[KS] Hwan-Ung - Illegitimate?

[David Mason]

Dear List,

When considering East Asian myths and legends, I 
automatically just assume that the Emperor of Heaven
or any similar figure has multiple or even multitudes
of sons, as that is such a key aspect of being a 
great patriarchal ruling figure in the traditional
Asian mind.  

(Daoism's Okhwang-sangje, prominent in the art and 
ideology of Korean Shamanism, famously has eight 
daughters, as does the King-spirit of Jiri Mountain,
possibly reflecting more ancient matriarchal 
traditions, but this does not preclude their also 
having many sons).

In fact I recall reading that during the introduc-
tion of Christianity to East Asia, the idea that the
Emperor of Heaven ("God") had only one son served as
a negative selling point -- Why only one?  What's 
wrong with him, lacking in power?  Or does he need 
a new set of wives?  Should we make an offering of 
ginseng to him...?  (sorry, I cannot provide a cite)

Anyway, the position of Hwan-ung in the story makes
perfect sense to me, like this:  whenever a King 
has more than one son demonstrating a high level of
ambition and ability, it's an obvious problem and 
threat to the smooth succession of the dynasty --
after his death, there may be ruinous dispute over 
the throne.  One way to deal with this is to give a
younger such son some money and soldiers, send him
off to conquer some relatively distant lands, set 
up his own (subsidiary) kingdom.

Thus the Hwan-ung story includes these details -- he
was not the eldest son, he desired to go elsewhere,
and his father chose the most appropriate site;  he 
came to the Grand White Mountain with 3000 followers
(soldiers, or soldiers and their families), and three
Heavenly Seals (showing his authority, granted by 
his royal father, to set up a new kingdom), and he 
was attended by three aristocrats (with symbolic
shamanic titles of Wind, Rain & Clouds).

Hwan-ung was said to have the intention of setting 
up (spiritually-based) civilized government in order
to "benefit humanity" -- right, he was bringing 
Bronze Age civilization to the Stone Age inhabitants
of the Proto-Korean territories to which his father 
(Chief of a Sun/Heaven worshiping tribe) sent him...


Artistic depictions of Hwan-ung are rare.  There are
a few on my web site at:
http://san-shin.org/dan-gun-2.html
and
http://san-shin.org/3sages1.html
If anyone here knows of any others, I would really
appreciate being told of their location.

For the most thorough and excellent discussion of 
the Korean Foundation Myth(s), I refer you to the 
indispensable volume written by Dr James H. Grayson
of the University of Sheffield in England:

Myths and Legends from Korea: An Annotated 
Compendium of Ancient and Modern Materials 
(London, Curzon, 2001). 

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0700712410/qid=1087621630/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/002-2872852-3582448?v=glance&s=books
or from the Royal Asiatic Society in Seoul


Best regards to you all,
David Mason




=====
David A. Mason  
Special Assistant to the President,   Korea Freedom League
Consultant,  Korea Culture and Tourism Policy Research Institute
WEBSITE:  http://www.san-shin.org

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