| Duduri | |
|---|---|
Wood spirit | |
| Other names | |
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | 두두리 |
| RR | duduri |
| MR | tuduri |
| Venerated in | Korean shamanism |
| Major cult center | Gyeongju |
| Symbol | Wooden statue |
| Ethnic group | Koreans |
Duduri (Korean: 두두리), also known as Dudueul (두두을), was a wood spirit (목신; 木神; moksin) or folk deity worshipped in the Gyeongju region of southeastern Korea. Records of Duduri worship date from the Silla dynasty to the middle of the Goryeo dynasty, after which the worship of Duduri declined.
Duduri was worshipped as a tutelary deity, and official rites were held in its honor. Historical accounts connect the worship of Duduri with particular places and political figures. Some scholars regard Duduri as an early form or predecessor of the dokkaebi.
The name "Duduri" is a native Korean word. It was transcribed into Hanja as 豆豆里 or 豆豆乙. Its exact origin is unknown. The worship of Duduri is believed to date to the Silla dynasty. The Sinjeung Dongguk Yeoji Seungnam (新增東國輿地勝覽), a 16th-century geographical work, records a shrine to Duduri at Wanggasu (왕가수; 王家藪), a forest located ten li south of Gyeongju, the former capital of Silla. The work states that rites and sacrifices were held there for Duduri as a wood spirit.
Worship of Duduri appears to have disappeared after the middle of the Goryeo dynasty. The destruction of the Gyeongju region during the Mongol invasions may have weakened the community that maintained the cult. The later rise of Neo-Confucianism during the Joseon dynasty also affected local folk beliefs and religious practices. Duduri was eventually no longer recorded as a local deity.
Some scholars have connected Duduri with later traditions about the Dokkaebi. Duduri was associated with a tree, while some Korean traditions describe dokkaebi as beings that arise from old objects, including trees and household implements. On this basis, Duduri has been described as an earlier form of the dokkaebi tradition.
Duduri is mentioned in several historical accounts from the Goryeo dynasty. The Goryeosa (History of Goryeo) associates Duduri with Yi Ŭimin, a Goryeo military leader who ruled as a military dictator from 1183 to 1196. Yi Ŭimin was a member of the slave class before rising to political power. According to later accounts, he worshipped Duduri and regarded the wood spirit as the source of his strength. He is also said to have made offerings to Duduri before important political and military decisions.
Duduri is also mentioned in the Goryeosa in an account of the first Mongol invasions of Korea in 1231. As the Mongol army led by General Saritai approached Gyeongju, a report was sent to the Goryeo court. The report claimed to be a message from Duduri, stating that five Duduri spirits had come to fight the Mongols. The spirits asked the court to send weapons and horses by the 18th of that month. King Gojong and his official Ch'oe U responded to the message. Ch'oe U sent an official with paintings of soldiers and horses as a ritual offering to Duduri. The Mongol invasion, however, continued.
In the 2003–2004 KBS historical drama Age of Warriors, a shamanistic character named Dudueul, played by Jeon Moo-song, appears as an advisor to Yi Ŭimin.