Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
A PLACE WITH POWER
Seoul is miles from the coast, ringed by mountains that an ever-expanding population
has to work its way around, buffeted by icy winter weather, and at least for the last 60
years, within striking range of an often hostile neighbor. It's natural to wonder why
anyone would pick such a spot for the country's bustling capital.
In fact, when judged according to the principles of
pungsu
—the Korean pronunci-
ation for the Chinese art of geomancy, feng shui—Seoul's location couldn't be better.
Legend has it that in the 14th century, when Joseon Dynasty founder King Taejo was
scouting out a place for his new capital, a renowned Buddhist monk and geomantic
expert who served as the king's adviser, Muhak, urged him to select the place that
basically remains the center of Seoul today.
Muhak's view had much to do with the mountains that surround Gyeongbokung
Palace and the presidential residence of the Blue House. In
pungsu
mountains are
known to channel vital energy (
ki
) and also have a protective function. Seoul's ori-
ginal palaces were bordered by four: Bukhansan to the north, Namsan to the south,
and the city's two main guardians—the “blue dragon” of Naksan to the east and the
“white tiger” of Inwangsan to the west. This made it all but certain that the royals
inhabiting them would enjoy long lives and that their enemies would find them diffi-
cult to vanquish.
The area's geomantic quality was reinforced further by the fact that structures
could be built with Bukhansan at their back to face the Cheonggyecheon stream and,
farther south, the Han River.
Pungsu
basics state that water can retain vital energy
that would otherwise be scattered; thus the positive energy carried by Seoul's moun-
tains is effectively fenced in, at least north of the river.
The upheavals that Seoul has faced in the centuries since it was founded would
seem to suggest that the geomantically auspicious site hasn't done it much good at
all, but the city (and its mountains) have managed to endure. At the very least, there
was an underlying order to the seemingly random development of the capital.
