During the Anti-Superstition Movement of the 1970s, over one hundred of Jeju Island’s shamanic shrines were burnt, along with many holy relics. President Park Chung Hee’s government had implemented the misin-tapa as part of the movement for the modernization of South Korea. The aim of the misin-tapa was to eradicate traditional religion from rural communities, replacing it…
Tag: Spirits Film
Field Notes #1: “Solstice.” (Video)
My documentary on Jeju Island’s shamanic culture (Sprits: The Story of Jeju Island’s Shamanic Shrines) will debut this September. I’ll be sharing plenty of extras on my youtube channel . I’ve been researching and filming the project for five years, so there is plenty to come. This clip is from a series I’m calling ‘Field Notes’. In…
Isn’t It Time to Talk About the Desecrated Shrine at Juksung? Jeju Island, South Korea.
Fourteen months ago a shamanistic shrine in Juksung Village, Jeju Island, South Korea was deliberately desecrated. Lunar January, the ceremonial period when the elderly make offerings is about 6 weeks away. So far, there have been no efforts to repair the shrine and little media coverage. I interviewed locals over the period of a year. I will be telling their story as part of a new edit of my documentary project on Jeju Island’s shrines.
“설새밋당은 이대로 사라지는가?” Isn’t It Time to Talk About the Desecrated Shrine at Juksung? (Korean Version)
Having spent two years exploring what role Jeju’s shrines play in the lives of island residents, there was no way I was going to leave these questions unanswered. I, too, like many islanders, both religious and secular, who heard news of the destruction, was offended to my core for reasons I will elaborate on.
pagans we are 