The arrival of spring warms the breeze and brings changes to the land.

Just as blood circulates our body, the spring warmth melts the frozen ground and circulates energy through every living thing on earth. Replenished energy and higher temperatures awaken the seeds and trees and dormant creatures. In Oriental medicine spring is the season of rejuvenation, but recharging of energy requires much nutrition. So every spring this place in Seoul becomes especially busy.

This is Yangnyeong-si, Seoul’s Oriental herb and medicine market located in the northeastern part of the capital city. People flock here to look for traditional medicine and herbs to energize their body and mind.

- I came to Yangnyeong-si because it’s spring and I feel the lack of energy. This store is my favorite and I’m here to look for tea. I once had sipjeondaebo-tang from here and it did wonders for my body.
-I come here often to look for good medicinal ingredients. I was feeling tired and listless, so I came here to see if any good ingredients were available.
- All the medicinal herbs from all over the country are brought here. Spring makes me feel tired, so I’m going to reenergize with medicine from here.
- They have just about everything here, like gugija and omija. They also have bellflower roots, which is good for coughing and phlegm. I’m going to get medicine for my wife.

Spring may be a perfect time for outdoor activities, but it is also when many people suffer from pulmonary problems induced by pollen allergy and dust storms. Koreans often say when one’s health is good in spring, it will last throughout the year. If you plan to visit Korea this spring, how about a visit to Yangnyeong-si to look after your health as well as take in the unique sights and sounds of Korea?

Get off subway line number one at Jegi Station and you are hit immediately with the strong and bitter smells of various medicinal herbs. Follow the smell and you’ll arrive at the entrance of Yangnyeong-si, a traditional gate under the splendidly colored eaves of the octagonal roof. Here’s the Seoul Yangnyeong-si Association President Namgung Cheongwan.

Seoul Yangnyeong-si is a market for medicinal herbs. It’s Asia’s largest Oriental medicine market where 70% of all medicinal herbs in Korea are transacted. The market has not only the herbs indigenous to Korea, but also rare ones imported from abroad, which is why everyone, including Korean traditional medical doctors, come here to find good quality and rare herbs and ingredients at reasonable prices.

Seoul Yangnyeong-si covers parts of Jegi-dong and Yongdu-dong neighborhoods, stretching for about 235,500 square meters. Roughly 1,040 businesses, including Korean traditional clinics, pharmacies, medicine-concocting kitchens, and herb merchants, are gathered in the market. People often think of tree barks, seeds, plants, and fruits like mugwort, licorice roots, Korean angelica roots, cockscomb seeds, and multberry roots, but Yangnyeong-si has so much more. It’s not uncommon to find whole deer antlers, salamanders, snakes, centipedes, grubs, and other rare and unusual creatures used in Korean folk medicine for generations. The history of Yangnyeong-si dates back to the 14th century.

During the Joseon Dynasty the capital city of Hanyang, present day Seoul, had four hospitals or welfare centers for the poor and the sick. There were Bojewon outside Heunginji-mun in the east, Hongjewon outside the west gate, Itaewon outside the south gate, and Jeongwangwon outside Gwanghui-mun in the southeast. These hospitals distributed food and clothes to the needy and treated the sick, as well as hosted parties for the elderly. But the only hospital site that has been confirmed is Bojewon, where Yangnyeong-si stands today. There is a headstone marking the alley of pharmacies, which indicates that Yangnyeong-si has been taking care of the most vulnerable of the population for some 600 years.

Since the 1960s the market drew traditional medicine and herb merchants from all over the country. They have made Yangnyeong-si Korea’s largest market for Korean herbs and medicine. Here’s the Seoul Yangnyeong-si Association President Namgung Cheongwan again.

The start of modern day Yangnyeong-si was spurred on by transportation. This area was a transportation hub with Seongdong station, Cheongnyangri station, and the Dongmajang inter-county bus terminal, where medicinal ingredients from all over the country were brought together. Following the ingredients were traditional herb merchants, which number 1,040 today. This is the world’s largest market for one type of goods.

The area was designated the traditional Korean medicine market in 1995 and the Oriental medicine industry special zone in 2005. The market offers a wide selection of medicinal herbs and ingredients at reasonable prices, attracting buyers and sellers all year around. It is safe to purchase goods here because the market enforces an ingredient tracking system.

Imported medicinal ingredients go through four or five inspections and domestic ingredients two or three inspections, including the tracking system. It is absolutely safe to ingest the inspected ingredients. You just need to buy them from licensed pharmacies, herb and medicine traders, and Oriental medical clinics. Lately even medicinal herbs and ingredients must have place of origin marks, so buying properly marked goods would guarantee high-quality and effective purchases even for ordinary consumers.

As people wander through the numerous alleys steeped in the bittersweet aromas of medicinal herbs, they notice that the names of shops are all different, some being Oriental clinic, some Oriental pharmacy, and some Oriental apothecary, even though they all sell basically the same things.

The older generation considers all Oriental medicine stores the same. But Oriental clinics, some Oriental pharmacies, and Oriental medicine stores all have different licensing requirements. Oriental pharmacies must have pharmacists specializing in Oriental herbs and medicine. Oriental clinics must have traditional medical doctors who graduated from the 6-year traditional medical schools and are certified through the national certification exam. Oriental apothecaries are operated by those who were certified as Oriental medicine specialists during the 1980s. That certification system is no longer in operation, but those who were certified then can still run their shops.

If you wish to learn more about Oriental medicine, visit the Oriental Medicine Museum located on the second floor of Dongeuibogam Tower across from the market. Visitors are greeted by tour guides clad in traditional Korean hanbok before they start the tour. The museum features exhibits that explains the characteristics and efficacies of various medicinal ingredients and even offers hands-on experience programs.

A big screen facing the museum entrance shows all the basic information on Korean traditional medicine. Then the screen is split into two to allow people to enter the main part of the museum. The first section presents the history and culture of Korean traditional medicine from the ancient Gojoseon period to the modern times. A push of a button in front of the Bojewon model starts an explanation about the Joseon era’s hospital and welfare center.

There are five different themed areas in the museum – history and culture of Korean medicine, Oriental medicine and our bodies, prescriptions for balance, Korean medicine in everyday life, and Korean medicine for children. The “Prescriptions for Balance” corner offers visitors a chance to learn about the efficacies and characteristics of various medicinal ingredients.

There are 413 individual ingredients on display at the Prescriptions for Balance section. 308 of them are plant-based, 57 are animal-based, and 48 are mineral ingredients. Among them three most popular ingredients – mushrooms, ginseng, and deer antlers – have their own special displays. Ten mushroom varieties and seven ginseng varieties are exhibited, and deer antlers are showcased by their places of origin, shapes, and other features. Medicinal ingredients are sorted by their efficacies and tour guides explain how each ingredient affects the body.

Displayed among the ingredients are rare and unusual ones not easily found in the market. These are obviously the most popular exhibits for visitors.

- There are many uncommon ingredients here. They’re all very expensive and rare. Don’t they look amazing?
- What is this?
- That is called haegosin. It’s dried testicles of male seals. It’s very good for restoring energy and health of men.
- Is this a root?
- No, that’s a rhinoceros horn. It supposedly calms our nerves and clarifies our vision and blood. It’s the main ingredient of Uhwangcheonsimhwan, a nerve calming agent. Since rhinoceros are endangered, the import of its horns and body parts is banned. The horn we have here is for display purposes only, not for general use. This is a snake called baekhwasa. Its intestines are dried to prevent strokes and improve circulation.

Now it’s time to learn how to apply the knowledge about Korean medicine to our everyday life. Here’s Museum Director Lee Tae-mu again.

This section shows Korean medicinal tea, food, and bath. Korean medicinal herbs are good for our body so we try to absorb them by drinking tea and eating food prepared with medicinal ingredients. Our ancestors had long enjoyed such healthful meals. Look at the ginseng and dates steamed in the rice. This is Korean medicinal bath, which helps our body absorb all the good qualities of traditional ingredients by soaking ourselves in the bathwater infused with herbs.

The museum also features 25 volumes of Dongeuibogam, which was designated a UNESCO record heritage in 2009. It’s an encyclopedia of traditional Oriental medicine compiled by Heo Jun over 15 years. The books are a valuable source of traditional eastern medicine.

Next comes the children’s corner where children learn about various medicinal herbs. They may be young, but most of them appear to be used to the bitter and foul taste of the thick black brew. Visitors’ next stop is where people’s physical constitution types are classified into four categories. Different medicine and food are prescribed for each type.

- We check your body composition, personality, shape, and behavior to find out your type and the best food and medicine for you.
- What is my body type?
- You are Type Taeeum. You are cautious, relaxed, and conservative. Your liver is in a better condition than your lungs, so try to take food and medicine good for pulmonary functions.

After touring the market and the museum, you can pick out the ingredients for your prescription and take them to one of many apothecaries in the area. They will brew the medicinal tea and package it individually for easy consumption. It’s a great way to spend a day in Seoul and look after your health, too.