GAECHEONJEOL: A KOREAN HOLIDAY LEGEND

As I was having dinner with some of my ministry leaders yesterday, I asked them about the origin of the Korean holiday tomorrow which we call, Foundation Day of Korea or Gaecheonjeol. I thought it was about the day that the country was established but to my surprise, I was actually wrong....

They told me that the holiday actually comes from a legend, celebrating the creation of the state of Gojoseon (ancient Korea) founded by Dangun Wanggeom in the year 2333 BC. According to the legend, Hwanung (화웅) who came from heaven, descended to live with mankind and established Korea.

Here's the story according to the legend:

Legend has it that Hwan-ung, the son of Hwan-in (who was the God of All and the ruler of Heaven), yearned to live on Earth among the valleys and the mountains. His father sent him and 3,000 helpers to rule Earth and provide humans with great happiness.

Hwan-ung descended to Mount T'aebaeksan on the border between Manchuria and what is now North Korea. He named the place Shinshi, City of God. Along with his ministers of clouds, rain, and wind, he instituted laws and moral codes and taught the humans various arts, medicine, and agriculture.

A tiger and a bear living in a cave together prayed to become human. Upon hearing their prayers, Hwan-ung called them to him and gave them 20 cloves of garlic and a bunch of mugwort. He then ordered them to only eat this sacred food and remain out of the sunlight for 100 days. The tiger shortly gave up and left the cave. However, the bear remained true and after 21 days was transformed into a woman.

 The bear-woman was very grateful and made offerings to Hwan-ung. However, lacking a companion she soon became sad and praved beneath a sandalwood tree to be blessed with a child. Hwan-ung, moved by her prayers, took her for his wife and soon she gave birth to a handsome son. They named him Tan-gun, meaning "Altar Prince" or sandalwood.

Tan-gun developed into a wise and powerful leader and in 2333 BC moved to P'yongyang and established the Choson ("Land of the Morning Calm") Kingdom. Finally, at the age of 1,908, he returned to T'aebaeksan where he became a mountain god.

This was enacted as a national holiday in 1909. I find it strange yet interesting that a national holiday is actually a legend, which by definition is an unauthenticated narrative. HOW COOL IS THAT?



Bibliography:
"The Legend of Tan-Gun" http://kspark.kaist.ac.kr/~Biblical%20Cosmology/ Cosmology. files/ Tangun_E.htm , accessed October 02, 2011.