Ancient shipping feels

[ljwrites]

I finished reading The King of the Light in the East as a Work of Epic Poetry by Hwang Sun-gu. It turns out there was a full text of the original epic poem in the back of the book so I took time to read that too. I need a better annotated copy, though, because I counted like four mistakes in transcription and/or translation, some of it really basic stuff like the letter 花 (flower) being used in place of 化 (become). "He turned into a pheasant and flew away" is a strange enough sentence without being rendered as "He flower pheasant and flew away."

After reading the full text I find myself shipping Songyang/Jumong more than ever. Songyang, the arrogant king of Biryu, sees the newcomer Jumong and "on seeing his extraordinary looks, invited him to sit with him." Trusting to his own power Songyang fails to give due respect to Jumong's heavenly lineage and "was careless in his words to Jumong," encouraging Jumong to serve him as his vassal. When Jumong refuses, claiming to be a son of heaven, Songyang tests his skill with archery and is handily beaten. The two become bitter rivals and eventually Jumong curses the land of Biryu with a flood that finally forces Songyang to surrender and swear fealty as Jumong's vassal.(1)

Also I find it interesting that Jumong's wife Soseono, the heroine of my WIP, is recorded as having two sons and the elder of them is named Biryu, the name of Songyang's kingdom/tribe. Depending on the interpretation you go with it's not that mysterious, though, since you can read "Soseono" and "Songyang" as different Chinese writings of the same Korean word roughly meaning "High Land." They may well have been from the same tribe, which would explain her son's name. Add a streak of fantasy and Soseono and Songyang can be the same person, with Soseono as the ruling queen who fought a war with Jumong. That's part of what I love about this history, it's like a puzzle that can fit together in so many different ways.

Notes
1. And yes, I know the reference to extraordinary looks in the ancient literature is code for unusual/superhuman abilities and not like sexy good looks, but just let me have my modern interpretation okay??