Gisaeng Postcards near Seoul City Hall

Rose scented postcards featuring a Gisaeng on each! Each with a sijo poem in English and Korean and a short bio on each Gisaeng written by Brother Anthony of Taize a.k.a An Sonjae.

I found these right inside Deoksu Palace in Seoul. It's the palace near Seoul City Hall : Across the street from the Seoul library and Seoul Plaza. On the palace grounds they have a wonderful gift shop that sells many unique items that are rare and near impossible to find at other souvenir shops.

Brother Anthony's site may be found here and for those finding their way into the Korean way of tea / Korean tea Ceremony I highly recommend his book The Korean Way of Tea available via What The Book : (The Korean Way of Tea) or through Seoul Selection's The Korean Way of Tea

Here's a brief, but more detailed explanation that I wrote about Geisaeng here : Tales of a Gisaeng and all of my posts regarding Gisaeng.

"Songs of the Kisaeng" Chosun Dynasty Poems in English.

 My post "Tales of a Gisaeng" is almost over 1,500 pageviews versus the mere 100-200 page views for my other posts. Thus I bring you more Gisaeng poetry!

 During the Chosun dynasty Korean society was strictly Confucian; marriages were most often arranged and young ladies were not permitted to go out. There is the often told tale of girls on a swing set, swinging as high as they could, just to get a view over their courtyard wall.

In this context, where women had few freedoms, even that of expression, the Gisaeng may be viewed as a 'feminist' one. Although their lives were confined to their role as concubines, serving at the pleasure of the state, they did have the education and freedom to write with their most often form of expression being the shijo poem, many of which were made into songs. It is important to note that many of these poems express both their loves and longings as well as their complicated emotions they had for their clients. Being unmarried, the Gisaeng also had great financial freedom and many were known throughout the open air markets of Chosun Dynasty Korea.

From www.abebooks.com a used bookseller conglomerate I received a copy of Songs of the Kisaeng a collection of shijo poems by various Kisaeng translated by Constantine Contogenis and Wolhee Choe.

All of the translated poems come with the original Korean so it is a great source for English speakers wishing to expand their Korean vocabulary.

Many of the poems are by the famous Hwang Jini. Reviewer and author Sam Hamill aptly describes the poems as "courtesan blues from the Chosun Dynasty". Indeed many of the poems are of longing and loss while others are passionate love poems. Here are a few samples from the book:

Ah, What Have I Done?

Ah, What have I done -- as though I didn't 
know my feelings would remain.
I would not add the few
words that would keep him.

I want to understand the joy
I felt as I was letting him go.
     -- Hwang Jini.



An Anchor Lifts

An anchor lifts, a ship is leaving
he goes this time, when to return.
Far over the sea's vast waverings
one can see a going as return.

But as the sound of that anchor lifting,
the night could hear her insides turn.
     -- Anonymous Gisaeng. 
     


Iron, We Were Told

Iron, we were told; iron had arrived again
Sure I remember brittle pig iron,
but your close, cold surface told me iron
again that was hammered and annealed.

This time I will use a furnace of earth, bellows
of such breath you will not withstand the fire. 
     -- Chinok.

Overall I'd say this book is an excellent read providing much insight into the midset of the Gisaeng. There is a fine selection of poems: some love poems, some speak of longing and loss while others are of renunciation. Theirs is a poetry of passion whereas many of the poems written by the literati yangban at the time are of historical or of topical themes and tend to be rather dry overall. Perhaps this explains current interest in the emotional complexities found in Gisaeng poetry. Indeed, it is one of their more intriguing charms.

Gisaeng Nongae Festival at Jinju Castle in May

In Jinju every May they have a Non-gae festival. Named after the Gisaeng who embraced a Japanese General and took him plunging to their deaths. This is apparently where the Busan, Igidae legend of the two gisaeng jumping off a cliff to kill a Japanese General.

 In Jinju Castle there is a shrine dedicated to her with a plaque telling her story:

A portrait of Non-gae in the shrine

Children can draw pictures of gisaeng to post on a wall display there in the castle. They also can dress up in gisaeng clothes. 

Non-gae by JangMin



A view from the castle ramparts near where she fell.

 In the evening they have special events for the 3 day festival. On the day we were there they had traditional gisaeng dances and singing. They also had pansori singing.

 Later the castle walls are lit for a night performance set in the location where Non-gae plunged to her death, taking the Japanese General with her.













 The main event of the festival is a reinactment of Nongaes life and suicide. They portrayed her relationship with the Korean Generals protecting Jinju from the Japanese. The fall of Jinju to the Japanese and the Korean General's suicide (everybody cheers when the actors jump into the water in full costume) (There were alot of old adjulshis there).

Here you can see the Korean defenders with torches.

The battle rages...

After Nongae plunges into the water with the General, there is a brief memorial dance. Some may call it an exorcism dance for Non-gae.

To view the performance they set up a pontoon platform for the audience. So we were actually sitting on the water, looking up at the castle and across to where Non-gae was last alive upon this earth. A wonderful and haunting experience that is a must see !






At a restaurant we found a tea-cloth that had a sijo written by Non-gae. The owner told us that such items could be purchased from the souvenir shop in Jinju City Hall.

Sadly, as it is in City Hall it isn't open on the weekends when the festival occurs and when most tourists residing in Korea would drop by Jinju it is inaccessable to their main market.  As it is a long way to drive for only souvenirs sadly and well, I must work on the weekdays it seems this 'souvenir shop' is something I am unable to report on. Regardless, the festival was awesome (registered trademark of Busan Awesome ?)

Gisaeng/Kisaeng Poetry: The sijo/Shijo

I have recently noticed that my Gisaeng post is up over 1000 readers now! So it seems I shall research and post more in that area, greater serving my readers out there in cyberland.

It is important to note, in the comparison between Japanese and Korean culture that Japan had both Geisha and Courtesans. The Geisha most strictly were the artists and entertainers while there was another separate group of courtesans who entertained sexually. There were strict laws definine each groups work ensuring that the Geisha would not encroach upon the courtesans area of expertise. (For reference I refer to Liza Dalby's well researched and footnoted work Geisha.
However, in Korea Gisaeng were both courtesan and artistic entertainer. Their clientele were the upper class yangban; the educated elite.

Love Poems From Old Korea in sijo form purchased at Yong-gwan bookstore in Someyeon (Busan) has many sijo, some of them written by Gisaeng.

I will cut into halves the waist

of the long mid-winter night;

roll it up to be placed

under the warm spring-breeze quilt

and I will unroll it in the night

when my beloved arrives.

-- Hwang Chini (1511~1541).

Sadly, this work only has the English and does not include the Korean. Regardless, it seems to be a good poetic translation in that the translation is still in sijo form. Other poems in this work are from the yangban though some purport to be from commoners. Were they educated to write sijo? It would be a rare occurrence for certain !

The bright moon in the blue heaven

shall be able to see my fair one's face.

Why can't I be like the moon

sailing across the skies?

Will my love ever think of me

while watching the moon?

---Won Wi

Recently from www.Abebooks.com a used bookseller aggragator I purchased Songs of the Kisaeng. I should have it by this summer. There are a few rare copies of it out there. I will review it as soon as I get it and rifle through it. Until then, may you stay inspired !

Tales of a Gisaeng

Perhaps its the atmosphere of living next to Igigdae Hill/Park where two gisaeng jumped off the cliff with a Japanese general inspiring me. Old legends have a certain power that grows beyond what a real factual account would have. The story sounds suspiciously like another story "a patriotic kisaeng named Nongae in the late 16th century...while entertaining Japanese generals at the Choksongnu Pavilion that overlooks the Nam River in South Kyongsang Province, Nongae led Japanese general Keyamura Rokusuke to a cliff, embraced him and cast herself into the river, killing them both". I found the latter version of the story here @ Han Cinema. The story sounds more reliable than the Igigdae story which doesn't mention which general and gisaeng. Perhaps the Igidae story came from this one.

The story of the gisaeng taking out a general reminds me of the story of koreas ninja the Ja-gaek who were male acrobats trained to be assassins by a korean general of the Hwa-ryung warriors...but I digress...

Lately I've been reading up on all things gisaeng. Gisaeng were the Goryo and Choseon Dynasty entertainers. They were very much like the Japanese Geisha. Later this week I shall find myself in the comic book room beneath the Kyungsung McDonalds reading "Gisaeng Iyagi/Story" by Kim Dong-hwa.

One of the most legendary gisaeng was Hwang Jini. In part, due to the success of "Memoirs of a Geisha" back in 2005, interest in Hwang Jini sparked the production of both a Hwang Jini movie and TV series.
Of the gisaeng she was one of the more prolific, writing 60 shijo poems that still survive today, (I've got a book on order about gisaeng shijo poems, book review coming in a few months...).
Her beauty and talents became legendary as she charmed great scholars of the era, among them a Buddhist monk named Jijok who later was excommunicated because of her.

This picture entitled "7 girls" from the Franklin Francis Carpeter Library of Congress Collection shows 7 young girls who were gisaeng in training. Girls as young as 8 years old began training as gisaeng becoming actual gisaeng at 16 or 17 years old.  According to legend, Hwang Jini was the illigitimate child of a yangban and the gisaeng Heon Keum.  

Gisaeng girl 1890. Gisaeng went through 8 or 9 years of strict training in poetry, song, dance and tea ceremony.

In 2006 actress Ha Ji Won played Hwang-Jini in a TV series entitled Hwang-Jini.  I'm wondering what happened to the 2007 TV production entitled Haeauhwa  (해어화, 解語花) which is about another, though less famous, gisaeng. You can pick up some parts of the Hwang-Jini TV series with English subtitles on youtube. Though to watch the entire series you'll probably have to purchase it on DVD at Someyeon's DVD/CD store. The one with all the korean TV series' on DVD there.  

Actress Song Hye Kyo playing Hwang Jini in a movie (I'm off to rent and watch it this afternoon. Most video stores here have a copy of it. All you have to do is give the video store your phone number to start an account with them and maybe your foreign card which has your address. Videos are usually 2000 won each for 1-2 days.  

As Harvard Professor and shijo poet David R. McCann relates,  "some of the most famous kisaeng poems were composed to persuade prominent scholars to spend the night".

Here's one by Hwang-Jini below:










청산리 靑山裡 벽계수碧溪水야 수이 감을 자랑마라.
일도창해一到滄海하면 다시 오기 어려워라
명월(明月)이 만공산滿空山하니 쉬어간들 어떠리.
In this poem 벽계수/Byuk-Gye Soo is the name of the Yangban Hwang-Jini is addressing the poem to. Historical records show there was a man of royal birth of that name.
명월 (明月)or bright moon is Hwang-Jini's nickname. Thus the poem translates as:

Don't be proud, clear water/Byuk-GyeSoo of running free to the beach!
You will find it hard to go back, once the azure ocean you reach.
Take a break, while the moon is bright in the sky, I beseech.
--Hwang-Jini. Translated by Kim Young Nahg.

As part of the Hwang-Jini craze that has swept Korea, Korean Vogue brought a bunch of models to Paris and dressed them up like gisaeng for a photoshoot. Later I'll bring you more of Hwang-Jini and other gisaeng's shijo poems. Until then, I'm logging off so I can watch the Hwang-Jini movie. Till next time...
 --MWT.