Have lunch, hear your future
at S. Korea’s fortune cafe
By Christina Ko, Stars and
Stripes
Christina Ko / Stars and Stripes
Fortunetellers aren't dressed in mystical garb and hidden away in back rooms any more, as
this public session in a cafe in Seoul, Korea, attests. |
The ancient practice of fortunetelling has worked its way into the
modern cafés of South Korea.
At saju (fortune) cafés - usually full of young Koreans -
people relax on plush sofas, sip iced cappuccinos, chat with friends and learn what their
future holds.
To match the modern atmosphere of the neighborhoods and customers,
the fortunetellers are void of all the stereotypical shamanistic gadgets and clothing,
presenting themselves in everyday clothes.
One fortuneteller at Saju.com, one of about three fortune cafés in
Apkujung dong in Seoul, was wearing simple white cotton pants and a striped T-shirt with a
cellular phone hanging around her neck. Another fortuneteller wore a gray business suit
and wire-rimmed glasses.
But look closely, and there’s a mystical gleam lurking in the
fortunetellers’ eyes as they shuffle through their tattered books of Chinese
characters, scribble symbols and characters with calligraphy pens and mumble to themselves
while poking their own palms continuously with their thumbs.
Getting your fortune told is optional. For an extra 10,000-20,000 won
($7-$14), the jumjengi (fortuneteller) of your choice comes to your table and
usually gets your name, date and time of birth. There usually are two to four
fortunetellers at each café who spend about 20 minutes telling your fortune.
“I wanted this one guy with a beard, but he was booked for an
hour,” said Lee Moon-hyung, 18. “So I just got my fortune told by this other
person, but he totally generalized about everything.”
Christina Ko / Stars and Stripes
Fortuneteller Lee Woon-jae expands on his prediction during a recent sitting. |
Before delving into the future, the fortuneteller explores the
customer’s past. As a way to furnish some reliability, the fortuneteller relates a
little information about the customer’s background, family and personality.
After this briefing, customers can make the fortuneteller earn his or
her keep. They can fire away with questions about the events that have yet to come in
their lives.
Lee Yoo, 21, who got her fortune told at a café, described her
fortuneteller as “quite accurate” in terms of her background and family.
“You will discover a significant other to whip you off your feet
within the next few months,” the fortuneteller predicted. “You’ll get
married around the age of 27 to a lawyer and have children soon after.”
He also told Lee she had a knack for business and encouraged her to
pursue an occupation in that field.
“It was definitely an interesting experience,” Lee said.
“But I didn’t give it too much credibility as it was only 10,000 won.”
Korea has two main types of fortunetellers: birthday users and spirit
users. The fortunetellers who apply people’s birthdays are the ones found in the saju
cafés. Pedestrians may also stumble across them on the busy streets of Seoul. Some
predict futures from tiny tents, and some simply sit on straw mats.
The spirit users, who do private sessions and summon
fortune-revealing ghosts, are related to the traditional shaman rituals in which spirits
are called upon for protection and blessing through music and dance.
Christina Ko / Stars and Stripes
Lee Woon-jae, 34, explains a Korean woman's fortune at the New Elle Cafe in Seoul. |
Birthday-using fortunetellers are becoming increasingly widespread,
said fortuneteller Noh Sung-woo.
“There are private instruction schools for fortune
telling,” Noh said. “Some colleges have even created saju
studies.”
However, he warns there are many frauds without licenses on the
streets of Seoul who will “rip you off.”
Noh, a fortuneteller at an Apkujung dong café, was a businessman
before becoming a fortuneteller. Then he met a monk who told him he should be in the field
of religion and fortunetelling.
“After my business failed because of some mishaps, I started to
study saju,” Noh said. “I was always interested in this field,
especially after meeting that monk. Now, I get a hunch of what people are like just by
looking at their faces.”
With affordable prices ranging from 10,000-20,000 won, the saju
cafés designed for younger generations are entertaining locations.
Christina Ko / Stars and Stripes
Two Korean women await a fortuneteller's arrival. |
“I pretty much thought all this fortunetelling stuff was a
complete sham before trying it out at a café,” said Kim Yong, 23. “But it was
surprising how accurate they can be.”
Arranging a historical and cultural trend with modern social life
gives people another angle to today’s Korea.
“It’s really fun,” Lee Moon-hyung said. “It might
not be real, but it’s fun.”
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