14 days left for ‘Scattering’ to meet its Kickstarter goal

Thanks for all your pledges! The kickstarter for ‘Scattering’ has 14 days left to reach its campaign goal. The Kickstarter is all or nothing so please help me reach my goal so I can print a beautiful and fascinating photo book. You can help by pledging any amount and/ or sharing with someone who might…

Kickstarter Link, 13% to the goal Update

Hi all! I’ve 17 days to go to meet my kickstarter goal for the new 150 page, full color photobook about shamanism and crows on Jeju Island in South Korea. I’m having a little bit of trouble with the embed, so I’ve pasted the link below. Thanks so much Korea Times for the article. And…

Announcement of new project, crowdfunding campaign

Hello all! Alas I have returned to Jeju Island to finish a project I started before the pandemic. I’m launching a kickstarter to fund the new, fancy book. If you can contribute or share with friends, followers or anyone who might be interested please, please do 🙂 I’ll be back soon with some updates. HERE…

A Guide to Shamanism on Jeju Island, Post Nine: Snake Shrines

Snake deity worship is not limited only to the pantries and gardens of Jeju Island homes. There are also village shrines dedicated to the worship of serpents—whose origins differ from that of the Chilseong gods. These deities play the role of shrine deities, like those found in all Jeju villages. In the case of these…

A Guide to Shamanism on Jeju Island, Post Five: The House Gods Redux

The Gods of the Munjeon Epic Redux: Yeosan Buin—The Hearth Goddess, protects Jeju women in their daily lives, gives them strength to manage their work and their families, her epic serves to reinforce the independent spirit needed to overcome hardship and survive as an island woman Namseonbi—the compost shed god, the father of the Munjeon…

A Guide to Shamanism on Jeju Island, Post Three: The Door God’s Epic

The Munjeon Epic—The Door God’s Myth (simplified plot) The following is the plot of Munjeon Bonpuri, the Door God’s epic, which relates to us the foundation myths of the household deities introduced in Post One. Keep in mind that the the following is the plot of the epic, not a direct translation of the epic itself. While some…

A Guide to Shamanism on Jeju Island, Post Two: Sacred Island

The house is sacred. The yard is sacred. The lanes are sacred. The village is sacred. The fields and wooded regions surrounding the village are sacred. The mountain is sacred. The sky and earth below are sacred. The sea is sacred. This world is sacred—populated with divine beings—gods and ancestor spirits. Halla Mountain, and the…