Season 1, Episode 6
Future Ancestors: Korean American Shamans and Witches
GenX and Millenial Korean Americans and the crafting of magic and shamanism.
November 28th, 2023
Asian Americans represent a vast diaspora within the United States, but many have been separated from the traditional folk healing and shamanic practices of their ancestors. Something is changing that, and some GenX and Millennial Asian Americans are pivoting their spiritual practices to those of their ancestral homes — like Korean Americans Jennifer Kim and Chaweon Koo. But this isn’t a nostalgia for a romanticized past. These practitioners are seeking, discovering, and creating entirely new ways of practicing shamanism, ancestor worship, and magic. And it’s only the beginning.
FEATURING
Assistant Professor of American Culture, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Dr. Borja researches and teaches about religion, migration, race, ethnicity, and politics in the United States and the Pacific World, with special attention to how Asian American religious beliefs and practices have developed in the context of pluralism and the modern American state. Her book, Follow the New Way: American Refugee Resettlement Policy and Hmong Religious Change (Harvard University Press), draws on oral history and archival research to investigate the religious dimensions of American refugee policy—how governments have expanded capacity through partnerships with religious organizations and how refugee policies have shaped the religious lives of refugees. Animating her work is a deep fascination with how new religious diversity has complicated old practices of governance and, in turn, how Americans have attempted to govern new religious diversity.
Korean Shaman
Respected teaching artist, practicing mudang, and consultant on Muism–Korea’s ancient and enduring indigenous religion. Mudong Jenn writes, “I share my experiences as a mudang to teach about our ancestral folk magic practices to help bring in deeper connections with the natural world, ancestors, and spirits. Explore with me, a transformative journey that honors our indigenous roots, explores the richness of our spiritual heritage, and fosters a deeper sense of connection and meaning.”
Practitioner and author of Spell Bound: A new witch's guide to crafting the future (2022)
Chaweon Koo is a writer on the intersection of pop culture, the occult, and futurism. Her TikTok is one of the most popular occult accounts on the platform. She also interviews some of the most distinguished occultists and witches in the English-speaking world on her podcast Witches & Wine. Her book Spell Bound details her journey from an atheist witch into one of the most visible East Asian practitioners of both Eastern and Western occult traditions.
Practitioner and author of Spirit Voices: The Mysteries and Magic of North Asian Shamanism (2023)
David Shi is a shamanic worker and folk magic practitioner who primarily engages in traditional North Asian forms of shamanism. He is primarily of Manchurian descent, but can also trace ancestry to Mongolian, Chinese, Korean, as well as a little Tungus Siberian and ancient Central Asian Turkic heritage as well. Raised in a household that incorporated both Southeast Siberian and North Chinese practices, David has dedicated his spare time to the study of the spiritual traditions of his ancestors and of greater Eurasia. Recognized as a sagaasha/ongodtengertei, a future shaman prior to initiation, among both Mongolian and Korean shamans, David’s practices are deeply rooted in spirit work in which ancestral and land spirits are called to empower all workings. David’s readings incorporate a combination of Tarot, Runes, Bones, Jaw-harp, as well as Mongolian stone divination (known as Kumalak in Turkic Central Asia). David is the author of the new book Spirit Voices: The Mysteries and Magic of North Asian Shamanism, and currently resides in Manhattan, New York where he occasionally provides spiritual services, products, and workshops to his immediate communities.
CREDITS
Host: Heather Freeman; Producer: Amber Walker; Editor: Lucy Perkins; Associate Producer: Noor Gill; Sound Design: Jennie Cataldo; Fact Checker: Dania Suleman; Executive Producer for PRX Productions: Jocelyn Gonzales; Music: APM Music and Epidemic Sound; The Project Managers: Edwin Ochoa and Morgan Church; Episode Advisors: Abel Gomez and Cory Hutcheson; Guests: Melissa Borgia, Jennifer Kim, Chaweon Koo, and David Shi; Additional interview subjects: Ji Hae Robinson and Steven Quach; Additional information: Mimi Khúc and Chenxing Han; Funding and Support: The National Endowment for the Humanities and The University of North Carolina at Charlotte.
TRANSCRIPT
LEARN MORE
APARRI - Asian Pacific American Religions Research Initiative
Hufford, D. J. (2015) The Terror That Comes in the Night: An Experience-Centered Study of Supernatural Assault Traditions. University of Pennsylvania Press.
Koo, C. (2022) Spell Bound: A New Witch's Guide to Crafting the Future. Smith Street Books.
Khúc, M., ed. (Fall/Winter 2019) "Asian American Tarot" in “Open in Emergency: A Special Issue on Asian American Mental Health, Second Edition.” Special issue, The Asian American Literary Review 10, no. 2
Shi, D. (2023) Spirit Voices: The Mysteries and Magic of North Asian Shamanism. Weiser Books.
Suleman, D. (2021) Les malentendues. Foi et féminisme: des droits réconciliables.* Éditions du remue-ménage. *English translation: Misunderstandings. Faith and feminism: reconcilable rights.
PDFs in English - Introduction, On the Positive Relationship Between Faith and Social Integration, and Conclusion.
We May Gather - A collaborative project of commemoration and healing, by and for Asian American Buddhists and their spiritual friends.