KOREAN SHAMANISM AND ITS REMINISCENCES IN ONE OF THE WORLD’S MOST TECHNOLOGICALLY ADVANCED COUNTRIES
KOREAN SHAMANISM AND ITS REMINISCENCES IN ONE OF THE WORLD’S MOST TECHNOLOGICALLY ADVANCED COUNTRIES

Summary/Abstract: In South Korea, Shamanism, Buddhism, Christianity and Confucianism coexist peacefully and regardless of their religious affiliations, South Koreans celebrate Christmas, Buddha’s day, perform Confucian rites for dead ancestors and in case of sickness, bad luck or in search of a life partner, they consult a shaman. Although the Korean Society has passed through much technological progress in a short time span, the traditions seem to be still maintained alive by the family elders, but they are extremely adaptable to the new technologies and public desires. It is not unusual to see promotional announcements on the streets or online, which offer shaman fortunetelling services, Buddhist temples that offer short stays or meditation retreats, Christian Churches promoting themselves etc. From among all of these, this paper focuses on Shamanism and on its influences in the Korean Culture, on its remains in today’s Korea and on the young generation’s opinion about it. The research is based on a questionnaire administered to 35 South Korean nationals living and working or studying in South Korea. The findings indicate that Korean Shamanism still plays an important role in the lives of Korean people, although the young generations tend to distance themselves from the old indigenous beliefs while they are young, but go back to them as they age.

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