#1 Opening: A few days before Jeongwol Daeboreum (the 15th day of New Year's Day of the lunar year), at the port of Seosan in Chungcheongnam-do Province, a cow destined for the Dangje ritual for a village guardian deity is brought in on a boat. "The cow is referred to as the 'Jitae', which is an honorific name for a cow, as??? it has been a ritual offering since ancient times." The Jitae, or cow, is the most sacred being at Dangje, a ritual in which local islanders say prayers for their safety and a large catch of fish. The ritual is held at sea first, and then the sacrificial cow, or Jitae, and the ritual clothes and accessories are moved to the village. The ceremony is held to commemorate the spirits of the deceased so that those sacrifices could be safely transported to the village??? "The participants in the Dangje perform their ablutions and then butcher the cow and prepare the cuts of meat for the ritual at the shrine." The sacrificial food is offered by the head of the village at the shrine and the Dangje rite is performed throughout the night. In this way the village community comes together to offer a sacred cow and express their wishes.

#2 Main Title: The Twelve Zodiac Animals in Faith

#3 Animal Sacrifices: Sacrificial rituals in which animals are offered up to ancestors or gods to bring peace are widely found. Sacrifice refers to the use of animals as sacrifices, and a sacrificial ritual in which an animal is offered to the heavenly god is called a sacrifice rite. Animals can be objects of faith as well as sacrificial offerings. In particular, cows, pigs, and sheep are often offered as sacrifices. The cow and sheep that are offered on the ritual table make the ritual solemn with one's sincerity. Bottles of liquor - Huijun and Sangjun – are among the ritual vessels that show the sincerity of people who do their best to hold a ritual using sophisticated liquor bottles, which have a cow and an elephant shapes with a round mouth on its back.

#4 Unjoru Historic House, Gurye (Animal symbol): On a peaceful day in a village surrounded by a low range of hills, we encounter an interesting scene. There is a tiger bone hung above the gate of the house. Traces of animals can be seen inside and outside the houses. In the past, people believed that if they hanged up a tiger bone, the reins of a horse, or a nose ring for a cow at home, these objects would drive away evil spirits and prevent misfortune. People also attached a bell to the neck of a cow, which was the main resource for many farming families, because they believed that the tinkling of a bell would drive away evil spirits and bring a good harvest.

#5 Deified Animals: Traditionally, a wooden horse is built at a shrine to serve as a village deity or as a mount for the village's guardian deity. This type of wooden horse was made to protect the village from savage beasts, and in certain regions people also made horses with stone, metal, ceramic or other materials for worship. The shrine's wooden horse is placed together with the portrait of a mountain spirit or a general, because people believed that the guardian deity and its horse would protect the village with their divine power. At seaside villages that embrace people's joys and sorrows, people believed in a generous and benevolent deity that would look after their lives and livelihoods.

#6 Interview: The director of Gahoe Museum explains why the twelve zodiac animals are closely connected with us and are objects of faith. "Under the influence of Buddhism, the zodiac signs were not just creatures that protected us holding their arms. In our folk religion and folklore, people hung paintings of two tigers above their threshold, believing that they would drive off the samjae ("three calamities") or ward off ghosts and evil spirits. Moreover, in one traditional custom, a tiger bone was hung above the threshold or gate of the house. Our ancestors believed that if evil spirits saw even a single bone of a fierce animal like a tiger or another zodiac animal, they would run away…"

#7 The Twelve Zodiac Animals in Buddhism: Images of the zodiac animals can be seen at Buddhist temples. The Buddhist ritual drum (dharma drum) is played in the morning and at evening services and memorial services. The drum sound implies the Buddhist scriptures that redeem the animals on the ground. The sides of dharma drum are covered with cow hide, while the Buddhist temple bell is engraved with a dragon design which, in Buddhist structures and craftworks, symbolizes protection of the Buddhist scriptures. The tomb of Jeong Mong-ju is surrounded by stone statues of rats, which symbolize time: a white rat refers to the day, while a black rat represents the night. Thus, the white rat was carved as if ascending, while the black rat was depicted as if descending. It is an example of Buddhist expression of humans' karmic suffering, which is described in the Agama, the sacred Buddhist scriptures.

#8 The Twelve Zodiac Animals in Buddhism: Images of the twelve zodiac animals, for instance, those adorning the bridge at Seunggasa Temple, represent the divine warriors that protect the Buddhist scriptures and Buddhists themselves. It is clear that the zodiac faith of Korea is closely connected with the belief in the Bhaisajyaguru, or Medicine, Buddha. Wall paintings of the Ten Bulls are commonly found at Buddhist temples. "The Ten Bulls" is a series of ten pictures with a bull and a boy that reflect the ideas of Bojo Jinul, a Korean monk of the Goryeo period, and the most influential figure in the development of Korean Seon, or Zen, Buddhism. These ten paintings lining the walls of Daewongjeon Hall, the main sanctuary of the temple, depict scenes of a boy keeping a bull until it turns white, implying the process of ridding oneself of greed and gaining the mercy of Buddha.

#9 The Buddhist monk Wongong explains the reason for painting (why he painted?) the twelve zodiac animals for a modern lamp in colorful lights. "As we are all born with a zodiac sign, children join their hands in front of these zodiac lamps and make a wish……" The zodiac animals illuminate our life like the light of the lamps.

#10 The Meaning of Animals in Charms: A lucky charm is a cultural product that is believed to ward off evil spirits and ghosts, and to bring luck as a divine thing, as it plays the role of a guardian and is deemed to have spiritual power. When used in charms, the twelve zodiac animals are viewed as divine warriors that frighten evil spirits, prevent calamities, and fulfill wishes. The tiger, as the king of the beasts, is believed to have the power to repel evil spirits. Thus, images of the tiger are drawn on samjae charms that are designed to expel the three calamities associated with wind, water, and fire. People believed that the tiger charm could drive away disease and the three calamities.

#11 Various Kinds of Animal Charms: Charms are usually made of paper but they can also be produced in various ways using stone, wood, bronze, or gourds. In Korean folk religion, these cute charms made of stone and wood were usually buried in a grave or placed on the rafters to expel evil spirits.

#12 Interview: The director of the Gahoe Museum explains the zodiac signs' power of repelling evil spirits. "People set the dates for important life events including marriage according to the zodiac signs while they were living, or sometimes get sick, or become successful. People even used the zodiac signs to determine the date and time to move or bury corpse ……"

#13 The Four Pillars of Destiny: We throw in our lot with our zodiac sign from birth to death, because we tend to identify our behavior and nature with those of our zodiac animal. A person’s zodiac sign is considered an essential factor in determining their destiny. The Four Pillars of Destiny are composed of two elements, the Four Pillars, i.e. year, month, day, and hour of birth, and Destiny, which is divined by the two sexagenary cycle characters assigned to the four pillars. It is a product of the belief that humanity, as a part of the cosmic order, is influenced by the energy of the universe. By calculating the Four Pillars of Destiny, people can foresee their fortunes, personality, parental or sibling relationships, future partner, descendants, state of health, accidents, and choice of a job, and can even prepare for imminent misfortune.

#14 Yongwangje (Ritual for the Dragon King): The Yongwangje (Ritual for the Dragon King) is performed at daybreak after holding the Dangje Ritual for a village guardian deity throughout the night. People scatter the ritual food, including the blood of the jitae (sacrificial cow), at sea to pray for a good catch and peace in the village to the Dragon King of the Sea, and set adrift a small boat carrying ritual food. After sending sacrificial out into the sea, fishermen expected a safe voyage and a good catch of fish.

#15 End: The zodiac signs enrich our life by connecting the earthly world with the spiritual world. They have survived to the present day along with prayers for peace in the earthly world and eternal life. Having our hands together, we pray for peace in our personal life and village.