My recent trip to Korea has rekindled an old interest of mine...masks. They seem to be an integral part of most cultures, and their use in ritual goes back at least 20,000 years or more, so they clearly fulfill a primal need in the human psyche. Since I believe that individual consciousness is actually composed of several integrated "minds" or personaes, perhaps we're drawn to masks because they're a reflection of the way that our brains really work. We see them as an acceptable way to let our other "selves" out of the house for a while. This article is a good primer on the roles that masks play in various world cultures.

In Korea, masks are used as part of a dramatic dance ritual called Hahoe. The Hahoe-Dong Mask Museum's website has a wonderful gallery of Hahoe masks with comprehesive descriptions of their various meanings and usage.

I wondered if Hahoe was somehow related to Japanese Noh drama. If it is, I'm sure that neither the Koreans or the Japanese will ever admit it!