After all Guanyin's artistic style was often mimicked as a stand in for representations of Mary during the Ming and Qing dynasty in China and Japanese Catholics in hiding during the Tokugawa Shogunate used statues and other art of the native goddess Kannon to disguise their veneration of Mary. Because both Guanyin and Kannon are their country's mother Goddess and art of them commonly have the goddesses holding a baby.

So I'm wondering what is the Korean counterpart of Blessed Mother Mary in the old religions back from the time of the ancient kingdoms and before the 20th century prior to Japan's colonization of the country? Were statues, illustrations pottery, paintings, and other arts of this indigenous goddess to disguise devotions to Holy Mary from authorities during times of persecutions of Korean converts to Christianity?

A common comment I see from Westerners who start consuming lots of TV show and other Korean media (esp the first one television) is the surprise at how much Christianity is portrayed in the country like the amount of horror movies involving priests or the number of leads in a modern setting being an open Christian like a former mobster in hiding.

I cannot tell you how many comments I head in the vein of "why are there so many churches in these TV shows for something taking place a Buddhist country?" and "why are the lead protagonists in this movie devout Christians?" and whatnot?

Like as though so many non-Asians still pictures Korean culture as being Buddhist and Confucianist at the core or worshiping some exotic local gods they don't know.....

As someone who grew up in overseas American territory (multiple different ones moving from place to place due to my pa being stationed in military duty), I seen so many Christian Asians that I was not surprised all to learn from recent stats that Christianity is now the faith of roughly a third of Korea's population. At lowest around 20% depending on the stats and sources you read. Nada surprise with how many native born Korean immigrants I met over the years of migration across the world who were baptised Christian shortly after birth or were first gen converts.

But it seems the rest of the world still thinks Korea follows the Dharmic faith by an unquestionable majority and that Christianity is an unknown religion. Why has this outdated belief remain in the eyes of foreigners esp Westerners?