() are legendary creatures from Korean mythology and folklore. , also known as "Korean goblins", are nature deities or spirits possessing extraordinary powers and abilities that are used to interact with humans, at times playing tricks on them and at times helping them. Legends describe different in many forms and beings with a thousand faces, and often wear hanbok.
Origins
The earliest known documentation of is in the Silla-era tale of "Lady Dohwa and Bachelor Bihyeong" from the Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms compiled during the Goryeo period. are featured in many folk tale anthologies compiled during the Joseon period.
Characteristics
are different from ghosts, called gwishin () in Korean, in that they are not formed by the death of a human being, but rather by the spiritual possession of an inanimate object such as old discarded household tools like brooms, or objects stained with human blood.
The physical appearance of the is presented in many different ways and has varied by different time periods, but they have always been depicted as fearsome and awe-inspiring. The most common depiction of them is based on ancient roof tiles with patterns.
Different versions of the mythology assign different attributes to them. In some cases, they are considered harmless but nevertheless mischievous, usually playing pranks on people or challenging wayward travelers to a ssireum (Korean wrestling) match for the right to pass. are extremely skilled at wrestling and cannot be beaten unless their right side is exploited. In other tales, only have one leg, so one should hook their leg and push them to win.
fire is a glimmering light or tall blue flames that herald the appearance of .
possess magical items, such as the hat called the (도깨비 감투), which grants the wearer the ability of invisibility, and the magic club called the (), which can summon things and act functionally as a magic wand. like Buckwheat jelly, Sorghum and red bean rice cakes, mashed Sorghum and the drinks. So in gosa (), there are foods which like.
Abilities
It is believed that have immense supernatural powers, can bring good harvests, big catches and great fortunes to humans, and are defenders against evil spirits. Depending on the region's traditional folklore, some traditional practices are held to appeal to to bring good luck to humans and other practices are done to chase away , who are thought to be the causes of bad luck that brings fires and contagious diseases. In Jeju Island, the Durin-gut healing ceremony for mental illnesses is said to drive away the from the patient, similar to driving away the bad energy from a person.
Legends
Many Korean legends have featured in them. In several, play pranks on mortals or punish them because of their evil deeds. One such tale describes an old man who lived alone on a mountain. One day, a visited his house. Surprised, the kind old man gave the an alcoholic beverage and they become friends. The visited the old man often and they had long conversations together, but one day, the man took a walk by himself in the woods near the river. He discovered that his reflection looked like the . He fear, and realized that he was gradually becoming that creature. The man made a plan to prevent himself from becoming a and invited the creature to his house. He asked, "What are you most afraid of?" and the answered, "I'm afraid of blood. What are you afraid of?" The man pretended to be frightened and said, "I'm afraid of money. That's why I live in the mountains by myself." The next day, the old man killed a cow and poured its blood all over his house. The , with shock and great anger, ran away and said, "I'll be back with your greatest fear!" The next day, the brought bags of money and threw it to the old man. After that, never came back and the old man became the richest person in the town.
Types
Although have no set form, some people divide them into types. These are some common types:
Cham dokkaebi (): A mischievous dokkaebi. Contrast with Gae Dokkaebi. Gae dokkaebi (): Evil . Contrast with Cham . Kim Seobang dokkaebi (): A dumb dokkaebi that looks like a farmer. Nat dokkaebi (): Unlike other , these appear during the daylight. They are known to give to humans. Go dokkaebi (): Dokkaebi known to be good at fighting and handling weapons, especially arrows. Gaksi dokkaebi () and chonggak dokkaebi (): Dokkaebi, known to attract humans. Oenun dokkaebi (): A one-eyed that eats a lot. Oedari dokkaebi (): A one-legged that likes to play Ssireum.