The year of Eulsa

By Sho Chang-young

In Korea, “Yuksipgapja” (sexagenary cycle) is one traditional way of expressing the year, month and day in the lunar calendar. Its basic concepts were originated from the idea of systematic and harmonious movements among 10 “Chon-gan” (Heavenly stems) and 12 “Ji-ji” (Earthy branches).

The 10 “Chon-gan” are gap, eul, byeong, jeong, mu, gi, gyeong, shin, im and gye. And the 12 “Ji-ji” are ja, chuk, in, myo, jin, sa, o, mi, shin, yu, sul and hae. To mark a calendar with these, you pick one element from each part, and make a sequential combination of the two.

For example, if one year is described as the year of “Gap-ja,” then the next year is “Eul-chuk” and after that is “Byeong-in.” This order repeats itself every 60 years because the least common multiple of 10 and 12 is 60. The same applies to months and days. But today this rule is often referred to only in the context of the year among most people other than fortune tellers.

One thing to note here is that, of the two components of the Yuksipgapja, Ji-ji is symbolizing specific animals. 2025 is the year of “Eul-sa,” and “sa” means snake. So this year is the year of the snake. And the animal year for children born this year will be the snake.

Our historical narrative was largely written in the Yuksipgapja calendar system. Then, what representative historical events are in the year of Eulsa? There surely is the humiliating Eulsa Treaty of 1905. This treaty resulted in the 1392-1910 Joseon Dynasty losing its de facto sovereignty to Japan. Ever since I was in elementary school, I have learned it repeatedly in history class and I will never forget it.

My grandparents, who passed away in the 1980s, used to say, "Eul-si-nyun-srupda," from time to time in winter when I was a child. I remember they said that when they were in bad physical and mental condition due to the cold and chilly weather. The language came from the word ‘Eul-sa-nyun’ (the year of Eulsa). I think it is a roundabout way of expressing sad feelings of the citizens at the times.

We still have the beautiful custom of wishing one another happiness at the beginning of each year, regardless of the solar or lunar calendar, by referring to the Yuksipgapja and its equivalent animal. However, perhaps because of the childhood experience in history education and the words of my grandparents, my preconceived notions about the year of Eulsa were never good.

As if to prove this, from the beginning, this year of Eulsa has been intertwined with very tough political and social events. I have an unsettling premonition there will be historically difficult times again. The whole nation must unite to overcome difficult domestic and international situations. Yet, it is unfortunate that we seem to be going in a totally different direction.

We have to realize that consideration and concession to each other are ultimately for everyone's benefit. A social atmosphere in which only one is absolutely right and the other is regarded as the enemy can only mean mutual annihilation.

Just a few days ago, while talking to a famous neighboring astrophysicist, I came to know that in our shameful Eulsa year of 1905, Einstein published the basic concepts of the principle of special relativity. He considered all dimensions of time and space relatively and opened up new horizons for modern science.

In this year of Eulsa, I am looking forward to the emergence of remarkable figures and events in our society, based on such relativistic thinking. May they shake off our disgraces and worries!

Sho Chang-young is a retired high school teacher and former principal of Gunsan Girls' High School.