Others

Nobody’s perfect

By Janet Shin The major philosophy of saju, or the four pillars of destiny, comes from yin, yang and the five elements theory. Basically, it indicates that one’s destiny requires a harmony between yin and yang and all the five elements have to be filled in order to lead a happy life. Then, do you see something odd in this statement? Why is it four pillars, when we have to gratify the five elements? In other words, it has to be five pillars, not four pillars in order to make a perfect destiny. However, it only makes four pillars at maximum energy, because saju consists of the energy from one’s birth year, month, day and time. Therefore, everyone is searching for the missing elements. Mostly, people work hard to live happily in their later days. Youths in their 20s say that they have time and a healthy body to enjoy their lives, but they do not have enough money. In their 30s and 40s, they say they do not have time to enjoy life because they have to work for a better life in the future. In their 50s and 60s, they often suffer from health problems and they cannot get the same del

411th Turtle Marathon

If death is single best invention of our life

By Janet Shin I appreciate the fact that I have a healthy body and soul so that I can walk, enjoy food and journey with companions, hug others, write to touch the soul and comfort other’s pain and sorrow. However I dare say that I have never clung to life just to enjoy living and possessions, yet it doesn’t mean that I totally transcend the fear of death. I stayed at my father’s deathbed with unbearable sorrow. I watched how much people crave a longer life in terminal illness. When I stayed in the wards of terminal cancer patients, they were filled with remorse. It may be the portraits of ordinary people’s fear of dying, while there truly are touching stories of dignified people in front of death. If you could surmount the fear of death, whether it is your own or others’, you would sense that the fog that beclouds your eyes clears and you may see the core essence of life. Although saju differs from religion, it has the thought of an eternal cycle of birth, death and rebirth. The letters, or the energies in your saju from birth circulate to indicate your destiny from the kar

Things you need to know about hepatitis B

By Lim Ju-won Hepatitis B is an infectious illness caused by the hepatitis B virus (HBV) and leads to an inflammation of the liver. A major route of infection in Korea is perinatal infection (Hepatitis B can be passed from a mother to her baby during or shortly after delivery). The virus spreads from person to person with the exchange of bodily fluids such as having sex, sharing needles, acupuncture and tattooing. Hepatitis B viruses, however, doesn’t spread through casual contact, such as holding hands, sharing drinking glasses, breast-feeding, kissing, hugging, coughing, or sneezing. It does not generally spread through water and food. The infection of the virus may either be acute or chronic. In about 5 percent of adults infected, the virus becomes hepatitis B carriers and develops into chronic hepatitis. Acute hepatitis causes liver inflammation, vomiting, jaundice. Chronic hepatitis B may eventually cause cirrhosis and liver cancer. Acute infection with the virus begins with fatigue, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, body aches, mild fever, dark urine, and

SCC geared for advanced medical tourism

By Nho Joon-hun Seoul Central Clinic (SCC) has all the essentials, including convenient location, experienced and expert staff and medical equipment, to make it the top destination for medical tourism. Not that it is putting on a façade as a one-stop center for foreign visitors, it is equipped to diagnose and treat a wide range of illnesses in the shortest period of time. Naturally, foreign visitors are not the main clients; SCC provides comprehensive medical examinations for employees of a good number of companies and organizations such as the Bank of Korea, KB Bank, Daewoo Engineering and Construction, Shinsegae Department Store and Seoul Metropolitan government. Located inside the Post Office Tower in Myong-dong, downtown Seoul, the SCC specializes in medical health checkups and offers subsequent treatment. If patients need more complicated and sophisticated treatment, it also introduces them to networked general hospitals. Comprehensive medical tests SCC offers the entire range of medical services from radiology and internal and family medicine to der

(157) It’s not your fault

By Janet Shin There was a famous line in the movie “Good Will Hunting,” “it’s not your fault.” It was spoken by Sean Maguire, a psychologist played by Robin Williams, to Will Hunting, portrayed by Matt Damon. Hunting is a janitor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), who has a gift for mathematics. Owing to his deprived childhood, he builds a high wall to protect his ego with a victim mentality. In order to keep himself out of jail, he reluctantly agrees to see a psychologist, Maguire, who tries to heal the deep scars inside Will’s mind so as to learn a healthy love. Many of us try to live by our own rule of justice. Quite often, it is not compatible with conventional reality and we suffer from the hurt caused by the difference. Some are able to find their own way of living by compromising with reality, others not. Some are capable enough to win in the battle of life and achieve their goals. But many just keep struggling and hoping to find a way not to be hurt too much. And they hope people will recognize them someday. In the course of our life, many try

Bridging Korean Buddhism and the West

Musang Temple at forefront of globalizing Buddhism By Do Je-hae GYERYONG, South Chungcheong Province — There is no better time than fall to visit a Buddhist temple in Korea. Many are nestled in the mountains, providing a refreshing retreat for the body and soul in the midst of gorgeous autumn foliage. One such retreat is Musang Temple in Gyeryong, a small town near Daejeon, about an hour from Seoul on the high-speed KTX train. Gyeryong is known for the Gyeryongdae complex, the tri-service headquarters from where all military operations are planned and controlled. The city of around 40,300 people is also the home of Mt. Gyeryong National Park, considered the mountain with the most “gi” or spiritual energy in the nation. As such, the area houses many Buddhist temples, including the Musang Temple. The Musang Temple has a unique history and status among the some 2,000 Buddhist temples in the nation. Currently led by non-Korean monks, it was founded with the purpose to serve as a bridge between Korean Buddhism and the West. It is the only Buddhist temple in th

Int’l male models experience traditional Korean culture

By Chung Ah-young Contestants of the Manhunt International 2011 pageant took part in traditional Korean cultural programs in Yongmun Temple in Yecheon, North Gyeongsang Province from Sept. 30 to Oct. 1. The participants from 60 countries attended a temple stay program including meditation and Buddhist rosary craft classes, a ceremony to strike a bell and an evening Buddhist service Friday. On Saturday, they visited thatched and tile-roofed houses and walked along a stone wall and tried their hand at archery in Geumdangsil Village. The models had a chance to view the county’s beautiful landscape while enjoying the traditional programs in Hoeryongpo. A county official said that the events were an important opportunity to promote the area to foreigners and would contribute to attracting more tourists from abroad. Initiated in 1993 in Australia, the pageant is the world’s third largest contest for men after Mr. World and Mr. Intercontinental. The finals of the pageant will be held on Oct. 10 at the Central City Seoul Millennium Hall.

Healthy habits lead to healthy hair

By Kelly Frances The next time you visit your hair stylist, you may find yourself on camera, or rather, your scalp may be center screen. Hair professionals have gone high tech in search of comprehensive diagnostics when it comes to hair health, which begins with the scalp, and extends to lifestyle, diet, and stress management. According to stylist Ryu Shin, early assessment combined with small lifestyle changes goes a long way to prevent hair loss and scalp issues, which are more common than people think. “Most people never consider their scalp, and most people don’t care, though the scalp influences the hair condition and everyone wants great hair,” he said. “An unhealthy scalp is one way that nature tells us we have an unbalanced lifestyle.” Ryu is the owner of "Funny Hair Style" salon, located near Hongik University in northern Seoul, commonly referred to as Hongdae. Although he is often sought out for his award-winning techniques in creating funky Reggae-inspired braids or “dreds,” Ryu has developed his own regime for scalp care, which he says is the first step t

Korean Buddhist culture lures Parisiens

Jogye head vows to further globalization of Korean Buddhism By Chung Ah-young Ven. Jaseung, the head of the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism, said he will set up a long-term plan to globalize Korean Buddhism at a press conference in Paris, France, Saturday. His visit is part of efforts to publicize the religion around the world through various religious activities and events. “I admit Korean Buddhism has been focused on settling internal struggles within the orders over the last 10 to 20 years and consequently unable to look forward to the future,” he said, noting the order’s lack of activity to globalize the religion. “Now as the orders are in harmony, we will concentrate on promoting Korean Buddhism to the world through a long-term plan to come to fruition 10 to 20 years or 40 to 50 years later.” The head suggested that the order will support students majoring in Korean studies at the University of Columbia in the United States every year with grants totaling $100,000 and strengthen overseas campaigns by increasing assistance to foreign monks dispatched around the