It is indeed asserted by many of the so-called educated class that the only cult in Korea is ancestor worship, and they profess to ridicule the rags, cairns, shrines, and the other paraphernalia of dæmon-worship, as the superstition of women and coolies, and it is probable that in Seoul, at least, few men of the upper class are believers, or patronize the rites otherwise than as unmeaning customs which it would be impolitic to discontinue, but it is safe to say that from the Palace to the hovel all women, and a majority of men, go through the forms which, influencing Buddhism, and possibly being modified by it, have existed in Korea for more than fifteen centuries. Without claiming any degree of scientific accuracy for the term _Shamanism_, as applied to this cult in Korea, it is more convenient to use it, the word dæmon having come to bear a popular meaning which prohibits its use where good spirits as well as bad are indicated. So far as I know, _Shamanism_ exists only in Asia, and flourishes specially among the tribes north of the Amur, the Samoyedes, Ostiaks, etc., as well as among hill tribes on the southwestern frontier of China. The term _Shaman_ may be applied to all persons, male or female, whose profession it is to have direct dealings with dæmons, and to possess the power of securing their good-will and averting their malignant influences by various magical rites, charms, and incantations, to cure diseases by exorcisms, to predict future events, and to interpret dreams. Korean _Shamanism_ or Dæmonism differs from that of northern Asia in its mildness, possibly the result of early Buddhist influence. It is the cult of dæmons not necessarily evil, but usually the enemies of man, and addicted to revenge and caprice. Though the _Shamans_ are neither an order, nor linked by a common organization, they are practically recognized as a priesthood, in so far as it is through their offices that the dæmons are approached and propitiated on behalf of the people. It is supposed that the _Shaman_ or wizard was one of the figures in the dawn of Korean history, and that Dæmonism in its early stage was marked by human sacrifices. _Shamans_ in the train of royalty, and as a part of the social organization of the Peninsula, figure in very early Korean story, and they appear to have been the chief, if not the only, “religious” instructors.