Imperial Japan used spiritual spikes to disrupt Korea's life force
In short: During the Japanese occupation of Korea, the colonial government didn't just use physical force to maintain control. They deployed shamans to bury large iron spiritual spikes across the landscape, intended to disrupt the land's life force and facilitate colonial rule. This hidden history of spiritual warfare remains a haunting legacy.
The 2024 South Korean film 'Exhuma' explores the intersection of Korean shamanism and the trauma of Japanese colonial rule. The narrative reveals that Imperial Japan ordered its shamans to bury iron spiritual spikes across the Korean peninsula. These were not merely physical objects but were intended to function as spiritual tools to weaken the land's inherent life force, thereby making it easier to govern and exploit.
The film depicts a specific mechanism of spiritual warfare: the transformation of objects into 'tsukumogami.' In one sequence, a Japanese shaman known as 'The Fox' (Murayama Junji) is shown embedding a katana inside a decapitated samurai's body. This act transformed the warrior into a guardian spirit. These spirits were tasked with protecting the iron spikes, which were often hidden within graves or remote mountain sites to deter interference.
The conflict between the colonizer and the colonized is framed through the lens of resistance. The film identifies 'grave robbers' not as common thieves, but as Korean patriots who risked their lives to locate and remove these spiritual spikes. This underscores a historical reality where the struggle for sovereignty involved both physical excavation and the spiritual reclamation of the land. By unearthing these relics, the characters confront the literal and metaphorical 'curses' of a colonial past.
The film achieved significant cultural impact, grossing over $93.9 million worldwide and becoming the highest-grossing South Korean film of 2024. Its success highlights a deep public interest in 'super-realistic' depictions of traditional rituals, such as exhumation and 'gut' ceremonies, used as a vehicle to process historical grievances and the lingering shadows of the Japanese occupation.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Exhuma
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