Buddhist Edibles in Chosŏn Korea: Consuming Images and Visualizing the Sacred

Paper talismans were among the most frequently consumed medicinal substances in the premodern Buddhist world. In Chosŏn-era Korea (1392–1910), talismanic practices were widespread, with individuals utilizing these “Buddhist edibles” for a range of purposes, from securing rebirth in Amitābha’s Pure Land to serving as a pragmatic remedy for poisonous insect bites. The material properties of paper provided an ideal medium for inscribing powerfully charged writings and sacred images, facilitating processes of visualization and internalization. As articulated in Halle O’Neal’s analysis of thirteenth-century Japanese ritual uses of paper (O’Neal 2022), the inherent material tension of paper—the tangibility and tactility of paper and its built-in material condition between preservation and destruction—allowed paper to be the most visceral way of making the sacred sign external and transforming it internal. Recognizing this materiality of paper, my study seeks to complicate the internal logic of talisman ingestion by examining its relationship to the visual potency of talismanic script and imagery, considering how these elements actively participated in and shaped the efficacy of the practice.

The concept of “Buddhist edibles” is not exclusive to the Buddhist tradition. In fact, the term itself can be somewhat misleading, as these so-called “Buddhist” practices were often intertwined with other religious traditions, folk medicine, and classical Chinese medical knowledge. Furthermore, Buddhist edibles are best understood within the broader, cross-cultural phenomenon of iconophages. The ephemeral nature of this practice means that few physical examples remain, as these paper talismans were ingested and subsequently lost to history. Comparable practices can be found across different cultural and historical contexts. In the Roman world, for instance, burnt papyrus sheets were incorporated into ointments, while in Baroque-era Germany, pious Christians consumed printed paper cuttings featuring images of the Virgin Mary or Christ on the Cross for religious and therapeutic purposes. Such acts of ingestion symbolically invited sacred images to “enter” the body, thereby internalizing the perceived power of the written signs or visual representations. In his book Iconophages: A History of Ingesting Images (2024), Jérémie Koering argues that it reflects a paradoxical desire to render sacred objects eternal—by making them physically absent yet spiritually and conceptually present within the individual.

A similar practice gained popularity in the premodern Korean Buddhist world. Paper talismans were often consumed for healing, either ingested in their original form or incinerated, with the ashes mixed into water, tea, or medicinal concoctions. These rituals were frequently accompanied by the recitation of incantations, and in some cases, practitioners were advised to face a specific direction to enhance their efficacy. Ritual burning has commonly been interpreted as the final stage in a talisman’s life cycle, with the prevailing belief that its ashes retained and dispersed its magical force. Indeed, other ritually charged objects were also typically burned rather than buried or discarded, requiring an active process of deactivation. However, I propose that in some instances, the incineration and subsequent ingestion of talismans did not constitute an act of destruction but rather an extension of their potency—an inverted and invisible continuation of the “signs of power” embedded within talismanic writings (Robson 2008). In this framework, the study underscores the continuum between visibility and invisibility as a paradoxical mode of engaging with the visual potency of talismanic texts and images. Ultimately, the unique power and widespread appeal of paper talismans may lie in their transformative capacity—seamlessly traversing the boundaries between the visible and the invisible, the corporeal and the ethereal, the temporal and the eternal.

Among the various examples of Buddhist edibles in Chosŏn Korea, this study focuses on gu talismans, which were employed to counteract the toxic effects of gu poisoning. First documented in ancient China, gu poisoning became deeply intertwined with the religio-medical traditions of Chosŏn Korea, reflecting a long-standing engagement with the dual arts of healing and harm. As a recognized antidote, gu talismans attracted the attention of both religious and medical practitioners, leading to the production of diverse talismanic forms. Consequently, these talismans appear in both religious and medical texts of the period.

The first half of this paper examines the visual program of gu talismans, demonstrating how the deliberate arrangement of visual elements constitutes an intentional and integral aspect of their therapeutic function. By analyzing two specific types of gu talismans—the House Stabilization talismans and the Three Calamities talismans—this section explores the extensive and multifaceted visual strategies employed to convey and activate their potency. The second half of the paper focuses on the reverse process, examining the continuum between the revelation and concealment of talismanic power. Situating this discussion within the broader phenomenon of iconophages, this section considers the lesser-known dimension of “internal visualization” in healing talismans and its implications for understanding their material and temporal life cycles. Crucially, I argue that the ingestion of a talisman does not signify the conclusion of its efficacy but rather the initiation of an invisible yet internally perceptible phase of its existence. Moreover, the act of consuming images—whether in their original form or as ashes—is not solely about harnessing the visual power of talismans. It also raises fundamental questions about how images are experienced through and beyond vision.