in South Korea a land where Buddhism and
Christianity reign many still turned to
the old folk beliefs of shamanism belief
in a world inhabited by spirits but to
become a Korean shaman a believer must
pass an initiation called the Noreen
coot a right so extreme that few would
attempt it while some are born to their
role as shamans others like ji-yong
receive their calling through a mystic
illness called shinbe young she may look
healthy but jion has been tormented by
spirits since childhood sometimes I’d be
in so much pain that it left me almost
completely paralyzed one day she had a
dream she dreamed of a shaman but didn’t
know who she was
I saw a shaman all dressed up and
participating in some activity I felt I
needed to find her
the shaman in jion’s dream turned out to
be real her name was Kim kumoi
the acknowledged leader of northern
style ecstatic shamanism Kim kumoi
agreed to take Jeon into her home to
prepare her for the initiation ceremony
if Jeon fails this test the spirit will
not possess her and she will not be
cured it’s morning on the day chosen for
jion’s Noreen coot initiation with the
beating of the drum and the banging of
the gongs the Noreen coot begins jion
puts on her first costume and prepares
to summon a god she enters into what’s
called an ecstatic trance these shamans
believe that in this trance her mind
becomes possessed and she speaks in the
spirits voices jion and the other
shamans dance for hours changing
costumes after every spirit possession
the time has come for Kim kumoi to call
upon the knife writing general her
guardian spirit
as an indication of the general spirit
within her she licks the blades and
presses them against her thighs she
climbs up onto the double-edged shock to
knives and dances no blood is shed while
she addresses the audience in the
spirits voice announcing his presence
finally it is jion’s turn
Gian steps on to the knives and she
begins to dance fortunately her feet do
not bleed jion’s passed the final test I
feel like I have the whole world in my
hands but this is only the beginning
she will have to undergo years of
training under the guidance of Kim kumoi
hopefully she will find greater peace
and happiness fulfilling her destiny as
a shaman
Christianity reign many still turned to
the old folk beliefs of shamanism belief
in a world inhabited by spirits but to
become a Korean shaman a believer must
pass an initiation called the Noreen
coot a right so extreme that few would
attempt it while some are born to their
role as shamans others like ji-yong
receive their calling through a mystic
illness called shinbe young she may look
healthy but jion has been tormented by
spirits since childhood sometimes I’d be
in so much pain that it left me almost
completely paralyzed one day she had a
dream she dreamed of a shaman but didn’t
know who she was
I saw a shaman all dressed up and
participating in some activity I felt I
needed to find her
the shaman in jion’s dream turned out to
be real her name was Kim kumoi
the acknowledged leader of northern
style ecstatic shamanism Kim kumoi
agreed to take Jeon into her home to
prepare her for the initiation ceremony
if Jeon fails this test the spirit will
not possess her and she will not be
cured it’s morning on the day chosen for
jion’s Noreen coot initiation with the
beating of the drum and the banging of
the gongs the Noreen coot begins jion
puts on her first costume and prepares
to summon a god she enters into what’s
called an ecstatic trance these shamans
believe that in this trance her mind
becomes possessed and she speaks in the
spirits voices jion and the other
shamans dance for hours changing
costumes after every spirit possession
the time has come for Kim kumoi to call
upon the knife writing general her
guardian spirit
as an indication of the general spirit
within her she licks the blades and
presses them against her thighs she
climbs up onto the double-edged shock to
knives and dances no blood is shed while
she addresses the audience in the
spirits voice announcing his presence
finally it is jion’s turn
Gian steps on to the knives and she
begins to dance fortunately her feet do
not bleed jion’s passed the final test I
feel like I have the whole world in my
hands but this is only the beginning
she will have to undergo years of
training under the guidance of Kim kumoi
hopefully she will find greater peace
and happiness fulfilling her destiny as
a shaman
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