Daniel A. Kister

This study identifies marks of Korean shamanic rites against the backdrop of Chinese and Siberian rites. Bprrowing literary methods and drawing upon observations from four decades living in Korea and China, the author analyzes the dramatic and symbolic make-up of rites and the multi-faceted worlds of belief and experience that they embody. A rite’s core of meaning is the same for all; but ambiguous, contradictory, and chaotic aspects of the action invite participants to respond differently, realizing that meaning interiorly as the main ritual agents. How this works out in classic Korean gut is highlighted through comparison with rites of the Manchu, Oroqen, Qiang, Naxi, and Yi of China and the Buryats and Khakas of Siberia. It is explored in terms of rites’ healing power, the nature of evil dealt with, religious categories borrowed from Christianity, and theatrical modes of Avant-garde theater.
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