David A. Mason

David Alan Mason (born November 11, 1957) is an American academic in South Korea, serving as scholar, author, public speaker and tour-guide. He is now Professor of Cultural tourism at Sejong University in Seoul since 2014, and author of several prominent books on Korean Culture, spirituality, travel and mountains. He remains a well-known authority on Korean spiritual traditions of all kinds, especially about his core topic the Sansin (산신, 山神) deity and their shrines found throughout Korea called Sansin-gak (산신각, 山神閣), integral parts of Korean Buddhist temples, Korean Shamanism and village life.

Publications

His major published books include Passage to Korea (Marc Vérin Photographer), the Lonely Planet "Korea: A Travel Survival Kit" guidebook of 1997, "Spirit Of The Mountains: Korea's San-shin and Traditions of Mountain-Worship" (Hollym, 1999) about Sanhin, "The Korean Forest Culture of the Baekdu-daegan: Spiritual and Folk Heritages along Korea’s Grand "Tiger's Spine" Mountain-System" in 2010(photos by Roger Shepherd), "An Encyclopedia of Korean Buddhism" and "Solitary Sage: the Profound Life, Wisdom and Legacy of "Go-un" Choi Chi-won" in 2006 as an Independent E-book, and hardcover on Amazon.com; it garnered positive reviews. He was the overall editor and co-author of "The Colors of Korean Buddhism: 30 Icons and their Stories" published by the Korean Buddhism Promotion Foundation, distributed to all participants at the 2010 G20 Seoul summit in November 2010.

Career and Appearances

Mason has received several research grants and published many academic papers in journals and other platforms, including official reports by the UNWTO. He previously worked for Kangwon National University 1988–97, Yonsei University Wonju Campus 1999–2000, Korea's Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism 2001–05, and the Tourism College of Kyung Hee University 2005–13. He wrote a major article on the "Re-Branding Korean Tourism" in The Korea Times newspaper on October 13 2008. He has been featured many times on Korean television and radio programs, such as the Arirang TV interview-show "Heart to Heart" hour-long episode on May 21, 2013 entitled "David A. Mason, an established Korean mountain spirit expert". Interviews with him as an "Expert Professor on Korean Buddhism" after publication of his Encyclopedia in January 2014 include those by Busan Haps magazine, July 2014 issue and the Korea Times He has been an English editor and writer the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism, and an Adjunct Professor of International Tourism for the Hanyang University Graduate School of Tourism, and taught courses on the history of Korean culture and Northeast Asian Relations for Hanyang's International Summer School Intensive Program. He has served on the managing boards of and been a frequent lecturer for Royal Asiatic Society Korea Branch (RAS) in Seoul.

David A. Mason was an invited speaker on Korea's Religious Tourism features at the UNWTO's "International Conference on Tourism, Religions and Dialogue of Cultures" in Córdoba, Spain in October 2007 and "International Congress on Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage" in Fatima, Portugal in November 2017. In addition, his research-paper "The Baekdu-daegan Region as Korea's Fresh & Green Multi-faith Pilgrimage-Tourism Destination" was published by the "Religious Tourism in Asia and the Pacific" Report of UNWTO in April 2011. He is also recognized as an authority on the national parks of South Korea. He assisted Tony MacGregor and cohorts in designing and trekking the Wonhyo Trail pilgrimage-tourism project in 2011.

Mason was featured in the half-hour episode 8 of the "K-Phile" (Korea-Lover) series by Arirang TV entitled "Sanshin, a Symbol of Korea's Nature and Culture" on Dec 14 2016, and in a section of the Chosun Mountain-TV program entitled "산의 부활 Rejuvenescence of Mountain", about the "K-Mountain" promotional effort launched that autumn by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Mason's research activities, in January 2017; this was filmed at Mt. Dobongsan Wonhyo-sa Temple.

Pioneering Globalization of the Baekdu-daegan Mountains

Before 2005 the Baekdu-daegan mountain-system, a connected web of all Korea's mountains that defines the geography of the Korean Peninsula, remained entirely unknown to the world outside Korea, but in that year professor Mason began to promote it to the global audience in English by establishing a website and publishing articles. He served as the Contributing Editor to the 1st Edition of the "Baekdu-daegan Trail Guidebook" authored by Written by Roger Shepherd and Andrew Douch published by Seoul Selection in July 2010, which garnered wide attention from international travel-hikers. He was appointed as the Republic of Korea's Honorary Ambassador of the Baekdu-daegan mountain-system in January 2011. Seven months prior to this, a seminar and publicity-event about the Baekdu-daegan was held by the Korea Forest Research Institute at the Mungyeong Saejae Pass on June 10th 2010, featuring speeches by Director-General Shin Jun-hwan, Professor David A. Mason and the famous Korean poet Ko Un This event was widely covered in Korean domestic media. Two long profile-interview articles followed this in The Korea Herald newspaper on January 27 2011 and Aug 25 2011.

Personal and Education

Mason was born in Detroit, and raised in its suburb Birmingham, Michigan. He earned his B.A. degree from the University of Michigan and San Francisco State University in 1981, studying Oriental Philosophy, Environmental Biology, Health and Macrobiotics. He first visited Korea in July 1982, staying for a year as an English teacher and growing increasingly interested in the traditional culture found in its mountains. He moved to Korea permanently in January 1986. He received his M.A. in Korean Studies from Yonsei University of Seoul in 1997, majoring in the history of Korean traditional religions. Mason is married to Lourdes Enojo Mason, and has one child, Davayn Philip Enojo Mason.

External links

• his own large website "David A. Mason's San-shin Website: all about Korean Mountain-spirits and their shrines, Korea's sacred peaks and mountain-veneration traditions"