A
legend on Hahoe Masks and Bachelor Huh
A young man called Huh
doryong lived in Hahoe village in the middle of the Korea
dynasty. He had a revelation in his dream. It was the guardian
deity of his village. The following morning he devoted himself
to making masks. He performed his ablutions and spread forbidden
strings to prohibit strangers from entering his house.
At those days, a young
girl, who was ardently in love with Huh doryong but could
not meet him at that period, desired to know what he was doing.
Thus, she peeped through a hole she had made into Huh doryong's
window-paper. Her actions violated the divine rule of Huh
doryong. Huh doryong spewed out blood and died instantly.
Thus, he could not finish making the chin of the Imae Mask,
his last work. Until now. the ImaeMask, without a chin, has
been handed down through generations.
The people of the village
built an altar near the shrine of a local god. Sacrifices were
made every year for the sake of comforting Huh doryong's spirit.
No trace, however, of the altar has been found. |