한(韓),중(中) 단오 유래설과 관련 세시 = Annual Cyclical Rites Related to Origin Theories of Korean and Chinese Dano

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

In 2005, the Gangneung Danoje Festival, Korea’s Important Intangible Culture Heritage Item No. 13 was proclaimed as a UNESCO Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity. Around the time of preparation for its registration as a UNESCO Masterpiece, the Chinese held the view that Dano (May 5th in the lunisolar calendar) has roots in China. However, the Korean Dano festival cannot be held to be of Chinese origin despite its many similarities to the Chinese Dano festival. There may be connections between the two in that the Chinese characters for Dano were borrowed and that the Korean cyclical rite of Dano is much the same as that of Chinese Dano, but it cannot be held that Korean Dano originated in China. It is true that Korea and China share historical cultural characteristics of older times, but before the Chinese letters for Dano were used, there existed a Korean ritual called Suritnal. Though there are a lot of similarities between the Korean Dano Festival and the Chinese Dano Festival, they are different from each other. The Korean Dano rite was originally agricultural in nature, emphasizing the worship of heaven and ancestry, while the Chinese Dano was a rite for the dead, focusing on comforting departed souls. It was rather a memorial service than the agricultural ritual. Of course, the Chinese also worshiped gods through the Dano rite. In fact, in all the 24 divisions of the year, the Chinese worshiped gods. Originally in China, the historical divisions of the year reinforced the principle that Nature, including heaven, should be obeyed. At every division of the year, various gods including heaven were worshiped. It is therefore thought that origin stories centering on specific historical figures were formed and added later on. Yet such origin stories were also valued, which reflected the Chinese public feeling of emphasizing nationalistic spirit, patriotism, and the spirit of national defense. More than anything else, the origin theory of Korean Dano differs from that of Chinese Dano. In addition, many Chinese annual cyclical rites have origin stories related to historical figures. Besides the division of Dano, the divisions of Hansik(Day for Beginning to Have Cold Food), Chilseok(July 7th on the lunisolar calendar), and Dongji(winter solstice) are respectively related with the following figures: Gaejachu, Gyeonu and Jiknyeo, and the son of Gonggongssi. Most of the 24 divisions of the year have origin stories. Korea has its own legend about the origin of Sondol, a male wind god, but still many Korean legends borrow from Chinese origin stories. Though the origin stories of Hansik, Chilseok, and Dongji stem from China, they are familiar to Koreans. The origin story of Chilseok results from a phenomenon of the stars, and that of Hansik comes from history. These origin stories have become part of Korea’s yearly division stories Korean records of annual cyclical rites include Chinese annual cyclical rites introduced to Korea along with other things from Chinese culture. The recorded explanations of Chinese annual cyclical rites were applied to Korean annual cyclical rites and were newly interpreted and recorded. Native Korean annual cyclical rites were described along with those records. Some records of such annual cyclical rites are so confusing that it is still a question whether Dano was native to Korea or was introduced from China. However, in general, the annual cyclical rites of the court were from China. Some of the court``s annual cyclical rites could have been transformed into those of the ordinary people, yet on the whole, both kinds of annual cyclical rites remained different from each other. Still others were mingled, so their origins cannot be identified. In conclusion, the Korean Dano annual cyclical rite borrowed just its name and ideology from China. Its concrete contents are composed of things Korean.