Shamanic Discourses in the 20th Presidential Election of the Republic of Korea

Abstract

Approximately five years after the Choi Soon-sil Gate in 2016, shamanic practices again attracted intense public attention in relation to politics. During the campaign for the 20th presidential election of the Republic of Korea (March 9, 2022), allegations concerning shamanic connections were raised against then-candidate Yoon Suk-yeol, which led to a steady proliferation of shamanic discourses. Although such discourses share features with the Choi Soon-sil Gate, they also exhibit characteristics that were less prominent during that earlier scandal, thus offering valuable perspectives for considering the history of shamanic discourse. By comparing the Choi Soon-sil Gate and earlier shamanic discourses, this study focuses on those of the election, and clarifies their distinct features and the religious-historical significance of shamanism. This study finds that while the election’s shamanic discourses fundamentally share features with the Choi Soon-sil Gate, they also exhibit more pronounced characteristics―such as the prominence of the sorcery concept. The fact that shamanism is not socially recognized as a religion in Korea contributed to the heightened activity of such discourses during the election; in this sense, these are primarily concerned with the relationship between shamanism and the concept of “religion.” However, because the boundary between sorcery and religion is ambiguous, the shamanic discourses of the election can also be interpreted as part of the larger issue of “politics and religion.”