한중 창세신화 비교 연구

초록

A creation myth is one of the most important types of mythology, mainly due to its originality. Since the mythology explains the origin of every elements in the universe, it contains the nations’ conception of the cosmos. The most primitive thoughts begin from creation myth, which works as a fundamental base of the culture. For such reason, comparing creation myths of China and Korea will be the same as comparing the core of two different cultures. Current research compares the motif in mythology of China and Korea, in regards of their Shaman Epic and philological myths. The points of interests in this discussion will be how the myths were transmitted, what stories are told about the creation of the universe and humankind, and how characters in myths fight each other to win the worlds of humankind. Most of Korean creation myth has been passed down via shaman epic, even though some of them were throughout storytelling and transcription. The most significant motif is competition for humankind, control over the sun and moon, and creation of the universe. The motif about creation of human and the origin of world only appears in Changsega(創世歌), Senggood(셍굿), and Shilumal(시루말). Meanwhile, Chinese creation myth appears in several parts of the literature before Qin(秦), with the motif of diverse themes. Competition between the gods to attain the human world which appears in Korean mythology is not found from Chinese creation mythology. Only types of competition that are mainly found in Chinese myth are the struggles for the throne of the sky and fights between the individuals caused by the tribes. Second, both Korean and Chinese myth define the status before the creation as a big chaos. Maitreya(彌勒) is the sacred creator of the universe in Korean creation mythology. On the other hand, Chinese mythology specifies four sons of FuXi(伏羲) and NǚWa(女媧) as creators of the universe. Chinese mythology sometime describes the universe as being created by itself. Korean myth tells that the sun and moon were born after a giant, Chung-yidongja(靑衣童子), died. He should be a gigantic enough to carry the sun and the moon on each side of his head. Accordingly, Korean myth characterizes the sun and moon as being generated from the corpse of a giant deity. Part of Chogamje(初監祭 ) is describing PanGu(盤古) as a creator of the sun and moon, however, this is not the original idea of Korean culture but influenced from Chinese literature. Creation myth of China has two versions stories about the birth of the sun and moon. One is that the giant PanGu turned into the sun and moon, and the other is that the wives of DiJun(帝俊) Emperor of the sky, XiHe(羲和) and ChangXi(常羲), died and became the sun and the moon. The type of story seeing the sun and moon being created from the corpse seems similar to Korean story about Chung-yidongja. Also, both myths share the premise of altruism, as the sacrifice of a mythical figure to create the universe reflects morality that both cultures appreciate. There are two versions of the story about the origin of humankind. One is that an insect fallen from the sky turned into a human. The other is that a female angel from heaven and a tree on earth spiritually connected to each other and the first human was born. These stories, even with differences in types, have the similarity in terms of the sky playing a critical role in the birth of first human. Korean and Chinese creation myth both has the theme of archery to control the sun. A commander who manipulates the sun also has the control over the human world in Korean myth, even though different characters are found. The only character to have control over the sun in Chinese creation myth, however, is Yi(羿). The core idea of two creation myths is very similar. One is to conquest of nature and the other is to have mastery over the humankind. Final winner has omniscient power over both sun and moon in Korean myth. Chinese myth, however, is missing a description about the control over the moon. It is possible that the myth failed to be passed down. Chinese myth tells different stories about the origin of human race. “Transformation” is one type of those stories. The body of NüWa turning into all things in the universe, the genuine Qi(氣) turning into the humankind, and a parasite in the dead body of PanGu transforming to a human are the examples of “Transformation” story. The other type is “Creation.” The story that NüWa formed a human out of mud is an example of this second type of stories. Next, the rivalry battle over the human world is a unique theme shown in Korean version of creation myth. Such a competition for the human world is not found from Chinese creation myth. Instead, GongGong(共工) and ZhuanXu(顓頊) compete for the throne of the sky. Interesting point is that two creation myths show difference in means of achieving what the characters admire, no matter whether it is the sky or the earth. The winner in Chinese myth is the one who has greater physical power, while it is wisdom that brings victory in Korean myth. The current research claims that such difference is caused by historical backgrounds of two nations. China has built her national identity throughout continuous war and strife between multiple tribes. On the other hand, Korea does not have much of significant historical events including fights between tribes.

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