By Bernard Rowan
At this time in our year and century, with the horrible war that is COVID-19, I thought to write about good luck. The Korean word for good luck is "bok." In ancient Greek it's "tuche." Luck is something not to rely on. However, some say luck benefits those who already think prudently. That's what Machiavelli reminded us about fortune. To others, luck is foolish superstition and completely irrational. Each of us gets to decide, right?
As we round the end of the solar and lunar years, separated by a few weeks, I also think luck relates to hope. We need to find hope in bad times as well as good. Dreams may be thought of as ideas we wish for and work for to make them come to life. I believe next year will be better. We should see the glass as filling or half-full, even though it seems draining or empty. Look for the good luck to remain hopeful. Let's see some of the Korean symbols of good luck and hope.
Now, something ironic is that JapanVisitor.com tells us the Korean word for good luck is pronounced just the same as the Chinese ideogram for bat! Bats are signs of good luck. Go and figure! People thought in the past that bats lived many, many years, so they stood for luck and longevity. Symbols of bats and other images often combine in Korean arts and artifacts.
More generally, there are "bujeok" symbols, formed by red lettering against a yellow background. Some are for good luck, and others to ward off evil. The color red stands for good luck and for opposing evil. This harmonizes with red as a symbol of life and courage in European thinking. In the same way, 90daykorean.com says we can wish others good luck with the word "hwaiting." Informally, this word means "be of courage," "have a fighting/resilient spirit" and "to victory."
For Koreans, several animals symbolize luck. Pigs promise wealth and positive things in future. Others say dreaming of pigs is good luck. Have some "samgyeopsal" with kimchi and soju. I'm hungry now.
Wikipedia discusses Korean forms of good luck as arising from shamanistic thinking. Seeing swallows is one example. Lucky-charms.org discusses swallows as birds that avoid the ground and crave the skies. They represent freedom, love and friendship. It's also interesting to read the powerful symbol of the phoenix has the swallow as its chin in many depictions.
Lifeinkorea.com mentions the positive meanings associated with other animals, including the wild goose, magpie and dragons. The site also describes yeon hwan patterns, which represent continuing good luck. These are iterated, organized sets of lines, circles and other shapes, sometimes interrupted with letters or other symbols.
Seoulistic.com says that the numbers 3, 7, and 8 are propitious. Weddings may best occur on dates with 8. Couples separated by three or seven years in age are lucky. Seoulistic's website also features an interesting article on 25 ways to pursue good luck in Korea (and to avoid the bad). These include eating sticky rice or "yeot," throwing teeth over a roof (forget the tooth fairy, people) and watching crows (opposite of Western thinking).
A really beautiful depiction of longevity, which I take to be synonymous with one aspect of hope and good luck, exists at artsandculture.google.com, entitled "Korean Symbols of Wishes," from Sookmyung Women's University.
Take small steps to the better days. Think of the turtle. The turtle also symbolizes good living, life and knowledge. Very often Korean symbols feature a baby turtle on the mother's back. Turtle shells had the use of fortune-telling in days gone by, but I also like the image of the turtle defeating the rabbit in a race, a non-Korean story.
As we reach 2021, fighting on against COVID-19. Seek better days. Cultivate hope and good luck. In many ways, turtle thinking is reason dreaming of the good life and happiness.
Bernard Rowan (browan10@yahoo.com) is associate provost and professor of political science at Chicago State University. He is a past fellow of the Korea Foundation and past visiting professor at Hanyang University's Graduate School of Local Autonomy.
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As we round the end of the solar and lunar years, separated by a few weeks, I also think luck relates to hope. We need to find hope in bad times as well as good. Dreams may be thought of as ideas we wish for and work for to make them come to life. I believe next year will be better. We should see the glass as filling or half-full, even though it seems draining or empty. Look for the good luck to remain hopeful. Let's see some of the Korean symbols of good luck and hope.
Now, something ironic is that JapanVisitor.com tells us the Korean word for good luck is pronounced just the same as the Chinese ideogram for bat! Bats are signs of good luck. Go and figure! People thought in the past that bats lived many, many years, so they stood for luck and longevity. Symbols of bats and other images often combine in Korean arts and artifacts.
More generally, there are "bujeok" symbols, formed by red lettering against a yellow background. Some are for good luck, and others to ward off evil. The color red stands for good luck and for opposing evil. This harmonizes with red as a symbol of life and courage in European thinking. In the same way, 90daykorean.com says we can wish others good luck with the word "hwaiting." Informally, this word means "be of courage," "have a fighting/resilient spirit" and "to victory."
For Koreans, several animals symbolize luck. Pigs promise wealth and positive things in future. Others say dreaming of pigs is good luck. Have some "samgyeopsal" with kimchi and soju. I'm hungry now.
Wikipedia discusses Korean forms of good luck as arising from shamanistic thinking. Seeing swallows is one example. Lucky-charms.org discusses swallows as birds that avoid the ground and crave the skies. They represent freedom, love and friendship. It's also interesting to read the powerful symbol of the phoenix has the swallow as its chin in many depictions.
Lifeinkorea.com mentions the positive meanings associated with other animals, including the wild goose, magpie and dragons. The site also describes yeon hwan patterns, which represent continuing good luck. These are iterated, organized sets of lines, circles and other shapes, sometimes interrupted with letters or other symbols.
Seoulistic.com says that the numbers 3, 7, and 8 are propitious. Weddings may best occur on dates with 8. Couples separated by three or seven years in age are lucky. Seoulistic's website also features an interesting article on 25 ways to pursue good luck in Korea (and to avoid the bad). These include eating sticky rice or "yeot," throwing teeth over a roof (forget the tooth fairy, people) and watching crows (opposite of Western thinking).
A really beautiful depiction of longevity, which I take to be synonymous with one aspect of hope and good luck, exists at artsandculture.google.com, entitled "Korean Symbols of Wishes," from Sookmyung Women's University.
Take small steps to the better days. Think of the turtle. The turtle also symbolizes good living, life and knowledge. Very often Korean symbols feature a baby turtle on the mother's back. Turtle shells had the use of fortune-telling in days gone by, but I also like the image of the turtle defeating the rabbit in a race, a non-Korean story.
As we reach 2021, fighting on against COVID-19. Seek better days. Cultivate hope and good luck. In many ways, turtle thinking is reason dreaming of the good life and happiness.
Bernard Rowan (browan10@yahoo.com) is associate provost and professor of political science at Chicago State University. He is a past fellow of the Korea Foundation and past visiting professor at Hanyang University's Graduate School of Local Autonomy.
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