A collection of articles about Korean exorcisms (Shamanistic or otherwise) that didn't end well. Also some general articles about Shamanism. Not a deep dive Shamanism per se. by any means, but this thread may grow over time....
1995March 17: Exorcism Try Fatal, Police Say (http://articles.baltimoresun.com/1995-03-17/news/1995076196_1_ha-jesus-christ-demons) (The Baltimore Sun)
QuoteKyong-A Ha's relatives, seeking a cure for the insomnia she had suffered for years, tried psychology and medication without success. So the Korean woman's family turned to Emeryville evangelist Jean Park, who saw demons as the source of the problem and decided to cast them out through prayer. It was a decision that apparently led to Ms. Ha's death.
During an attempted exorcism last week that lasted as long as six hours, Ms. Park, her mother and three other women tried to oust the spirits, hitting the 25-year-old woman as many as 100 times on the chest and face, breaking at least 10 of her ribs and muffling her cries while Ha strained to be free, police said yesterday.
Afterward, members of the sect allegedly left Ms. Ha's corpse in the apartment for days before notifying police. "It's a victory for Jesus Christ," Ms. Park, 30, is said to have told police.
1996June 9: 3 Men Charged With Murder in Exorcism Death (http://articles.latimes.com/1996-07-09/local/me-22475_1_exorcism-death) (The LA Times)
July 6: Exorcism Ritual Ends in Death, Police Say (http://articles.latimes.com/1996-07-06/local/me-21671_1_jin-choi) (The LA Times)
2001
Nov. 26: Pastor on Trial Over Fatal Exorcism (http://tvnz.co.nz/content/68539/4202557/article.html) (TVNZ)
Dec. 6: Korean Pastor Found Guilty in New Zealand Exorcism Killing (https://culteducation.com/group/912-exorcism-and-spiritual-warfare/6341-korean-pastor-found-guilty-in-new-zealand-exorcism-killing.html)
QuoteA Korean self-styled church minister has been found guilty of manslaughter in New Zealand after an "exorcism" in which one of his followers was strangled.
April 12: Exorcism Preacher's Manslaughter Conviction Overturned (http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10377129) (NZ Herald)
2009Oct. 22, 2009: Fairfax Police Suspect Teen May Have Died in Korean Exorcism (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/21/AR2009102104110.html) (The Washington Post)
2015Dec. 9: South Korean Dies During Suspected Exorcism in Frankfurt hotel (http://www.dw.com/en/south-korean-dies-during-suspected-exorcism-in-frankfurt-hotel/a-18908444) (DW)
Dec. 10: Germany Arrests S. Koreans Over Alleged Exorcism Murder (http://www.cbsnews.com/news/germany-arrests-south-korean-family-murder-exorcism-ritual-frankfurt/) (CBS News)
Dec. 12: Germans Hold Koreans for Exorcism Gone Wrong (http://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/article/article.aspx?aid=3012678) (Korea JoongAng Daily)
2016Feb. 6: Couple Says They Prayed to Resurrect Daughter (http://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/article/article.aspx?aid=3014865)
June 17: 16 Year-Old Son Among 5 Family Members Charged with Killing Woman in German Hotel (https://www.rt.com/viral/347090-exorcism-murder-family-germany/) (RT)
Aug. 23: Woman is Decapitated by Mother and Brother (http://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/article/article.aspx?aid=3022933) (Korea JoongNagd Daily)
Oct. 10: Five Relatives Accused of Murdering a Mother During Exorcism (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3830288/Five-relatives-accused-murdering-mother-botched-EXORCISM-including-16-year-old-son-appear-court-Germany.html) (Daily Mail)
QuoteThe 41-year-old woman - who was thought to be possessed - died from injuries sustained while the family members tried to smother her during the ritual meant to drive demons from her body at the Intercontinental Hotel in Frankfurt.
Five members of her South Korean family have been charged with the murder, including the woman's 16-year-old-son and his 15-year-old cousin as well as the 44-year-old cousin of the deceased, her 22-year-old son and her 19-year-old daughter.
Oct. 10: Trial Begins of Korean Family Accused of Exorcism Murder (http://www.reuters.com/article/us-germany-korea-exorcism-trial-idUSKCN12A1GH) (Reuters)
Oct. 12: Koreans Face Trial Over of Exorcism Murder in German Hotel (http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2016/10/116_215960.html) (The Korea Times)
The above resulted in an interest in Korean cults, and I was happily surprised to receive an interview request from Austria. Sadly, I was asked about shamanism in Korean Christianity just
before the Choi-Gate scandal broke. (https://peterdaley.net/strangerthings/index.php?topic=10.0)
Oct. 23: Out Of Their Minds (Der Standard)
Translation - Selected Quotes:QuoteOut Of Their Minds
In Frankfurt, there are five South Koreans on trial who are supposed to have killed a relative during a devil's exorcism. The origin of this bloody deed could lie in the distinct sect system in their home country.
Frankfurt / Seoul / Vienna - What is it that exactly happened on December 5, 2015 in Room 433 of a Frankfurt luxury hotel? That the Frankfurt district court is trying to find out since last week. Accused in the trial, to be done within 15 days of hearings planned until mid-January, are five South Koreans. They remain silent and do not intend speak.
Hence, there is only one version of the story of what had happened – the one brought up by the prosecutor, which is: a group of South Koreans went to Germany to open a business. In Sulzbach (town near Frankfurt), they rented a house, but they felt it was possessed by demons so they moved out and into the indicated hotel.
In the end, the following conclusions were be drawn: The 41-year-old Seon Hwa P. began to soliloquize, to scream and to beat herself. The others, her son, her cousin and their 2 children started to perform an exorcism. Over hours they held the 41-year-old tight, kneeled on her chest, and stuffed a small towel plus a coated hanger in her mouth so she couldn't scream anymore. The woman did not survive.
Shaman Influences
Many questions must now be clarified. Whether it was murder, manslaughter, or body injury with death, is the one the court has to find an answer. The most important question, however, is that of WHY. Psychological tests have not led to any diminished liability in the case of the South Koreans to eliminate this path. For this purpose, there is a further starting point: the accused, it is said, are Christians with shaman influences.
Finding Consolation in Sects
Tark Ji-il has a further explanation. The sect expert and professor of the Presbyterian University in Busan said in an interview with the news magazine The Diplomat, most of the controversial religious groups in South Korea have their origin in one of the 3 following phases of the country: during the Japanese occupation in the first half of the 20th century, during the Korean War (1950-1953), and finally during the time of military dictatorships during 1960 to 1980. In the first 2 phases, a time of big sorrow, religious groups helped to find consolation and comfort. In the last phase, so Tark, sect leaders finally could get settled as they supported the military dictatorships in comparison to what traditional churches do.
2017Feb. 21: Five South Koreans Convicted in Fatal Exorcism Case (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/ap/article-4242846/Germany-5-South-Koreans-convicted-fatal-exorcism-case.html) (The Daily Mail)
QuoteThe Frankfurt regional court found the main defendant, a 44-year-old cousin of the victim, guilty Monday of serious bodily harm resulting in death. The dpa news agency reported that she was sentenced to six years in prison. Four other defendants, including the victim's 16-year-old son, were given suspended sentences of between 18 months and two years.
The sentences were lower than prosecutors had demanded. The court concluded that the defendants had genuinely believed they were driving a demon out of the 41-year-old woman's body and that reports of "gruesome torture" weren't proven.
March 22: How A 20-Year-Old Exorcism Sent Me In Search Of Korea's Cult Problem (https://www.buzzfeed.com/jenhchoi/the-strange-true-story-of-my-uncle-the-exorcist?utm_term=.adrEEkwGvV#.edr55zmvRw) (Buzzfeed)
April 14: Infant Boy Beaten to Death by Cult Member for 'Demon Possession' (http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/news/2017/04/14/0200000000AEN20170414009400315.html) (Yonhap News)
2018Feb. 27: Mother Kills 5-year-old Daughter in Exorcism Rite (https://en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20180227010300315) (Yonhap News)
QuoteAn arrested mother has told police she strangled her 5-year-old daughter in an exorcism ritual at her home before the girl died, police said Tuesday....
They said interrogation revealed that the woman "followed the same exorcism rite shown on a film aired by a cable TV service" and strangled her daughter to "exorcise evil spirits out of her body."
2023March 29: Shamans, Curses & Superstitions in Contemporary South Korea (https://asianews.network/shamans-curses-and-superstitions-in-contemporary-south-korea/) (Asia News)
2024March 29: Shaman Exorcism In Busan Ends In Two Tragic Deaths (https://www.koreaboo.com/news/shaman-exorcism-in-busan-ends-in-two-tragic-deaths/) (Koreaboo)
July 19: 'Are Ghosts Real?': Docuseries Explores the World of Korean Shamanism (https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/entertainment/shows-dramas/20240719/docuseries-shaman-whispers-from-the-dead-creators-explore-the-world-of-korean-shamanism) (The Korea Times)
Oct. 24: The History & Diversity of Shamanic Death Rituals in Korea (https://czasopisma.bg.ug.edu.pl/index.php/etnografia/article/view/13054/11670) (Dominik Rutana/SWPS University)
2025June 24: Shaman in his 70s Accused of Brutally Killing Nephew (https://www.mk.co.kr/en/society/11351148) (Maeil Business)
Sept. 25: Shaman Sentenced to Life for Charcoal Torture Killing (https://www.chosun.com/english/national-en/2025/09/25/2BLX66IJUJG6JGGH5F75FM524Q/) (The Chosun Daily)
Sept. 25: Shaman Gets Life in Prison for Burning Niece Alive During Exorcism (https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/2025-09-25/national/socialAffairs/Shaman-gets-life-in-prison-for-burning-niece-alive-during-exorcism/2408396) (Korea JoongAng Daily)
QuoteFour accomplices, including the shaman's children, received prison terms ranging from 20 to 25 years. Two others were sentenced to 10 years in prison for aiding and abetting the crime.
Prosecutors said the group killed the victim, a woman in her 30s, on Sept. 18 last year inside a restaurant in Incheon's Bupyeong District. The shaman allegedly targeted her niece after the younger woman quit her job at the restaurant and sought to leave the shaman's side, insisting an "exorcism" was necessary.
The group tied the woman to a steel frame and exposed her body to burning charcoal for three hours. She lost consciousness and was taken to a hospital the same day, but died the following morning from multiple organ failure caused by severe burns.
I'm struggling to think of a worse way to die.
2026April 2: Former K-Pop Idol Reveals How She Became a Shaman (https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/entertainment/others/20260402/former-k-pop-idol-reveals-how-she-became-a-shaman) (The Korea Times)
QuotePark said she ultimately accepted the shamanic calling out of fear over what might happen to her family if she refused it. Fighting back tears, she said her family mattered most to her and that although she had wanted to continue working in television, she felt she had no choice but to accept that path.
Park's father also expressed conflicted emotions. "Becoming a shaman is a difficult path," he said through tears. "It is heartbreaking to see this when she graduated from a well-respected university and was raised wanting for nothing."
Well, it's sad she made that decision out of an irrational fear. May she one day read Carl Sagan's
Demon-Haunted World (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Demon-Haunted_World), and, more importantly, may she never be called upon to perform an exorcism.