Dear Friends and Family,

One December day, a statue of pig – a humungous golden pig – placed itself a downtown shopping intersection.

“What can it mean?” we exclaimed as we rushed over to pose for pictures with it. Our puzzlement only deepened when golden pig merchandise began to appear simply everywhere. My current “students” informed me that in dreams, golden pigs symbolize extraordinary good luck. Hmm… I also did some research and read that…

The Myth of the Year of Golden Pig
2007-01-01

The year 2007 is the ‘Year of the Pig,’ based on the lunar calendar. But it is not just an ordinary pig, it is a ‘golden pig.’ According to some fortunetellers, it is going to be the ‘Year of the Golden Pig’ which comes every 600 years.

Babies born in the ‘year of the golden pig’ are believed to have good fortune and will lead a comfortable and wealthy life.

However, most fortunetellers and folklorists doubt the belief. According to a member of a fortunetellers’ association, they don’t know where the myth came from. It is only a saying among people and there are no grounds for it.

People who believe in the year of the golden pig say the special year comes every 600 years. They came to this conclusion through calculations, using a combination of the Chinese zodiac and the yin and yang theory.

However, a folklore professor, Joo Young-ha, at the Academy of Korean Studies rebuts the theory. He explained that if the year 2007 is the golden pig year which comes every 600 years, there should be records about the special year written in the ‘Taejong Sillok,’ archives of King Taejong. King Taejong ruled the Joseon Dynasty 600 years ago. But there are no such records, which makes him believe the myth was made not long ago.

Also, Baek Woon-san, head of the Korean Fortune-tellers Association, thinks the whole thing is an exaggeration. However, he said that there have been many people with good fortune who were born in the year of the pig, when the energy of bright light and clear water are harmoniously joined together.

Some even believe the myth was created to boost the ever-decreasing birthrate in recent years. In fact, Korea’s birthrate is expected to increase this year. Many obstetrics and gynecology clinics are actually providing more pregnancy counseling these days.

Whatever the belief is, marketing is already in full swing. You will notice golden pig items everywhere you go in Korea. Gold colored piggy banks are selling well and are also a popular promotional item for companies. They are actually very cute.

Some businesses, including banks, are even presenting gold bars as a lottery prize to people who open a bank account these days. Also, demand for gold is increasing as more people are using gold as gifts for relatives and friends, wishing them good luck.

Baby product companies are also quick to jump on the gilded bandwagon. For example, toy companies are making various toy pigs. – KBS News

Hmm… anyway, this morning I awoke from a vivid, pigless dream regarding wedding announcements. I think that I’ll now return to bed… hoping for visions of golden pigs, dancing in my head.… --Laura

PS: This aricle came from Korea’s KBS news at http://world.kbs.co.kr/english/town/town_seoultoday_detail.htm?No=296. Not an impressive news site, actually. And my first golden pig pic came from http://static.flickr.com/28/63892758_7167705566.jpg. My second pic is the genuine article!