Long ago, in a remote valley surrounded by steep limestone cliffs and dense forests, the land was vast but harsh. The soil was poor, and wild animals roamed freely, making life dangerous and uncertain. Villagers who lived scattered at the foot of the mountains struggled constantly with hunger and soil erosion. The hardships of daily life weighed heavily on the people, who longed for fertile land where they could thrive.
Bang Gwija was a skilled craftsman and an astute observer of geology. Unwilling to accept the poverty that plagued his village, he decided to embark on a long journey to find a “promised land,” a place where humans could settle and prosper. He traveled for months, carefully studying the terrain, the flow of water, and the growth of plants. He realized a profound truth: “Water is the lifeblood of the land; to make the earth flourish, you must guide the water to it.” At a narrow mountain gorge, Bang Gwija designed a system of dams and channels to divert water from high waterfalls down to the valley below. He taught the villagers to enrich the sandy soil by mixing it with ash and decomposed leaves, turning barren ground into fertile farmland. To protect the community from wild animals and rival tribes, he introduced terraced stone embankments along the hillsides, creating natural fortifications that doubled as arable land.
With water flowing and rice paddies filling, Bang Gwija understood that a thriving community required more than fertile land. He established laws for sharing water, protecting upstream forests, and caring for the elderly, emphasizing cooperation and ethical responsibility. He also taught villagers essential crafts such as tool-making and textile weaving, ensuring the settlement could be self-sufficient while producing goods for trade with neighboring regions. In time, the once barren valley transformed into a prosperous village, Bang-chon, the Village of the Bang family, where the sound of laughter and the rhythmic pounding of rice echoed through the hills.
After his death, Bang Gwija was honored as the guardian spirit of the village, remembered as the one who “opened the mountains and tamed the rocks.” His story was passed down through generations as a lesson that prosperity comes not from magic, but from creativity, hard work, and community cooperation. This legend highlights the practical thinking and collective spirit of the Korean people in harnessing nature and building lasting settlements.