Category: Folklore

Today is Jungbok, the second of the Sambok, the Three Hot Days (i.e. Dog Days of Summer).

The Sambok have long been described as the hottest days of the year. The concept was disseminated into Korean lore from China, where the Sambok were calculated according to the Ten Celestial Stems (cheon-gan/ 천간). This system was used in counting and astrological calculations, including counting the days of the week. In the system, therefore, a week consisted of ten days: gap, eul, pyeong, cheong, mu, gi, gyeong, haeng, im, and gye. The Sambok are calculated according to this system. The first Sambok, called Chobok, falls on the third gyeong day after summer solstice (haji/하지). Jungbok is ten days after that.

People often observed bok-jae (복제) on Sambok, a rite for giving offerings to ancestral spirits and gods related to agriculture. As was common on most special days, the weather on Sambok was considered to foretell coming harvests.

Traditionally, dog or chicken soups were eaten on the Sambok. Bok-nori (복놀이) was the custom of preparing and enjoying these foods in the shade, often in cooler areas around mountains and valleys. These food traditions still exist today, the lore still suggesting these foods help one resist the searing summer heat. Interestingly, eating muk-namul (aged/dried vegetables) on the First Full Moon (Daeboreum/대보름; in mid-winter) was said to help one prepare for the summer heat.

Happy Jungbok!

In recent days, there have been heavy winds and wind warnings in the region of Paju where Shawn lives. The deity from the Korean pantheon that oversees the winds is Pung-shin, also called (among many names) Yeong-deung.

Pung-shin is often depicted as an elderly woman, a grandmotherly figure. Other regions depict the god as a grandfather. Either way, Pung-shin is worshipped and appeased in homes and in villages where wind plays an important role, such as for fishing and farming folk. In some regions of Korea, it is said that Pung-shin descends to earth from the sky only once a year – the first day of the second lunar month. Other variations of the belief hold that Pung-shin descends multiple times a year. Rites for Pung-shin are held on these days and the weather on said days is often used to divine the upcoming harvest.

Photo credit: Visit Jeju

A seok-deung (석등/石燈), stone lantern, on the grounds of Bo-gwang Temple. In original temple ground layouts, a single lantern was placed near the main hall. Its purpose was to literally and figuratively fend off the darkness. Bo-gwang Temple, deep in Paju at the foot of Mount Goryeong, was originally built by Master Doseon in the late 9th century.

Similar lanterns were often found near royal tombs and tombs of other elites and aristocrats. Their purpose was to not only light the way, but to ward off evil spirits who could bring harm to the grounds.