Korean Mythology

Korean Shamanism

Korean Mythology

Korean Shamanism

Korean Shamanism, also known as Muism (Korean: 무교 Mugyo "mu [shaman] religion") or Sinism (신교) Singyo "religion of the shin (hanja: 神 ) [gods]", is the ethnic religion of Korea and the Koreans. Although used synonymously, the two terms are not identical: Jung Young Lee describes Muism as a form of Sinism - the shamanic tradition within the religion. Other names for the religion are Shindo (Hangul: 신도; Hanja: 神道; RR: sindo, "Way of the Gods"), Shindoism (Hangul: 신도교; Hanja: 神道敎; RR: sindogyo, "religion of the Way of the Gods"), Gosindo (Hangul: 고신도; Hanja: 古神道, "Way of the Ancestral Gods"),[6][note 2] and Pungwoldo (Hangul: 풍월도; Hanja: 風月道, "Way of Brightness"). It has approximately 5-15 million followers.

In contemporary Korean language, the shaman-priest or mu (Hangul: 무; Hanja: 巫) is known as a mudang (Hangul: 무당; Hanja: 巫堂) if female or baksu if male, although other names are used. Korean mu "shaman" is synonymous with Chinese wu, which defines priests both male and female. The role of the mudang is to act as intermediary between the spirits or gods, and the human plain, through gut (rituals), seeking to resolve problems in the patterns of development of human life.

Central to the faith is the belief in Haneullim or Hwanin, meaning "source of all being", and of all gods of nature, the utmost god or the supreme mind. The mu are mythically described as descendants of the "Heavenly King", son of the "Holy Mother [of the Heavenly King]", with investiture often passed down through female princely lineage. However, other myths link the heritage of the traditional faith to Dangun, male son of the Heavenly King and initiator of the Korean nation.

Korean Muism has similarities with Chinese Wuism, Japanese Shinto, Ainu religion and with the Siberian and Manchurian religious traditions. In some provinces of Korea the shaman is still called dangul dangul-ari. The mudang is similar to the Japanese miko and the Ryukyuan yuta. Muism has exerted an influence on some Korean new religions, such as Cheondoism and Jeung San Do. According to various sociological studies, many Christian churches in Korea make use of practices rooted in shamanism.

The Mu

The Korean word mu is thought to come from the same root as the Chinese wu, defining a shaman-priest of either sex. The Korean language and culture, however, has developed its own terminology: already in Yi dynasty records, mudang is used prevalently instead of mu. Also mudang apparently derives from Chinese, and originally meant the "altar of mu" and not the person itself. The Korean word 'Mu" means "Heaven" of Mago(Samshin, Trinity god) land. The priest for Mu (Heaven) is Muin(巫人) of Shaman. Man in Shaman is the meaning of the muin (man) of Suri(one of Trinity).

Mudang is used mostly for female shamans, though not exclusively. Male Korean mu are called by a variety of names, such as sana mudang (literally "male mudang") in the Seoul area, or baksu mudang, also shortened baksu ("doctor", "healer") in the Pyongyang area. It is reasonable to believe that baksu is an ancient authentic designation of male shamans, and that locutions like sana mudang or baksu mudang were formed because of the prevalence of female shamans in recent centuries. Baksu may come from a Korean adaptation of siberian names for male shamans, such as baksi, balsi or bahsih.