Hello all, ‘Scattering’ has finally arrived from Ara Printing on Jeju Island. From Monday I’ll be shipping books to those who ordered within Korea. If you are in the US or elsewhere in the world I’ll be shipping from the US after the 18th of December. If you’re on Jeju Island and are free next…
Tag: Traditional Culture
Thanks to all who pledged, the Kickstarter for Scattering fully funded today
Thanks to all who pledged to the Kickstarter for Scattering. The project is fully funded plus some. Both Scattering and A Shamanic People are still available for pre-order through a link on the Kickstarter page or directly from Gumroad. More updates soon! Time to celebrate :)
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…
A Guide to Shamanism on Jeju Island, Part Two: Post Five: The Banished Deity
A curious feature of bonhyang shrines, including those shrines dedicated to Baekjuddo and Seocheonguk’s sons, is the banished deity. Often, in Jeju Island’s shamanic shrines, one finds the male or female deity of a pair, to be banished to the far end of a shrine, or even from the shrine entirely. Take the case of…
A Guide to Shamanism on Jeju Island, Part Two: Post One: The Shrine Gods
Let’s depart from the familial home and move out into the village. Now, we’ll look at the deities residing within shrines, the gods who make themselves available for healing, to receive prayer and issue blessings in each of Jeju’s villages. The history of each shamanic shrine is detailed. Each village has its own myths. Furthermore,…
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 One: The House Gods
Let’s start with the home. Most lectures (as given by the handful of experts on the shamanism of Jeju Island) on the deities that reside within the Jeju Island home, start out with an illustration that looks something like this: It’s a typical Jeju floor plan (in the spirit of not being too formal—I’m going…
Jeju Island’s Most Beloved Shamanic Shrine Tree has Perished due to Typhoon Winds and Careless Behavior from ‘tourists’. The Island is Mourning the Loss of the 400-Year-Old Tree.
This past Saturday, October 6th, perhaps what is Jeju Island’s best known and beloved shamanic shrine tree fell due to high winds. I found myself tearing up throughout the day Sunday when I first heard of the incident, as I have been visiting the shrine for almost a decade now. I wasn’t the only one…
Jeju Island’s Haenyo: A User’s Manual, the diver who tried to die at sea
The traditional free diver, Ok-sun Lee, was born in the very waters in which she planned to carry out her own drowning some 85 years later. Her life-long friend and fellow diver, Man-bok Kim, seeing the practicality of her choice, aided her in the attempt. The two women survived much together—over seventy years of work at sea, the…
The Traditional Village Shamans of Jeju Island, South Korea: PHOTO ESSAY
The book is out! Order Jeju Island’s Haenyeo, A User’s Manual for kindle and other devices. Interviews with three generations of Jeju Island’s sea women. Ever since Jeju Island forged its way onto the international tourism scene, its women free divers, called haenyeo, have taken center stage as both cultural symbol and tourist attraction. The…
Indigenous Islanders Continue Fight Against 2nd Airport on Jeju Island, South Korea–Hunger Strike Passes its 40th Day
Youth and other activists from some twenty civic groups have joined five villages in their struggle against a planned ‘aerotropolis’ on Jeju Island, South Korea. Still waiting for a statement from the national government’s Ministry of Land and Transportation, residents of South Korea’s largest island continue their fight against the proposed second airport project. The…
pagans we are 