[KS] Divinity of the Kims?

Ruediger Frank ruediger.frank at univie.ac.at
Sat Feb 13 12:54:44 EST 2010


Dear Kirk and all,
I think this is a very complex matter, we should hence beware of simplistic statements in either direction. The signals NK is sending in this regard are mixed, and in addition we should consider that the target group of nk propaganda is very heterogeneous - intellectuals from Pyongyang as well as farmer from Chagang-do... Furthermore, it seems the tone in nk descriptions of its leaders has changed over time and in particular since the 1990s. Before, it seemed to be much more customary to raise quite fantastic claims.
In principle, it would be very untypical for a socialist society to be religious (in case you think NK is not socialist, please define socialism and then check). However, it is not unusual for such states to have and idolize leaders, dead or still alive, and to assign them extraordinary abilities (Lenin, Stalin, Mao...). This does not mean we talk about a religion. I think it should rather be seen as the expression of an extremely hierarchical and patriarchic ideology - in other words, a leader-centered system. Neoconfucian tradition, as far as I understand, also does not support the idea of the divine nature of the leader - he is primus inter pares and has the mandate of heaven, but this is only by virtue of his abilities and behavior. He might be a super-human, but he is not superhuman. 
North Korea is really not half as unique as the occasional expert may think. When I lived in Russia as a kid, in kindergarten and elementary school I learned the same kind of anecdotes about Lenin that I later heard and read about Kim Il-sung. Smart and educated North Koreans understand at least the more colorful of such claims as metaphoric, whereas less educated folks in the countryside might take all of it at face value. As long as nationalism and chuch'e are closely connected and the leaders are depicted as the symbols of the nation, even the wildest claims regarding their abilities and personalities are seen as praise of the nation. No opposition would hence come from most (nationalist) North Koreans. I remember a story I was told about the immediate post-Korean War period, when a European diplomat asked starving North Koreans how they felt about seeing the, ahem, very well fed Kim Il-sung on official pictures. The European expected frustration, but au contraire: they replied that they were proud of the leader's prosperous appearance as he represents their country. I believe there was a grain of truth in this politically correct reply. 
We all know what leader worship in NK includes: iconic pictures, symbolic images, busts and monuments, relics (the tree that the leader has seen, the elevator that the leader has used, the stone on which the leader has sit etc.), "sacred" places such as Mangy?ngdae or the "secret camp" beneath Jongilbong, rituals, codification, and even a church (the Party). However, it is also interesting to consider what it does NOT include: no heavenly origin, no afterlife... 
We see that the veneration of the leaders in NK is more like a very extreme form of admiration for leaders, but not like worshipping divine supernatural beings. Accordingly, the leaders are said to be extremely smart, forward-looking, physically and mentally strong, with unbreakable will and the purest morality etc. etc.; but they are still humans. The can't fly, they are mortal, they cannot walk over water. In a way, it even makes a lot of sense to describe them as extraordinary since this is a necessary foundation for their claim to life-long and uncontested leadership. 
To add one more detail, Phillip Park in his study on the monolithic system in NK has pointed out that Kim Jong-il had to earn his position as successor. Sure, being the eldest son, he had quite a head-start for this. Yet still, he had to prove to his father, the guerillas around him and the people that he deserved the job not (only) because of his blood, but because he had the necessary abilities. The successful completion of the film "yugy?kdae ohy?ngje" was seen as proof of his capability.
Frankly, all this is by no means new to anybody who has ever studied nk propaganda, so Brian is slamming into open doors (unless we consider the magically exploding group of "experts" on North Korea that have emerged out of nowhere in the past years - so I guess this is the audience he is talking to). 
What is important, though, is not to fall into the other extreme and think that the cult around the leaders in NK does not involve any mystic elements. It DOES involve believing (as opposed to knowing), hence the closeness to a religion. And this is why it can become very difficult to draw the line of distinction. I personally prefer the formulation "of a religious nature" instead of "religion" when describing the nk ideology. The same has been said about Confucianism - what a surprise.
Cheers,
Rudiger Frank
 



on Samstag, 13. Februar 2010 at 01:55 you wrote:


Hello all,

Having recently read and thoroughly enjoyed B.R. Myers book, The Cleanest Race, I am writing to enlist your collective wisdom concerning one of Myers' interesting and provocative claims: he argues that the DPRK regime does not attribute divine powers or characteristics to its leaders, either Kim Il Sung or Kim Jong Il. Specifically:

“No matter what some American Christian Groups might claim, divine powers have never been attributed to either of the two Kims” (Myers, Cleanest Race, 13). 

This claim got me to thinking and poking around, the results of which I've put up on my blog (http://kwlhistorymatters.blogspot.com/2010/02/not-so-divine-kims.html) but while I have been able to find a few examples of claims of, if not quite divinity, certainly claims of the remarkable and supernatural, more generally, I find myself agreeing with Myers that the fantastical claims are not the norm in DPRK propaganda.

My query to the experienced, erudite, and talented group that subscribe to this list is: does anyone know of specific, credible evidence to the contrary? In other words, any unequivocal examples of the DPRK regime claiming divinity for its founder and present ruler? 

Cheers, 

-- 
Kirk W. Larsen 
Department of History
2151 JFSB
BYU
Provo, UT 84602-6707
(801) 422-3445

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