity during the Samhan Era (1st century BC-3rd century AD). More recently, sotdae have come to represent prayers for protection from evil spirits and for abundant harvest. They are erected at the entrance of villages, and bags of rice are placed beside them during the twelfth month of the lunar calendar. The poles symbolize the earnest prayers of village folks to Heaven. The bird, usually a duck or goose, symbolizes a messenger between Heaven and Earth. Some sotdae feature a bird with a fish in its beak, illustrating people’s wish to feed a bird on a long journey to Heaven.

Jangseung are wooden or stone totem poles with a human face carved into them. Some say that jangseung transformed from sotdae or seondol (standing stone), while others claim that they came from religion that worships the phallus. All agree that they are symbolic objects of an ancient folk religion still revered today.

Jangseung vary in shape and material by region. In the southern region, jangseung are usually made of stone, and feature round faces with soft, often humorous, expressions. In contrast, jangseung of the northern region are usually made of wood, and have elongated faces with serious and frightening expressions, demonstrated by large angry eyes and wide mouths. The facial expressions are thought to have originated from Korean traditional masks and dokkaebi (scary but friendly demons in Korean folk tales).

Jangseung, like different totem poles found across the world, serve multiple purposes. Like sotdae, they act as village guardians, and are placed at the entrance of a village. They are also believed to cure diseases. In the event of an epidemic, village residents would perform a ritual around the totem pole in hopes of regaining health. Finally, in rare cases, jangseung are posted on the village edges and roadsides to mark the village territory and to show distances between villages.

Sinmok are large, old trees. Records of sinmok can be found in Korea’s first creation legend titled “Dangun Sinhwa.” According to the legend, a bear, in order to turn into a human being, had to endure 100 days inside a cave with no sunlight, eating only mugwort and garlic. After successfully completing the task, the bear transformed into a beautiful woman, who married Hwanung (the son of God) under Sindansu, the sacred tree of Taebaeksan Mountain, and gave birth to Dangun, the founder of Korea. The sindansu, an ancient sinmok, is said to have served as a communication antenna between Heaven and Earth.

To this day, sinmok, also known as Dangnamu, are worshipped as the sacred place of meetings between gods and men, and also as village guardians, much like sotdae and jangseung. As such, they are found on mountains or at the village entrance. They are often adorned with pieces of white paper or multi-colored cloths, and are surrounded by sotdae and jangseung.

A sinmok is usually found midway up a mountain or in a village. It is sometimes hung with white papers or cloth of five colors. Even today, sinmok are deified and protected in villages. The Hahoe Village in Andong, Gyeongsangbuk-do (Historical village of Korea designated as UNESCO World Cultural Heritage) sinmok is 600 years old. Around its girth hang white papers holding the wishes of visitors and locals alike.