Uiryeong Sotbawi, Gaining Fame as a Sunrise Spot for Wish Fulfillment Rumors

Over 1,000 People Gathered at the Rich Rich Festival

'Sotbawi (Bujabawo)', known domestically and internationally for the 'Rich Rich (Wealthy) Festival' held last year in Uiryeong-gun, Gyeongnam, is rapidly emerging as a sunrise attraction.
[Provided by Uiryeong-gun Office]

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Wook] “I was told they would grant one wish, so I came and wished for the health of my entire family. That is my wish.”

On the first day of the new year 2023, the Year of the Black Rabbit, Uiryeong-gun, Gyeongnam, was bustling with sunrise visitors filled with anticipation for the new year at ‘Sotbawi,’ which is said to grant wishes while conveying the energy of wealth.

Sotbawi, towering beneath Jeongam Cheolgyo Bridge in Uiryeong-gun, has a legend that “a great wealthy person will emerge within 20 ri (8 km) around,” and in reality, the founders of Samsung, LG, and Hyosung were born here, turning the legend into reality.

Especially last year, the first-ever wealthy festival, the ‘Uiryeong Rich Rich Festival,’ was successfully held, showing potential as a representative festival of Korea, which further increased interest in Sotbawi, known for delivering “luck,” “happiness,” and “wealth energy.”

On this day, it was estimated that about 1,000 people visited Sotbawi alone.

People waiting for the new year near Sotbawi, filled with excitement and anticipation, greeted the new year with applause and exclamations of “Wow” as the red glow slowly spread behind Sotbawi at 7:43 a.m. following the sunrise countdown, revealing the red sun.

People wrote their wishes on wish papers and hung them on wish lanterns, and a wave of earnest prayers directed toward Sotbawi continued.

The Jipdolgeum Nongak Preservation Society of Uiryeong Cultural Center enlivened the atmosphere with a performance praying for the prosperity of Uiryeong-gun, and the Saemaul Undong Uiryeong-gun Branch, which hosted the event, shared rice cake soup, fish cake, and tea, spreading warm energy.

Uiryeong-gun established a safety management plan including order maintenance, traffic measures, and deployment of safety personnel to prevent various accidents. They prepared for crowd gatherings in cooperation with the police station and fire station, putting great effort into ensuring the event concluded safely.

Lee Dong-gi, chairman of the Saemaul Undong Uiryeong-gun Branch, said, “The prepared rice cake soup was gone quickly. It seems many good things will happen with people flocking to Uiryeong-gun in the new year.”

County Governor Oh Tae-wan said, “Uiryeong-gun is lively from the first day of the new year with people coming close to Sotbawi to receive abundant ‘wealth energy,’” and added, “I sincerely wish that the lives of all residents will become more prosperous in the 2023 Year of the Black Rabbit.”

It is known that Uiryeong-gun is planning to develop the area around Sotbawi as a ‘New Year Sunrise’ tourist attraction as Sotbawi gains popularity as a new sunrise landmark.