Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Korean shamanism'

This thesis aims to show the wide spectrum of Korean shamanism, not only by exploring a body of images of Korean shamanism that has been established on the level of academic discourse, but also by illustrating the practices of modern shamans and clients. I mean by the words “a wide spectrum of Korean shamanism” that there are multiple images and realities subsumed under the title of Korean shamanism. Not only negatively associated concepts, such as “superstition,” “magic,” “primitive” and so on, but also positive images coexist on the contemporary spectrum of Korean shamanism. Those images do not remain limited to academia, but also shape the reality of Korean shamanism, having been appropriated by governmental policies as well as by shamans themselves. I call it “looping effects between images and realities” in Korean shamanism. In order to show the looping effect in Korean shamanism, I first analyze the historical development of the shamanism-image which has been configured within official discourses in specific intellectual and social contexts. Various identifications and classifications of Korean shamanism are placed along the spectrum of Korean shamanism anchored by two extreme images, “the negative image” and “the positive one.” I will then show how those images of Korean shamanism affect Korean shamans’ identity-making process and even the reconfiguration of Korean shamanism itself. Here, academic discourses are perceived as one constituent of contemporary Korean shamanism. As another factor in the formation of the plural realities of Korean shamanism, I suggest the dynamic relationship between shaman and client. For over one hundred years, Koreans have experienced radical changes in the realms of spirituality and materiality. In accordance with these changes, many fundamental values, such as modern scientific rationalism and the religious worldview, have competed with each other. In this circumstance, Korean shamans try to enforce a shamanic worldview through ritual activities, and their ritual activities are reorganized according to their contemporary clients’ various desires which reflect specific situations. In conclusion, in this dissertation, I contend that all these feedback processes, between images and realities and between shaman and client, have constructed the plurality of Korean shamanism.

This thesis focuses on the binary opposition between Yahwistic prophecy and shamanistic practices and the coexistence of various religious professionals in the Bible - prophets, magicians and diviners - who continually challenge theological distinctions set by the central religious hierarchy. My research explores Korean shamanism: from its basic worldview to the characteristics of shamanic practitioners and rituals, and to its syncretism with other religions, in which compatibility with the Korean authentic spirituality is the key to the successful settlement of missionary religions. Various shamanic models are proposed to find resources for the parallel study between the biblical faiths and practices and Korean shamanism, such as: the spiritual calling of prophetic figures in the Bible and of Korean shamanic neophytes; the paradox of prophetic condemnation against magic and divination employed by ‘others’, when similar techniques are used by the Old Testament prophets as a sign of divine connection; and the rite of passage of prophetic and shamanic practitioners, as a bridge between the secular and the sacred. Through a close reading of the prophetic narratives, this thesis resists what appears to be the dominant voice in the interpretative tradition of the Bible in the Korean church - a polarity between a central or Christian religion and a popular or shamanic spirituality - and points out that the Bible itself is a rich depository of competing religious systems and models, with which Bible readers from various religious and cultural backgrounds can identify or compare in their own environments.

Thesis (Ed.D.) -- Teachers College, Columbia University, 1991.
Typescript; issued also on microfilm. Sponsor: Douglas M. Sloan. Dissertation Committee: William B. Kennedy. Includes bibliographical references: (leaf 139-143).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Indiana University, Dept. Folklore and Ethnomusicology, 2007.
Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 68-09, Section: A, page: 4015. Advisers: Richard Bauman; Roger L. Janelli. Title from dissertation home page (viewed May 7, 2008).

Notre questionnement porte sur l’imaginaire coréen, et plus largement sur l’apport de l’anthropologie culturelle éclairant l’imaginaire sociétal et culturel coréen. Notre méthodologie est bâtie sur les écoles philosophiques et mythologiques françaises du XXe siècle pour la raison qu’elles sont le mieux à même de nourrir notre réflexion et de révéler sous un jour inédit et complémentaire les travaux sur ces questions déjà effectués en Corée. Nous pouvons ainsi démontrer que les symboles coréens ont une portée universelle. Notre corpus réunit des œuvres littéraires coréennes desquelles sont tirées des images archétypales. L’analyse en est faite à partir des conceptions de G. Bachelard (1884-1962) sur l’image symbolique et sur l’anthropologie de l’imaginaire de G. Durand (1921-2012). Tout en décrivant la rationalité scientifique, Bachelard valorise l’image mentale en la considérant comme une force créative et pas seulement comme un obstacle épistémologique. Il évoque plusieurs « complexes » dans son œuvre sur l’imaginaire poétique dans une conception proche de celle de C. G. Jung pour qui le complexe ne se ramène pas à un blocage psychique mais inclut la créativité. Le complexe bachelardien ne se sépare ainsi pas de la pensée freudienne du pansexualisme. Quant à Durand, dans Les Structures anthropologiques de l’imaginaire (1960), il élabore une grammaire de l’imaginaire en proposant une trentaine de complexes qui viennent enrichir ceux établis par Bachelard, O. Rank (1884-1939), M. Bonaparte (1882-1962) ou C. Baudouin (1893-1963). Pour Durand, la notion de complexe s’apparente à celle du mythème, comme étant la plus petite unité du discours et est mythiquement significative en révélant un symptôme psychique de l’inconscient collectif. Durand développe sa Mythodologie dans sa deuxième période avec les deux concepts de mythocritique et de mythanalyse. La mythocritique est une méthode de critique littéraire et la mythanalyse une méthode d’analyse socio-culturelle de l’imaginaire. Notre exploration de l’image littéraire de l’Antiquité au début du XXe siècle intègre ainsi les mythes, les contes populaires, les légendes et les chansons folkloriques afin de cerner l’identité culturelle du peuple coréen et montrer son caractère d’universalité. Les deux axes qui caractérisent la mythologie coréenne sont le mythe de fondation de l’État et le mythe chamanique. Pour le premier, la grande œuvre du Samguk yusa (1283) est indispensable car elle relate deux mythes de fondation notamment, le mythe de fondation de l’État du royaume de Kojosŏn et celui de Koguryŏ. Ces deux mythes sont référents à cause de leurs figures archétypales qui se déclinent par le mythème de l’ours et celui de l’œuf et les personnages féminins divins d’Ungnyŏ et d’Yu-hwa qui sont en relation avec ces mythèmes. Nous observons leurs redondances dans les époques ultérieures, notamment dans les récits sur les souffrances endurées par les femmes. L’histoire de Changhwa et de Hongnyŏn sont exemplaires car elles induisent un fait social marquant la dynastie Chosŏn et qui typifie ainsi la société coréenne en faisant de la figure féminine un bouc-émissaire du pouvoir masculin pris dans le système du patriarcat confucéen. Ce motif apparaît dans le récit de la « princesse Pari » qui est un chant chamanique et dans le récit de « Sim Ch’ŏng » qui est l’expression d'un rite chamanique, ou p’ansori, ou roman. Parmi les chansons folkloriques, la plus célèbre est l’Arirang ou sijipsarinorae qui reprend également le même schéma du dépassement des souffrances moyennant un sentiment particulier et proprement coréen, le han (恨). Le Han a la particularité d’être dynamique et contradictoire en étant fondé sur une dialectique subtile qui introduit une force vitale contre la dépression ou l’anxiété. Le Han a une fonction de régulation de la société en tant que figure de l’imagination symbolique et qui apparaît comme universelle
The purpose of our investigation is the Korean imaginary, and more broadly the contribution of cultural anthropology illuminating social imaginary and Korean culture. Our methodology integrates the contribution of French philosophical and mythological studies of the 20th century, because they are the best ones to nourish our reflection and show in a new and complementary way the work already done in Korea. We can therefore show that Korean symbols are universal in scope. Our study material incorporates Korean literary work which comes from archetypical images. To analyze them, we will rely on the conceptions of symbolic imaginary thinking from G. Bachelard on symbolic images and on the anthropological of the imaginary elaborated by G. Durand. All the while describing scientific rationality, Bachelard valued the mental image, considering it as a creative force and not only as an epistemological obstacle. He evoked several “complexes” in his work on poetic imaginary in a conception close to that of C.G. Jung for whom the notion of complex does not amount to a psychic block but includes creativity. The Bachelardian idea of complex therefore does not demarcate from Freudian thinking on pansexuality. According to Durand, in The Anthropological Structures of the Imaginary (1960), the author elaborated a grammar of the imaginary by proposing thirty complexes that came to enrich those established by Bachelard, O. Rank, M. Bonaparte and C. Baudouin. For Durand, the notion of complex is similar to that of the mytheme, as the smallest unit of discourse mythically significant, that reveals a psychic symptom of the collective unconscious. Durand develops his methodology in his second period with two concepts: mythocriticism and mythanalysis. Mythocriticism is a method of literary criticism, or rather a method of literary studies, and mythanalysis is a method of socio-cultural analysis of the imaginary, the two complementing the other. Our exploration of the literary image from Antiquity to the start of the 20th century integrates myths, popular tales and legends, allowing us to determine the cultural identity of the Korean people and show its universality. The two axes that characterize Korean mythology are the foundation of the state and the shamanic myth (the narrative song of the shaman). For the first axis, the great work of Samguk Yusa (1283) remains essential as it relates two foundational myths, notably the myth of the foundation of the Kingdom of Kojosŏn and that of Koguryŏ. These two myths are references because their archetypal figures take the form of the mytheme of the bear and that of the egg and the divine feminine characters of Ungnyŏ and Yu-hwa in relationship to these mythemes. We observe their repetitions in ulterior epochs, notably in the stories of suffering endured by women. The story of Changhwa and Hongnyŏn are exemplary as they induce social facts of the Chosŏn Dynasty, which marks Korean society by making the female figure a scapegoat for masculine power in the Confusion patriarchal system. This motif appears in the story of the “Princess Pari” in the form of a Shamanic song but also in the story of “Sim Ch’ŏng” expressed in the form of shamanic rite, or the p’ansori, or the novel. Among folkloric songs, the most famous are those of Arirang or Sijipsarinorae which equally pick up on the same patterns of overcoming suffering through a particular and properly Korean feeling, the “han (恨)”. The Han has that distinction of being dynamic and contradictory as it is founded on a subtle dialectic that introduces a vital force against resignation, depression, and anxiety. The Han serves a societal regulatory function as a figure of imaginary symbolism and that appears as universal

La tradition se balance entre la continuité de l’ancien et l’évolution, le changement. C’est le cas du sinawi, une des musiques instrumentales populaires de la Corée. Cette musique complexe, improvisée et hétérophonique, interprétée par un ensemble instrumental qui était utilisée lors des rituels chamaniques comme accompagnement du chant et de la danse des chamanes, est devenu au fil du temps une musique purement instrumentale de scène et artistique représentant la tradition populaire du pays. Dans cette thèse, l’auteur propose particulièrement une étude analytique des caractéristiques musicales (phrases musicales, forme) des divers sinawi à partir de ses transcriptions pour percevoir comment le sinawi parle, exprime la vie du peuple puis comment celui-ci évolue dans le temps et pour observer ainsi son évolution et son artistisation jusqu’à nos jours où il est présenté comme une musique purement instrumentale de scène. Cette musique qui est à l’origine des musiques populaires coréennes les plus connues comme le sanjo ou le p’ansori est aujourd’hui influencée de retour par ces genres. Aussi, les analyses permettent de constater que l’improvisation et l’hétérophonie qui qualifiaient cette musique complexe sont remplacées par la simplicité et la structure
The tradition emerges from a balance between the continuity and the evolution, the change of the old. This is the case of sinawi, one of the Korean traditional instrumental music. This complex, improvised and heterophonic music played by an instrumental ensemble was used in shamanic rituals as accompaniment of song and dance of shamans. Over time, it became an artistic instrumental music representing the popular tradition of the country. Throughout this thesis, the author proposes the analytical studies of various sinawi’s musical characteristics (e.g., musical phrases, form) from her own transcriptions. This study characterizes how the sinawi speaks, expresses the life of the people and how it has been changing over time. The author also presents sinawi’s evolution and its artistisation process to the present day where it is performed on stage as a pure instrumental music. The sinawi, which is at the origin of the Korean popular music, the best known as sanjo or p'ansori, is now influenced back by these genres. Also, the analysis reveals that the improvisation and the heterophony that rated this complex music are replaced by the structure and the simplicity

Since the reformation, from the seventeenth century onwards, the christian church has evangelised through missionary activity. Church growth has been rapid in the second half of the twentieth century, particularly in third world countries. This phenomenon has given rise to the development of Missiology and the Study of Church growth as independerit; fields of theology. In this dissertation, the historically unpreledented growth of the Korean Church has been analyzed as singularly important model for Church Growth Theology. This study is concerned with the relationship between Church Growth and Shamanism as the traditional Korean Religion. It focuses on special elements of Korean Church Growth, including the translation of the Bible prior to the entry of missionaries, the astounding numerical growth of Church membership, and the prominence of Christians in social and political structures. The contribution of specific social conditions, pastoral zeal, and 'early prayer' and Bible study movements to Church growth are examined. More important, however, is the influence of elements of Shamanism in establishing Christianity as a popular religion. The affinities between Christian Doctrine and Shamanistic practices, in particular, the decisive role of Shaman, are explored, and both the positive and negative aspects of the melding of the two religions identified. While the increasing power and wealth of the Korean Church and the remarkable capacity for self-prorogation have been manifested in its extensive missionary programmes, the principle task confronting the church is how to dispel the compromising or damaging features of Shamanism from Korean Christianity. Since similar problems occur in other world Churches which encounter indigenous religions in the process of evangelism, it is hope that this hesitation will eliminate possible accommodations, between Christianity and traditional beliefs, and provide a basis for subsequent studies of Church Growth.
Thesis (M.A.)-University of Durban-Westville, 1993.

This dissertation examines the discursive production of mudang, also known as shamans, during the late Chosŏn Dynasty (eighteenth to nineteenth-centuries) and during the Japanese colonial period in Korea (1910-1945). The many discursive sites on mudang articulated various types of difference, often based on gender and urban/rural divides. This dissertation explores four bodies of work: eighteenth to nineteenth-century neo-Confucian reformist essays, late nineteenth-century western surveys of Korea, early twentieth-century newspapers and journals, and early ethnographic studies. The mudang was used throughout this period to reinforce gendered distinctions, prescribe spatial hierarchies, and promote capitalist modernity. In particular, institutional developments in shamanism studies under colonial rule, coupled with an expanded print media critique against mudang, signalled the needs and desires to pronounce a distinct indigenous identity under foreign rule. Chapter one traces three pre-colonial discursive developments, Russian research on Siberian shamanism under Catherine the Great, neo-Confucian writings on "mudang," and Claude Charles Dallet’s late nineteenth-century survey of Korean indigenous practices. Chapter Two examines the last decade of the nineteenth-century, studying the simultaneous emergence of Isabella Bird Bishop’s expanded discussion on Korean shamanism alongside early Korean newspapers’ social criticisms of mudang. Chapter Three looks at Korean newspapers and journals as the source and product of an urban discourse from 1920-1940. Chapter Four examines the same print media to consider why mudang were contrasted from women as ethical household consumers and scientific homemakers. Chapter Five looks at Ch’oe Nam-sŏn and Yi Nŭng-hwa’s 1927 treatises on Korean shamanism as a celebration of ethnic identity which became a form of intervention in an environment where Korean shamanism was used to justify colonial rule.

碩士
中國文化大學
韓國語文研究所
97
Abstract A Comparison Study on Shamans of Korea and Taiwan Hung-Ping, Lu Graduate School of Korean Language and Literature Chinese Culture University Shamanism is probably the oldest form of religious practice, referring to belief in a world inhabited by spirits which dates back to prehistoric times. Shamans’s roles and images are generally categorized as sick or abnormal, that is very negative and undesirable in social or cultural terms. This thesis intends to investigate and analyze the conceptions of shamanism, comparing Korean shamans with Taiwanese ones. Korean shamans, known as ‘mu-dang(巫堂)’, are similar in many ways to those found in Siberia, Mongolia, and Manchuria. As in the same Asian culture, Taiwanese shamans, known as ‘dang-gi(童乩)’, show rather similar folk religious practices in the communities with Korean shamans, including the worship of Buddhist gods, the concerns which are addressed to shamans, the ways in which shamans establish credibility, the significance of gods and ancestors in accounts of misfortune, etc. However, this thesis directs attention to very profound local differences which can exist in the midst of apparent similarity. One of the major differences is the central feature of a Korean shaman’s initiation, which is her affliction with an illness known as a ‘spirit sickness(神病)’. A ritual called a‘naerim-gut(降神祭儀)’ cures this illness, which also serves to induct the new shaman. Another difference can be found in a shamanistic rite where the shaman offers a sacrifice to the spirits to intercede in the fortunes of the humans in question. The central form of Korean shamanistic rite, known as ‘gut(巫祭儀)’, consists of singing and dancing as a shaman’s way to offer entertaining sacrifice in order to beg the gods to intercede in dealing with the problems of people. However, Taiwanese shamanistic rite relies heavily on offering bloody sacrifices by means of such methods as mutilating oneself and so on. Centering around the local differences and similarity of Korean mu-dang and Taiwanese dang-gi, this thesis attempt to explain several aspects of shamanism in both countries such as the social implication, the type of shaman’s initiation, ritual clothes and instrument, central process of rituals, offerings and expenses and so so. This thesis lacks of materials gathered from fieldwork owing to the author’s unavoidable circumstances, and thus the research inevitably relies heavily on references from previous studies. It is hoped that this study will provide additional insight into shamans’ world in Korea and Taiwan, and further research needs to be done with more historical documents and field work materials.

Korean folk religion is often mentioned in the publications of western Christian missionaries, who have carried out their missionary work in Korea and it has also become a popular research topic of Japanese researchers during the time of Japanese annexation of Korea (1910-1945). This thesis compares the contents of chosen publications from the first half of 20th century of western and Japanese authors that deal with Korean shamanism in hope of confirming or refute the hypothesis that Korean negative view of the Japanese research is caused not by the factual mistakes in said publications, but rather is due to the rivalry between both nations. Unfortunately, while absolute confirmation or refutation of the hypothesis was not possible, we can see a tendency of Korean academia to excuse the mistakes in publications of western authors due to their lack of knowledge of the Korean culture and on the other hand dismiss the Japanese research because of the authors' connection to the colonial government.