Dangun Founder of Korea

In the ancient days, Hwanin, the Lord of Heaven, had a son named Hwanung who yearned to live among the mortals. Seeing his son's desire to benefit humanity, Hwanin allowed him to descend to Mount Taebaek with three thousand followers and the spirits of wind, rain, and clouds. One day, a bear and a tiger came to Hwanung, praying to be turned into humans. Hwanung gave them a bundle of sacred mugwort and twenty cloves of garlic, instructing them to stay out of the sunlight and eat only these for one hundred days. The tiger, plagued by hunger and restlessness, gave up after twenty days. However, the bear remained patient and steadfast. On the twenty-first day, the bear was transformed into a beautiful woman named Ungnyeo. Ungnyeo later prayed for a child under a sacred sandalwood tree. Moved by her devotion, Hwanung took her as his wife. They had a son named Dangun Wanggeom, who eventually founded Gojoseon, the first kingdom of Korea, in 2333 BCE, establishing the principle of 'Hongik Ingan'—to broadly benefit the human world.