Abstract |
This study is about Beom Jang (honorific name: Bokae) and his work, the Bukbuyeogi.
Beom Jang was a scholar during the late Goryeo Dynasty and the early Joseon Dynasty.
His works include the Hwahaesajeon, the Hwadonginmulchonggi, the Bukbuyeogi and the
Cheonbugyeongjuhae.
Beom Jang was a Confucian scholar to the bone. Beom Seung-jo, Beom Jang’s
grandfather, was the progenitor of the Beom family based in Geumseong. A scholar
influenced by the Confucian philosophy of the Southern Song Dynasty, he was the very
person who played a critical role in introducing Neo-Confucianism to Korea. Huchun,
Beom Jang‘s father was a writer also known as the first Confucian scholar. Beom Jang was
a disciple of Jeong Mong-ju (honorific name: Poeun), a famous Confucian scholar and
loyalist in late Goryeo Dynasty. Having started his career as a government offical at the
time of King Gongmin (r. 1351-1374). Beom Jang served in various high-ranking
government posts as including Deoknyeongbuyoun and Ganuidaebu. But his life as a
government official did not go smoothly. Yi Seong-gye, supported by the newly rising
nobility, seized power in a military coup. Eventually, the Goryeo Dynasty collapsed after
lasting almost 500 years, and the Joseon Dynasty followed.
Beom Jang opposed founding of the Joseon Dynasty. He was one of the 72 loyalists of the
Goryeo Dynasty who led a life of seclusion in Dumun-dong village. Beom Jang met Won
Cheon-seok living in Wonju, Gangwon-do Province. He and his like-minded people
performed ancestral rites at the top of Mt. Chiak every spring and fall to commemorate
Dangun. And they resolved to create a historical work with one accord, which resulted in
Beom Jang’s two books, the Hwahaesajeon and the Hwadonginmulchonggi.
This study focuses on three aspects of Beom Jang’s life s : a confucian scholar, Korean
traditional religion and a historian. The sources of the study are Beom Jang’s books –
the Hwahaesajeon, the Hwadonginmulchonggi and the Bukbuyeogi. The
Cheonbugyeongjuhae, a work known to have been compiled by Beom Jang, is no longer
in existence. When it comes to writing historical works, Beom Jang followed
Confucius’ way of describing history (writing tersely and objectively, ruling out
personal feelings and interests just as he compiled the Spring and Autumn Annals) The
Bukbuyeogi, a product of such a scholarly attitude, is a monumental book recording the
history of Buyeo, the missing link in Korean ancient history.
Key words ; Beomjang, Confucian scholar, Mong-Ju Jeong, History, Chunchupilbeop,
Bukbuyeogi, The event at Mt.Cheonbo |