Some time ago I was told that a doctor at Kinmaul Polyclinic in Moranbong District, Pyongyang, has brought back eyesight to a student. I went to see her at her clinic. Fortunately, I met Il Gyok who had gained his eyesight and his mother Sin Kyong Hui at the polyclinic. Sin said they were there to tell doctor Pak Kyong Suk, who was in charge of his son’s treatment, about his son’s winning first place at an academic contest of his school. Then she told me the following story.
One evening a few years ago when Sin Kyong Hui entered the room after finishing kitchen work she happened to see her son hold a book up to his eyes to read it. To her question he said that he seemed to have lost his sight gradually for several days. Now he couldn’t see the letters on the book clearly. Next day Sin took her son to hospital to have vision test, and the result was 0.08. He was diagnosed as having optic nerve retinitis. For a month he had taken different kinds of Western medicines, but there was no sign of improvement. Her anxiety grew as the days went by.
One of those days she happened to hear that there was a doctor good at Koryo therapy at the Kinmaul Polyclinic. When she took her son to the clinic, the elderly woman doctor examined Il Gyok and said, “You can surely get well, boy. And don’t worry too much, madam.” Then Pak continued to say that Il Gyok’s case was not caused by any eye disease but by other diseases in his body. Sin was surprised to hear the doctor’s firm words, and she could hardly accept them. But she was soon encouraged to see the doctor apply acupuncture and cupping while administering some Koryo medicinals.
After the lapse of a fortnight Il Gyok felt there was a sign of recovery in his eyesight. Four months later he could see the watch, and after a year his eyesight became 1.0. Witnessing that unbelievable reality Il Gyok’s maternal grandmother, grasping Pak’s hands, said, “Thank you. You’re really a great physician.” With smile on her face Pak replied, “Don’t mention it. You know I’m a doctor, and I’m responsible for the people’s health. I’ve only treated him with the traditional Koryo therapy of our country.”
I went to see Pak together with Sin and her son, but we failed. She was away in a province for treatment. When we felt regretful, Kim Kyong Hui, head of the polyclinic, said, “Pak is nearly sixty, yet she is still devoting all her enthusiasm to the work of Koryo treatment. Now she is compiling a book in her free hours on the basis of modern books on medical science and her experience. It will help improve the people’s health. People call her ‘our doctor’ respectfully.” I couldn’t meet Pak who has cured so many patients, but I could imagine her appearance engrossed in treatment.
Pak Thae Ho
