Dream interpretation in 19th-century Korea

A 1900 contract detailing the sale of a dream from Park Hae-myeong to Yi Byeong-yu / Courtesy of The Academy of Korean Studies

By Kim Hak-soo

Not many cultures place so much significance on the meaning of dreams as in Korean culture. Lucky dreams can make anyone excited about good fortunes to come his or her way, whereas qualms and uneasy feelings caused by ominous dreams make one guard himself or herself and be careful in speech and conduct.

From ancient times, Koreans have preferred dreams featuring dragon, tiger, and pig. While dragon and tiger are considered symbols of mystique and auspiciousness, pig dreams are favored, as they are believed to bring one riches.
An expression for success, Deungyongmun is an expression for success commonly used in several Asian countries. Literally meaning, 'to climb Yongmun, or dragon gate,' this expression came to symbolize prestige and success. It also served as a metaphor for passing the gwageo (civil service exam).

The biggest wish among seonbi scholars living during the Joseon Kingdom (1392-1910) was to pass the state examination and enter the government service. Thus, it is only natural for scholars to want to have a dragon dream. It is not coincidence that the popular love story Chunhyangjeon's male protagonist, who is a young scholar preparing for the state exam, is Mong-ryong, meaning "to dream of dragon."

It appears that Koreans believed that a dream could change one's destiny. For this reason, auspicious dreams often changed hands. An example of life-altering dream is documented in SamgukSagi (History of the Three Kingdoms), the oldest official Korean chronicle. A tale tells a story of Kim Bohui and Kim Munhui, younger sisters of Kim Yushin, who led the unification of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. One night, Bohui had a dream in which she urinated on top of the Mt. Seohyeong and the urine flooded Seorabeol (the capital of Silla Kingdom). Upon hearing about this strange dream, her younger sister Munhui willingly exchanged her precious possession for it, knowing intuitively that it must be an auspicious dream.

Whether it was due to the dream's efficacy or not, fates of two sisters seemed to have been switched after this exchange. The younger sister Munhui married Kim Chun-chu, who later became the King Muyeol of Silla. Meanwhile, Bohui long regretted carelessly selling the lucky dream and wound up becoming the royal concubine. What a curious irony of fate that a quick sale of a dream brought about! There is no doubt that the older sister felt deeply regretful all the more, as we are told the price of this life-changing dream was a mere roll of silk.

Regardless of the veracity, this story became imprinted on the collective consciousness of Koreans as a prime example of selling and buying dreams. It also gave the lesson that one needs to pay a fair price to buy a dream from someone else. Women usually paid with their valuables such as skirt and jewelry, whereas men treated the seller to a meal or drinks. No matter how auspicious they are, not paying for dreams with cold cash solidified into a long-standing custom and tradition.
Towards the late Joseon period, however, one starts to notice the change in conventional wisdom. We find a case where what was once considered an intangible asset turned into an economic asset, and eventually the end product of an official transaction. In this particular case documented in a bilateral contract, the means of transaction was real money, not the food or other goods as it used to be. Now came the era when the monetary value of auspicious dreams as valuable assets began to be recognized.

Among the historic documents from Yeoju Yi clan of GyeongjuOksan that the Jangseogak Archives at the Academy of Korean Studies discovered is a very revealing contract detailing the sale of a dream. Drawn up in April, 1900, it provides a remarkably vivid glimpse of how people from a century ago put a price on a certain kind of dreams. This contract is the only one of its kind among the known historical documents.

According to the contract, on the 23rd day of the second lunar month in the year of 1900, a man named Park Hae-myeong had a very propitious dream of a dragon and a tiger appearing together. The word traveled through word of mouth and reached the ear of Yi Byeong-yu, who lived in a nearby village called Oksan.

Judging from its opening phrase, "As I have a urgent need of money…" it is clear that Park Hae-myeong was intent on selling his dream. Where there is supply, there will be demand. When Yi Byeong-yu, a scholar from Oksan came forward as a potential buyer with offer of 1,000 nyang(a unit of Joseon's coinage system), a huge sum of money equivalent to 100million won today, the deal was struck. As dreams obviously have no real substance, the agreement was solely based on trust between the seller and the buyer. Despite the intangible nature of the product, they prepared a contract conforming to slave sale contracts or land sale contracts, had the witness and the preparer sign it. Having met all the terms and conditions for the agreement, the ownership of Park's dream was transferred to Yi on April 3, 1900.
Who was Yi Byeong-yu and what compelled him to spend such a huge sum of money for one propitious dream? He was known as a proper/well-behaved scholar.

Yi was a 13th generation descendant of the great Confucian scholar Yi Eon-jeok, who is also known by his pen name Hoejae. Yi was known as a decent seonbi in Gyeongju region; being a learned man himself, he took the civil service exam in 1891. At the time of the contract, Yi lived ina stately house with no less than 62 rooms. We also know that he owned 11 slaves until around 1891. Yi's personal residence, also known as Dokrakdang (now designated as South Korea's Treasure No. 413), was inherited from Yi Eonjeok and was a very elegant residence appropriate for a nobleman.

One cannot help but wonder why someone like Yi, an affluent man by all appearances wanted to buy a dream for such a high price that could buy him three patches of rice paddy (approximately 1983.5 m2 or 21350 sq. ft.). Unbeknownst to others, there must have been a source of worries in the household. It was probably concerning the health of his eldest son Yundeok. Poor health of the 15-year-old son must have worried his parents greatly. By purchasing an auspicious dream, Yi probably wished for the good health and longevity of his son. It was an expression of the love of a father, who was willing to do anything for his children.

Thanks to the devoted affection of his father, and perhaps thanks to the miraculous effect of the purchased dream, Yundeok survived the crisis and started to restore his health, albeit temporarily. However, as Confucius once said, "Death and life have their determined appointments." 12 years later, Yundeok, who did not have a robust constitution by nature, passed away 10 years earlier than his father, at the age of 27. Praying for the well-being of his son at all costs, Yi Byeong-yu offered a generous sum of money for Park's lucky dream. He went all out to make the deal official hoping to ensure the efficacy of the dream. Although in the end the dream did not guarantee a long healthy life for his son, this episode what Korean parents are like and their boundless love for their children. What Yi ultimately bargained for was not the selfish wishes for his own wealth and success, but a precious dream of happiness and well-being for his family.

Kim Hak-soo is a chief researcher at The Academy of Korean Studies.

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