Samsin Halmeoni (), also called Grandmother Samsin, is the goddess of childbirth and fate 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 ...

Name

''Sam'' means "pregnancy" in Korean, s''in'' or ''shin'' means god(dess), ''halmeoni'' means grandmother, a title for a venerated ancestor goddess, embodied as a wise crone goddess. When addressed with the honorary title Samsin halmeoni or just Samsin, the pregnancy goddessess are also thought of as goddess of childbirth in

Korean shamanism Korean shamanism, also known as () is a religion from Korea. Religious studies, Scholars of religion classify it as a folk religion and sometimes regard it as one facet of a broader Korean vernacular religion distinct from Buddhism, Taoism, Dao ...

. Since the phonetic notation of Sam is 三(means three), it has also been interpreted in relation to the number 3. A mountain in South Korea is named after Samsin halmeoni, the Samsinbong, known as the Samsin halmeoni Peak.

Worship and beliefs

Samsin halmeoni would protect every child from birth until the seventh year of age, where the child would then be protected by the deity of Seven Stars, the

Ursa Major Ursa Major, also known as the Great Bear, is a constellation in the Northern Sky, whose associated mythology likely dates back into prehistory. Its Latin name means "greater (or larger) bear", referring to and contrasting it with nearby Ursa M ...

bear. Every village and every house would have its own Samsin of childbirth. Even today, the Korean people believe that the warmest part of the ''

anbang Anbang Insurance Group () was a Chinese holding company whose subsidiaries mainly deal with insurance, banking, and financial services based in Beijing. As of February 2017, the company had assets worth more than (US$301 billion). The ''Financ ...

'' (main living room), belongs to Samsin halmeoni and rituals and prayers to Samsin are still performed there. Samsin halmeoni was honoured at childbirth and at birthday parties with offerings of

rice Rice is a cereal grain and in its Domestication, domesticated form is the staple food of over half of the world's population, particularly in Asia and Africa. Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice)—or, much l ...

, soy sauce and wine, laid out in the form of a dinner. At the third and seventh day after the childbirth, the underwear of the mother would be folded and placed in the ''anbang'' Samsin area and a little altar would be set upon them, where prayers for a long and healthy life of the child would be performed. Samsin halmeoni or Samsin was also said to visit the ''Samsin Danji'' () dedicated to her, an earthenware pot kept in the inner wing of the house or in the warm part of the ''anbang''. The pot was filled with rice, then covered in paper and sealed with a knot tied counterclockwise. However, some households would perform ''Geongung Samsin'', the act of honoring Samsin, only in the mind. Samshin halmeoni was honored with

Jesa ''Jesa'' (, ) is a ceremony commonly practiced in Korea. Jesa functions as a Ancestor veneration, memorial to the ancestors of the participants. Jesa are usually held on the anniversary of the ancestor's death. The majority of Catholic Church in ...

s at every festival or birthday celebration in the household, and also at the third, seventh and thirty-seventh day after delivery. When a woman in the household was pregnant or has given delivery, the room where the ''Samsin Danji'' was kept, would be sealed with ropes to symbolize and contain the strong power of Samshin halmeoni. After the delivery, a rope would be also hung on the outside of the house to mark the lucky event of "opening what has been tied", symbolizing the act of birth, and to ward off evil spirits that could threaten the mother and the new baby. The belief in Samsin halmeoni is strongest in

Jeju Island Jeju Island (Jeju language, Jeju/) is South Korea's largest island, covering an area of , which is 1.83% of the total area of the country. Alongside outlying islands, it is part of Jeju Province and makes up the majority of the province. The i ...

. To conceive, a childless woman would share her Samsin rice meal with a mother who recently delivered, pray to Samsin in the anbang area or wear a cloth that has touched a coffin.

Myth

In oral tradition, Samsin halmeoni would be the daughter of the virgin sky goddess who became the first '' mudang'' shamaness, who was named ''T'ang Kum Agassi'' or ''Tanggum Aeggi''. She descended from heaven to Earth and gave birth to the Samsin in a cave, which is a reference to bear worship and Korean shamanism. Later, after male-oriented Buddhism has entered Korea, the myth was amended with Tanggum Aeggi also giving birth to 3 sons, who became Buddhistic heaven gods. The Samsin halmeoni then created and gave birth to the first humans on Earth, becoming the mother goddesses and ancestors of all humans. In a Samsin myth, both of the main characters - the malevolent Princess of the Dragon Palace of the East Sea and the kind Princess of the Kingdom of Myeongjin - are female, underlining how the ancient myth is related to female-oriented Korean shamanism.

In popular culture

* Portrayed in a

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by Kim Ji-young (actress, born 1938) in the 2010 SBS TV series '' My Girlfriend Is a Gumiho'' * Portrayed in a

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in the 2012

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''. * Portrayed by in the 2020

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manhwa Afterlife Restaurant by ASSAM, Orang, Hwajeong, Hyeong Sangjun

References

{{Korean mythology Korean goddesses Korean mythology Mother goddesses Korean folk religion Triple goddesses Childhood goddesses