<초공본풀이>의 비속함과 성스러움

<Chogong Bonpuri> is the most important epic that Jeju shamans sing in almost every shamanistic rituals, especially in KeunGut(The massive shaman rituals). However, when we hear the song, we can hardly believe it is the sacred narrative. So it is natural to ask where is 'the sanctity' in that long story-telling song.
We can subdivide the whole story into four phases.


1. the downfall of the Lady, the only daughter of a wealthy person.
2. ascend from the poverty-stricken life through her son's effort.
3. downfall again. she was killed in the end.
4. switching over to transcendental dimension. The lady and her sons left this harsh realities and became the gods in the heaven.


1-3 phases are about the every life of the vulgar world. This world has been a series of hardship and frustration. We can not understand the reason and/or settle them. From this point, the women of Jeju island regard life as a futile torment. The death of the lady was required to expose the absurdity of life in this world of mundanity.


The Lady could become a god for she has gone through all the process of downfall-ascend-downfall and death. The ordinary persons who go through the similar process see a paragon of their lives. And they expect the other life, a transcendental one. They realize the transcendental Lady look down upon them on the earth. They try to live with a image of the Lady and the vulgarity of their life could be replaced with something dignified. They make themselves sanctified. This is the very point of singing and listening <Chogong Bonpri>, the representative shaman song in Jeju Island.