[Author’s Note: This essay was included in the journal, S/HE: An International Journal of Goddess Studies (Vol 3 No 1, 2024). Footnotes numbers here differ from those of the original article.]
Tales from Gyeonggi Province, Seoul Metropolitan City, Incheon Metropolitan City (B)
Of 17 tales, four tales refer to “Mago” and ten tales to “Magui.” One tale mentions both “Samsin (Triad Deity)” and “Magui.” Some refer to Mountain Deity (Sansin) or Seonin (Mage). “Manggu” and “Imun” are parochial epithets, not found elsewhere. All these epithets (Mago, Magui, Mountain Deity, Seonin, Manggu, Imun) are followed by “Halmi” (Halmeom, Halmeoni). Skirt (including skirt wrap, skirt hem) is mentioned in twelve tales, whereas aprons are mentioned in three tales and dishcloth skirts in two tales. Toponyms concern rocks, mountains, stonewalls, and cairns.
| B S-11 | Ansan, Cairn | Magui Halmeom | Apron |
| B S-12 | Yangju, Magui Rock | Magui Halmi | Skirt |
| B S-13 | Yangju/Paju, Mt. Nogo Mt. Nogo Stronghold | Mountain Deity Halmeoni | Skirt, pee, crab, Paju |
| B S-14 | Yangpyeong, Jackstones | Magui Halmeom | Skirt wrap |
| B S-15 | Yeoju, Mt. Kkamak | Samsin Halmeoni, Magui Halmeom | Daughter-in-law, Sinseon, apron, soil, child warrior, Dragon Swamp |
| B S-16 | Yeoju, Rock of Mt. Dongdong | Magui Halmi | Skirt |
| B S-17 | Yeoncheon, Earthen Stronghold | Magui Halmis | Skirt wrap |
| B S-18 | Yeoncheon, Burial Cairn | Magui Halmeom | Skirt wrap, Open Cairn |
| B S-19 | Yongin, Halmi Stronghold (Nogo Stronghold), Halmi Mountain Stronghold | Halmeoni, Mago Seonin, Magui Halmeom | Apron |
| B S-20 | Yongin, Cairn Village, Cairn | Mago Halmi | Halmi Stronghold of Mt. Stronghold, skirt wrap |
| B S-21 | Yongin, Stacked Rocks (Magui Stronghold) | Magui Halmeom | Brother-sister, skirt, sister |
| B S-22 | Yongin, Mt. Stone Stronghold Halmi Stronghold | Halmeoni | Dishcloth skirt, seonang shrine, daedong gut, mudang, pungmul band, village festival |
| B S-23 | Yongin, Mt. Stone Stronghold Halmi Mountain Stronghold | Mago Halmeoni, Mago Halabeoji (Grandfather) | Skirt hem |
| B S-24 | Icheon, Rock of the Seven Stars (Big Dipper) | Mago Halmeoni | Dishcloth skirt |
| B S-25 | Incheon, Seondan (Magoist Altar) Reef | Manggu Halmae, Magui Halmeom | Skirt wrap, pee, giant, shrimp, brother-sister, seonnyeo, three rocks |
| B S-26 | Pocheon, Imun Rock | Imun Halmeoni | Apron, Banwol Stronghold |
| B S-27 | Hanam, Mt. Visitor | Magui Halmeom | Skirt wrap, Mt Dodeuram of Icheon |
Tale B S-11: Cairn formed as Mago Halmi’s apron leaks
| B S-11 | Gyeonggi Province |
| Region/Origin | Ansan Danwon-gu Yangsang-dong |
| Toponym/Motif | Cairn |
| Divine/Agent | Magui Halmeom |
| Lore/Information | Magui Halmeom was carrying stones in her apron. They leaked from her apron to form the cairn. |
| Related themes | Apron |
| Notes | Mago Halmi the Cosmogonist |
In this tale, “Magui Halmi” is interchangeably used as “Mago Halmi.” Although the word, “Magui” means a devil, there is no evil character is implied in its name, Magui Halmi.
Tale B S-18: Burial Cairn built by Mago Halmeom
| B S-18 | Gyeonggui Yeoncheon |
| Region/Origin | Yeoncheon Hakgok-ri |
| Toponym/Motif | Dolmadol Village Burial Cairn |
| Divine/Agent | Magui Halmeom |
| Lore/Information | Legend has it that Magui Halmeom carried stones in her skirt wrap and stacked the Burial Cairn. Villagers call this cairn Open Wall (Hwaljjak-gakdam 활짝각담) and deem it sacred. |
| Related themes | Skirt wrap, Open Wall |
| Notes | Mago Halmi the Magoma Divine |
There are numerous stories that attribute Mago Halmi to the builder of cairns. This cairn is specified as the Burial Cairn, which is deemed sacred by villagers.
Tale B S-23: Mago Halmeoni wins a bet against Mago Halabeoji
| B S-23 | Gyeonggi Province |
| Region/Origin | Yongin Mt. Stone Stronghold |
| Toponym/Motif | Mt. Halmi Stronghold |
| Divine/Agent | Mago Halmeoni, Mago Halabeoji (Grandfather) |
| Lore/Information | Mago Halabeoji (Grandfather) and Halmeomi (Grandmother) made a bet. After dividing the stronghold in half, they agreed that one who would complete building his or her part of the stronghold first would win. Halabeoji was trimming rocks and building them in a correct manner, while Halmeomi was gathering small stones in her skirt wrap and building them. In the end, Halabeoji could not stop laughing at Halmeoni. Thus, he could not build his own part of the stronghold and lost the bet. |
| Related themes | Skirt hem, Mago Halabeoji (Grandfather) |
| Notes | Mago Halmi the Magoma Divine |
This tale is houmous in explaining why Mago Halmi is recognized as the builder of the stronghold, Halmi Stronghold. Mago Halabeoji (Grandfather) did nothing wrong in executing his own project. But he ridiculed Mago Halmeoni for being the female builder. His physical strength could not win the bet.
Tale B S-25: Seondan (Mage Altar) Reef as Mago Halmi’s peeing post
[Figure 1: Islands of Deokjeok, aerial view. Photo from Ongjin County Office]
[Figure 2: Mt. Seonjeok (Seongap Island). Photo from Incheonin. https://www.incheonin.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=31041]
[Figure 3: Seondan (Mage Altar) Reef. Photo from Gyeonggi Sinmun.
https://kgnews.co.kr/news/article.html?no=620861]
| B S-25 | Incheon M.C. |
| Region/Origin | Ongjin-gun Deokjeok-myeon Baeka-ri Baeka Island |
| Toponym/Motif | Islands including Seondang-yeo(仙壇礖 Magoist Altar Reef) |
| Divine/Agent | Manggu Halmae |
| Lore/Information | Long ago Manggu Halmae lived in the Deokjeok islands. One day she packed up her skirt with soil and began building Mt. Seonjeop (Mage Entrance). As the mountain was falling, she, out of frustration, struck it with her fist. Shattered into pieces, the soil became islands. Among them are Gakheul Island and Seondan-yeo (Magoist Altar Reef)… Manggu Halmae used Seondan Reef as a post for peeing. Thanks to her pee, the sea of the Deokjeok islands did not run dry. She was so tall that the West Sea barely reached her knees. Halmae traversed around the sea. While spending a leisure time in Pungdo (Abundant Island) Village, troupes of shrimps entered and filled her clothes. |
| Related themes | Skirt wrap, Mt. Seonjeop仙接, peeing, giant, shrimps |
| Notes | Continuous and simultaneous creation. Mago Halmi the Magoma Divine |
The islands of Deokjeok are known as an archipelago of 41 islands (34 inhabited islands and 7 uninhabited islands). This tale depicts a simultaneous creation of these islands. Note the presence of Seon tradition (Magoist Luminaries) in such placenames as Seondan (Mage Altar), Seonjeop (Mage Entrance), and Seongap (Primary Mage). Note that Manggu Halmae used Sseondan Reef as a post for peeing. That Mago shapes local topographies by urinating and defecating recurs regularly and steadily in all provinces.
There are similar versions of Manggu Halmae’s cosmogonic stories of the Deokjeok islands. Below is from another source:
| B S-25-2 | Incheon M.C. |
| Toponym/Motif | Ongjin Deokjeok-myeon |
| Divine/Agent | Deokjeok Islands |
| Divine/Agent | Manggu Halmae |
| Lore/Information | “Long ago, there lived Manggu Halmae. She was building Mt. Seonjeop (Mage Entrance). In the ninety-ninth valley, lacking one valley to make one hundred valleys, the mountain crumbled down. Out of anger, she broke the mountain with her fist. Thus came all islands including Janggu Island, Mot Island, Ga Island, Guleop Island, Seondan Reef (Magoist Altar) spread into four directions. Manggu Halmae was an enormous giant, so tall that the seawater reached her knees. She, traversing the seas, walked from one island to the other. Seondan Reef are her furnace rocks. Her pee became seawater, which prevented the islands of Deokjeok from drying up. One day, she went to Pungdo (Abundant Island) Valley to swim in the deepest sea. Troupes of shrimps entered her underpants. She returned to the islands of Deokjeok with the full of shrimps in her pants. Since then, an infinite number of shrimps inhabited the islands of Deokjeok.”… A long time ago when the capital of Hanyang (Seoul) was decided, it needed the designated mountain, Ansan (Comforted Mountain). Mt. Tae [in today’s mainland China] was coming across the West Sea. However, a mountain from Mt. Ninth Moon in Hwanghae Province arrived first and became its Ansan named Mt. Mokmyeok. Upon hearing this, Mt. Tae was so indignant that it exploded, which became the islands of Deokjeok. The deity of shrimps and abundance, Manggu Halmae proves to be in several places in the islands of Deokjeok. Seondan Reef Rocks were her peeing post. The fishing ground behind Mungap Island was known for shrimps. In Pungdo (Abundant Island), she is said to have swum. Mt. Seonjeop (Mage Entrance) was built by her. There are ninety-nine pillar posts, which were used as the pillars of her palace. Seonjeop (Mage Entrance), Seongap-do (Primary Mage Island), is a magical island surrounded by deep valleys and high cliffs. When a spout was rising in Bando Valley, it was believed that the giant serpent, having lived in Seongap-do, was becoming a dragon to ascend to heaven.[1] |
The above account offers new crucial insights concerning the numeric symbol of ninety-nine, the giant serpent, a dragon, and its ascension. Note the account, “When a spout was rising in Bando Valley, it was believed that the giant serpent, having lived in Seongap-do, was becoming a dragon to ascend to heaven.” This concerns Magoist Cetaceanism. A spout, a natural phenomenon, is depicted as an ascending dragon. The dragon, a transformed form of the giant serpent, symbolizes the atmospheric cycling of water on the planetary scale caused by Cetaceans in the oceans.
Tale B S-27: Gaek-san (Mt. Visitor) brought by Magui Halmeom
| B S-27 | Gyeonggi Province |
| Region/Origin | Hanam |
| Toponym/Motif | Gaek-san (Mt. Visitor) |
| Divine/Agent | Magui Halmeom |
| Lore/Information | Long ago, Magui Halmeom scooped Mt. Dodeuram in Icheon and put it in her skirt wrap. She was on her way to Hanyang (today’s Seoul) to build Nam-san (Mt. South) but left it here as it was getting too heavy. |
| Related themes | Skirt wrap, Mt Dodeuram of Icheon |
| Notes | Mago Halmi the Cosmogonist |
Its name, Gaek-san (Mt. Visitor), indicates that it came from elsewhere. Mago Halmi scooped Dodeuram-san (Mt. Dedeuram), Icheon, to move it in her skirt to Nam-san (Mt. South), in Seoul, a bigger and renowned mountain. This mountain came to this town because Mago Halmi left it there on the way. She felt too heavy to carry it to the original location. Gaek-san is located north of Doderum-san and east of Nam-san.
[1] See B S-25-2 for the Korean in Appendix II. Segi Yi, “The Story-telling Sea Giant Manggu Halmae (이야기하는 바다거인, 망구할매) in Incheonin (12//2015). https://www.incheonin.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=31041 (March 12, 2024).
(To be continued)