39) Korea - 18. Geojam

Using the Chinese characters for 'great' (거, 巨) and 'silkworm' (잠, 蠶), it means 'giant silkworm'. It is said that if someone kills the Geojam, silkworms from all over the world will mourn its death and flock to the place where it died to continue its lineage. Related legends are recorded in the Dongsa-gangmok, compiled during the Joseon Dynasty, and the Chinese collection of tales, Taepyeong Gwanggi. The content is as follows: In the Silla era, there was a man named Bang who was extremely obsessed with and greedy for wealth. His brother was driven out by Bang and lived as a beggar. Feeling pity, the people of the country gave the brother one 'du' (a unit of land) of surplus land. The brother planned to farm and raise silkworms on that land and asked Bang for silkworm and grain seeds, but Bang steamed them before giving them. For some reason, one silkworm survived and began to grow rapidly. Its body length reached about 1 chon (approx. 3cm), and after about ten days, it grew as large as an ox, and no amount of leaves could satisfy its hunger. When Bang learned of this and, out of jealousy, killed the silkworm, silkworms from all directions within a hundred ri flew to his house.