[KS] The Mother of Tangun

Lauren Deutsch ldeutsch at lalc.k12.ca.us
Wed Jul 26 23:23:19 EDT 2000


I hope all food scientists are monitoring the Cat/Dog eating discussion. 
It's quite interesting from many perspectives, including the private habits
of academics.

May I present a new topic for summer exchange ... I have read the "myth" of
the story of the contest between the Tiger and Bear, the later of which is
supposed to have championed and been given the opportunity to be the mother
of Tangun. I've heard that rather than be a bear per se, it might have been
a member of the tribe which has as its key totem a bear.

In any event, I would like to know what happened to the bear. As the
purported mother of the founder, it would be quite sad to lose the bear as a
significant element of Korean "mythology." Certainly, too, if the tiger
"lost" the contest, nonetheless it "won" as it became a major symbol of
Korea. Does the bear figure in Korea's shamanism?

My visit to the Tangun "academic house" on Kangwando this past May made me
wonder. I spent a bit of time in the shrine to Tangun there in which many
the spirits of of generals, kings and literati /scholars / philosophers ...
all male of course ... made me wonder about "their" women. Is there a
comparable place where the famous women of Korea's past are remembered? This
is not a foolish rhetorical questions as I am well aware of the patriarchal
leaning of the culture.

Thank you in advance.

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Lauren W. Deutsch
Director, Pacific Rim Arts
835 S. Lucerne Blvd., #103, Los Angeles CA 90005 USA
E Mail ldeutsch at lalc.k12.ca.us
Phone (323) 930-2587


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