During 1930’s, the period of Imperialist Japanese occupation of Korea by force, a Japanese head of a police detachment unit residing at Yongdoo-ri of Choongnam province got all the ‘Jangseung’ totem poles at the village entrance pulled out to the very last on the pretext of abolishing superstition and burnt them away. Sometime later, he fell sick hovering over the brink of death before he was barely recovered. The villagers took his misfortune for a deserving retribution for the harsh treatment he made to the ‘Jangseung’ tutelary deities of the village.

The ‘Jangseung’ totem poles, though almost gone now, were what you could easily find standing tall anywhere around the entrance of a village until 1960’s. The ‘Jangseung’ totem poles used to serve as a landmark for village limits and were worshipped as village tutelary deities.

Therefore, many of the villages having the ‘Jangseung’ poles standing at the entrance used to pay ‘Jangseung-jae’ rites for the village’s tutelary deities. Every January of lunar month, there is the ‘Jangseung-jae’ rites still going on until now at the Yongdoo-ri village in Chungyang-kun of Choongchung-namdo.

The place where the ‘Jangseung’ poles are standing is called the ‘Jangseung’ road, Seonang-dang or Noroomok, which is usually found at a corner of a village entrance. This is where ‘Jangseung-jae’ rites are paid, with a ritual food table set up, to pray for wealth and fortune of a village.

Worthy of the name of tutelary deity, the ‘Jangseung’ poles standing tall under the ‘Dangsan’ ritual trees look so dignified that you may feel it uneasy to get close to them.

As ‘Jangseung-jae’ rites are paid requiring newly made ‘Jangseung’ poles standing nearby, the first job for the male villagers is to cut trees good to make ‘Jangseung’ poles beforehand. Not any tree or any mountain may be taken for the choice of right ‘Jangseung’ trees. The day’s orientation has to be checked out before locating upright pine trees free of evil spirits.
When the lumbered ‘Jangseung’ trees of choice are downloaded in the garden of the village hall, they readily set to work. A village carpenter with woodcraft dexterity is chosen for the sculpture.

The peeled lumbers are being marked for division of the head, the face and the body, and carving starts from the head for the contours.
The cheek part gets scooped out, the nose carved out protruding in a triangular shape and the mouth chipped off. After the body part gets planed away, an officer hat is painted on the head with a brush, and then the contours of eyes, nose, ears, etc. on the face. A male ‘Jangseung’ pole gets a mustache and a female a traditional ornamental ‘Beenyeo’ hairpin, to tell their gender.

Although all the ‘Jangseung’ poles spread over the country may look similar, each of them is different from one another in its shape of face or in its facial expression and carries its own individuality. The ‘Jangseung’ poles at Yongdoo-ri suggest homely and generous country people.

With the finished male and female ‘Jangseung’ poles on A-frame carriers on the back, they beat the ‘Poongmool’ farmer’s sound all the way to the ‘Jangseung’ road to stand them there. At this sound, the villagers come out to dance to the band and enjoy themselves together.

Upon making the ‘Jangseung’ road, they first sprinkle loess around to ward off misfortune.

Lastly, ‘Jangseung’ standing is wedged with a ‘Beenyeo-mok’ piece of lumber. When the standing work is finished, they wind the ‘Jangseung’ poles triple or quadruple folds on the body with exorcist ropes.

With the ‘Jangseung’ standing completed, it is now time to roll into preparing sacrificial rites straightforward. The celebrant consignor gathers up the sacrifices and leads the way, who is followed by a ‘Nongak-dae’ farm folk band playing ‘Poongmool’ farmer’s music. Some villagers find the band more interesting than the rites. The ‘Jangseung-jae’ rites also serve as a feast for the whole village.

According to the procedure of the ritual ceremony, the celebrant consignor offers wine cups, makes low bows, and then reads the prayer aloud.
The prayer contains all the wishes for welfare of the village made to both the male and female ‘Jangseung’ poles and to the ‘Ohang-shin’ god controlling the East, the West, the South, the North and the Center-Core.

The last part of the ritual ceremony is prayer-paper burning called ‘Sojee’.

The ‘Jangseung’ pole keeps silent. It just keeps its place at the entrance of the village and keeps watching over the village in silence. Weary of the earthly cares, some may find trust in the unfailing look of the ‘Jangseung’ and wish them to bring in fortune as well as to keep off evil spirits.

Though time flies, the ‘Jangseung’ will stay friendly with us and we love them.