Goguryeo Foundation Mythology: Jumong

Yoo-hwa, daughter of the river god Habaek, and Hae Mo-soo, son of Cheonje, king of heaven, met and fell in love. However, Yu-hwa's parents kicked Yu-hwa out of the house because she met a man without their permission. Yu-hwa was pregnant when she was kicked out of the house. However, Hae Mo-soo went up to the sky leaving the Yoo-hwa behind. King Geumwa of east-buyeo, who felt sorry for the Yoo-hwa left alone, let the Yoo-hwa live in the palace. Soon, Yu-hwa gave birth, and an egg came out of Yu-hwa's stomach, not humans.

King Geumwa discussed with his subjects what to do with the egg. Thinking of the egg very dirty, they decided to throw it out. They dumped the egg in the stable and the horses looked after them as if they were their own babies. After seeing it, King Geumwa dumped the egg on the side of the road. Then the birds incubated the egg and the predators protected them. King Geumwa tried to bring the egg back and break it, but failed because it was too hard. Eventually, King Geumwa returned the egg to the Yoo-hwa. Then the egg hatched and a baby came out of it, and he was Jumong. Jumong means a good bow shooter in Buyeo.

Jumong was very smart and talented in martial arts from an early age. He is said to have shot the bow very well, especially. This led to jealousy from the sons of King Geumwa. Daeso, the eldest son of King Geumwa, thought that Jumong would one day drive them out and become the king of the east-buyeo, and told King Geumwa to kill him. However, King Geumwa rejected the offer and ordered Jumong to raise horses. Jumong had the ability to predict the future. He fed less good horse and fattened up bad horse. King Geumwa gave Jumong a thin horse and he had a fat horse. In the end, Jumong was able to have a good horse, and this was a success in Jumong's strategy to look to the future. Realizing this belatedly, King Geumwa's son Daeso led soldiers to visit Jumong to kill him. Noticing that the princes were coming to kill him, Jumong escaped from east-buyeo with his friends Ohri, Mari and Hyeopbo and came down to the south. They run away and stop at the river named UmSa-su. The river was deep and wide, but there was no bridge to cross. Then Jumong shouted out loud that he was the son of Hae Mo-soo and the grandson of the river god Habaek and asked the gods for help. After hearing the sound, the fish and the animals built a bridge with their bodies to help Jumong and his friends cross the river.

After crossing the river, Jumong established Goguryeo in 37 B.C. in an area called Jolbon. He was 22 years old at the time. East-buyeo was destroyed in 410 by King Gwanggaeto, a descendant of Jumong.