The Bulgasari or Pulgasari () is a metal-eating

legendary creature A legendary creature is a type of extraordinary or supernatural being that is described in folklore (including myths and legends), and may be featured in historical accounts before modernity, but has not been scientifically shown to exist. In t ...

that appears in

Korean mythology Korean mythology () is the group of myths told by historical and modern Koreans. There are two types: the written, literary mythology in traditional histories, mostly about the founding monarchs of List of monarchs of Korea, various historical k ...

and

folklore Folklore is the body of expressive culture shared by a particular group of people, culture or subculture. This includes oral traditions such as Narrative, tales, myths, legends, proverbs, Poetry, poems, jokes, and other oral traditions. This also ...

. The creature is a composite creature with the body of a

bear Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family (biology), family Ursidae (). They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats ...

, the trunk of an

elephant Elephants are the largest living land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant ('' Loxodonta africana''), the African forest elephant (''L. cyclotis''), and the Asian elephant ('' Elephas maximus ...

, the eyes of a

rhinoceros A rhinoceros ( ; ; ; : rhinoceros or rhinoceroses), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant taxon, extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates (perissodactyls) in the family (biology), famil ...

, the claws of a

tiger The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is a large Felidae, cat and a member of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Asia. It has a powerful, muscular body with a large head and paws, a long tail and orange fur with black, mostly vertical stripes. It is ...

, and the tail of a

bull A bull is an intact (i.e., not Castration, castrated) adult male of the species ''Bos taurus'' (cattle). More muscular and aggressive than the females of the same species (i.e. cows proper), bulls have long been an important symbol cattle in r ...

. In Korean, the name "Bulgasari" translates to "something impossible to kill"; however, swapping the first Chinese character for a Korean character of the same pronunciation and choosing the corresponding Chinese character to that Korean character results in a spelling that translates to "something that can be killed by fire". Unlike many Western monsters, the Bulgasari is often portrayed as heroic as it causes destruction, punishing evil in society, although negative folktales about it also exist.

Mythology

The legend of the Bulgasari originated in the late 14th century. According to legend, the Bulgasari is a bloodthirsty beast that grows in size the more metal it eats. Myth states that it was created by a Buddhist monk who was fleeing persecution because

Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

was illegal in

Goryeo Goryeo (; ) was a Korean state founded in 918, during a time of national division called the Later Three Kingdoms period, that unified and ruled the Korea, Korean Peninsula until the establishment of Joseon in 1392. Goryeo achieved what has b ...

-era Korea. He created a small figure out of rice grains, which he fed needles, and it began to grow. Soon enough it was massive, and the government sent soldiers to kill it with arrows and swords, but it simply ate the metal weapons and became stronger. Finally, they decided to kill it with fire, but this had no effect on it, and the Bulgasari carried the fire to burn down a local village. Myths differ on the fate of the Bulgasari; some say that it still lives to this day, while others say that it was defeated by monks. According to legend, it can defeat nightmares and evil spirits; protect against incubi; and prevent plagues and natural disasters. As a result, it was sculpted as a sentry on walls, chimneys, railings, and pillars.

References

{{Korean mythology Korean folklore Korean legendary creatures Mythological hybrids

Mythology

See also

References