Unmarried and Undead: The Legend of Cho-nyo Gwishin

Have you ever felt an eerie presence watching you from the shadows? In this chilling episode of Mythlok, we dive into the legend of Cho-nyo Gwishin, the vengeful spirit of an unmarried woman from Korean folklore.
From real-life ghost sightings in abandoned hospitals and haunted schools to pop culture appearances in K-dramas and horror films, we uncover why this ghostly figure continues to haunt Korea’s imagination.
Is the Cho-nyo Gwishin just a tale to scare the living, or is there something more sinister lurking in the dark?
👻 Tune in—if you dare!
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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:15):
Hello everyone, and welcome back to Mythlook, your portal to
the world's most fascinating myths and legends. This is your host,
Nathan Nayer, and today we're diving deep into one of
Korea's most chilling urban legends, the Chono Guishine, or the
Virgin ghost. If you've ever heard whispers of eerie figures

(00:37):
with long black hair, pale faces, and tattered handbox dresses
haunting abandoned buildings or remote villages in Korea, you may
have already encountered the legend of the Chono Gushin. But
is she just a ghostly tale passed down to generations
or do real encounters suggest otherwise? Let's find out. The

(01:01):
Tonyo Gishin is a type of wishing or ghost in
Korean folklore. She is instantly recognizable, pale, almost deathly white skin,
hollow eyes filled with sorrow or rage, and long, unkempt
black hair that falls over her face. She is typically
seen wearing a white handbook, the traditional moaning dress as

(01:24):
she roams the earthly realm. Unlike other spirits who may
fade into obscurity, she lingers, unable to move due to
the unfulfill fate. Of never experiencing marriage or love in
her lifetime. In Korean culture, marriage and family are central

(01:45):
to one's life journey. Women who died and married were
believed to have an incomplete soul, making them most susceptible
to becoming restless spirits. The Chono Guishin in particular, is
often portrayed as a bingeful, envious of the living, and
drawn to places where life continues without her. She is

(02:07):
said to haunt abandoned buildings, for us and even schools,
anywhere she might have once wished to be alive and loved.
Some stories claim she seeks revenge against men, while others
describe her as simply lost, waiting for someone to perform
the proper rituals to free her from her limbo. Legends

(02:29):
persist because of the stories people tell, and when it
comes to Tonio Vushin, the eerie encounters are endless. One
famous case comes from the Ganjim Psychiatric Hospital, one of
Career's most haunted places. Paranormal investigators and film seekers who
have entered the now closed facility often report hearing whispers

(02:52):
and sobbing from empty rooms. Some even claim to have
seen a woman with long black hair standing motionless in
the shadows before disappearing into thin air. Another case occurred
in a rural school in Jongi Province, where students reported

(03:12):
seeing a pale woman in the restroom mirror. Some said
she would brush her hair slowly, while others claim she
would lock eyes with them, filling them with an overwhelming
sense of dread. These encounters became so frequent that some
students refused to use the bathroom alone after dark. Even

(03:33):
in modern soul, there have been accounts of a ghostly
woman following commuters late at night, particularly near the desert
train stations or dimly lit alleyways. Some claim she simply
lingers in the distance, while others say she vanishes the
moment they blink. Like many famous urban legends, the choon

(03:55):
Yo Guishin has made her way into pop culture. She's
a staple in Korean horror films, TV drummers, and even webcomics.
Movies like Whispering Corridors and The Wailing borrow heavily from
her legend, portraying vengeful female spirits lurking in schools or
the countryside. In Korean variety shows, ghost stories featuring Chono

(04:19):
Gushin are often told as cautionary tales, keeping the younger
generation aware of her lingering presence. Video games have also
embraced a terrifying form. Fans of horror games might recognize
her influence in Wide Day, a labyrinth named School, where
players must navigate a haunted school filled with restless spirits,

(04:42):
including aerie female ghosts with long black hair obscuring their faces.
Before we continue, if you're enjoying this dive into Korean folklore,
don't forget to like subscribe and hit that notification button.
Mythlook brings you the best of my thought ology, folklore,
and urban legends from around the world, So stay tuned

(05:05):
for most spine chilling stories. Do write to us and
comment on the video and we will respond to each
and every comment that you do. Now back to the episode.
Why do stories of the Cherniogussions still terrify people today?
Is it just superstition or is this something more to it?

(05:27):
Some psychologists suggest that ghostly apparisions like hers tap into
cultural fears, loneliness, unfulfill desires, and mostly of being forgotten.
Others believe that they may be something supernatural at play
with real spirits got between the realms of the living

(05:48):
and the dead. Some who claim to have encountered her
say they felt an overwhelming sorrow, as if the spirit
was merely seeking comfort rather than vengeance. Could it be
that these spirits just want to be acknowledged or are
they warning us not to take life and relationships for granted.

(06:10):
The legend of the Chion or Gushine is one of
Korea's most enduring ghost stories, and whether you believe in
ghosts or not, there's no denying the unsettling presence she
holds in the collective consciousness of Korean culture. But what
do you think? Are these encounters just tricks of the
mind or is it truly something beyond our understanding lurking

(06:35):
in the shadows. With that thought, we come to the
end of another chilling episode of the Urban Legend series
on Midlook. This is your host, Nathan Yah, reminding you
to stay curious and stay mythical. See you next time.