토끼전
The Rabbit and the Dragon King
Traditional Korean folktale (Tokkijeon, also called Byeoljubu-jeon, anonymous, Joseon era)
The Story
Tap a word to translate it. Select text to highlight it or add it to your study plan.
깊은 바닷속 용궁에 사는 용왕님이 어느 날 갑자기 몹쓸 병에 걸리고 말았어요.용궁의 의원은 용왕님의 병을 고치려면 오직 살아 있는 토끼의 간이 필요하다고 말했어요.하지만 바닷속 신하들 가운데 육지에 사는 토끼의 얼굴을 아는 이는 아무도 없었어요.
그때 자라 한 마리가 앞으로 나서며, 자신이 육지에 다녀올 수 있으니 토끼를 데려오겠다고 말했어요.용왕님은 크게 기뻐하며 자라에게 큰 상을 약속하고 어서 떠나라고 재촉했어요.
자라는 육지에 올라와 숲속을 헤매다가 마침내 풀밭에서 쉬고 있는 토끼를 만났어요.자라는 토끼에게 용궁이 얼마나 화려하고 살기 좋은 곳인지 침이 마르도록 칭찬했어요.자라는 용왕님이 토끼를 귀한 벼슬자리에 앉히고 싶어 한다고 말하며, 함께 용궁으로 가자고 꾀었어요.
헛된 욕심이 생긴 토끼는 자라의 등에 올라타 기쁜 마음으로 바닷속 용궁을 향해 떠났어요.
용궁에 도착하자마자 용왕님은 토끼에게 진실을 말했어요. 자신의 병을 고치려면 토끼의 간이 필요하다는 것이었죠.깜짝 놀란 토끼는 조금도 당황하지 않고 태연하게 꾀를 내었어요.토끼는 자신의 간은 몸 밖에 꺼내 두고 가끔 깨끗이 씻어 말린다며, 마침 이번에도 간을 육지에 두고 왔다고 둘러댔어요.토끼는 지금 자신을 죽이면 간을 영영 얻을 수 없을 것이라며 용왕님을 설득했어요.
용왕님은 토끼의 말을 그대로 믿고, 자라에게 토끼를 육지로 다시 데려다주라고 명령했어요.무사히 육지에 도착하자, 토끼는 크게 웃으며 세상에 간을 몸 밖에 두고 사는 동물은 없다고 말했어요.토끼는 자라를 뒤로 하고 깡충깡충 숲속으로 뛰어 들어가, 다시는 붙잡히지 않았답니다.
Full translationTry the story first — open this only to check your understanding.
One day, deep beneath the sea, the Dragon King who lived in the undersea palace suddenly fell gravely ill. The palace physician said that to cure the Dragon King's illness, only the liver of a live rabbit would do. But among all the underwater officials, not a single one knew what a rabbit, a creature of the land, even looked like.
Just then, a terrapin stepped forward and said that since he alone could travel to land, he would go and bring back a rabbit. The Dragon King was overjoyed, promised the terrapin a great reward, and urged him to set off at once.
The terrapin climbed onto land, wandered through the forest, and at last came upon a rabbit resting in a meadow. The terrapin praised the undersea palace to the rabbit without pause, describing how splendid and wonderful a place it was to live. The terrapin said the Dragon King wished to give the rabbit an honored position, and lured him to come along to the palace.
Filled with vain ambition, the rabbit climbed onto the terrapin's back and set off happily for the undersea palace.
As soon as they arrived at the palace, the Dragon King told the rabbit the truth: he needed the rabbit's liver to cure his illness. Though startled, the rabbit did not panic at all and calmly came up with a clever scheme. The rabbit claimed that he took his liver out of his body from time to time to wash and dry it, and that, as it happened, he had left it behind on land this very time. The rabbit persuaded the Dragon King that if they killed him now, they would never get the liver at all.
The Dragon King believed the rabbit completely and ordered the terrapin to carry him back to land at once. Once safely back on land, the rabbit laughed heartily and said that no creature in the world could live with its liver outside its body. The rabbit left the terrapin behind and hopped away into the forest, never to be caught again.
Comprehension Check
1. What was needed to cure the Dragon King's illness?
2. How did the turtle get the rabbit to the Dragon Palace?
3. How did the rabbit escape danger in front of the Dragon King?
Vocabulary
noun
용왕
yongwang
Dragon King
깊은 바닷속 용궁에 사는 용왕님이 몹쓸 병에 걸리고 말았어요.
Deep beneath the sea, the Dragon King who lived in the undersea palace fell gravely ill.
Your Summary
In 1–2 sentences, say how the rabbit tricked the Dragon King and escaped back to land.
Source: Based on Tokkijeon (토끼전), also known as Byeoljubu-jeon (별주부전), an anonymous traditional Korean folktale believed to date from the Joseon era and long in the public domain — one of Korea's best-known animal fables, and a deliberately popular pick for the shelf. This simplified retelling and its English translation are original text written for SeoJae Story; this version ends with the rabbit escaping safely, leaving out harsher variants in which the terrapin is punished or dies of grief.
Read this with your book club
Share this chapter with your book club and discuss it together.