Traditional and Modern Ancestor Worship in Korea

Services available selling Je-sa food

Parents coming to their children’s houses

Cyber memorial sites for a virtual Je-sa

Digital photo of the ancestor displayed through computer devices.

Modern clothing instead of traditional clothing

Modern day Je-sa/Cha-rye

Different religions

Increase in women’s involvement in the performance

Decrease in responsibilities of the first son

Who prepares for the Je-sa in your family?

65.4%

always the first son

18.4%

all children together

regardless of gender

9.2%

siblings taking turns

7%

son with financial means

Does Je-sa need

to be simplified?

Have you ever combined

different Je-sa’s?

51.1%

Yes

48.9%

No

95.3% - Yes

04.7% - No

What do you think is

the appropriate number of Je-sa done in a year?

43.5% - 2 times

21.6% - once

19.8% - 3~5 times

11.2% - none

03.9% - whenever there is

How many times a year

do you perform Je-sa/Cha-rye?

45.2% - 3~5 times

25.9% - 2 times

17.4% - none

07.3% - more than 6 times

04.2% - once

Why is Je-sa necessary?

45.1%

to pay respect to ancestors

29.5%

for family reunion

15.6%

as duty of a child

9.8%

for preserving traditions

2000 survey by KIHASA

Is it necessary to perform Je-sa?

62.8% - Yes

27.2% - No

Yes by 25%

Food

Never use:

Peach

Fish with the name that ends with ‘chi’

Red pepper powder and garlic for seasoning

Red bean paste

Food

5th row

Jujubes

Chestnut

Pear

Persimmon

Appl

Korean

traditional sweets

OR

White (W) → Red (E)

Food

4th row

Fish jerky (W)

Seasoned

vegetable dish (W)

Kimchi (E)

Sweet rice drink (E)

Food

3rd row

other types of soup

Food

2nd row

Meat side dish (W)

Skewered food dish

Fish dish (E):

Tail (W) → Head (E)

Food

1st row

Rice (W)

Main soup (E)

1998 Survey by Dong-A Daily News

Which birth order of son do you prefer for marriage?

Role of women

Women were thought as a jinx or bad luck and would upset the ancestors

They were not allowed to enter the room

Behind the scene works

Shop necessities

Prepare food

Clean the dishes, containers and tables

Mother-in-law or the wife of the first son in charge.

♂

♀

♀1

♂2

♂3

♀4

♀1

♀2

♂3

♂1

♂2

Role of men

Traditionally, only men were allowed to bow

All the Je-sa of the family ancestors are to be handed over to the Jong-ga house (종갓집)

= the eldest son of the eldest son's family

Role of men

All of the procedure

The leader, ‘left’ man and the ‘right’ man

Putting the food dishes on the table

Lighting up fragrances

Setting up the folding screen

Changing the placement of spoons and chopsticks

Procedure

13. Alcohol is put on the table twice more

14. The leader sticks a spoon into rice bowl and places a pair of chopsticks on a side dish and bows

15. Repeat step 14 for different side dishes and soups

16. everyone kneels and bows for a final round

17. Family members eat the food

Procedure

6. The leader lights up the fragrance

7. The ‘right’ man pours alcohol

8. The leader takes the cup and

makes 3 circular motion above the

fragrance and dump it in a container

9. The ‘left’ man pour alcohol

10. The leader puts the cup on the table

11. The leader makes a deep bow twice

12. Everyone makes a deep bow twice

Procedure

1. Wear traditional clothing

2. Set up 8-fold folding

screen toward north

3. Set up a table in front of it

and place food

4. Put a photo of the ancestor

5. Open the door slightly

for the spirits to come in

3 major classes of ancestor worship

Gyo-sa (교사)

for the heaven and earth

Jo-myo (조묘)

for the ancestors

Moon-myo (문묘)

for those of high respectful positions

Different forms of Ancestor Worship

Burial Rituals

3 Year Mourning

Confucianism

reinforced the importance of ancestor worship as it emphasizes the act of paying respect to parents and elders

Animism and shamanism

Sadang building

Traditional and Modern

Ancestor Worship in Korea

With Sinjoo

Ancestor Worship – How it began

the living soul of an ancestor exerts a continuous influence on the well-being of descendants of a later generation

Father to son lineal succession

Obligation

Animism and shamanism

Confucianism

Belief of immortal spirits

Offerings

Specific Rituals

In Jung Choi

Professor Yoo

HUMA 2420

January 14 2013