The following happened when Chairman Kim Jong Il was once climbing Mt Paektu.
The weather was miserable. It was difficult to open your eyes in the whirling blizzard, and the raging wind created snowdrifts that blocked the way.
His entourage tried to persuade him to turn back, saying that even if they managed to reach the summit they wouldn’t be able to enjoy the view on such a day.
However, he continued to lead the way, saying that the anti-Japanese revolutionary fighters had walked such paths in the past, and that the bad weather made it a true Mt Paektu expedition.
Finally he and his entourage reached the summit.
With arms akimbo, he looked into the blinding snowstorm.
At that moment, there was a sudden, thunderous sound as if the ice was breaking on Lake Chon, and the furious blizzard stopped blowing. The clouds, which were drifting just above the ridges, gradually moved to one side, the sun shone, and a majestic snowscape revealed itself, with the snow-covered mountain ridges glimmering.
His entourage exclaimed at this mysterious revelation. With a smile on his face, Kim Jong Il said it seemed that Mt Paektu recognized its master.
