Chapter IV, Sec. 2 (Part 2) & Sec. 3: Earthly Realm & Seongsa Jaein (成事在人) View of the Human Realm
Section 2: Indigenous Modernity of the Cheonji Seong-gyeong-sin (天地誠敬信) View of the Earthly Realm [continued from previous section]
Notes & References (80)
The Supreme God (上帝, Sangje) said one day to Gyeongseok: "Previously you followed my words, but today I shall follow your words in deliberating upon this public work. Think carefully and answer as I ask." He asked again: "Is it right to leave intact the instruments of civilization invented by Westerners, or is it right to remove them?" Gyeongseok replied: "I think leaving them in place for our use would be convenient for the people of creation (蒼生, changsaeng)." The Supreme God said these words were right, and declared: "Their machines are modeled after things in Heaven." The Supreme God then asked several more questions before resolving the matter as a public work (公事, gongsa).¹
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-35.
¹ Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-35.
The passage above shows a comprehensive characterization of the Western modern view of the earthly realm. First, the phrase "instruments of civilization invented by Westerners" reveals that the defining feature of Western modernity's view of earth lies in its instruments of civilization. These instruments have historically been the comprehensive symbol of Western modernity. The Western instruments of civilization — represented by guns, swords, trains, and the like — reflect the atomistic transformation of the Western views of Heaven, earth, and humanity that occurred after modernity.
Descartes' proposition "Cogito ergo sum" (I think, therefore I am) is a brief phrase, yet it encapsulates in its entirety the transformed Western views of Heaven, earth, and humanity. Although Western modernity began with Calvin's doctrine of predestination, the property-centered Eastern worldview introduced after Matteo Ricci provided the occasion for negating even the sole remaining monotheistic God within the Western substantialist worldview centered on God. This left the task of finding a new substance to replace the monotheistic God in a world where that God had disappeared. Descartes' "Cogito ergo sum" emerged as the most compelling response to this challenge.
Descartes' "Cogito ergo sum" held that since the monotheistic God had disappeared, the only thing one could believe was the single fact "I think," and that all views of Heaven, earth, and humanity must be reconstructed upon "Cogito ergo sum." This was the core of constructivism (構成主義), which came to represent Western modernity. Against Descartes, there were alternatives such as Spinoza's pantheism (汎神論), which held that the entire universe is God, and Leibniz's monadology (單子論, La Monadologie), which held that monads exist like gi (氣). Nevertheless, Descartes' constructivism, passing through Kant, became established as the Western modern view of Heaven, earth, and humanity, and especially accelerated its practical application in the view of earth.
After modernity, for Westerners, the earth was nothing more than a combination of matter composed of atoms, and the role of humanity was to use the properties of atoms to create instruments of civilization. What is paradoxical is that the laws of atoms also followed the principles of the views of Heaven, earth, and humanity, but such claims were concealed. Now, humanity became a being of instrumental reason whose task was to create instruments of civilization, and only Westerners were deemed to possess such instrumental reason. However, the passage above states that these instruments of civilization — through the opening of the boundary between Heaven and the underworld that Matteo Ricci had opened² — conveyed heavenly civilization to the divine spirits (神明, sinmyeong) of the earth, and that the earth had unfolded this for the benefit of humanity. As a result, the old heaven was transformed into a heaven that kills humanity.³
² Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-9.
³ Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-11.
Although Western modernity was a dangerous modernity that advanced without retreat, one that was destroying itself through its own arrogance without recognizing the grace of the divine spirits, the passage above also highly values Western modernity in terms of "convenience for the people of creation." In this phrase, "the people of creation" refers to those who have not attained tao-penetration (道通, dotong) in the Later Heaven and live ordinary lives. Because they have not attained dotong, instruments of civilization are genuinely convenient means for conducting daily life. Western modernity excluded the divine spirits, but the development it achieved for the convenience of the people of creation was due to the earthly energy (地氣, jigi) of the West, and thus it could be highly regarded in the gaebyeok (開闢, cosmic renewal) in which the strengths of each civilization are integrated.⁴
⁴ Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 30.
From the passage above, it can be confirmed that Gucheon (九天, the Nine Heavens/Supreme God) in Daesoon Thought evaluates Western modernity ambivalently. The fact that Gucheon makes an ambivalent evaluation of Western modernity suggests that Gucheon may have intentionally oriented itself toward Western modernity. In fact, the Gucheon of Daesoon Thought places very strong emphasis on the importance of material civilization like that of the West.
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-35.
¹ Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-35.
The passage above shows a comprehensive characterization of the Western modern view of the earthly realm. First, the phrase "instruments of civilization invented by Westerners" reveals that the defining feature of Western modernity's view of earth lies in its instruments of civilization. These instruments have historically been the comprehensive symbol of Western modernity. The Western instruments of civilization — represented by guns, swords, trains, and the like — reflect the atomistic transformation of the Western views of Heaven, earth, and humanity that occurred after modernity.
Descartes' proposition "Cogito ergo sum" (I think, therefore I am) is a brief phrase, yet it encapsulates in its entirety the transformed Western views of Heaven, earth, and humanity. Although Western modernity began with Calvin's doctrine of predestination, the property-centered Eastern worldview introduced after Matteo Ricci provided the occasion for negating even the sole remaining monotheistic God within the Western substantialist worldview centered on God. This left the task of finding a new substance to replace the monotheistic God in a world where that God had disappeared. Descartes' "Cogito ergo sum" emerged as the most compelling response to this challenge.
Descartes' "Cogito ergo sum" held that since the monotheistic God had disappeared, the only thing one could believe was the single fact "I think," and that all views of Heaven, earth, and humanity must be reconstructed upon "Cogito ergo sum." This was the core of constructivism (構成主義), which came to represent Western modernity. Against Descartes, there were alternatives such as Spinoza's pantheism (汎神論), which held that the entire universe is God, and Leibniz's monadology (單子論, La Monadologie), which held that monads exist like gi (氣). Nevertheless, Descartes' constructivism, passing through Kant, became established as the Western modern view of Heaven, earth, and humanity, and especially accelerated its practical application in the view of earth.
After modernity, for Westerners, the earth was nothing more than a combination of matter composed of atoms, and the role of humanity was to use the properties of atoms to create instruments of civilization. What is paradoxical is that the laws of atoms also followed the principles of the views of Heaven, earth, and humanity, but such claims were concealed. Now, humanity became a being of instrumental reason whose task was to create instruments of civilization, and only Westerners were deemed to possess such instrumental reason. However, the passage above states that these instruments of civilization — through the opening of the boundary between Heaven and the underworld that Matteo Ricci had opened² — conveyed heavenly civilization to the divine spirits (神明, sinmyeong) of the earth, and that the earth had unfolded this for the benefit of humanity. As a result, the old heaven was transformed into a heaven that kills humanity.³
² Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-9.
³ Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-11.
Although Western modernity was a dangerous modernity that advanced without retreat, one that was destroying itself through its own arrogance without recognizing the grace of the divine spirits, the passage above also highly values Western modernity in terms of "convenience for the people of creation." In this phrase, "the people of creation" refers to those who have not attained tao-penetration (道通, dotong) in the Later Heaven and live ordinary lives. Because they have not attained dotong, instruments of civilization are genuinely convenient means for conducting daily life. Western modernity excluded the divine spirits, but the development it achieved for the convenience of the people of creation was due to the earthly energy (地氣, jigi) of the West, and thus it could be highly regarded in the gaebyeok (開闢, cosmic renewal) in which the strengths of each civilization are integrated.⁴
⁴ Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 30.
From the passage above, it can be confirmed that Gucheon (九天, the Nine Heavens/Supreme God) in Daesoon Thought evaluates Western modernity ambivalently. The fact that Gucheon makes an ambivalent evaluation of Western modernity suggests that Gucheon may have intentionally oriented itself toward Western modernity. In fact, the Gucheon of Daesoon Thought places very strong emphasis on the importance of material civilization like that of the West.
Do not learn the art of using great strength. Trains and steamships will transport a hundred million geun (斤). Do not learn the art of contracting the land. Riding cloud-chariots and controlling the wind, one shall journey ten thousand li in an instant.⁵
— Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 75.
⁵ Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 75.
— Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 75.
⁵ Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 75.
The passage above shows the convenience of the people of creation surpassing the arts of the Former Heaven. Daesoon Thought emphasizes that it must not be confused with the arts of the Former Heaven. Because Daesoon Thought, like Donghak Thought, is a truth not to be found in any previously emerged system of truth, it advises against learning the arts of the Former Heaven.
When the water-energy (水氣, sugi) circulates throughout heaven and earth, the people of ten thousand nations shall communicate without having learned each other's languages. When the water-energy circulates, there shall be a cracking sound.⁶
— Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 51.
⁶ Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 51.
— Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 51.
⁶ Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 51.
This indicates that the scope of civilization spoken of in Daesoon Thought encompasses not only substantive matters like trains and steamships but also abstract matters such as language. The technological development that is only now being realized more than one hundred years after the Great Works of Heaven and Earth (天地公事, Cheonjigongsa) began was thus predicted at that time.
When [the disciples] accompanied the Supreme God to Geumsansa Temple, the Supreme God had the disciples memorize the following verses:
After Heavenly Sovereign, Earthly Sovereign, and Human Sovereign —
Great Geumsana under all heaven (天下之大金山)
Beneath Moaksan Mountain, the golden Buddha (金佛) can speak (能言)
The six-zhang golden Buddha transforms into a whole woman (化爲全女)
The plan of life for ten thousand nations (萬國活計) — South Joseon
Pure wind and bright moon (淸風明月) — Geumsansa Temple
Civilization blooms and flowers (文明開花) in three thousand nations
The way of tao-arts (道術) circulates throughout ninety thousand li⁷
— Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 14.
⁷ Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 14.
After Heavenly Sovereign, Earthly Sovereign, and Human Sovereign —
Great Geumsana under all heaven (天下之大金山)
Beneath Moaksan Mountain, the golden Buddha (金佛) can speak (能言)
The six-zhang golden Buddha transforms into a whole woman (化爲全女)
The plan of life for ten thousand nations (萬國活計) — South Joseon
Pure wind and bright moon (淸風明月) — Geumsansa Temple
Civilization blooms and flowers (文明開花) in three thousand nations
The way of tao-arts (道術) circulates throughout ninety thousand li⁷
— Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 14.
⁷ Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 14.
The passage above shows that the scope of modernity spoken of in Daesoon Thought is a far broader and longer-term modernity encompassing Western modernity. Furthermore, the reference to the origin of civilization as expressed in the Shiji (史記) through Heavenly Sovereign, Earthly Sovereign, and Human Sovereign shows that modernity is in fact connected to tradition.
"The widespread establishment of schools in this world to educate people is intended to greatly civilize the world and attach it to the historical record of the Three Realms (三界, samgye) in order to resolve the grievances of divine spirits and humans (神人, sin-in). However, the current school education causes those who learn to fall into the base self-interest of official positions and stipends, and therefore, sages are brought to completion outside the established order."⁸
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-17.
⁸ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-17.
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-17.
⁸ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-17.
The passage above indicates that Western modernity, contrary to its original purpose when Matteo Ricci opened the way for Western culture, was exploited solely for material gain by humans, and thus failed to realize its original intent. Afterward, the West denied and mistreated the divine spirits and failed to realize the original purpose, but it is recognized for its merit of promoting the convenience of the people of creation.
The Supreme God said one day to Gyeongseok: "Previously you followed my words, but today I shall follow your words in deliberating upon this public work. Think carefully and answer as I ask." He asked again: "Is it right to leave intact the instruments of civilization invented by Westerners, or is it right to remove them?" Gyeongseok replied: "I think leaving them in place for our use would be convenient for the people of creation." The Supreme God said these words were right, and declared: "Their machines are modeled after things in Heaven." The Supreme God then asked several more questions before resolving the matter as a public work.⁹
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-35.
⁹ Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-35.
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-35.
⁹ Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-35.
That Western civilization came to promote the convenience of the people of creation appears as an effect of earthly energy. However, differences in earthly energy can generate not only the development of each culture but also animosity, and it is said that mutual development can be pursued through a public work that unifies earthly energy (地氣, jigi).
The Supreme God also said: "Because earthly energy is not unified, the peoples living within it each have divergent thoughts, each thinking their own way, and thus engage in animosity and strife. To eliminate this, the grievances of the divine spirits throughout the ages must be harmonized through haewon (解冤, resolution of grievances), and the cosmic measure (度數, dosu) of heaven and earth must be adjusted. When this is accomplished, heaven and earth shall be renewed (開闢, gaebyeok) and the paradise realm (仙境, seongyeong) shall be established."¹⁰
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 3-5.
¹⁰ Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 3-5.
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 3-5.
¹⁰ Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 3-5.
The influence of different earthly energies described in the passage above manifests not only in culture but also in the domain of religion. In the domain of religion, religion combines with the energy of the earth to contribute to cultural development. The three teachings of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism (儒佛仙, yubuilseon) can also form a threefold harmony with one another.
One day in the fourth month, while performing a public work at the house of Kim Bogyeong, [the Supreme God] spread out four sheets of white paper and wrote "Cheongok" (泉谷) at each corner of the paper. When Chibog asked about the meaning, the Supreme God explained: "This is the name of a martyr who died by his own hand long ago." He then had Chibog and Songhwan hold facing each other the paper with the writing, saying: "Its shape is like the protective parasol (護防傘) of a funeral bier."
Then Gapcil went outside at the Supreme God's direction and returned to report that there was a single cloud in the western sky. He was directed to go out again, and upon returning reported that the single cloud had covered the entire sky. The Supreme God then wrote "Samyeongdang" (四明堂) at the center of a sheet of white paper and said to Chibog: "The word 'Samyeongdang regeneration' (四明堂 갱생) in the Gungeunga is not the Samyeongdang of the monk Samyeongdang but Samyeongdang written with the character for 'bright' (明). The art of transformation (造化) is in Buddhist law (佛法), so it is the Hoseung yebul hyeol (胡僧禮佛穴). Longevity without illness (無病長壽) is in Taoist arts (仙術), so it is the Oseon wigi hyeol (五仙圍碁穴). National prosperity and people's peace (國泰民安) is the Gunnsinbongjo hyeol (群臣奉詔穴). Through the Seonnyeo jikgeum hyeol (仙女織錦穴), the people of creation shall be clothed in silk. On the fifteenth day of the sixth month, I shall hold a ritual for Shennong (神農氏) and perform a public work. This year is the gateway of heaven and earth (天地之捍門). If the work is not done now, it cannot be accomplished."
Then Gapcil went outside at the Supreme God's direction and returned to report that there was a single cloud in the western sky. He was directed to go out again, and upon returning reported that the single cloud had covered the entire sky. The Supreme God then wrote "Samyeongdang" (四明堂) at the center of a sheet of white paper and said to Chibog: "The word 'Samyeongdang regeneration' (四明堂 갱생) in the Gungeunga is not the Samyeongdang of the monk Samyeongdang but Samyeongdang written with the character for 'bright' (明). The art of transformation (造化) is in Buddhist law (佛法), so it is the Hoseung yebul hyeol (胡僧禮佛穴). Longevity without illness (無病長壽) is in Taoist arts (仙術), so it is the Oseon wigi hyeol (五仙圍碁穴). National prosperity and people's peace (國泰民安) is the Gunnsinbongjo hyeol (群臣奉詔穴). Through the Seonnyeo jikgeum hyeol (仙女織錦穴), the people of creation shall be clothed in silk. On the fifteenth day of the sixth month, I shall hold a ritual for Shennong (神農氏) and perform a public work. This year is the gateway of heaven and earth (天地之捍門). If the work is not done now, it cannot be accomplished."
The passage above shows that the foundation of each civilization represented by the three teachings was in the earth's energy, and that each land represented the will of heaven. The portion of the passage estimated to correspond to Western teaching is the Seonnyeo jikgeum hyeol (仙女織錦穴), and here too the text emphasizes the convenience of the people of creation by stating that they shall be clothed in silk.
The change in perception of Gucheon (Nine Heavens) has always been a key concern in matters of modernity. In Donghak Thought, the concept of "heaven beyond heaven" (天外天, cheon oe cheon) first appears in East Asian thought, but in the Western case, it was a foundational culture that regarded heaven beyond heaven as a concept of heaven, and accordingly the Western view of earth also possessed more substantive properties compared to the Eastern view of earth, which resonates with heaven. Regarding the practical character of the Western view of earth, the content concerning convenience for the people of creation is represented by the phrase "clothing the people of creation in silk" (金衣蒼生). Daesoon Thought revitalizes the Eastern and Western views of earth through the public work of unifying earthly energy (地氣統一公事, jigi tongil gongsa).
c. Revitalization of Eastern and Western Views of Earth in the Cheonji Seong-gyeong-sin View of the Earthly Realm
Revitalization of Eastern and Western Relations between Heaven and Earth as Manifested in the Heaven-Earth Relationship of the Earthly Paradise (地上天國)
Regarding the discourse on the Earthly Paradise (地上天國, jisang cheonguk), two characteristics appear in Daesoon Thought. The first is the elucidation of the theoretical background of the Earthly Paradise, and the second is the demonstration of the phenomena of the Earthly Paradise.
First, Daesoon Thought's clarification of the principle of the Earthly Paradise is that the Earthly Paradise is realized according to the principle of the Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang (陰陽合德, eumyang hapdeok). In Daesoon Thought, the heaven-earth relationship becomes a system that nurtures all phenomena (森羅萬象, simna mansang) through the interaction of the divine spirits of heaven and earth (天地神明, cheonji sinmyeong) according to the constitutive principles of "heaven is round, earth is square" (天圓地方, cheonwon jibang). Heaven and earth each take charge of only one part — yin or yang — and are beings that can only succeed with the tao-penetration of humans; their aim is the nurturing of the exemplary persons who have attained Tao (道通君子, dotong gunja). Heaven, possessing the nature of the ethereal soul (魂, hon), undertakes planning without physical form, and thus performs the role of Won (圓, circle), Mun (文, culture), and Do (道, way), which have the nature of the ethereal soul, as in the cases of "heaven is round, earth is square," "heavenly pattern, earthly principle" (天文地理), and "heavenly way, earthly virtue" (天道地德). By contrast, earth, possessing the nature of the corporeal soul (魄, baek), has physical form and undertakes execution, and thus performs the role of Bang (方, square), I (理, principle), and Deok (德, virtue), which have the nature of the corporeal soul, as in those same cases. In the incantations of Daesoon Thought, the divine spirits that carry out the 28 lunar mansions and 24 solar terms of heaven and earth, the transformation of heaven and earth, the eight gates of heaven and earth, and the celestial transformations of heaven and earth appear systematically.
Traditionally, the Earthly Paradise was understood merely as an aspiration existing in imagination. Daesoon Thought, upon facing the situation of the emergence of the unfamiliar other called the West, interprets the relationship between East and West according to the principle of yin and yang, thereby providing the impetus for an indigenous understanding of the West. Likewise, by applying the principle of yin and yang to the Earthly Paradise, it enabled the Eastern understanding of the meaning of the Earthly Paradise, which was being pursued by the West.
The change in perception of Gucheon (Nine Heavens) has always been a key concern in matters of modernity. In Donghak Thought, the concept of "heaven beyond heaven" (天外天, cheon oe cheon) first appears in East Asian thought, but in the Western case, it was a foundational culture that regarded heaven beyond heaven as a concept of heaven, and accordingly the Western view of earth also possessed more substantive properties compared to the Eastern view of earth, which resonates with heaven. Regarding the practical character of the Western view of earth, the content concerning convenience for the people of creation is represented by the phrase "clothing the people of creation in silk" (金衣蒼生). Daesoon Thought revitalizes the Eastern and Western views of earth through the public work of unifying earthly energy (地氣統一公事, jigi tongil gongsa).
c. Revitalization of Eastern and Western Views of Earth in the Cheonji Seong-gyeong-sin View of the Earthly Realm
Revitalization of Eastern and Western Relations between Heaven and Earth as Manifested in the Heaven-Earth Relationship of the Earthly Paradise (地上天國)
Regarding the discourse on the Earthly Paradise (地上天國, jisang cheonguk), two characteristics appear in Daesoon Thought. The first is the elucidation of the theoretical background of the Earthly Paradise, and the second is the demonstration of the phenomena of the Earthly Paradise.
First, Daesoon Thought's clarification of the principle of the Earthly Paradise is that the Earthly Paradise is realized according to the principle of the Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang (陰陽合德, eumyang hapdeok). In Daesoon Thought, the heaven-earth relationship becomes a system that nurtures all phenomena (森羅萬象, simna mansang) through the interaction of the divine spirits of heaven and earth (天地神明, cheonji sinmyeong) according to the constitutive principles of "heaven is round, earth is square" (天圓地方, cheonwon jibang). Heaven and earth each take charge of only one part — yin or yang — and are beings that can only succeed with the tao-penetration of humans; their aim is the nurturing of the exemplary persons who have attained Tao (道通君子, dotong gunja). Heaven, possessing the nature of the ethereal soul (魂, hon), undertakes planning without physical form, and thus performs the role of Won (圓, circle), Mun (文, culture), and Do (道, way), which have the nature of the ethereal soul, as in the cases of "heaven is round, earth is square," "heavenly pattern, earthly principle" (天文地理), and "heavenly way, earthly virtue" (天道地德). By contrast, earth, possessing the nature of the corporeal soul (魄, baek), has physical form and undertakes execution, and thus performs the role of Bang (方, square), I (理, principle), and Deok (德, virtue), which have the nature of the corporeal soul, as in those same cases. In the incantations of Daesoon Thought, the divine spirits that carry out the 28 lunar mansions and 24 solar terms of heaven and earth, the transformation of heaven and earth, the eight gates of heaven and earth, and the celestial transformations of heaven and earth appear systematically.
Traditionally, the Earthly Paradise was understood merely as an aspiration existing in imagination. Daesoon Thought, upon facing the situation of the emergence of the unfamiliar other called the West, interprets the relationship between East and West according to the principle of yin and yang, thereby providing the impetus for an indigenous understanding of the West. Likewise, by applying the principle of yin and yang to the Earthly Paradise, it enabled the Eastern understanding of the meaning of the Earthly Paradise, which was being pursued by the West.
Purpose (目的):
Mujagi (無自欺, No Self-Deception) — Spiritual Renewal (精神開闢)
Realization of Earthly Immortals (地上神仙實現) — Reformation of Humanity (人間改造)
Construction of the Earthly Paradise (地上天國建設) — World Renewal (世界開闢)¹¹
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-32.
¹¹ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-32.
Mujagi (無自欺, No Self-Deception) — Spiritual Renewal (精神開闢)
Realization of Earthly Immortals (地上神仙實現) — Reformation of Humanity (人間改造)
Construction of the Earthly Paradise (地上天國建設) — World Renewal (世界開闢)¹¹
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-32.
¹¹ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-32.
The passage above is the portion that explains the "Purpose" when Doju (道主) Jo Jeongsan (趙鼎山) clarified the doctrine (宗旨, jongji), purpose (目的, mokjeok), and creed (信條, sinjo) of Daesoon Thought in 1925, after enshrining Gucheon as Gucheon Eungwon Noeseong Bohwa Cheonjon Sangje (九天應元雷聲普化天尊上帝). At the time, many scholars were studying Jeungsan's thought, but it was Doju Jo Jeongsan who first clearly divided Daesoon Thought into doctrine, purpose, and creed.
In the passage above, "Purpose" is the section that specifies the intent behind countless acts of Jeungsan, including the Cheonjigongsa. The Construction of the Earthly Paradise, expressed in the passage as "World Renewal" (世界開闢), shows that the Earthly Paradise is understood within the dimension of gaebyeok, which is the Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang.
Next, examining the second aspect — the phenomena of the Earthly Paradise — Daesoon Thought explains the appearance of the Earthly Paradise through its principles.
In the passage above, "Purpose" is the section that specifies the intent behind countless acts of Jeungsan, including the Cheonjigongsa. The Construction of the Earthly Paradise, expressed in the passage as "World Renewal" (世界開闢), shows that the Earthly Paradise is understood within the dimension of gaebyeok, which is the Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang.
Next, examining the second aspect — the phenomena of the Earthly Paradise — Daesoon Thought explains the appearance of the Earthly Paradise through its principles.
In the Later Heaven (後天, hucheon), once seeds are planted, every year new shoots will sprout from the roots for the harvest, and even untended land will become fertile soil. This is because the earth will be scorched three ja and three chi deep.¹²
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 3-41.
¹² Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 3-41.
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 3-41.
¹² Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 3-41.
The passage above is a passage describing the earth in the Earthly Paradise of the Later Heaven. In the Later Heaven, crops grow on their own without sowing seeds. The earth, whose status has risen to equal that of heaven in accordance with the principle of the Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang, also corresponds to heaven in terms of its functions. Meanwhile, the location of the divine spirits of tao-penetration (道通神明) who will accompany the exemplary persons of the Later Heaven is also Geumgangsan (金剛山), regarded as the most beautiful place on earth.
The Supreme God pointed to a well at Tae-in Dochanghyeon and said: "This is a milk spring." And [He said]: "The Way shall flourish through the spiritual energy of the ten thousand two thousand peaks of Geumgangsan, producing ten thousand two thousand exemplary persons who have attained Tao. However, among the dotong gunja of the Later Heaven, women shall be many." And He spoke:
"Above there is Dochang, in the middle there is Tae-in, below there is Daegak (上有道昌中有泰仁下有大覺)."¹³
— Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 45.
¹³ Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 45.
"Above there is Dochang, in the middle there is Tae-in, below there is Daegak (上有道昌中有泰仁下有大覺)."¹³
— Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 45.
¹³ Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 45.
The Earthly Paradise was made real by Jeungsan's descent into human form (人身降世, insin gangse), but because the Earthly Paradise was a principle intended from the time of heaven and earth's creation, it has been continuously pursued since before the descent. In Western religions, heaven and earth were largely separated, but in the East, as illustrated by cases such as the Silla Buddhist Pure Land (佛國土, bulgukto) and the Hwarang (花郎), their combination was continuously sought.
In Daesoon Thought, the realization of the Earthly Paradise manifests — as shown in the "Proclamation of Teaching" (全敎, Jeongyo) — through the education of humanity by the sages who have appeared in the world over some 4,600 years of history and through the propagation of the three teachings. The Jeon'gyeong describes the Earthly Paradise of the Later Heaven, in which heaven and earth have succeeded through the Union of Virtue of Heaven and Earth Yin and Yang and the Harmonious Transformation of Spirits and Humans (神人調化, sinin johwa), as follows:
In Daesoon Thought, the realization of the Earthly Paradise manifests — as shown in the "Proclamation of Teaching" (全敎, Jeongyo) — through the education of humanity by the sages who have appeared in the world over some 4,600 years of history and through the propagation of the three teachings. The Jeon'gyeong describes the Earthly Paradise of the Later Heaven, in which heaven and earth have succeeded through the Union of Virtue of Heaven and Earth Yin and Yang and the Harmonious Transformation of Spirits and Humans (神人調化, sinin johwa), as follows:
In the Later Heaven, all under heaven shall be one household. Without the use of force or punishment, the people of creation shall be governed in accordance with principle through transformation. Those who hold office shall have the power of transformation open to them without exceeding their station, the people shall be free from all anguish of injustice, resentment, and desire, they shall be free from the suffering of illness and the burial of the dead, aging not and dying not, without distinction between rich and poor, coming and going freely, with heaven lowered so that ascending and descending happen at will, with wisdom brightened so as to master the past, present, and future and the worlds in all ten directions. The three calamities of water, fire, and wind in the world shall disappear, and it shall be transformed into an earthly paradise realm (地上仙境, jisang seongyeong) overflowing with auspicious omens.¹⁴
— Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 81.
¹⁴ Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 81.
— Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 81.
¹⁴ Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 81.
The passage above shows that the Later Heaven presupposes the harmonization of heaven and earth by humanity, and thus presupposes the education and transformation of human beings. In this way, the Earthly Paradise of Daesoon Thought is constructed on an extremely meticulous logic developed over a long history.
Furthermore, in Daesoon Thought, three historical events are noted in relation to the Earthly Paradise alongside its principles. The figures in the Jeon'gyeong who earnestly pursued the Earthly Paradise are Emperor Yao (堯), Matteo Ricci, and the Venerable Jinmuk (震默, 1562–1633). In Daesoon Thought, the first figure who sought to build the Earthly Paradise through the Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang was Emperor Yao.
Furthermore, in Daesoon Thought, three historical events are noted in relation to the Earthly Paradise alongside its principles. The figures in the Jeon'gyeong who earnestly pursued the Earthly Paradise are Emperor Yao (堯), Matteo Ricci, and the Venerable Jinmuk (震默, 1562–1633). In Daesoon Thought, the first figure who sought to build the Earthly Paradise through the Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang was Emperor Yao.
In the twelfth month of the jeongnmi year (丁未年), the Supreme God visited Sin Gyeongsu at his home. The Supreme God spoke of Yao's [method of] "observing the celestial bodies — sun, moon, and stars — and respectfully delivering the seasons to the people" (曆象日月星辰敬授人時), saying: "Heaven and earth without the sun and moon are an empty shell; the sun and moon without those who know humanity are empty reflections; it was because Tang Yao (唐堯) discovered the law of the sun and moon and taught it to the people that the grace of heaven and the principles of earth were for the first time granted to humanity." At that time, the Supreme God taught [the verse] Ilwol musa chimmanmul Gangsan yudo subaenghaeng (日月無私治萬物 江山有道受百行) and composed five incantations (五呪, oju), naming them the vital essence (津液, jinyeok) of heaven and earth. The five incantations are as follows:
新天地家家長歲 日月日月萬事知
(Sincheonji gagajangse ilwol ilwol mansaji)
侍天主造化定永世不忘萬事知
(Sicheonju johwajeong yeongse bulmang mansaji)
福祿誠敬信 壽命誠敬信 至氣今至願爲大降
(Bongnog seonggyeongsin sumyeong seonggyeongsin jigi geumji wonwi daegam)
明德觀音八陰八陽 至氣今至願爲大降
(Myeongdeok gwaneum parum palyang jigi geumji wonwi daegam)
三界解魔大帝神位願趁天尊關聖帝君
(Samgye haema daeje sinwi wonsin cheonjun gwanseong jegun)¹⁵
[Translation of incantations: In the New Heaven and Earth, every household shall enjoy longevity; with sun and moon, sun and moon, all things shall be known. Serving the Heavenly Lord, transformation is determined; throughout all ages, never forgetting, all things shall be known. Fortune and blessing — sincerity, reverence, and faith; lifespan and life — sincerity, reverence, and faith; may the supreme energy now greatly descend as I wish. Radiant virtue and Avalokitesvara, eight yin and eight yang; may the supreme energy now greatly descend as I wish. Samgye haema daeje sinwi — may you proceed toward and approach Cheonjun Gwanseong Jegun.]
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-30.¹⁵
¹⁵ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-30. "In the New Heaven and Earth, every household shall enjoy agelessness; with wisdom bright as sun and moon, all things shall be known. Serving the Heavenly Lord, transformation is determined; throughout all ages never forgetting, all things shall be known. Fortune and blessing too lie in seong-gyeong-sin; lifespan and life too depend on seong-gyeong-sin. May the supreme energy now greatly descend as I wish. May the supreme energy of radiant virtue, Avalokitesvara, and the eight yin and eight yang now greatly descend as I wish. Samgye haema daeje sinwi wonsin cheonjun gwanseong jegun." (Education Department, "Stone Folding Screen," Daesoon Hoebo 119, 2011)
新天地家家長歲 日月日月萬事知
(Sincheonji gagajangse ilwol ilwol mansaji)
侍天主造化定永世不忘萬事知
(Sicheonju johwajeong yeongse bulmang mansaji)
福祿誠敬信 壽命誠敬信 至氣今至願爲大降
(Bongnog seonggyeongsin sumyeong seonggyeongsin jigi geumji wonwi daegam)
明德觀音八陰八陽 至氣今至願爲大降
(Myeongdeok gwaneum parum palyang jigi geumji wonwi daegam)
三界解魔大帝神位願趁天尊關聖帝君
(Samgye haema daeje sinwi wonsin cheonjun gwanseong jegun)¹⁵
[Translation of incantations: In the New Heaven and Earth, every household shall enjoy longevity; with sun and moon, sun and moon, all things shall be known. Serving the Heavenly Lord, transformation is determined; throughout all ages, never forgetting, all things shall be known. Fortune and blessing — sincerity, reverence, and faith; lifespan and life — sincerity, reverence, and faith; may the supreme energy now greatly descend as I wish. Radiant virtue and Avalokitesvara, eight yin and eight yang; may the supreme energy now greatly descend as I wish. Samgye haema daeje sinwi — may you proceed toward and approach Cheonjun Gwanseong Jegun.]
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-30.¹⁵
¹⁵ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-30. "In the New Heaven and Earth, every household shall enjoy agelessness; with wisdom bright as sun and moon, all things shall be known. Serving the Heavenly Lord, transformation is determined; throughout all ages never forgetting, all things shall be known. Fortune and blessing too lie in seong-gyeong-sin; lifespan and life too depend on seong-gyeong-sin. May the supreme energy now greatly descend as I wish. May the supreme energy of radiant virtue, Avalokitesvara, and the eight yin and eight yang now greatly descend as I wish. Samgye haema daeje sinwi wonsin cheonjun gwanseong jegun." (Education Department, "Stone Folding Screen," Daesoon Hoebo 119, 2011)
In the passage above, Daesoon Thought evaluates Emperor Yao (帝堯陶唐氏, r. ca. BC 2324–BC 2255) as having opened the way for the Earthly Paradise by revealing the law of the sun and moon — the grace of heaven, namely the principle of time — and accordingly the principles of earth.
The next figures who sought to realize the Earthly Paradise of Daesoon Thought in a period closer to modernity are Matteo Ricci and the Venerable Jinmuk (震默, 1562–1633). In Daesoon Thought, Matteo Ricci's Eastern mission is highly regarded as an effort by Western learning to build the Earthly Paradise. Although Western learning's Heaven was emphasized as existing in the afterlife, Daesoon Thought evaluates the actual value of Western learning as lying in the construction of the Earthly Paradise. Even before Matteo Ricci, other figures who sought the Earthly Paradise are re-illuminated in Daesoon Thought. Among these figures are Shennong (炎帝神農氏), Jiang Taigong (姜尙, ca. BC 1211–1072), Guan Yu (關羽, ?–220), and Shakyamuni Buddha.¹⁶
¹⁶ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-10.
Matteo Ricci's attempt to build the Earthly Paradise was thwarted by the abuses of Confucianism. However, in compensation, the boundary between East and West was opened, and the civilization spirits (文明神, munmyeongssin) of the East crossed over to the West to participate in building the Western Earthly Paradise. However, this opening — in a state where the grievances of humanity remained unresolved due to human arrogance — instead led to the disorder of the Three Realms (三界着亂, samgye chagnnan).
In Daesoon Thought, another figure who strives to build the Earthly Paradise is the Venerable Jinmuk. The Venerable Jinmuk, who was called a living Buddha in mid-Joseon for the miracles and legends surrounding him, ascended to heaven and learned all manner of wonderful methods in order to bestow them upon the world of humanity, but this too was thwarted by the scheming of the Confucian scholar Kim Bonggok.
After the failure of Donghak, the situation of East Asia was at the brink of collapse — its survival in extreme jeopardy — but after the Cheonjigongsa, it encountered the turning point of revival through the Russo-Japanese War and has continued to this day. The relationship between East and West, in which the East had previously been ahead, was reversed after Matteo Ricci and the Venerable Jinmuk, and the East, having been at the brink of annihilation, revived. After the Cheonjigongsa, the exchange between East and West was amplified, and over the course of approximately 150 years, a culture combining the strengths of East and West has been built.
The next figures who sought to realize the Earthly Paradise of Daesoon Thought in a period closer to modernity are Matteo Ricci and the Venerable Jinmuk (震默, 1562–1633). In Daesoon Thought, Matteo Ricci's Eastern mission is highly regarded as an effort by Western learning to build the Earthly Paradise. Although Western learning's Heaven was emphasized as existing in the afterlife, Daesoon Thought evaluates the actual value of Western learning as lying in the construction of the Earthly Paradise. Even before Matteo Ricci, other figures who sought the Earthly Paradise are re-illuminated in Daesoon Thought. Among these figures are Shennong (炎帝神農氏), Jiang Taigong (姜尙, ca. BC 1211–1072), Guan Yu (關羽, ?–220), and Shakyamuni Buddha.¹⁶
¹⁶ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-10.
Matteo Ricci's attempt to build the Earthly Paradise was thwarted by the abuses of Confucianism. However, in compensation, the boundary between East and West was opened, and the civilization spirits (文明神, munmyeongssin) of the East crossed over to the West to participate in building the Western Earthly Paradise. However, this opening — in a state where the grievances of humanity remained unresolved due to human arrogance — instead led to the disorder of the Three Realms (三界着亂, samgye chagnnan).
In Daesoon Thought, another figure who strives to build the Earthly Paradise is the Venerable Jinmuk. The Venerable Jinmuk, who was called a living Buddha in mid-Joseon for the miracles and legends surrounding him, ascended to heaven and learned all manner of wonderful methods in order to bestow them upon the world of humanity, but this too was thwarted by the scheming of the Confucian scholar Kim Bonggok.
After the failure of Donghak, the situation of East Asia was at the brink of collapse — its survival in extreme jeopardy — but after the Cheonjigongsa, it encountered the turning point of revival through the Russo-Japanese War and has continued to this day. The relationship between East and West, in which the East had previously been ahead, was reversed after Matteo Ricci and the Venerable Jinmuk, and the East, having been at the brink of annihilation, revived. After the Cheonjigongsa, the exchange between East and West was amplified, and over the course of approximately 150 years, a culture combining the strengths of East and West has been built.
Section 3: Indigenous Modernity of the Seongsajaein (成事在人) View of the Human Realm
a. The View of Humanity as View of the Human Realm
The establishment of the View of the Human Realm (人界觀, ingyegwan) in Daesoon Thought begins with Gucheon's descent into human form (人身降世, insin gangse). The substantive descent of Gucheon into human form is clearly manifested in the term "Gangseong Sangje" (姜聖上帝) appearing in Gucheon's divine title (神位, sinwi).
a. The View of Humanity as View of the Human Realm
The establishment of the View of the Human Realm (人界觀, ingyegwan) in Daesoon Thought begins with Gucheon's descent into human form (人身降世, insin gangse). The substantive descent of Gucheon into human form is clearly manifested in the term "Gangseong Sangje" (姜聖上帝) appearing in Gucheon's divine title (神位, sinwi).
"Gangseong Sangje" (姜聖上帝) refers to
the honorific title (尊稱, jonching) of an omniscient and omnipotent God (全知全能, jeonji jeonneung) who governs (主宰, jujae) and rules (管領, gwannyeong) all phenomena (森羅萬象, simna mansang) of the universe with the supreme authority over the Three Realms (三界大權, samgye daegwon) and observes all of heaven (觀鑑萬天, gwangam mancheon).
the honorific title (尊稱, jonching) of an omniscient and omnipotent God (全知全能, jeonji jeonneung) who governs (主宰, jujae) and rules (管領, gwannyeong) all phenomena (森羅萬象, simna mansang) of the universe with the supreme authority over the Three Realms (三界大權, samgye daegwon) and observes all of heaven (觀鑑萬天, gwangam mancheon).
"Gangseong Sangje" (姜聖上帝) reveals that Gucheon descended into human form by adding the family name of the human realm to the divine title. Through Gucheon's descent into human form, the View of the Human Realm is newly formed. After the descent, the divine spirits who governed heaven and earth begin to seek the humans with whom they will share their destined positions (運數자리, unsu jari). Before the descent, humans had sought the divine spirits, but after the descent, the divine spirits came to seek humans.
When Park Gongu, having quarreled with his wife, came to Gurigol to find the Supreme God, the Supreme God suddenly rebuked him: "When I am fierce, I possess all the ferocity under heaven; when I am good, I possess all the goodness under heaven. How dare you engage in such dishonest behavior in my presence? Now the divine spirits of heaven and earth shall seek out their destined positions, entering and departing each person and each household to test their capacity (器局, giguk). If one's disposition is not broad and the harmonious energy of the household is lost, the divine spirits shall laugh in scorn, say it is a capacity to which great matters cannot be entrusted, and guide one another away. How can one who has set one's will on the matter dare to be negligent in thought for even a moment?"¹⁷
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 1-42.
¹⁷ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 1-42.
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 1-42.
¹⁷ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 1-42.
Destined positions (運數자리) refer, by the principle of the Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang, to the persons and households with whom divine spirits will be together in the Later Heaven. Through Gucheon's descent into human form, the status of humanity is elevated. In Daesoon Thought, divine spirits and humans are distinguished at the boundary between life and death. When humans die, they become divine spirits, and when divine spirits are born, they become humans.
When Kim Songhwan asked about matters after death, the Supreme God replied: "People have an ethereal soul (魂, hon) and a corporeal soul (魄, baek). When a person dies, the ethereal soul ascends to heaven and becomes a spirit (神, sin), receiving the ritual offerings of descendants, and after four generations becomes either a spirit (靈, yeong) or an immortal (仙, seon). The corporeal soul returns to the earth, and after four generations becomes a ghost (鬼, gwi)."¹⁸
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 1-50.
¹⁸ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 1-50.
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 1-50.
¹⁸ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 1-50.
Divine spirits and humans transform their own form through life and death. That is, humans are spirits possessing a physical body, and when humans shed that physical body through death, they become spirits. However, humans who have cultivated the Way have their essence (精, jeong) and ethereal soul combined and solidified, so that even upon death the ethereal soul does not dissipate but can ascend to the heavenly realm, whereas humans who have not cultivated the Way dissolve like dissipating smoke.
Those who have cultivated the Way have their essential soul (精魂, jeonghon) solidly consolidated, so that even in death it does not scatter and can ascend to the heavenly realm; for those who have not, their essential soul is faint and shall dissipate like smoke and foam.¹⁹
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 2-22.
¹⁹ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 2-22.
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 2-22.
¹⁹ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 2-22.
In the passage above, what distinguishes the "essential soul" (精魂, jeonghon) from the ethereal soul (魂) alone is that the essential soul is the combination of the material essence (精, jeong) and the spiritual ethereal soul (魂, hon) among the essence-energy-spirit (精氣神, jeonggisim) of the body; thus the essential soul is the soul that exists only while a human is alive. The level of this essential soul is determined by the degree of one's cultivation. Accordingly, divine spirits and humans can form a yin-yang relationship.
神有人神陰人陽 …(omitted)… 神人以陰陽成造化…(omitted)… 神人和而萬事成神人合而百工成神明竢人人竢神明陰陽相合神人相通然後天道成而地道成神事成而人事成人事成而神事成²⁰
(Sinyu inshin eum in yang … sinin i eumyang seong johwa … sinin hwa i mansasseong sinin hap i baegongsseong sinmyeong sa in in sa sinmyeong eumyang sang hap sinin sang tong yeonhu cheondo seong i jido seong sinji seong i inji seong inji seong i sinji seong)
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-42.
[Translation: There are spirits and there are people; spirits are yin and people are yang. … Spirits and people bring forth transformation through yin and yang. … When spirits and people are in harmony, all things are accomplished; when spirits and people cooperate, a hundred works are accomplished. Spirits await people, and people await spirits. Only after yin and yang mutually unite and spirits and people mutually communicate does the heavenly way reach completion and the earthly way reach completion. When the work of spirits is accomplished, the work of people is accomplished; and when the work of people is accomplished, the work of spirits is accomplished.]²⁰
²⁰ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-42. Education Department, "Correct Understanding of the Divine Way (神道)," Daesoon Hoebo 81, 2008.
(Sinyu inshin eum in yang … sinin i eumyang seong johwa … sinin hwa i mansasseong sinin hap i baegongsseong sinmyeong sa in in sa sinmyeong eumyang sang hap sinin sang tong yeonhu cheondo seong i jido seong sinji seong i inji seong inji seong i sinji seong)
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-42.
[Translation: There are spirits and there are people; spirits are yin and people are yang. … Spirits and people bring forth transformation through yin and yang. … When spirits and people are in harmony, all things are accomplished; when spirits and people cooperate, a hundred works are accomplished. Spirits await people, and people await spirits. Only after yin and yang mutually unite and spirits and people mutually communicate does the heavenly way reach completion and the earthly way reach completion. When the work of spirits is accomplished, the work of people is accomplished; and when the work of people is accomplished, the work of spirits is accomplished.]²⁰
²⁰ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-42. Education Department, "Correct Understanding of the Divine Way (神道)," Daesoon Hoebo 81, 2008.
In the passage above, the reason spirits and humans depend on each other and support each other is that embodied humans can bring change to the terrestrial world but cannot know what is invisible, while divine spirits can see what is invisible but cannot bring change to the terrestrial world. When the heaven above heaven nurtures heaven and earth, the reason it distinguishes between divine spirits and humans and has them exchange with each other is that when one becomes an embodied human, one can be broadly proficient through effort but cannot excel in a single domain; and when one becomes an incorporeal divine spirit, one can excel in a single domain but, lacking a body, cannot be broadly proficient across other domains. However, the divine spirits of the human realm and the divine spirits of heaven and earth are distinct.
Divine spirits fill heaven and earth — even a single blade of grass, if the spirit departs, will wither; even a mud-plastered wall, if the spirit moves away, will collapse.²¹
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 3-2.
²¹ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 3-2.
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 3-2.
²¹ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 3-2.
The passage above shows that in Daesoon Thought, the views of Heaven, earth, and humanity constitute a divine spirit system (神明 시스템) of the heavenly realm, the earthly realm, and the human realm, all filled with divine spirits. This demonstrates that the relationship between divine spirits and humans in Daesoon Thought is composed of organic humans and mechanical divine spirits, and that this relationship is reflected in Heaven, Earth, and Humanity. Accordingly, Gucheon presents the principle of Divine-Human Guidance (神人依導, sinin uido) as a prescription for the disorder of the Three Realms. Its core is, after the great inspection of the Three Realms (三界大巡, samgye daesun) that diagnoses the problems of the world following the descent into human form, for "spirits" and "humans" to help each other and transform the world.
By the rational principle (理法, ibeop) of Divine-Human Guidance (神人依導), with haewon (解冤, resolution of grievances) as the primary [aim], the Cheonjigongsa was concluded with boeun (報恩, repayment of grace).²²
— Daesoon Jinrihoe Yonam, "Chwiji" (Founding Purpose).
²² Daesoon Jinrihoe Yonam, "Chwiji."
— Daesoon Jinrihoe Yonam, "Chwiji" (Founding Purpose).
²² Daesoon Jinrihoe Yonam, "Chwiji."
In the theory of the Three Abilities (三才, samjae), humanity appears as a mediator facilitating communication between heaven and earth. The View of the Human Realm and the view of humanity also differ in that events are logically connected according to the systemic nature of the "realm" (界, gye). If the view of humanity in the Three Abilities focuses on individual decision-making, the View of the Human Realm in the Three Realms emphasizes a systemic character. Accordingly, humanity's mediating and harmonizing functions also appear in an organized manner.
Over the approximately one hundred years following modernity, East and West developed toward each other an ambivalent sentiment of Orientalism and Occidentalism. The West mystified the East to justify Western dominion over the East, and the East mystified the West to justify abandonment of Eastern identity. The hundred-odd years of forgetting the Eastern origin of Western modern civilization has caused people of the East today to disbelieve that the East was the origin of Western modernity. The views of Heaven, earth, and humanity of the East came to await the emergence of new views of the Heavenly Realm, the Earthly Realm, and the Human Realm in a time of crisis.
b. The View of the Human Realm of Seongsajaein (成事在人)
The difference before and after Gucheon's appearance is most pronounced in the reversal of the relationship between divine spirits and humans. Humans, who had always served divine spirits, reached the point in modernity of challenging God and even denying God, but the Supreme God's descent into human form finally becomes the occasion for divine spirits to acknowledge humans and achieve cooperation with humans.
Over the approximately one hundred years following modernity, East and West developed toward each other an ambivalent sentiment of Orientalism and Occidentalism. The West mystified the East to justify Western dominion over the East, and the East mystified the West to justify abandonment of Eastern identity. The hundred-odd years of forgetting the Eastern origin of Western modern civilization has caused people of the East today to disbelieve that the East was the origin of Western modernity. The views of Heaven, earth, and humanity of the East came to await the emergence of new views of the Heavenly Realm, the Earthly Realm, and the Human Realm in a time of crisis.
b. The View of the Human Realm of Seongsajaein (成事在人)
The difference before and after Gucheon's appearance is most pronounced in the reversal of the relationship between divine spirits and humans. Humans, who had always served divine spirits, reached the point in modernity of challenging God and even denying God, but the Supreme God's descent into human form finally becomes the occasion for divine spirits to acknowledge humans and achieve cooperation with humans.
"'Carefully observe human affairs (中察人事)' means tao-penetration (道通, dotong), and this signifies that in the future all rights and anything else shall belong to humans. Therefore, humans become the most elevated. … In ancient times, in the age when the spirit was sealed in heaven (神封於天, sinbong eocheon), all authority was held and exercised by heaven — it was the age of heavenly supremacy (天尊時代, cheonjonsidae). At present, in the age when the spirit is sealed in earth (神封於地, sinbong eoji), the earth holds and exercises that authority — it is the age of earthly supremacy (地尊時代, jijongsidae). Although it is said that the age of earthly supremacy is coming to an end, there is still reliance on the earth in matters such as checking directions when moving house and selecting grave sites, because authority resided in the earth. Henceforth, in the age when the spirit is sealed in humanity (神封於人, sinbong eoin), humans shall take charge of this authority."²³
— Dojeon's Discourse (1989. 4. 12).
²³ Yi Gwangju, "Mosa-neun Jaecheong-hago Seongsaneun Jaein-irira," Daesoon Hoebo 249, 2021, requoted therein. In this text, "Dojeon's Discourse" refers to the discourse of Dojeon Park Udang. In this text, only quotations cited in the Daesoon Hoebo, the official organ of Daesoon Jinrihoe, are adopted and cited.
— Dojeon's Discourse (1989. 4. 12).
²³ Yi Gwangju, "Mosa-neun Jaecheong-hago Seongsaneun Jaein-irira," Daesoon Hoebo 249, 2021, requoted therein. In this text, "Dojeon's Discourse" refers to the discourse of Dojeon Park Udang. In this text, only quotations cited in the Daesoon Hoebo, the official organ of Daesoon Jinrihoe, are adopted and cited.
The passage above reveals that the reason the power of the earth, such as geomancy (風水地理, pungsu jiri), was emphasized in the East as much as heaven — unlike in the West — was because it was believed that divine spirits were enshrined in the earth. It also reveals that the Supreme God's descent into human form is a great opportunity to transfer the divine spirits, previously enshrined in the earth, to humanity. Humans, who had feared the sins and punishments of the divine spirits, are elevated through the descent into human form to a status equal to that of the divine spirits.
Among the changes in the views of earth and humanity brought about by Gucheon's descent into human form, the greatest change was the resolution of the question: "What is humanity, and why does it exist?" Daesoon Thought presents "the mind" (마음, maeum) as the answer to the reason for human existence.
Among the changes in the views of earth and humanity brought about by Gucheon's descent into human form, the greatest change was the resolution of the question: "What is humanity, and why does it exist?" Daesoon Thought presents "the mind" (마음, maeum) as the answer to the reason for human existence.
The mind is the master (主, ju) of the one body (一身, ilsin); all human speech and conduct are expressions of the mind. Within the mind there are two kinds: the moral mind (良心, yangsim) and the selfish mind (私心, sasim). The moral mind is the original heart (本心, bonsim) as it is in its heavenly nature (天性, cheonseong), and the selfish mind is a desire (慾心, yoksim) that arises through material craving (物慾, mulyok). Originally, the essential nature of human nature (人性, inseong) is the moral mind, but one comes to be captivated by the selfish mind and dares to engage in speech and conduct contrary to the Way (道理, dori). Therefore, abandon the selfish mind and devote yourself entirely to recovering the moral mind, which is the heavenly nature. The root of all human evil and wrongdoing arises from deceiving the mind; therefore, eradicate all evil and wrongdoing with the honesty (正直, jeongjik) and truthfulness (眞實, jinsil) that are the essential nature of human nature.²⁴
— Daesoon Jinrihoe Yonam, "Hunhoe" (Instructions).
²⁴ Daesoon Jinrihoe Yonam, "Hunhoe."
— Daesoon Jinrihoe Yonam, "Hunhoe" (Instructions).
²⁴ Daesoon Jinrihoe Yonam, "Hunhoe."
In the passage above, the human mind is a being that harbors heavenly nature. Just as it is said in the West that [humanity] was made in the image of God, the human mind is said to be able to communicate particularly with the mind of heaven. The West has surpassed the East over the hundred-odd years of modernity, but Western humanities have yet to possess the concept of "mind" (마음).
The "mind," regarded in the Eastern tradition as the fundamental mechanism of cultivation, is elevated in Daesoon Thought — following Gucheon's descent into human form — to the very occasion through which the Earthly Paradise is realized. In Daesoon Thought, the mind is the treasure of heaven and earth,²⁵ and heaven and earth operate according to the mind, and Gucheon's descent into human form is also accomplished through the mind. "My mind is your mind" (吾心卽汝心也, osim jeuk yeosim ya).²⁶ That divine spirits are enshrined in humanity is also because humanity has a mind, and the mind was therefore called the Spirit Terrace (靈臺, yeongtae), which is the dwelling of the soul. In Donghak Thought, "supreme energy" (至氣, jigi) is mentioned many times, but mention of the mind that receives that "supreme energy" is rare. Because humans are beings with a mind, they form the Three Abilities (三才, samjae) on an equal footing with heaven and earth — this is the reason for human existence revealed after the descent into human form.
²⁵ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-41.
²⁶ "My mind is your mind": Dongyeong Daejeon, "Nonhangmun" (東經大全, 「論學文」), "吾心卽…汝心也."
The "mind," regarded in the Eastern tradition as the fundamental mechanism of cultivation, is elevated in Daesoon Thought — following Gucheon's descent into human form — to the very occasion through which the Earthly Paradise is realized. In Daesoon Thought, the mind is the treasure of heaven and earth,²⁵ and heaven and earth operate according to the mind, and Gucheon's descent into human form is also accomplished through the mind. "My mind is your mind" (吾心卽汝心也, osim jeuk yeosim ya).²⁶ That divine spirits are enshrined in humanity is also because humanity has a mind, and the mind was therefore called the Spirit Terrace (靈臺, yeongtae), which is the dwelling of the soul. In Donghak Thought, "supreme energy" (至氣, jigi) is mentioned many times, but mention of the mind that receives that "supreme energy" is rare. Because humans are beings with a mind, they form the Three Abilities (三才, samjae) on an equal footing with heaven and earth — this is the reason for human existence revealed after the descent into human form.
²⁵ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-41.
²⁶ "My mind is your mind": Dongyeong Daejeon, "Nonhangmun" (東經大全, 「論學文」), "吾心卽…汝心也."
One day in the sixth month, Sin Gyeongwon (辛京元) urgently sent a person from Tae-in to deliver news that police officers were coming to his house every day to ask about the Supreme God's whereabouts. When the Supreme God saw the messenger, he rebuked him: "What matter caused you, coming on an urgent errand, to be delayed along the way?" The person answered: "On the way, there was someone judging fate by Danghwajuyeok, and I was briefly delayed — please forgive me." The Supreme God immediately wrote out a text and said: "Give this text to Gyeongwon, and after reading it, burn it at once." The text read as follows:
天用雨露之薄則必有萬方之怨
(Cheon yong urojibag jeuk pil yu manbangjiwon)
地用水土之薄則必有萬物之怨
(Ji yong sutojibaeg jeuk pil yu manmuljiwon)
人用德化之薄則必有萬事之怨
(In yong deokwajibag jeuk pil yu manjijiwon)
天用地用人用統在於心
(Cheon yong ji yong in yong tong jae eosim)
心也者鬼神之樞機也門戶也道路也
(Sim ya ja gwisinjichugija munhoja doronya)
開閉樞機出入門戶往來道路神
(Gaeye chuggi churip munho wangnae doro sin)
或有善或有惡
(Hogyuseon hogyuak)
善者師之惡者改之
(Seonja saji akja gaiji)
吾心之樞機門戶道路大於天地²⁷
(Osimji chuggi munho doro dae eocheonji)
[Translation: If heaven uses rain and dew sparingly, there shall surely be grievances in all quarters; if earth uses water and soil sparingly, there shall surely be grievances among all things; if humanity uses transforming virtue (德化, deokwha) sparingly, there shall surely be grievances in all affairs. The usages of heaven, earth, and humanity are all in the mind. The mind is the pivot (樞機, chuggi), the gateway (門戶, munho), and the road (道路, doro) of spirits and ghosts. Opening and closing the pivot, entering and departing through the gateway, coming and going along the road — there are spirits, some good and some evil. Learn from the good and correct the evil. The pivot, gateway, and road that is my mind is greater than heaven and earth.]
²⁷ Jeon'gyeong, "Haengnog" 3-44. "If heaven uses rain and dew sparingly, there shall surely be grievances in all quarters; if earth uses water and soil sparingly, there shall surely be grievances among all things; if humanity uses transforming virtue sparingly, there shall surely be grievances in all affairs — the usages of heaven, earth, and humanity all depend on the mind." (Education Department, "Stone Folding Screen," Daesoon Hoebo 119, 2011.) "The mind is the pivot, gateway, and road of spirits and ghosts. Opening and closing the pivot, entering and departing through the gateway, coming and going along the road — there are spirits, some good and some evil. Learn from the good and correct the evil. My mind, which is the pivot, gateway, and road, is greater than heaven and earth." (Education Department, "Seonja saji akja gaiji," Daesoon Hoebo 115, 2010.)
天用雨露之薄則必有萬方之怨
(Cheon yong urojibag jeuk pil yu manbangjiwon)
地用水土之薄則必有萬物之怨
(Ji yong sutojibaeg jeuk pil yu manmuljiwon)
人用德化之薄則必有萬事之怨
(In yong deokwajibag jeuk pil yu manjijiwon)
天用地用人用統在於心
(Cheon yong ji yong in yong tong jae eosim)
心也者鬼神之樞機也門戶也道路也
(Sim ya ja gwisinjichugija munhoja doronya)
開閉樞機出入門戶往來道路神
(Gaeye chuggi churip munho wangnae doro sin)
或有善或有惡
(Hogyuseon hogyuak)
善者師之惡者改之
(Seonja saji akja gaiji)
吾心之樞機門戶道路大於天地²⁷
(Osimji chuggi munho doro dae eocheonji)
[Translation: If heaven uses rain and dew sparingly, there shall surely be grievances in all quarters; if earth uses water and soil sparingly, there shall surely be grievances among all things; if humanity uses transforming virtue (德化, deokwha) sparingly, there shall surely be grievances in all affairs. The usages of heaven, earth, and humanity are all in the mind. The mind is the pivot (樞機, chuggi), the gateway (門戶, munho), and the road (道路, doro) of spirits and ghosts. Opening and closing the pivot, entering and departing through the gateway, coming and going along the road — there are spirits, some good and some evil. Learn from the good and correct the evil. The pivot, gateway, and road that is my mind is greater than heaven and earth.]
²⁷ Jeon'gyeong, "Haengnog" 3-44. "If heaven uses rain and dew sparingly, there shall surely be grievances in all quarters; if earth uses water and soil sparingly, there shall surely be grievances among all things; if humanity uses transforming virtue sparingly, there shall surely be grievances in all affairs — the usages of heaven, earth, and humanity all depend on the mind." (Education Department, "Stone Folding Screen," Daesoon Hoebo 119, 2011.) "The mind is the pivot, gateway, and road of spirits and ghosts. Opening and closing the pivot, entering and departing through the gateway, coming and going along the road — there are spirits, some good and some evil. Learn from the good and correct the evil. My mind, which is the pivot, gateway, and road, is greater than heaven and earth." (Education Department, "Seonja saji akja gaiji," Daesoon Hoebo 115, 2010.)
In the passage above, heaven's sending down rain and dew and earth's exercising the virtue of water and soil depend on the mind. Heaven and earth move as humanity desires in order to nurture all life, and thus the earth also gives in accordance with humanity's will. The human mind becomes the passage and dwelling through which divine spirits enter and depart. According to the principle of liminality called the method of doubling (加一倍法, gaildaebop), the age of earthly supremacy (地尊時代) is passed through before entering the age of human supremacy (人尊時代), and there are researchers who predict many changes in the earth during the transition from the age of earthly supremacy to the age of human supremacy. Monk Tanheo, for instance, made many references to changes in the earth.²⁸ Because humans are beings with a mind, the value of the mind is determined within the relationships of grace and grievance (恩怨關係, eunwon gwangye) in which the mind becomes actualized.
²⁸ Monk Tanheo, for instance, made many references to changes in the earth.
²⁸ Monk Tanheo, for instance, made many references to changes in the earth.
正吾之心氣 立吾之義理 求吾之心靈
(Jeong o ji simgi, lip o ji uiri, gu o ji simryeong)²⁹
[Translation: Rectify my vital energy of the mind; establish my righteousness and principle; seek my spiritual mind.]
²⁹ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-41. "Rectify my vital energy of the mind; establish my righteousness and principle; seek my spiritual mind." (Education Department, "Jeong o ji simgi, lip o ji uiri, gu o ji simryeong, im sangje ji imui," Daesoon Hoebo 115, 2010.)
(Jeong o ji simgi, lip o ji uiri, gu o ji simryeong)²⁹
[Translation: Rectify my vital energy of the mind; establish my righteousness and principle; seek my spiritual mind.]
²⁹ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-41. "Rectify my vital energy of the mind; establish my righteousness and principle; seek my spiritual mind." (Education Department, "Jeong o ji simgi, lip o ji uiri, gu o ji simryeong, im sangje ji imui," Daesoon Hoebo 115, 2010.)
The passage above, appearing at the end of the "Proclamation to All" (布諭文, Poyumun) where the treasure of the human mind is discussed, shows that the value of the human mind is determined by the vital energy of the mind and righteousness in ordinary times. Therefore, the Earthly Paradise arrives when, in a world of moral disease where righteousness and grace-repayment have disappeared due to haewon, righteousness and grace-repayment are once again established.
In particular, the haewon-boeun relationship between parents and children — that is, between ancestral spirits (先靈神, seonryeongssin) and their descendants — is the key to the realization of the mind, which is the realization of the Earthly Paradise. In the West, reason is the ultimate criterion for all judgment; in the East, the mind with filial piety (孝, hyo) as the criterion of judgment. In Daesoon Thought as well, filial piety is the ultimate criterion for judgment regarding the mind and life and death.
In particular, the haewon-boeun relationship between parents and children — that is, between ancestral spirits (先靈神, seonryeongssin) and their descendants — is the key to the realization of the mind, which is the realization of the Earthly Paradise. In the West, reason is the ultimate criterion for all judgment; in the East, the mind with filial piety (孝, hyo) as the criterion of judgment. In Daesoon Thought as well, filial piety is the ultimate criterion for judgment regarding the mind and life and death.
At Daeheungni, the Supreme God filled the front fifteen pages of a thirty-page booklet of good paper with "Baeeunmangdeok mansasin ilbunmyeong ilyangsisaeng (背恩忘德萬死神 一分明一陽始生)" and the back fifteen pages with "Jakjibujji seonguiyungyag ilumsisaeng (作之不止聖醫雄藥 一陰始生)," then placed cinnabar (鏡面硃砂) and a dish. He said to Gwangchan: "This matter determines the path of life and death — think carefully and speak." Gwangchan replied: "Those who do not know how to serve their ancestral spirits shall not live." The Supreme God remained silent for a moment, then said: "Your words are acceptable." He then wrapped the dish in paper, dipped it in cinnabar, and stamped every page. "This is the official seal (馬牌, mapae)," He declared.³⁰
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 3-9.
³⁰ Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 3-9.
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 3-9.
³⁰ Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 3-9.
In the passage above, the repayment of grace to ancestral spirits becomes the criterion for judging life and death. That righteousness and grace-repayment become the criterion for judging life and death is because the performance of the mind — which is the criterion by which heaven and earth select humans — is determined by righteousness.
Although Western thought lacks the concept of mind, Daesoon Thought positively embraces Western thought as well. Daesoon Thought, like the West, affirms growth. However, what distinguishes Daesoon Thought from the West is that this is a growth that includes the divine spirits of heaven and earth and ancestral spirits (先靈神). In Daesoon Thought, human growth becomes tao-penetration (道通, dotong). What is emphasized in Daesoon Thought's conception of growth is the grace of heaven and earth and ancestors — that is, boeun (報恩, repayment of grace). However, in Daesoon Thought, tao-penetration, unlike in Taoism, can only be attained not merely through one's own effort but by entrusting oneself to the Supreme God's discretion (任意, imui).
Although Western thought lacks the concept of mind, Daesoon Thought positively embraces Western thought as well. Daesoon Thought, like the West, affirms growth. However, what distinguishes Daesoon Thought from the West is that this is a growth that includes the divine spirits of heaven and earth and ancestral spirits (先靈神). In Daesoon Thought, human growth becomes tao-penetration (道通, dotong). What is emphasized in Daesoon Thought's conception of growth is the grace of heaven and earth and ancestors — that is, boeun (報恩, repayment of grace). However, in Daesoon Thought, tao-penetration, unlike in Taoism, can only be attained not merely through one's own effort but by entrusting oneself to the Supreme God's discretion (任意, imui).
任上帝之任意洋洋上帝在上浩浩
(Im sangje ji imui yangyang sangje jaegang hoho)³¹
[Translation: Entrust [yourself] to the Supreme God's discretion. The Supreme God presides above, vast and great.]
³¹ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-41. "Im sangje ji imui. Entrust [yourself] to the Supreme God's discretion." (Education Department, "Jeong o ji simgi, lip o ji uiri, gu o ji simryeong, im sangje ji imui," Daesoon Hoebo 115, 2010.)
(Im sangje ji imui yangyang sangje jaegang hoho)³¹
[Translation: Entrust [yourself] to the Supreme God's discretion. The Supreme God presides above, vast and great.]
³¹ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-41. "Im sangje ji imui. Entrust [yourself] to the Supreme God's discretion." (Education Department, "Jeong o ji simgi, lip o ji uiri, gu o ji simryeong, im sangje ji imui," Daesoon Hoebo 115, 2010.)
The passage above shows that the tao-penetration achievable through the treasure of the mind lies in the ansimansin (安心安身, settling the mind and stabilizing the body) of pursuing the true method presented by the incarnated Gucheon. In Daesoon Thought, tao-penetration, as with the principle of non-purposive transformation (無爲而化, muwi ihwa), depends not only on individual effort but also on the rational principle (理法, ibeop) of Gucheon.
The View of the Human Realm in Daesoon Thought was revealed in its meaning alongside the progression of the Cheonjigongsa, but it is manifested in the "Proclamation of Teaching" (全敎, Jeongyo) before the Cheonjigongsa. Daesoon Thought presents the Jeongyo as a program through which heaven and earth raise humans through the three teachings possessing the energies of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity. As Mencius noted that a sage appears once every five hundred years, the Jeongyo states that over approximately 4,617 years in nine cycles of 513 years, the saints (神聖, sinseong) and the sages of the three teachings, along with their teachings, have appeared and educated humanity, as shown in Table 3.³²
³² Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-26.
The View of the Human Realm in Daesoon Thought was revealed in its meaning alongside the progression of the Cheonjigongsa, but it is manifested in the "Proclamation of Teaching" (全敎, Jeongyo) before the Cheonjigongsa. Daesoon Thought presents the Jeongyo as a program through which heaven and earth raise humans through the three teachings possessing the energies of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity. As Mencius noted that a sage appears once every five hundred years, the Jeongyo states that over approximately 4,617 years in nine cycles of 513 years, the saints (神聖, sinseong) and the sages of the three teachings, along with their teachings, have appeared and educated humanity, as shown in Table 3.³²
³² Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-26.
[Table 3: The Three Teachings and the Proclamation of Teaching]
| Stage | Potal (胞胎) (Church-State Unity) | Yangsaeng (養生) (Church-State Separation) | Yokdae (浴帶) (Church-State Separation) | Gwanwang (冠旺) (Church-State Unity) |
|-------|------|------|------|------|
| Period | 513 years × 3 = 1,539 years | 513 years × 3 = 1,539 years | 513 years × 3 = 1,539 years | — |
| Content | Three Sovereigns, Five Emperors, Yao and Shun, Tang Wang | Shakyamuni, Confucius, Jesus | Silla, Southern Dynasties, Neo-Confucianism | Pope, Daesoon |
| Stage | Potal (胞胎) (Church-State Unity) | Yangsaeng (養生) (Church-State Separation) | Yokdae (浴帶) (Church-State Separation) | Gwanwang (冠旺) (Church-State Unity) |
|-------|------|------|------|------|
| Period | 513 years × 3 = 1,539 years | 513 years × 3 = 1,539 years | 513 years × 3 = 1,539 years | — |
| Content | Three Sovereigns, Five Emperors, Yao and Shun, Tang Wang | Shakyamuni, Confucius, Jesus | Silla, Southern Dynasties, Neo-Confucianism | Pope, Daesoon |
In fact, Daesoon Thought can be interpreted through the cosmology of the seven stars of Ziwei Doushu (紫微斗數),³³ an extension of the astronomical and geographical mathematics of the East — specifically the Hado and Nakso mathematics — the 28 lunar mansions of Esoteric Buddhist astronomy,³⁴ the time function of the 24 solar terms,³⁵ the cosmology of the Cheongsang Bunya Yeolcha Map (天象分野列次圖), and the cosmology of the 36 heavens of the desire realm, form realm, and formless realm.³⁶
³³ Yi Seungjae, Scientific Exploration of Ziwei Doushu, Seoul: Mirae-teo, 2017.
³⁴ Yano Michio, Esoteric Astrology and the Suyo Sutra, Seoul: Dongguk University Press, 2010.
³⁵ Kim Taegyu, Your Time Has Come, Seoul: The Maker, 2015.
³⁶ Sun Weijie, "The Process of Formation and Accumulation of the Taoist 'Thirty-Six Heavens Theory' from the Eastern Jin Period to the Song-Yuan Period," Daesoon Jonghak 4, 2023.
In accordance with the Three Realms Public Work (三界公事, samgye gongsa) of Daesoon Thought, which integrates the principles manifested across time and space of East and West throughout history, the Three Realms are reorganized for the nurturing of humanity. Through the Heavenly Realm Public Work (天界公事), the Great One (太乙, taeul), the center of the Cheongsang Bunya Yeolcha Map, comes to have a relationship with Taeul Cheonsa Wongun (太乙天上元君), and the seven stars surrounding the Great One are reorganized through changes in the order of the Seven Stars Incantation (七星呪, chilseongju). In the 28 lunar mansions and 24 solar terms surrounding the seven stars, each divine general (神將, sinjang) is assigned, and correlative thinking (相關的 思惟, sanggwan jeok sauyi) becomes substantiated. The most significant differences from the Former Heaven in the Three Realms of the Later Heaven are human supremacy (人尊, injong), Seongsajaein (成事在人, the fulfillment of affairs lies in humanity), and the exemplary persons who have attained Tao (道通君子, dotong gunja).³⁷
³⁷ Ko Namsik, "The Heavenly Perception of the Former Heaven and the Transcendence of the Supreme God: Regarding the Divine Way and the Great Inspection of the Three Realms," Daesoon Thought Comprehensive Review, 1999.
Unlike the spirit-human relationship in existing religions, in Daesoon Thought there is mutual communication. Since humans are spirits enclosed in the body, one can say it is a matter of awakening the inner spirit to communicate with the outer spirit. The cosmological and human-body perspectives of Daesoon Thought are meticulous in detail, and the cosmological and human-body perspectives of existing religions are explained in greater detail and more systematically.
The Western thought that entered East Asia one hundred years ago was in fact something familiar to East Asians. The West first caused a dynastic revolution by learning from Mencius,³⁸ and through the Book of Changes (周易, Zhouyi), Leibniz established monadology, the precursor to atomism.³⁹ Since Western democracy and science were not unfamiliar to Eastern intellectuals at the time Western culture entered the East, it was received far more readily than by other civilizations.
³⁸ François Jullien, translated by Heo Gyeong, Dialogue between Mencius and Enlightenment Philosophers: Laying the Foundations of Morality, Hanul Academy, 2009.
³⁹ Joseph Needham, abridged by Colin Ronan, translated by Kim Youngsik and Kim Jegwan, Science and Civilization in China: The Ideological Background, Kachi, 1998.
The significance for Korean new religions of the East Asian origins of European modern civilization implies that the modernity possessed by Korean new religions was, from today's perspective, postmodernism — that is, contemporary modernity. While mainstream modern intellectuals accepted Western modernity literally, the indigenous modernity of new religions, which appeared inferior, was actually a modernity one step ahead of the West. Another ground for saying that the modernity of Korean new religions was postmodernism — that is, contemporaneity — is that Korean new religions came to flourish significantly only after the late 1980s, when contemporaneity became manifest.⁴⁰
⁴⁰ No Gilmyeong, "The Development of Korean New Religious Movements after Liberation and Trends in Research," Religion and Culture 3, 1997.
Korean new religions, having at the time of their emergence already pursued a modernity one dimension higher than Western modernity, had to await a postmodern or contemporary situation — namely the collapse of communism — before reviving from the suppression of Japan.
c. Revitalization of Eastern and Western Views of Humanity in the Seongsajaein View of the Human Realm
Revitalization of the View of Humanity of the Three Teachings in the Seongsajaein View of the Human Realm
The View of the Human Realm that appears in Daesoon Thought is connected to the views of humanity in the three teachings, as shown in the Jeongyo. In Daesoon Thought, the three teachings are said to have been the process through which heaven educated humanity. In Daesoon Thought, where Gucheon is emphasized, the three teachings correspond to the energies of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity. However, there is a significant difference in that while Daesoon Thought emphasizes the substantive concept of divine spirits, the existing three teachings emphasize the attribute-based workings of divine spirits.
The emptiness (虛無, heomu) of Taoism, the quiescence (寂滅, jeongmeol) of Buddhism, and the decree (以詔, ijo) of Confucianism — representing the thought of the three existing teachings of Taoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism respectively — each take charge of one function of heaven and earth in Daesoon Thought. The emptiness, quiescence, and decree of Taoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism are integrated in the Gwanwang (冠旺) stage, which follows the stages of potal (胞胎), yangsaeng (養生), and yokdae (浴帶) in the twelve stages of vital energy (十二運成, sibni unseong), and Daesoon Thought is the Way of Gwanwang.⁴¹ The emptiness of Taoism, the quiescence of Buddhism, and the decree of Confucianism correspond respectively to the three operations of the mind clarified in Neo-Confucianism: emptiness and spirituality (虛靈, heoryeong), perception and awareness (知覺, jigak), and divine spirit (神明, sinmyeong).
⁴¹ Kim Gwiman, "A Study on the Gwanwang Theory in Daesoon Thought," Ph.D. dissertation, Daejin University, 2019.
³³ Yi Seungjae, Scientific Exploration of Ziwei Doushu, Seoul: Mirae-teo, 2017.
³⁴ Yano Michio, Esoteric Astrology and the Suyo Sutra, Seoul: Dongguk University Press, 2010.
³⁵ Kim Taegyu, Your Time Has Come, Seoul: The Maker, 2015.
³⁶ Sun Weijie, "The Process of Formation and Accumulation of the Taoist 'Thirty-Six Heavens Theory' from the Eastern Jin Period to the Song-Yuan Period," Daesoon Jonghak 4, 2023.
In accordance with the Three Realms Public Work (三界公事, samgye gongsa) of Daesoon Thought, which integrates the principles manifested across time and space of East and West throughout history, the Three Realms are reorganized for the nurturing of humanity. Through the Heavenly Realm Public Work (天界公事), the Great One (太乙, taeul), the center of the Cheongsang Bunya Yeolcha Map, comes to have a relationship with Taeul Cheonsa Wongun (太乙天上元君), and the seven stars surrounding the Great One are reorganized through changes in the order of the Seven Stars Incantation (七星呪, chilseongju). In the 28 lunar mansions and 24 solar terms surrounding the seven stars, each divine general (神將, sinjang) is assigned, and correlative thinking (相關的 思惟, sanggwan jeok sauyi) becomes substantiated. The most significant differences from the Former Heaven in the Three Realms of the Later Heaven are human supremacy (人尊, injong), Seongsajaein (成事在人, the fulfillment of affairs lies in humanity), and the exemplary persons who have attained Tao (道通君子, dotong gunja).³⁷
³⁷ Ko Namsik, "The Heavenly Perception of the Former Heaven and the Transcendence of the Supreme God: Regarding the Divine Way and the Great Inspection of the Three Realms," Daesoon Thought Comprehensive Review, 1999.
Unlike the spirit-human relationship in existing religions, in Daesoon Thought there is mutual communication. Since humans are spirits enclosed in the body, one can say it is a matter of awakening the inner spirit to communicate with the outer spirit. The cosmological and human-body perspectives of Daesoon Thought are meticulous in detail, and the cosmological and human-body perspectives of existing religions are explained in greater detail and more systematically.
The Western thought that entered East Asia one hundred years ago was in fact something familiar to East Asians. The West first caused a dynastic revolution by learning from Mencius,³⁸ and through the Book of Changes (周易, Zhouyi), Leibniz established monadology, the precursor to atomism.³⁹ Since Western democracy and science were not unfamiliar to Eastern intellectuals at the time Western culture entered the East, it was received far more readily than by other civilizations.
³⁸ François Jullien, translated by Heo Gyeong, Dialogue between Mencius and Enlightenment Philosophers: Laying the Foundations of Morality, Hanul Academy, 2009.
³⁹ Joseph Needham, abridged by Colin Ronan, translated by Kim Youngsik and Kim Jegwan, Science and Civilization in China: The Ideological Background, Kachi, 1998.
The significance for Korean new religions of the East Asian origins of European modern civilization implies that the modernity possessed by Korean new religions was, from today's perspective, postmodernism — that is, contemporary modernity. While mainstream modern intellectuals accepted Western modernity literally, the indigenous modernity of new religions, which appeared inferior, was actually a modernity one step ahead of the West. Another ground for saying that the modernity of Korean new religions was postmodernism — that is, contemporaneity — is that Korean new religions came to flourish significantly only after the late 1980s, when contemporaneity became manifest.⁴⁰
⁴⁰ No Gilmyeong, "The Development of Korean New Religious Movements after Liberation and Trends in Research," Religion and Culture 3, 1997.
Korean new religions, having at the time of their emergence already pursued a modernity one dimension higher than Western modernity, had to await a postmodern or contemporary situation — namely the collapse of communism — before reviving from the suppression of Japan.
c. Revitalization of Eastern and Western Views of Humanity in the Seongsajaein View of the Human Realm
Revitalization of the View of Humanity of the Three Teachings in the Seongsajaein View of the Human Realm
The View of the Human Realm that appears in Daesoon Thought is connected to the views of humanity in the three teachings, as shown in the Jeongyo. In Daesoon Thought, the three teachings are said to have been the process through which heaven educated humanity. In Daesoon Thought, where Gucheon is emphasized, the three teachings correspond to the energies of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity. However, there is a significant difference in that while Daesoon Thought emphasizes the substantive concept of divine spirits, the existing three teachings emphasize the attribute-based workings of divine spirits.
The emptiness (虛無, heomu) of Taoism, the quiescence (寂滅, jeongmeol) of Buddhism, and the decree (以詔, ijo) of Confucianism — representing the thought of the three existing teachings of Taoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism respectively — each take charge of one function of heaven and earth in Daesoon Thought. The emptiness, quiescence, and decree of Taoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism are integrated in the Gwanwang (冠旺) stage, which follows the stages of potal (胞胎), yangsaeng (養生), and yokdae (浴帶) in the twelve stages of vital energy (十二運成, sibni unseong), and Daesoon Thought is the Way of Gwanwang.⁴¹ The emptiness of Taoism, the quiescence of Buddhism, and the decree of Confucianism correspond respectively to the three operations of the mind clarified in Neo-Confucianism: emptiness and spirituality (虛靈, heoryeong), perception and awareness (知覺, jigak), and divine spirit (神明, sinmyeong).
⁴¹ Kim Gwiman, "A Study on the Gwanwang Theory in Daesoon Thought," Ph.D. dissertation, Daejin University, 2019.
道傳於夜天開於子 轍環天下虛靈
(Do jeon eo ya cheon gae eo ja cheol hwan cheonh ha heoryeong)
敎奉於晨地闢於丑 不信看兒足知覺
(Gyo bong eo sin ji byeog eo chuk busin gan a jok jigak)
德布於世人起於寅 腹中八十年神明⁴²
(Deok bo eo sye in gi eo in bok jung palsibnnyeon sinmyeong)
[Translation: The Way is transmitted in the night — heaven opens at the first earthly branch (子, rat/midnight); its wheels circulate throughout the world — emptiness and spirituality. Teaching is revered at dawn — earth opens at the second earthly branch (丑, ox/1-3am); if you doubt, look at a child's feet — perception and awareness. Virtue is spread throughout the world — humanity arises at the third earthly branch (寅, tiger/3-5am); eighty years in the belly — divine spirit.]
⁴² Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-66. "Receiving the energy of heaven and earth's emptiness (虛無), Taoism undergoes potal (胞胎); receiving the energy of heaven and earth's quiescence (寂滅), Buddhism undergoes yangsaeng (養生); receiving the energy of heaven and earth's decree (以詔), Confucianism undergoes yokdae (浴帶)." (Pak Yongcheol, "Understanding of Dotongjigyeong (道通眞境)," Daesoon Thought Comprehensive Review 5, 1998, p. 361.)
(Do jeon eo ya cheon gae eo ja cheol hwan cheonh ha heoryeong)
敎奉於晨地闢於丑 不信看兒足知覺
(Gyo bong eo sin ji byeog eo chuk busin gan a jok jigak)
德布於世人起於寅 腹中八十年神明⁴²
(Deok bo eo sye in gi eo in bok jung palsibnnyeon sinmyeong)
[Translation: The Way is transmitted in the night — heaven opens at the first earthly branch (子, rat/midnight); its wheels circulate throughout the world — emptiness and spirituality. Teaching is revered at dawn — earth opens at the second earthly branch (丑, ox/1-3am); if you doubt, look at a child's feet — perception and awareness. Virtue is spread throughout the world — humanity arises at the third earthly branch (寅, tiger/3-5am); eighty years in the belly — divine spirit.]
⁴² Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-66. "Receiving the energy of heaven and earth's emptiness (虛無), Taoism undergoes potal (胞胎); receiving the energy of heaven and earth's quiescence (寂滅), Buddhism undergoes yangsaeng (養生); receiving the energy of heaven and earth's decree (以詔), Confucianism undergoes yokdae (浴帶)." (Pak Yongcheol, "Understanding of Dotongjigyeong (道通眞境)," Daesoon Thought Comprehensive Review 5, 1998, p. 361.)
The Heart Classic (心經, Simgyeong) states that the mind has the structure of emptiness-and-spirituality — perception-and-awareness — divine spirit.⁴³ In Daesoon Thought, the three energies of emptiness-and-spirituality–emptiness, perception-and-awareness–quiescence, and divine spirit–decree correspond to Heaven, Earth, and Humanity respectively. Emptiness-and-spirituality, perception-and-awareness, and divine spirit can be interpreted as corresponding to Heaven, Earth, and Humanity and understood as substance (本體, bonche), function (作用, jagnyong), and subject (主體, juche) respectively.⁴⁴
⁴³ Han Hyeongjo, "Yin-Yang and Spirits: Supernatural Phenomena Approached through the Rationalism of Gi," National Studies Research 14, 2009.
⁴⁴ Choi Chibong, "A Study on the Mind in Daesoon Thought from the Perspective of Neo-Confucianism: Centering on Emptiness-and-Spirituality, Perception-and-Awareness, and Divine Spirit," Daesoon Thought Comprehensive Review 31, 2018.
The reason the three teachings can be related to divine spirits in Daesoon Thought is that each of the three teachings possesses the energies of potal (胞胎), yangsaeng (養生), and yokdae (浴帶) of heaven and earth.
⁴³ Han Hyeongjo, "Yin-Yang and Spirits: Supernatural Phenomena Approached through the Rationalism of Gi," National Studies Research 14, 2009.
⁴⁴ Choi Chibong, "A Study on the Mind in Daesoon Thought from the Perspective of Neo-Confucianism: Centering on Emptiness-and-Spirituality, Perception-and-Awareness, and Divine Spirit," Daesoon Thought Comprehensive Review 31, 2018.
The reason the three teachings can be related to divine spirits in Daesoon Thought is that each of the three teachings possesses the energies of potal (胞胎), yangsaeng (養生), and yokdae (浴帶) of heaven and earth.
受天地之虛無仙之胞胎
(Su cheonji ji heomu seon ji potal)
受天地之寂滅佛之養生
(Su cheonji ji jeongmeol bul ji yangsaeng)
受天地之以詔儒之浴帶⁴⁵
(Su cheonji ji ijo yu ji yokdae)
[Translation: Receiving heaven and earth's emptiness, Taoism undergoes potal; receiving heaven and earth's quiescence, Buddhism undergoes yangsaeng; receiving heaven and earth's decree, Confucianism undergoes yokdae.]
⁴⁵ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-66. "Receiving the energy of heaven and earth's emptiness (虛無), Taoism undergoes potal (胞胎); receiving the energy of heaven and earth's quiescence (寂滅), Buddhism undergoes yangsaeng (養生); receiving the energy of heaven and earth's decree (以詔), Confucianism undergoes yokdae (浴帶)." (Pak Yongcheol, "Understanding of Dotongjigyeong," Daesoon Thought Comprehensive Review 5, 1998, p. 361.)
(Su cheonji ji heomu seon ji potal)
受天地之寂滅佛之養生
(Su cheonji ji jeongmeol bul ji yangsaeng)
受天地之以詔儒之浴帶⁴⁵
(Su cheonji ji ijo yu ji yokdae)
[Translation: Receiving heaven and earth's emptiness, Taoism undergoes potal; receiving heaven and earth's quiescence, Buddhism undergoes yangsaeng; receiving heaven and earth's decree, Confucianism undergoes yokdae.]
⁴⁵ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-66. "Receiving the energy of heaven and earth's emptiness (虛無), Taoism undergoes potal (胞胎); receiving the energy of heaven and earth's quiescence (寂滅), Buddhism undergoes yangsaeng (養生); receiving the energy of heaven and earth's decree (以詔), Confucianism undergoes yokdae (浴帶)." (Pak Yongcheol, "Understanding of Dotongjigyeong," Daesoon Thought Comprehensive Review 5, 1998, p. 361.)
The passage above shows that the Taoist concept of emptiness originated from the potal energy of heaven and earth, which is emptiness, and that the Buddhist concept of quiescence also originated from the yangsaeng energy of heaven and earth, which is quiescence. The same is true for Confucianism.
The Harmonious Transformation of Spirits and Humans (神人調化, sinin johwa) in Daesoon Thought through the principles of the three teachings functioning as potal, yangsaeng, and yokdae can be more clearly understood through Han Tae-dong's method of expressing Eastern thought in symbolic mathematics.⁴⁶ The three teachings and Western teaching can be expressed as: Confucianism as double affirmation (X is X, and -X is -X); Taoism as paradox (X is -X, and -X is X); and Buddhism as double negation (X is neither X nor -X). The distinctive characteristics of the three teachings are clearly revealed in how they define the relationship between friend and enemy. Confucianism — in which learning (X) and practicing (X) are joyful, in which a friend (X) coming again (X) from afar is joyful — holds that a ruler (X) should act as a ruler (X) and a subject (-X) should act as a subject (-X), and thus in the relationship between friend (X) and enemy (-X), a friend (X) is a friend (X) and an enemy (-X) is an enemy (-X).⁴⁷ Against Confucianism, which separates friend and enemy as if by repulsion, Taoism — the longtime rival of Confucianism — holds that if Tao (X) is called Tao (X), it is not Tao (-X); being (X) is non-being (-X) and non-being (-X) is being (X); the weakest thing, water (-X), is the strongest (X); and the ugliest (-X) person is the most beautiful (X). Therefore, an enemy (-X) is a friend (X), and a friend (X) is an enemy (-X).⁴⁸ Against Taoism, which places friend and enemy in symmetry, Buddhism — the longtime mediator between Confucianism and Taoism — advocates a double negation in which there are neither friends (X) nor enemies (-X), all being emptiness (空). Therefore, the emptiness and quiescence of Taoism and Buddhism are represented as -X. Cases of applying logical contradiction to problem-solving appear in various patent development examples. In particular, TRIZ, an abbreviation of the Russian "Teoriya Resheniya Izobretatelskikh Zadach," is also called TIPS (Theory of Inventive Problem Solving) in English. TRIZ refers to a principle of problem-solving through contradiction resolution — without compromise or either/or choices — as the common principle underlying all invention and innovation.⁴⁹ Furthermore, in the case of Confucianism, there is no -X, but the X of double affirmation represented as ijo (以詔) can be interpreted as internal transcendence. The post-human era requires internal transcendence,⁵⁰ and this is said to be well manifested in the Korean Wave (Hallyu), which reflects the internally actualized transcendence of Eastern women.⁵¹ It is said that internal transcendence grounded in emptiness and quiescence is key to the co-evolution of humans and machines in the post-human era. The above relationship between the twelve stages of vital energy and the three teachings can be summarized as in Table 4.⁵²
⁴⁶ Han Tae-dong, The Flow of Thought, Yonsei University Press, 2003.
⁴⁷ Confucius said: "Is it not pleasant to learn with a constant perseverance and application? Is it not delightful to have friends coming from distant quarters?" ("Hagiijang" chapter); "Let the ruler be ruler, the minister be minister, the father be father, and the son be son." (Analects, "Anyeon-jang" chapter; Seong Baekhyo, ed., Traditional Culture Research Society, 1990, pp. 27, 346.)
⁴⁸ "The Tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao; the name that can be named is not the eternal name" (Chapter 1); "The highest good is like water" (Chapter 8), Daodejing (Kim Gyeongsu, Annotated Laozi, Munsacheol, 2009, pp. 14, 108). "Requite great resentments with virtue; can this really be considered good?" (Kim Gyeongsu, Annotated Laozi, Munsacheol, 2009, p. 34.)
⁴⁹ Kim Ikchol, Creative Problem-Solving Heaven-Earth-Humanity, Yeongnam DPS, 2012; Kim Hojong, Kim Gijeong, Gang Ilchan, Jo Yeongdeok, (Creative Design) Practical TRIZ: Korean Edition, Seoul: Jinsam Media, 2011.
⁵⁰ Yi Eunseon, "The Korean Wave, Korean Confucian Tradition, and Women's Life Spirituality," in The Korean Cultural Theology Society, ed., Theologizing with the Korean Wave, Dong-yeon Publishers, 2013.
⁵¹ Yi Eunseon, "What Still Makes a Human Being Human in Today's 'Post-Human' Era? — Confucian Feminism and 'the Other Christology'," Confucian Thought and Culture Research 52, 2013.
⁵² Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-26.
The Harmonious Transformation of Spirits and Humans (神人調化, sinin johwa) in Daesoon Thought through the principles of the three teachings functioning as potal, yangsaeng, and yokdae can be more clearly understood through Han Tae-dong's method of expressing Eastern thought in symbolic mathematics.⁴⁶ The three teachings and Western teaching can be expressed as: Confucianism as double affirmation (X is X, and -X is -X); Taoism as paradox (X is -X, and -X is X); and Buddhism as double negation (X is neither X nor -X). The distinctive characteristics of the three teachings are clearly revealed in how they define the relationship between friend and enemy. Confucianism — in which learning (X) and practicing (X) are joyful, in which a friend (X) coming again (X) from afar is joyful — holds that a ruler (X) should act as a ruler (X) and a subject (-X) should act as a subject (-X), and thus in the relationship between friend (X) and enemy (-X), a friend (X) is a friend (X) and an enemy (-X) is an enemy (-X).⁴⁷ Against Confucianism, which separates friend and enemy as if by repulsion, Taoism — the longtime rival of Confucianism — holds that if Tao (X) is called Tao (X), it is not Tao (-X); being (X) is non-being (-X) and non-being (-X) is being (X); the weakest thing, water (-X), is the strongest (X); and the ugliest (-X) person is the most beautiful (X). Therefore, an enemy (-X) is a friend (X), and a friend (X) is an enemy (-X).⁴⁸ Against Taoism, which places friend and enemy in symmetry, Buddhism — the longtime mediator between Confucianism and Taoism — advocates a double negation in which there are neither friends (X) nor enemies (-X), all being emptiness (空). Therefore, the emptiness and quiescence of Taoism and Buddhism are represented as -X. Cases of applying logical contradiction to problem-solving appear in various patent development examples. In particular, TRIZ, an abbreviation of the Russian "Teoriya Resheniya Izobretatelskikh Zadach," is also called TIPS (Theory of Inventive Problem Solving) in English. TRIZ refers to a principle of problem-solving through contradiction resolution — without compromise or either/or choices — as the common principle underlying all invention and innovation.⁴⁹ Furthermore, in the case of Confucianism, there is no -X, but the X of double affirmation represented as ijo (以詔) can be interpreted as internal transcendence. The post-human era requires internal transcendence,⁵⁰ and this is said to be well manifested in the Korean Wave (Hallyu), which reflects the internally actualized transcendence of Eastern women.⁵¹ It is said that internal transcendence grounded in emptiness and quiescence is key to the co-evolution of humans and machines in the post-human era. The above relationship between the twelve stages of vital energy and the three teachings can be summarized as in Table 4.⁵²
⁴⁶ Han Tae-dong, The Flow of Thought, Yonsei University Press, 2003.
⁴⁷ Confucius said: "Is it not pleasant to learn with a constant perseverance and application? Is it not delightful to have friends coming from distant quarters?" ("Hagiijang" chapter); "Let the ruler be ruler, the minister be minister, the father be father, and the son be son." (Analects, "Anyeon-jang" chapter; Seong Baekhyo, ed., Traditional Culture Research Society, 1990, pp. 27, 346.)
⁴⁸ "The Tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao; the name that can be named is not the eternal name" (Chapter 1); "The highest good is like water" (Chapter 8), Daodejing (Kim Gyeongsu, Annotated Laozi, Munsacheol, 2009, pp. 14, 108). "Requite great resentments with virtue; can this really be considered good?" (Kim Gyeongsu, Annotated Laozi, Munsacheol, 2009, p. 34.)
⁴⁹ Kim Ikchol, Creative Problem-Solving Heaven-Earth-Humanity, Yeongnam DPS, 2012; Kim Hojong, Kim Gijeong, Gang Ilchan, Jo Yeongdeok, (Creative Design) Practical TRIZ: Korean Edition, Seoul: Jinsam Media, 2011.
⁵⁰ Yi Eunseon, "The Korean Wave, Korean Confucian Tradition, and Women's Life Spirituality," in The Korean Cultural Theology Society, ed., Theologizing with the Korean Wave, Dong-yeon Publishers, 2013.
⁵¹ Yi Eunseon, "What Still Makes a Human Being Human in Today's 'Post-Human' Era? — Confucian Feminism and 'the Other Christology'," Confucian Thought and Culture Research 52, 2013.
⁵² Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-26.
[Table 4: The Twelve Stages of Vital Energy and the Three Teachings]
| Category | Taoism (仙) | Buddhism (佛) | Confucianism (儒) |
|------|------|------|------|
| Twelve Stages | Potal (胞胎) | Yangsaeng (養生) | Yokdae (浴帶) |
| Characteristic | Transformation (造化) | Form (形體) | Propriety (範節) |
| Logic | X is -X, -X is X | X is -X, -X is X | X is X, -X is -X |
| Former Heaven Founder | Laozi | Shakyamuni | Confucius |
| Later Heaven Counterpart | Suun (水雲) | Jinmuk (震默) | Zhuzi (朱子) |
| Category | Taoism (仙) | Buddhism (佛) | Confucianism (儒) |
|------|------|------|------|
| Twelve Stages | Potal (胞胎) | Yangsaeng (養生) | Yokdae (浴帶) |
| Characteristic | Transformation (造化) | Form (形體) | Propriety (範節) |
| Logic | X is -X, -X is X | X is -X, -X is X | X is X, -X is -X |
| Former Heaven Founder | Laozi | Shakyamuni | Confucius |
| Later Heaven Counterpart | Suun (水雲) | Jinmuk (震默) | Zhuzi (朱子) |
In response to this, in Daesoon Thought a substantive concept of divine spirits appears. If the West says "God is dead," the Cheonjigongsa of Daesoon Thought can be summarized as "heaven has grown old." If in the West God is dead and humans must live alone without God, then in Daesoon Thought the heaven corresponding to God has not died but has merely grown old, and it is said that even heaven can be corrected and re-established by the Supreme God.
Furthermore, against Eastern thought that emphasizes attributive elements, Daesoon Thought emphasizes substantive elements and expresses the concept of sin and punishment by locating the cause of sin and punishment not only in human nature but also in the substance of the structure of heaven and earth.
Furthermore, against Eastern thought that emphasizes attributive elements, Daesoon Thought emphasizes substantive elements and expresses the concept of sin and punishment by locating the cause of sin and punishment not only in human nature but also in the substance of the structure of heaven and earth.
The age of heroes in the Former Heaven was an age that lived by sin, but the age of sages in the Later Heaven shall be an age that lives by goodness. Which shall endure longer — living by sin or living by goodness? I have now arranged the cosmic measure (度數, dosu) for the people of creation of the Later Heaven to live by goodness.⁵³
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 2-55.
⁵³ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 2-55.
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 2-55.
⁵³ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 2-55.
In the passage above, the expression "the Former Heaven of living by sin" shows that human sin is not solely an individual matter. Daesoon Thought's view of humanity, unlike the attributive views of humanity in the Eastern three teachings, combines attributes and substance through the structural substance of the Former Heaven and Later Heaven, thereby encompassing the indigenous modernity of the East.
Revitalization of the Western View of Humanity in the Seongsajaein View of the Human Realm
In the West, when the monotheistic worldview collapsed at the advent of modernity, the collapse of the view of God followed, and then the collapse of humanity. The Western worldview, collapsed by heliocentrism, ultimately led to the collapse of the view of God represented by "God is dead," and today it is connected to the loss of humanity in the reality of the end of humaneness and ecological collapse.
When Matteo Ricci transmitted Western learning, Western learning also possessed an organic worldview of earth-water-fire-wind (地水火風, jisuhhwapoong) similar to yin-yang and the five phases. However, at the time the Cheonjigongsa was being carried out, the Western view of humanity had discarded the earth-water-fire-wind view of humanity and replaced it with the Descartes-Kantian constructivist view of humanity.
The Descartes-Kantian constructivist view of humanity was a worldview that replaced the place of the disappeared monotheistic God with the substance of the five human senses. In a situation where, with the disappearance of monotheism, nothing could be believed, Descartes' claim that the only thing one could believe was one's own thinking was widely accepted and subsequently developed, through Kant, into the constructivist worldview that the world is something each individual constructs for oneself.
This constructivist worldview, which emerged in the process of imitating the Eastern conception of a moral society without God, was a dangerous, substantive worldview that dominated and manipulated nature, unlike the Eastern worldview. The constructivist worldview quantified and instrumentalized the world according to human senses and devised many instruments of civilization and technologies hitherto unimagined.⁵⁴ As humanity appeared to draw increasingly close to God, this constructivism was regarded as successful for approximately two hundred years after its establishment. However, within barely more than three hundred years, the West began to speak of "The Decline of the West."⁵⁵ After blindly rushing down a path never traveled before for three hundred years, the West came to realize that their civilization had brought about the extinction of humanity and had reached a dead end with no road back.
⁵⁴ Alfred W. Crosby, translated by Kim Byeonghwa, The Measure of Reality: Quantification and Western Society, Seoul: Simsan, 2005.
⁵⁵ O. Spengler, translated by Park Gwangsun, The Decline of the West, Paju: Bumwoo, 2001.
The Eastern conception of a moral society without God that the West had originally imitated was not, in reality, a constructivism like that of the West. The East also projects its own laws onto the world in a society without a transcendent God, but what is projected is the principle of correlative thinking called the theory of principle and vital energy (理氣論, igiron). Furthermore, the concept of God found in Eastern thought was also not a transcendent God like that of the West, and thus there was no need to oppose it.
The most divergent point between Eastern and Western views of God is that the Eastern theory of spirits and ghosts (鬼神論, gwisinron) is a mechanical concept of God, like yin-yang or principle-and-vital-energy. Looking at the concept of the Supreme God appearing in the oracle bone inscriptions (甲骨文, gabgolmun) of the Shang Dynasty, where the Eastern view of God first appears, it possesses elements of a personal deity similar to the West's; however, with the emergence of the Zhou Dynasty's concept of Heaven (天, cheon) replacing the Shang concept of the Supreme God, the personal deity concept gradually disappears and law-based characteristics become apparent. The Zhou concept of Heaven, under the influence of the Three-Abilities thought of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity in the Warring States period, developed into the concepts of heavenly spirit (天神, cheonsin), earthly energy (地氣, jigi), and human ghost (人鬼, ingwi), until eventually, at the time when the Book of Changes was established during the Han Dynasty, it was replaced by the concept of yin-yang. The mechanical Eastern concept of spirits and ghosts temporarily disappeared from the forefront of Chinese intellectual history as the personal deity concepts of Buddhism and Taoism flourished. Only after Shao Yong (邵康節, Shao Kangjie) explained the concept of principle-and-vital-energy (理氣, igi) in terms of the concept of spirits-and-ghosts and the substance-function (體用, cheyong) relationship of yin-yang and the five phases was the concept of yin-yang and principle-and-vital-energy latent in the concept of spirits-and-ghosts regenerated. Shao Yong's substance-function relationship was more specifically based on the Gi-transformation Theory (氣化論, gihwalon) than the Warring States-era spirit-human relationship, which was a simple yin-yang relationship. [The hermeneutical approach that explains the generation of all things by the Tao through the workings of gi (氣) of yin-yang and so on is what we call 'gi-transformation theory.' The 'gi-transformation theory' hermeneutic necessarily sees 'Tao' as 'gi.' If in Laozi's 'one generates two, two generates three' (一生二 二生三) 'two' is seen as yin-yang-gi (陰陽氣), then the 'one' that generated yin-yang-gi must necessarily be an undivided (混一未分) 'gi,' and the 'Tao' that generated the 'one' must also necessarily be seen as primordial (混元) gi or 'original energy' (元氣, wonggi). (Kim Baekhyeon, Studies in Taoist Philosophy, Gangneung: Dongnyeok Publishing, 2002, pp. 187-188)] Gi-transformation theory, starting from Zhuangzi's theory — which had begun independently of Laozi — passed through the Jixia Academy (稷下學派, Jikha hakpa) and was first Confucianized through Dong Zhongshu (董仲舒), eventually being connected to Wuji (無極) and Taiji (太極) in Neo-Confucianism. Neo-Confucianism can be said to be a gi-transformation theory connected all the way to Wuji and Taiji. The Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang in Daesoon Thought also has elements of gi-transformation theory in its interpretation of Tao as the principle-and-vital-energy of yin-yang, and this is connected to Wuji and Taiji.⁵⁶
⁵⁶ [The hermeneutical approach that explains the generation of all things by the Tao through the workings of gi (氣) of yin-yang and so on is what we call 'gi-transformation theory.'… (Kim Baekhyeon, Studies in Taoist Philosophy, Gangneung: Dongnyeok Publishing, 2002, pp. 187-188)] Gi-transformation theory … is connected to Wuji and Taiji in Neo-Confucianism…; 氧化, 指阴阳之气的变化 (Chinese Dictionary, vol. 6, p. 1025).
If the three teachings represent an attributive explanation of the view of humanity, then ordering (調理, jori) and gi-transformation (氣化, gihwa) become substantive concepts explaining the view of humanity. Daesoon Thought also presents the ordering of humans and the gi-transformation of divine spirits as the main characteristics of the View of the Human Realm.
Revitalization of the Western View of Humanity in the Seongsajaein View of the Human Realm
In the West, when the monotheistic worldview collapsed at the advent of modernity, the collapse of the view of God followed, and then the collapse of humanity. The Western worldview, collapsed by heliocentrism, ultimately led to the collapse of the view of God represented by "God is dead," and today it is connected to the loss of humanity in the reality of the end of humaneness and ecological collapse.
When Matteo Ricci transmitted Western learning, Western learning also possessed an organic worldview of earth-water-fire-wind (地水火風, jisuhhwapoong) similar to yin-yang and the five phases. However, at the time the Cheonjigongsa was being carried out, the Western view of humanity had discarded the earth-water-fire-wind view of humanity and replaced it with the Descartes-Kantian constructivist view of humanity.
The Descartes-Kantian constructivist view of humanity was a worldview that replaced the place of the disappeared monotheistic God with the substance of the five human senses. In a situation where, with the disappearance of monotheism, nothing could be believed, Descartes' claim that the only thing one could believe was one's own thinking was widely accepted and subsequently developed, through Kant, into the constructivist worldview that the world is something each individual constructs for oneself.
This constructivist worldview, which emerged in the process of imitating the Eastern conception of a moral society without God, was a dangerous, substantive worldview that dominated and manipulated nature, unlike the Eastern worldview. The constructivist worldview quantified and instrumentalized the world according to human senses and devised many instruments of civilization and technologies hitherto unimagined.⁵⁴ As humanity appeared to draw increasingly close to God, this constructivism was regarded as successful for approximately two hundred years after its establishment. However, within barely more than three hundred years, the West began to speak of "The Decline of the West."⁵⁵ After blindly rushing down a path never traveled before for three hundred years, the West came to realize that their civilization had brought about the extinction of humanity and had reached a dead end with no road back.
⁵⁴ Alfred W. Crosby, translated by Kim Byeonghwa, The Measure of Reality: Quantification and Western Society, Seoul: Simsan, 2005.
⁵⁵ O. Spengler, translated by Park Gwangsun, The Decline of the West, Paju: Bumwoo, 2001.
The Eastern conception of a moral society without God that the West had originally imitated was not, in reality, a constructivism like that of the West. The East also projects its own laws onto the world in a society without a transcendent God, but what is projected is the principle of correlative thinking called the theory of principle and vital energy (理氣論, igiron). Furthermore, the concept of God found in Eastern thought was also not a transcendent God like that of the West, and thus there was no need to oppose it.
The most divergent point between Eastern and Western views of God is that the Eastern theory of spirits and ghosts (鬼神論, gwisinron) is a mechanical concept of God, like yin-yang or principle-and-vital-energy. Looking at the concept of the Supreme God appearing in the oracle bone inscriptions (甲骨文, gabgolmun) of the Shang Dynasty, where the Eastern view of God first appears, it possesses elements of a personal deity similar to the West's; however, with the emergence of the Zhou Dynasty's concept of Heaven (天, cheon) replacing the Shang concept of the Supreme God, the personal deity concept gradually disappears and law-based characteristics become apparent. The Zhou concept of Heaven, under the influence of the Three-Abilities thought of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity in the Warring States period, developed into the concepts of heavenly spirit (天神, cheonsin), earthly energy (地氣, jigi), and human ghost (人鬼, ingwi), until eventually, at the time when the Book of Changes was established during the Han Dynasty, it was replaced by the concept of yin-yang. The mechanical Eastern concept of spirits and ghosts temporarily disappeared from the forefront of Chinese intellectual history as the personal deity concepts of Buddhism and Taoism flourished. Only after Shao Yong (邵康節, Shao Kangjie) explained the concept of principle-and-vital-energy (理氣, igi) in terms of the concept of spirits-and-ghosts and the substance-function (體用, cheyong) relationship of yin-yang and the five phases was the concept of yin-yang and principle-and-vital-energy latent in the concept of spirits-and-ghosts regenerated. Shao Yong's substance-function relationship was more specifically based on the Gi-transformation Theory (氣化論, gihwalon) than the Warring States-era spirit-human relationship, which was a simple yin-yang relationship. [The hermeneutical approach that explains the generation of all things by the Tao through the workings of gi (氣) of yin-yang and so on is what we call 'gi-transformation theory.' The 'gi-transformation theory' hermeneutic necessarily sees 'Tao' as 'gi.' If in Laozi's 'one generates two, two generates three' (一生二 二生三) 'two' is seen as yin-yang-gi (陰陽氣), then the 'one' that generated yin-yang-gi must necessarily be an undivided (混一未分) 'gi,' and the 'Tao' that generated the 'one' must also necessarily be seen as primordial (混元) gi or 'original energy' (元氣, wonggi). (Kim Baekhyeon, Studies in Taoist Philosophy, Gangneung: Dongnyeok Publishing, 2002, pp. 187-188)] Gi-transformation theory, starting from Zhuangzi's theory — which had begun independently of Laozi — passed through the Jixia Academy (稷下學派, Jikha hakpa) and was first Confucianized through Dong Zhongshu (董仲舒), eventually being connected to Wuji (無極) and Taiji (太極) in Neo-Confucianism. Neo-Confucianism can be said to be a gi-transformation theory connected all the way to Wuji and Taiji. The Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang in Daesoon Thought also has elements of gi-transformation theory in its interpretation of Tao as the principle-and-vital-energy of yin-yang, and this is connected to Wuji and Taiji.⁵⁶
⁵⁶ [The hermeneutical approach that explains the generation of all things by the Tao through the workings of gi (氣) of yin-yang and so on is what we call 'gi-transformation theory.'… (Kim Baekhyeon, Studies in Taoist Philosophy, Gangneung: Dongnyeok Publishing, 2002, pp. 187-188)] Gi-transformation theory … is connected to Wuji and Taiji in Neo-Confucianism…; 氧化, 指阴阳之气的变化 (Chinese Dictionary, vol. 6, p. 1025).
If the three teachings represent an attributive explanation of the view of humanity, then ordering (調理, jori) and gi-transformation (氣化, gihwa) become substantive concepts explaining the view of humanity. Daesoon Thought also presents the ordering of humans and the gi-transformation of divine spirits as the main characteristics of the View of the Human Realm.
天用地用 人用之 調理綱紀 統制乾坤 此之謂造化手段也⁵⁷
(Cheon yong ji yong in yong ji jori ganggi tongje geongonn chai ji wi johwa sudan ya)
[Translation: The usage of heaven, the usage of earth, and the usage of humanity order the fundamental principles (綱紀, ganggi) and govern heaven and earth (乾坤, geongonn). This is what is called the means of transformation (造化手段, johwa sudan).]
⁵⁷ Jeon'gyeong, "Jesaeng" 43. "The usage of heaven, the usage of earth, and the usage of humanity order the fundamental principles; heaven and earth are governed. This is called the means of transformation." (Yang Mumok, "The Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang and Democracy as Salvific Truth," Daesoon Thought Comprehensive Review 2, 1997, pp. 175-176.)
(Cheon yong ji yong in yong ji jori ganggi tongje geongonn chai ji wi johwa sudan ya)
[Translation: The usage of heaven, the usage of earth, and the usage of humanity order the fundamental principles (綱紀, ganggi) and govern heaven and earth (乾坤, geongonn). This is what is called the means of transformation (造化手段, johwa sudan).]
⁵⁷ Jeon'gyeong, "Jesaeng" 43. "The usage of heaven, the usage of earth, and the usage of humanity order the fundamental principles; heaven and earth are governed. This is called the means of transformation." (Yang Mumok, "The Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang and Democracy as Salvific Truth," Daesoon Thought Comprehensive Review 2, 1997, pp. 175-176.)
In the passage above, ordering (調理, jori) refers to the method of governing heaven and earth from the center — that is, the mediation of Earth (土, to) by humanity. This reflects a dynamic perspective in which humanity, as a being possessing principle (理, i), governs the surrounding things. This corresponds to the Eastern version of Western constructivism, in which humanity, at the center of the world, manipulates the world as sensed through the eyes, ears, nose, and mouth.
The Eastern thought corresponding to Western constructivism is the human mediation of contradictions through empathy — namely, human ordering (調理) and the divine spirit's gi-transformation (氣化). The Warring States-period notion of the mediation of Earth (土) by humanity became concretized in Shao Yong's (邵康節, Shao Kangjie) concept of the ordering (調理) of humans within his concept of principle-and-vital-energy (理氣, igi). The existence of humans as Earth (土) already appears in the Warring States-period Taoist text, Baopuzi.⁵⁸ The discovery by Shao Yong is expressed by Zhang Liwen as "Shao Yong's thought that there is nothing in the world without principle" (部雍天下之物莫不有理的思想).⁵⁹ This can be said to be the part where it was first discovered. In discovering principle (理), Shao Yong appears to have discovered that principle (理) can be regulated by the human mind. Examining the concept of human ordering (調理) in Shao Yong's concept of principle-and-vital-energy (理氣), we can see that his concept of ordering by humans also originates from the yin-yang relationship of spirits and humans. The way of heaven is fully realized in the earth; the way of heaven and earth is fully realized in all things; the way of heaven, earth, and all things is fully realized in humanity. When humans can know that the ways of heaven, earth, and all things are fully realized in humanity, they can thereafter fully realize human nature.⁶⁰ Unlike the immortality arts (神仙術, sinseonsul) already widely practiced in Shao Yong's time, Shao Yong discovered a more specific model of the combination of the spirit-human relationship in yin-yang and the five phases. What Shao Yong discovered through his deep study of the Hado and Nakso principles was the distinction between Earth (土, to) and Wood-Fire-Metal-Water (木火金水, mokwhageumsu) in yin-yang and the five phases.
⁵⁸ The existence of humans as Earth (土) already appears in the Warring States-period Taoist text, Baopuzi: (五行之義 土克水也; Ge Hong, Baopuzi Neipian, Beijing: Zhonghua Shuju, 1985, Vol. 9, p. 320.) Zhang Liwen expresses Shao Yong's discovery of this as "Shao Yong's thought that there is nothing in the world without principle" (張立文 et al., translated by An Yugyeong, The Philosophy of Principle [理], Yeamun Seowon, 2004, p. 115). This can be said to be the part where it was first discovered. In discovering principle (理), Shao Yong appears to have discovered that principle (理) can be regulated by the human mind.
⁵⁹ Zhang Liwen et al., translated by An Yugyeong, The Philosophy of Principle [理], Yeamun Seowon, 2004, p. 115.
⁶⁰ The way of heaven is fully realized in the earth… (天之道 盡之于地矣, 天地之道盡之于萬物矣, 天地萬物之道盡之于人矣. 人能知其天地萬物之道所以盡, 天地之道盡所以于人者 然後能盡民也; Huangji Jingshi, "Guanwu Neipian," in Ko Hoemin, translated by Gwak Sinhwan, Shao Yong's Former Heaven Studies, Seoul: Yeamun Seowon, 2011, pp. 195-196.)
Looking at this more specifically, Shao Yong shows — as in the Jeon'gyeong — that humans can order the divine spirits through the empathy and righteousness of the mind. In Shao Yong's spirit-human relationship, there appears the arrangement of the human as center (中, jung) and Earth (土), and the divine as the four images (四象, sasang) and the periphery. Shao Yong expresses the gi-transformation of divine spirits as follows: "Gi (氣) is the dwelling of shen (神); the body (體, che) is the dwelling of gi. Gi changes through six, and the body divides through four. Taking four as the body and changing through six, shen and gi are together. Heaven is six and earth is four. Heaven takes gi as its substance and shen as its spirit; earth takes substance as its substance and gi as its spirit. Gi changes and form (形, hyeong) transforms."⁶¹ Here, taking four as the body means the four virtues (元亨利貞, wonhyeongijjeong), and calling six "heaven" can be said to mean the center three (中). For Shao Yong, the meanings of ordering and gi-transformation can be variously interpreted, but here the discussion will be limited to the point that Shao Yong took principle (理) as the four virtues, gi (氣) as yin-yang and the five phases, and the human mind as the subject of ordering. Humanity, as a being comprising all principles, orders all things by viewing things through their principles rather than their external forms — through what Shao Yong calls "viewing things with things" (以物觀物, imul gwanmul). Shao Yong says that through "viewing things with things," one can avoid the self biased toward heaven and avoid emotions biased toward humanity. This connects with Zhuangzi's "fasting of the mind" (心齋, simjae) — which speaks of ordering and gi-transformation. The principle corresponding to nothingness arises here. Zhuangzi calls the state in which the Way has accumulated in the mind and it is completely empty the "fasting of the mind."⁶² The Taoist immortality inner alchemy (內丹術, naedansul) is said to well represent humans as ordering yang (陽) beings and the mechanical Eastern divine spirits as gi-transforming yin (陰) beings. Immortals — beings in whom yang (陽) humans and yin (陰) spirits are combined — are the conclusion of the Eastern spirit-human relationship in accordance with the Yi (易) thought that all yin and yang are combined into Taiji. Once the Book of Changes revealed that the fearful spirits and ghosts possess the rational attribute of yin-yang, the relationship between spirits and humans was also regarded as a yin-yang relationship; unlike in the West, in the East spirits and ghosts came to be beings that combine with humans and that humans can utilize. It can be said that after the concept of yin-yang was established, the fact that the First Emperor of Qin and countless Eastern intellectuals were captivated by the immortality arts was due to the rationality of the yin-yang theory inherent in the immortality arts. If yin-yang is the grand premise that spirits and humans can combine, then the five phases were the specific configuration of how the central human and the peripheral divine were arranged.
⁶¹ Shao Yong expresses the gi-transformation of divine spirits as follows: … (皇極經世書, 觀物外篇: "氣者, 神之宅也, 體者, 氣之宅也. 體四而變六, 兼神與氣也. 氣變必有, 故三百六十也. 氣以六變, 體以四分. 天六地四. 天以氣寫質, 而以神爲神. 地以質爲質, 而以氣爲神. 氣變而形化 形可分, 神不可分"; Ko Hoemin, translated by Gwak Sinhwan, Shao Yong's Former Heaven Studies, Seoul: Yeamun Seowon, 2011, p. 261.) Here, taking four as the body means the four virtues, and calling six "heaven" can be said to mean the center three. For Shao Yong, the meanings of ordering and gi-transformation can be variously interpreted, but here the discussion will be limited to the point that Shao Yong took principle (理) as the four virtues, gi (氣) as yin-yang and the five phases, and the human mind as the subject of ordering.
⁶² Shao Yong says that through "viewing things with things" (以物觀物, imul gwanmul), one can avoid the self biased toward heaven and avoid emotions biased toward humanity. This connects with Zhuangzi's "fasting of the mind" (心齋). Zhuangzi calls the state in which the Way has accumulated in the mind and it is completely empty the "fasting of the mind." (Ko Hoemin, translated by Gwak Sinhwan, Shao Yong's Former Heaven Studies, Seoul: Yeamun Seowon, 2011, pp. 258-260.)
It was not only Descartes and Kant who Westernized the ordering-gi-transformation concept. Leibniz interpreted Shao Yong's philosophy as a circle and found a point of contact between the theory of the immortality of the soul and the concept of principle-and-vital-energy. Leibniz said: "It is said that God is in all things and that in all things there is also God. God is simultaneously a circle and the center of the circle. Because God is a circle that is at the center of the circle everywhere."⁶³ The representative Western pantheist Spinoza, influenced by the theory of gi (氣), created a Western-style polytheism.⁶⁴ Schopenhauer, reflecting the gi (氣) and imagery (象, sang) of the Book of Changes, wrote The World as Will and Representation.⁶⁵ Nietzsche also, influenced by Buddhism, pursued the Übermensch (超人, choin).⁶⁶ From Kant through Fichte, Schelling, and Hegel to others, in some cases "God" was regarded as a moral being (Kant), in some cases as the universal self (Fichte, Johann Gottlieb Fichte, 1762-1814), and in some cases as the unified absolute idea constituting the world (Hegel). In short, this tendency to make "reason" into "God" was a replacement of orthodox religion with philosophical religion, and it cannot but be said that all were influenced by Chinese philosophy.⁶⁷
⁶³ Yi Donghui, Leibniz's Encounter with China, Ihaksa, 2003, pp. 92-93.
⁶⁴ An Jongsu, "Spinoza and Confucianism," Philosophical Review 44(2), 2006, pp. 172-173.
⁶⁵ Yi Yeongjae, "Re-examination of Confucian Philosophy through Contemporary Empathy Theory," Korean Studies 35(2), 2012, p. 427.
⁶⁶ Yi Donghui, "The Contrasting Understanding and Reception of Buddhism by Modern German Philosophers," Hegel Studies 29, 2011.
⁶⁷ Zhu Qianzhi, translated by Jeon Hongsok, China-Made European Modernity: The Craze for Chinese Culture in Modern Europe, Cheonggye, 2010, p. 378.
It is also said that in modern physics and the Avatamsaka Sutra (華嚴經, hwaeomgyeong) of Buddhism, the universe, matter, and humanity are not self-made, other-made, jointly made, or causeless — they are phenomena arising from given causes — and that the creation and annihilation of matter as revealed by modern physics is the arising of nature (性起, seongggi) of the essential nature (本性, bonseong) spoken of in the Avatamsaka Sutra, as seen in the properties of elementary particles and energy. The life and death of stars, the transformation from inorganic to organic matter, and all dharmadhatus (法界, beomgye) are shown to have arisen in endless dependent origination (中重無盡 緣起, jungjeung mujin yeongi).⁶⁸
⁶⁸ Heo Jeonghwa, "A Comparative Study of Huayan Thought and Modern Physics," Master's thesis, Dongguk University, 2003.
The Huangdi Neijing (黃帝內經), which marks the beginning of the principle-and-vital-energy concept, contains all the hundred schools of thought (諸子百家, jeja baekga).⁶⁹ The developed concept of principle (理) in Neo-Confucianism is said to have been influenced by the Avatamsaka Sutra of Buddhism. Today, in comparative philosophy, the principle-and-vital-energy concept is being extensively studied in comparison with semiotics, Thomism, Spinozism, and the later French philosophy influenced by it.⁷⁰
⁶⁹ "In the book of the Neijing, one can see traces of the thought of Taoist, Mohist, School of Names, and Yin-Yang schools — this is an undeniable fact." (Xu Yiming, Xingli yu Qihuang [Neo-Confucianism and the Huangdi Neijing], China Social Sciences Press, 1997, p. 23.)
⁷⁰ So Byeongseon, A Philosophical Comparison of Zhu Xi's Learning and Thomism, Ph.D. dissertation, Academy of Korean Studies, 2005; Pak Jeongjin, The Gift of Philosophy, the Philosophy of the Gift, Seoul: Sonamu, 2012; Yi Jeongwoo, Kim Sicheon, Kim Gyobin et al., The Adventure of Gi Studies 1: Eastern and Western Philosophers Speak of the Revival of the Exiled Gi, Seoul: Deulnyeok, 2004.
The concept of principle (理, i) — which originally meant the grain pattern of jade (玉, ok) — coming to represent the meaning of Taiji in the Buddhist Avatamsaka Sutra can be understood as resulting from the combination of the meaning of power associated with jade and the Indian Brahmanist concept of the union of Brahman and Atman. Jade requires enormous labor and can thus in itself already become a symbol of power; and the union of Brahman — the totality of cosmic existence — and Atman — the individual existence — corresponds to the meaning of Taiji expressed as "each possessing Taiji, together constituting Taiji" (各具太極 統體太極), as well as to the meaning of organism science which holds that parts and the whole have the same character.
The Avatamsaka Sutra is actually a scripture that appears around the 6th century, when Buddhism was declining and Indian Brahminism was reviving. The concept of principle (理, i), which started from the concept of the ordering (條理, jori) of gi, became independent as the concept of nurturing life (養生, yangsaeng) as ordering (調理, jori) in the Zhuangzi, and thereafter the Platonic aspects found in Islam and Hinduism at the time the principle (理) concept of the Avatamsaka Sutra was being translated can be said to have influenced the formation of Shao Yong's concept of principle (理). The Islamic Tawhid (توحيد), defined as the verbal noun form meaning "to make one" or "to declare or acknowledge oneness," refers to acknowledging the uniqueness (唯一性), indivisibility, absoluteness, and sole reality of God. Tawhid can be said to have influenced the Avatamsaka Sutra's "unobstructed mutual interpenetration of things and things" (事事无涯, sasa muae) and "unobstructed mutual interpenetration of principle and things" (理事无涯, isa muae) as a variant of the emanation theory of Neoplatonism.⁷¹ The mutual connection between India, Islam, and China related to the origin of the concept of principle (理) shows the possibility of tracing the origin of the Hado-Nakso and Fuxi's (伏羲氏, Bokheuksi) principle — which is the origin of the concept of principle — back to the era of the ancient tri-functional system (古代三機能體系, godae samginŭng chegye).⁷²
⁷¹ Matsumoto Kōrō, "Theory of Interreligious Dialogue in Islam (Theories of Interreligious Dialogue — Historical Aspects and Their Dialogue, Panel, Special Issue: Proceedings of the 68th Academic Conference)," Religious Studies 83-4, Japanese Association for Religious Studies, 2010, pp. 180-81, 1272-73.
⁷² Mircea Eliade, translated by Choe Jongseong and Kim Jaehyeon, A History of Religious Ideas, Volume 2: From Gautama Buddha to the Triumph of Christianity, Ihaksa, 2005, p. 299, pp. 490-491.
The Eastern thought corresponding to Western constructivism is the human mediation of contradictions through empathy — namely, human ordering (調理) and the divine spirit's gi-transformation (氣化). The Warring States-period notion of the mediation of Earth (土) by humanity became concretized in Shao Yong's (邵康節, Shao Kangjie) concept of the ordering (調理) of humans within his concept of principle-and-vital-energy (理氣, igi). The existence of humans as Earth (土) already appears in the Warring States-period Taoist text, Baopuzi.⁵⁸ The discovery by Shao Yong is expressed by Zhang Liwen as "Shao Yong's thought that there is nothing in the world without principle" (部雍天下之物莫不有理的思想).⁵⁹ This can be said to be the part where it was first discovered. In discovering principle (理), Shao Yong appears to have discovered that principle (理) can be regulated by the human mind. Examining the concept of human ordering (調理) in Shao Yong's concept of principle-and-vital-energy (理氣), we can see that his concept of ordering by humans also originates from the yin-yang relationship of spirits and humans. The way of heaven is fully realized in the earth; the way of heaven and earth is fully realized in all things; the way of heaven, earth, and all things is fully realized in humanity. When humans can know that the ways of heaven, earth, and all things are fully realized in humanity, they can thereafter fully realize human nature.⁶⁰ Unlike the immortality arts (神仙術, sinseonsul) already widely practiced in Shao Yong's time, Shao Yong discovered a more specific model of the combination of the spirit-human relationship in yin-yang and the five phases. What Shao Yong discovered through his deep study of the Hado and Nakso principles was the distinction between Earth (土, to) and Wood-Fire-Metal-Water (木火金水, mokwhageumsu) in yin-yang and the five phases.
⁵⁸ The existence of humans as Earth (土) already appears in the Warring States-period Taoist text, Baopuzi: (五行之義 土克水也; Ge Hong, Baopuzi Neipian, Beijing: Zhonghua Shuju, 1985, Vol. 9, p. 320.) Zhang Liwen expresses Shao Yong's discovery of this as "Shao Yong's thought that there is nothing in the world without principle" (張立文 et al., translated by An Yugyeong, The Philosophy of Principle [理], Yeamun Seowon, 2004, p. 115). This can be said to be the part where it was first discovered. In discovering principle (理), Shao Yong appears to have discovered that principle (理) can be regulated by the human mind.
⁵⁹ Zhang Liwen et al., translated by An Yugyeong, The Philosophy of Principle [理], Yeamun Seowon, 2004, p. 115.
⁶⁰ The way of heaven is fully realized in the earth… (天之道 盡之于地矣, 天地之道盡之于萬物矣, 天地萬物之道盡之于人矣. 人能知其天地萬物之道所以盡, 天地之道盡所以于人者 然後能盡民也; Huangji Jingshi, "Guanwu Neipian," in Ko Hoemin, translated by Gwak Sinhwan, Shao Yong's Former Heaven Studies, Seoul: Yeamun Seowon, 2011, pp. 195-196.)
Looking at this more specifically, Shao Yong shows — as in the Jeon'gyeong — that humans can order the divine spirits through the empathy and righteousness of the mind. In Shao Yong's spirit-human relationship, there appears the arrangement of the human as center (中, jung) and Earth (土), and the divine as the four images (四象, sasang) and the periphery. Shao Yong expresses the gi-transformation of divine spirits as follows: "Gi (氣) is the dwelling of shen (神); the body (體, che) is the dwelling of gi. Gi changes through six, and the body divides through four. Taking four as the body and changing through six, shen and gi are together. Heaven is six and earth is four. Heaven takes gi as its substance and shen as its spirit; earth takes substance as its substance and gi as its spirit. Gi changes and form (形, hyeong) transforms."⁶¹ Here, taking four as the body means the four virtues (元亨利貞, wonhyeongijjeong), and calling six "heaven" can be said to mean the center three (中). For Shao Yong, the meanings of ordering and gi-transformation can be variously interpreted, but here the discussion will be limited to the point that Shao Yong took principle (理) as the four virtues, gi (氣) as yin-yang and the five phases, and the human mind as the subject of ordering. Humanity, as a being comprising all principles, orders all things by viewing things through their principles rather than their external forms — through what Shao Yong calls "viewing things with things" (以物觀物, imul gwanmul). Shao Yong says that through "viewing things with things," one can avoid the self biased toward heaven and avoid emotions biased toward humanity. This connects with Zhuangzi's "fasting of the mind" (心齋, simjae) — which speaks of ordering and gi-transformation. The principle corresponding to nothingness arises here. Zhuangzi calls the state in which the Way has accumulated in the mind and it is completely empty the "fasting of the mind."⁶² The Taoist immortality inner alchemy (內丹術, naedansul) is said to well represent humans as ordering yang (陽) beings and the mechanical Eastern divine spirits as gi-transforming yin (陰) beings. Immortals — beings in whom yang (陽) humans and yin (陰) spirits are combined — are the conclusion of the Eastern spirit-human relationship in accordance with the Yi (易) thought that all yin and yang are combined into Taiji. Once the Book of Changes revealed that the fearful spirits and ghosts possess the rational attribute of yin-yang, the relationship between spirits and humans was also regarded as a yin-yang relationship; unlike in the West, in the East spirits and ghosts came to be beings that combine with humans and that humans can utilize. It can be said that after the concept of yin-yang was established, the fact that the First Emperor of Qin and countless Eastern intellectuals were captivated by the immortality arts was due to the rationality of the yin-yang theory inherent in the immortality arts. If yin-yang is the grand premise that spirits and humans can combine, then the five phases were the specific configuration of how the central human and the peripheral divine were arranged.
⁶¹ Shao Yong expresses the gi-transformation of divine spirits as follows: … (皇極經世書, 觀物外篇: "氣者, 神之宅也, 體者, 氣之宅也. 體四而變六, 兼神與氣也. 氣變必有, 故三百六十也. 氣以六變, 體以四分. 天六地四. 天以氣寫質, 而以神爲神. 地以質爲質, 而以氣爲神. 氣變而形化 形可分, 神不可分"; Ko Hoemin, translated by Gwak Sinhwan, Shao Yong's Former Heaven Studies, Seoul: Yeamun Seowon, 2011, p. 261.) Here, taking four as the body means the four virtues, and calling six "heaven" can be said to mean the center three. For Shao Yong, the meanings of ordering and gi-transformation can be variously interpreted, but here the discussion will be limited to the point that Shao Yong took principle (理) as the four virtues, gi (氣) as yin-yang and the five phases, and the human mind as the subject of ordering.
⁶² Shao Yong says that through "viewing things with things" (以物觀物, imul gwanmul), one can avoid the self biased toward heaven and avoid emotions biased toward humanity. This connects with Zhuangzi's "fasting of the mind" (心齋). Zhuangzi calls the state in which the Way has accumulated in the mind and it is completely empty the "fasting of the mind." (Ko Hoemin, translated by Gwak Sinhwan, Shao Yong's Former Heaven Studies, Seoul: Yeamun Seowon, 2011, pp. 258-260.)
It was not only Descartes and Kant who Westernized the ordering-gi-transformation concept. Leibniz interpreted Shao Yong's philosophy as a circle and found a point of contact between the theory of the immortality of the soul and the concept of principle-and-vital-energy. Leibniz said: "It is said that God is in all things and that in all things there is also God. God is simultaneously a circle and the center of the circle. Because God is a circle that is at the center of the circle everywhere."⁶³ The representative Western pantheist Spinoza, influenced by the theory of gi (氣), created a Western-style polytheism.⁶⁴ Schopenhauer, reflecting the gi (氣) and imagery (象, sang) of the Book of Changes, wrote The World as Will and Representation.⁶⁵ Nietzsche also, influenced by Buddhism, pursued the Übermensch (超人, choin).⁶⁶ From Kant through Fichte, Schelling, and Hegel to others, in some cases "God" was regarded as a moral being (Kant), in some cases as the universal self (Fichte, Johann Gottlieb Fichte, 1762-1814), and in some cases as the unified absolute idea constituting the world (Hegel). In short, this tendency to make "reason" into "God" was a replacement of orthodox religion with philosophical religion, and it cannot but be said that all were influenced by Chinese philosophy.⁶⁷
⁶³ Yi Donghui, Leibniz's Encounter with China, Ihaksa, 2003, pp. 92-93.
⁶⁴ An Jongsu, "Spinoza and Confucianism," Philosophical Review 44(2), 2006, pp. 172-173.
⁶⁵ Yi Yeongjae, "Re-examination of Confucian Philosophy through Contemporary Empathy Theory," Korean Studies 35(2), 2012, p. 427.
⁶⁶ Yi Donghui, "The Contrasting Understanding and Reception of Buddhism by Modern German Philosophers," Hegel Studies 29, 2011.
⁶⁷ Zhu Qianzhi, translated by Jeon Hongsok, China-Made European Modernity: The Craze for Chinese Culture in Modern Europe, Cheonggye, 2010, p. 378.
It is also said that in modern physics and the Avatamsaka Sutra (華嚴經, hwaeomgyeong) of Buddhism, the universe, matter, and humanity are not self-made, other-made, jointly made, or causeless — they are phenomena arising from given causes — and that the creation and annihilation of matter as revealed by modern physics is the arising of nature (性起, seongggi) of the essential nature (本性, bonseong) spoken of in the Avatamsaka Sutra, as seen in the properties of elementary particles and energy. The life and death of stars, the transformation from inorganic to organic matter, and all dharmadhatus (法界, beomgye) are shown to have arisen in endless dependent origination (中重無盡 緣起, jungjeung mujin yeongi).⁶⁸
⁶⁸ Heo Jeonghwa, "A Comparative Study of Huayan Thought and Modern Physics," Master's thesis, Dongguk University, 2003.
The Huangdi Neijing (黃帝內經), which marks the beginning of the principle-and-vital-energy concept, contains all the hundred schools of thought (諸子百家, jeja baekga).⁶⁹ The developed concept of principle (理) in Neo-Confucianism is said to have been influenced by the Avatamsaka Sutra of Buddhism. Today, in comparative philosophy, the principle-and-vital-energy concept is being extensively studied in comparison with semiotics, Thomism, Spinozism, and the later French philosophy influenced by it.⁷⁰
⁶⁹ "In the book of the Neijing, one can see traces of the thought of Taoist, Mohist, School of Names, and Yin-Yang schools — this is an undeniable fact." (Xu Yiming, Xingli yu Qihuang [Neo-Confucianism and the Huangdi Neijing], China Social Sciences Press, 1997, p. 23.)
⁷⁰ So Byeongseon, A Philosophical Comparison of Zhu Xi's Learning and Thomism, Ph.D. dissertation, Academy of Korean Studies, 2005; Pak Jeongjin, The Gift of Philosophy, the Philosophy of the Gift, Seoul: Sonamu, 2012; Yi Jeongwoo, Kim Sicheon, Kim Gyobin et al., The Adventure of Gi Studies 1: Eastern and Western Philosophers Speak of the Revival of the Exiled Gi, Seoul: Deulnyeok, 2004.
The concept of principle (理, i) — which originally meant the grain pattern of jade (玉, ok) — coming to represent the meaning of Taiji in the Buddhist Avatamsaka Sutra can be understood as resulting from the combination of the meaning of power associated with jade and the Indian Brahmanist concept of the union of Brahman and Atman. Jade requires enormous labor and can thus in itself already become a symbol of power; and the union of Brahman — the totality of cosmic existence — and Atman — the individual existence — corresponds to the meaning of Taiji expressed as "each possessing Taiji, together constituting Taiji" (各具太極 統體太極), as well as to the meaning of organism science which holds that parts and the whole have the same character.
The Avatamsaka Sutra is actually a scripture that appears around the 6th century, when Buddhism was declining and Indian Brahminism was reviving. The concept of principle (理, i), which started from the concept of the ordering (條理, jori) of gi, became independent as the concept of nurturing life (養生, yangsaeng) as ordering (調理, jori) in the Zhuangzi, and thereafter the Platonic aspects found in Islam and Hinduism at the time the principle (理) concept of the Avatamsaka Sutra was being translated can be said to have influenced the formation of Shao Yong's concept of principle (理). The Islamic Tawhid (توحيد), defined as the verbal noun form meaning "to make one" or "to declare or acknowledge oneness," refers to acknowledging the uniqueness (唯一性), indivisibility, absoluteness, and sole reality of God. Tawhid can be said to have influenced the Avatamsaka Sutra's "unobstructed mutual interpenetration of things and things" (事事无涯, sasa muae) and "unobstructed mutual interpenetration of principle and things" (理事无涯, isa muae) as a variant of the emanation theory of Neoplatonism.⁷¹ The mutual connection between India, Islam, and China related to the origin of the concept of principle (理) shows the possibility of tracing the origin of the Hado-Nakso and Fuxi's (伏羲氏, Bokheuksi) principle — which is the origin of the concept of principle — back to the era of the ancient tri-functional system (古代三機能體系, godae samginŭng chegye).⁷²
⁷¹ Matsumoto Kōrō, "Theory of Interreligious Dialogue in Islam (Theories of Interreligious Dialogue — Historical Aspects and Their Dialogue, Panel, Special Issue: Proceedings of the 68th Academic Conference)," Religious Studies 83-4, Japanese Association for Religious Studies, 2010, pp. 180-81, 1272-73.
⁷² Mircea Eliade, translated by Choe Jongseong and Kim Jaehyeon, A History of Religious Ideas, Volume 2: From Gautama Buddha to the Triumph of Christianity, Ihaksa, 2005, p. 299, pp. 490-491.
Revitalization of Eastern and Western Heaven-Human Relations as Manifested in the Heaven-Human (天人) Relationship of Heavenly Gratitude (天地報恩, Cheonji Boeun)
In Daesoon Thought, the relationship between humanity and heaven is encapsulated in Cheonji Boeun (天地報恩, repayment of grace to heaven and earth). The reason humans can realize the Earthly Paradise is that humans are beings capable of repaying grace through the mind.
In Daesoon Thought, the relationship between humanity and heaven is encapsulated in Cheonji Boeun (天地報恩, repayment of grace to heaven and earth). The reason humans can realize the Earthly Paradise is that humans are beings capable of repaying grace through the mind.
道通天地報恩 (Dotong cheonji boeun)⁷³
[Translation: Penetrate the Way — repay grace to heaven and earth.]
⁷³ Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 88: "Dotong cheonji boeun."
[Translation: Penetrate the Way — repay grace to heaven and earth.]
⁷³ Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 88: "Dotong cheonji boeun."
In the passage above, that humans attain tao-penetration is not, unlike in Taoism, because of human ability, but because they repay grace to heaven and earth. Because humans are said to be the most intelligent beings (最靈者, choelyeongja) of heaven and earth, they can understand the grace of heaven and earth, and humanity's repayment of grace to heaven and earth can be said to be the reason for human existence.
What humans must repay grace for is concretely related to the Cheonji Seong-gyeong-sin (天地誠敬信). Because it has been forgotten that the operation of heaven and earth that nurtures humanity is due to the utmost sincerity, reverence, and faith (誠敬信, seong-gyeong-sin) of the divine spirits, the repayment of grace to the divine spirits becomes an important factor in human life and death.
What humans must repay grace for is concretely related to the Cheonji Seong-gyeong-sin (天地誠敬信). Because it has been forgotten that the operation of heaven and earth that nurtures humanity is due to the utmost sincerity, reverence, and faith (誠敬信, seong-gyeong-sin) of the divine spirits, the repayment of grace to the divine spirits becomes an important factor in human life and death.
Life (生, saeng), lifespan (壽命, sumyeong), and fortune and blessing (福祿, bongnog) are the grace (恩惠, eunhye) of heaven and earth; therefore, establish the great righteousness (大義, daeeui) of repaying grace (報恩, boeun) to heaven and earth through sincerity (誠, seong), reverence (敬, gyeong), and faith (信, sin), and fulfill the Human Way (人道, indo).⁷⁴
— Daesoon Jinrihoe Yonam, p. 20.
⁷⁴ Daesoon Jinrihoe Yonam, p. 20.
— Daesoon Jinrihoe Yonam, p. 20.
⁷⁴ Daesoon Jinrihoe Yonam, p. 20.
As shown in the passage above, because human lifespan and fortune and blessing are the result of Cheonji Seong-gyeong-sin, they become the core reason for human ethical morality. Accordingly, humans must strive to repay grace for the grace of heaven and earth, and furthermore, human grace-repayment and the accompanying tao-penetration are central to the nurturing (化育, hwayuk) of heaven and earth. Therefore, in Daesoon Thought, humans are said to be able to be born as descendants in whom ethereal soul (魂) and corporeal soul (魄) are combined through the efforts of sixty-odd years of ancestral spirits,⁷⁵ and because ethereal soul and corporeal soul are combined, humans possess the mind, which can be both the root of desire and the foundation of all human capability.
⁷⁵ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 2-36.
⁷⁵ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 2-36.
至寶卽吾之心靈也 心靈通則鬼神可與酬酢 萬物可與俱序⁷⁶
(Jibo jeuk o ji simryeong ya, simryeong tong jeuk gwissin ga yeo sujiang, manmul ga yeo guseo)
[Translation: The supreme treasure is my spiritual mind. When the spiritual mind is opened, one can interact with spirits and ghosts; one can share order with all things.]
⁷⁶ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-41. "The supreme treasure is my spiritual mind. When the spiritual mind is opened, one can interact with spirits and ghosts, and can share order with all things." (Education Department, "Poyumun [Proclamation to All]," Daesoon Hoebo 184, 2016.)
(Jibo jeuk o ji simryeong ya, simryeong tong jeuk gwissin ga yeo sujiang, manmul ga yeo guseo)
[Translation: The supreme treasure is my spiritual mind. When the spiritual mind is opened, one can interact with spirits and ghosts; one can share order with all things.]
⁷⁶ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-41. "The supreme treasure is my spiritual mind. When the spiritual mind is opened, one can interact with spirits and ghosts, and can share order with all things." (Education Department, "Poyumun [Proclamation to All]," Daesoon Hoebo 184, 2016.)
In the passage above, if humans know how to repay grace to heaven and earth, their minds become the passage through which they can interact with spirits and ghosts. In Daesoon Thought, heaven and earth become beings that bestow infinite grace upon humanity. However, even though human grievances are connected all the way to heaven and earth, if humans practice with a single-minded devotion (一心, ilsim), they become beings who repay grace to heaven and earth through tao-penetration.
For human tao-penetration and the accompanying gaebyeok, there are even judgments of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity. Accordingly, the Supreme God is personally born in a human body and expresses deeply painful suffering.
For human tao-penetration and the accompanying gaebyeok, there are even judgments of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity. Accordingly, the Supreme God is personally born in a human body and expresses deeply painful suffering.
One day the Supreme God said to the disciples: "It was not my intention to undertake this public work. The divine spirits of heaven and earth gathered and said that only the Supreme God could set heaven and earth aright, and so, though it is a boundless burden, I had no choice but to take it on."⁷⁵
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-9.
⁷⁵ Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-9.
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-9.
⁷⁵ Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-9.
While the Supreme God was studying at Sirusan Mountain, He would sometimes weep from beyond the spring at the foot of the mountain, and once His father, carrying a meal up to the rocky peak, witnessed this scene.⁷⁶
— Jeon'gyeong, "Haengnog" 2-9.
⁷⁶ Jeon'gyeong, "Haengnog" 2-9.
— Jeon'gyeong, "Haengnog" 2-9.
⁷⁶ Jeon'gyeong, "Haengnog" 2-9.
The Supreme God turned to face the wall and lay down, then suddenly said to the disciples: "Now the whole world is about to perish, yet it is difficult to save everyone — how can I not be grieved?" And He was deeply sorrowful.⁷⁷
— Jeon'gyeong, "Haengnog" 5-24.
⁷⁷ Jeon'gyeong, "Haengnog" 5-24.
— Jeon'gyeong, "Haengnog" 5-24.
⁷⁷ Jeon'gyeong, "Haengnog" 5-24.
In the passage above, Gucheon expresses the burden of having to carry out the Cheonjigongsa. Gucheon also deliberated through public works on the haewon of the countless aggrieved souls who died through misunderstanding Donghak Thought.
The Supreme God entered the twelfth month, completed several public works, and commenced the public work of adjusting the measure of reversal (逆度, yeokdo). Gyeongseok, Gwangchan, and Naeseong went to Daeheungni; Wonil went to the house of Sin Gyeongwon; Hyeongnyeol and Jahyeon departed for Donggok. To the remaining disciples, Mun Gongssin, Hwang Eungjong, and Sin Gyeongsu, the Supreme God said: "Gyeongseok's sincerity, reverence, and faith are utmost, and I had thought to use him in a different manner, but this is what he himself requests, so it cannot be helped." He also said: "Originally, Donghak's claim to assist the nation and bring peace to the people was nothing more than crying out for the Later Heaven's work, but their hearts each desired to become royalty or high officials, and unable to fulfill their wishes, they were dragged away and died — their number was in the tens of thousands. Grievances filled the sky. If those divine spirits were left as they are, in the Later Heaven they would be caught in the measure of reversal and government affairs would become disorderly. Therefore, while I was designating the head of haewon for those divine spirits, Gyeongseok mentioned twelve nations, which amounts to a self-nomination. His father was an important figure in Donghak who was arrested and executed, and he himself was also the Donghak chief representative (總代). Therefore, from now on I have sent all the Donghak divine spirits to Gyeongseok. From this moment, the haewon of royalty and high officials shall begin." Then, writing a text on paper, He prohibited outsiders from entering, and concluded: "In the days to come you shall see — great amounts of money will be spent, and the number of people will be greater than in the gabo year (甲午年). They must be released, so that in the Later Heaven there will be no impediment."⁷⁸
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 2-19.
⁷⁸ Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 2-19.
— Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 2-19.
⁷⁸ Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 2-19.
In the passage above, what Gucheon as substance first emphasizes in the repayment of grace to heaven and earth is the haewon of all phenomena (森羅萬象, simna mansang). Because tao-penetration can also only be achieved through haewon, haewon is regarded as extremely important. The grievances that could not be resolved in the Former Heaven world are designated by Gucheon as the foremost issue to be resolved in the heaven-earth and heaven-human relationships.
Possessor of boundless wisdom (無上智慧, musang jihye), infinite transforming virtue (無邊德化, mubyeon deokwha), and great authority (偉大權能, widaeghwonneung); the great religious founder of history, Kang Jeungsan (姜甑山) the holy master (聖師), as Gucheon Daewon Johwa Jushin (九天大元造化主神, Supreme Divinity of Nine Heavens, Great Origin, and Transformation), governed the world with the supreme authority over the Three Realms (三界大權), and while making the great circuit of the world (天下大巡), descended greatly into the world of humanity (人世), corrected the cosmic measure of heaven and earth (天地度數) that had lost its proper way, opened the path of operation (運路, unnro) to the infinite paradise realm (仙境, seongyeong) of the Later Heaven, and in order to widely save the divine spirits (神明) buried in calamity (否劫, bigeob) and the people of creation of the world (世界蒼生) fallen into disaster (災劫, jaegeob), He traveled throughout in circuits and performed the great public works (大公事). Through the truth (眞理) of the great Way (大道) of the Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang (陰陽合德), Harmonious Transformation of Spirits and Humans (神人調化), and Haewon Sangsaeng (解冤相生), by the rational principle of Divine-Human Guidance (神人依導), with haewon as the primary aim, He concluded the Cheonjigongsa with boeun. Through the principle (道理, dori) of the two principles of haewon and boeun (解冤報恩兩原理), all grievances (寃鬱, wonul) that had accumulated throughout all ages (萬古, mango) shall be resolved, and the world shall be realized as a paradise of the Way's transformation (道化樂園, dohwa nagwon) without mutual destruction (相克, sanggeug). This is precisely the truth (眞理) of the Great Circuit (大巡, Daesoon).
In the passage above, the phrase "all grievances that had accumulated throughout all ages shall be resolved" indicates that the purpose of Gucheon's Cheonjigongsa lies in haewon, and that haewon is the key to modernity. Furthermore, through Jeungsan's haewon and boeun public works, all phenomena of the Three Realms become the paradise realm of the Later Heaven (後天仙境, hucheon seongyeong). That haewon and boeun proceed smoothly is the success of heaven and earth, and the haewon and boeun of all phenomena being accomplished is also brought about under Jeungsan's authority.
In Daesoon Thought, the mutual destruction (相克, sanggeug) of the Three Realms appears as the disorder of the Three Realms (三界着亂, samgye chagnnan), and the mutual life (相生, sangsaeng) of the Three Realms appears as the success of heaven and earth (天地成功, cheonji seonggong). Because the disorder of the underworld (冥府, myeongbu) is a great problem, it is through the Cheonjigongsa that the disorder of the underworld — arising from the calamity (否劫, bigeob) of divine spirits and humans — is prevented, and through this process the heaven-human and earth-human relationships are restored and revitalized.
In the case of the View of the Human Realm, it is the view that the occurrence and resolution of all problems of the Heavenly Realm and the Earthly Realm are simultaneously accomplished through humanity. This is a time when heaven and earth require humanity in order to succeed,⁷⁹ and the success of heaven and earth⁸⁰ is accomplished through the sangsaeng of the heaven-human relationship.
⁷⁹ Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 30.
⁸⁰ Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 30.
Revitalization of Eastern and Western Earth-Human Relations as Manifested in the Earth-Human (地人) Relationship of Earthly Immortals (地上神仙)
In Daesoon Thought, the relationship between humanity and the earth is associated with the Earthly Immortals (地上神仙, jisang sinseon). In Daesoon Thought, the key to human growth and world development is the Harmonious Transformation of Spirits and Humans (神人調化, sinin johwa), and the method of sinin johwa is the Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang (陰陽合德, eumyang hapdeok). The reason sinin johwa is possible in Daesoon Thought is that both spirits and humans share the common principle of Taiji called yin-yang, and if each understands the complementary perspective of the other, they can be harmonized because they are the same principle. That the world grows through haewon sangsaeng (解冤相生) and dotong jigyeong (道通眞境, Ultimate Realm of Truth through Tao) through the harmonization of spirits and humans is the view of humanity related to the Later Heaven presented by Daesoon Thought.
The status of the human being in relation to the earth in Daesoon Thought — where one can become an Earthly Immortal — is encapsulated in the doctrine (宗旨, jongji). If this study's examination is correct that in Daesoon Thought the universe infinitely repeats and circulates according to the four virtues [as Principle] (原亨利貞[理]), infinitely layered and cyclical [as Gi], and humanity mediates through empathy [as Mind], then the status of humanity in the universe in Daesoon Thought is as a being that brings heaven and earth to success.⁸¹ The status of humanity in the universe that must bring heaven and earth to success is further divided into four in Daesoon Thought, according to the methods of empathy, as in the doctrine. Infinite layered circulation [of Principle-Gi] and empathy [of Mind] become the common principles for the status of humanity in the universe as found in Daesoon Thought. Let us examine the status of humanity as found in Daesoon Thought.
⁸¹ Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 30.
First, regarding the Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang (陰陽合德), humans must empathize with heaven and earth through time and space and can therefore become those who know the time (知人, jiin).⁸² Humans who know the time and know how to change according to the time continuously generate vital energy (生氣, saenggi).⁸³ To the extent that even the weather of heaven and earth can change with a single human thought, humans can achieve the union of virtue of yin and yang of body and mind through mujagi (無自欺, no self-deception). Through the empathy of the Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang, humans can well control the energies of spring, summer, autumn, and winter that move freely according to the principle of the waning and waxing of the moon. Because the universe infinitely repeats and circulates, yin-yang is the principle, and the principle becomes the circumstance (경우).⁸⁴
⁸² Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-30; Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-30; Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 1-21.
⁸³ Jeon'gyeong, "Haengnog" 5-38.
⁸⁴ Daesoon Jichim, p. 18.
Next, regarding the Harmonious Transformation of Spirits and Humans (神人調化), humans are uniquely beings with minds capable of suffering in a physical body that spirits cannot possess. In Daesoon Thought, divine spirits (神明, sinmyeong) can be interpreted as the gi (氣) of the four virtues (元亨利貞). The human mind is the place through which divine spirits enter and depart,⁸⁵ and as in the "principle-settles-the-mind method" (理定心法, ijeong simbeop), principle can settle the mind.⁸⁶ Through ansimansin (安心安身, settling the mind and stabilizing the body), the mind can be made to submerge (潛心, jamsim), and when the mind is submerged, like a woman living in a house called the universe, the mind becomes settled and one can empathize with spirits. ⁸⁷ Through incantation practice (呪文修鍊, jumun suryeon), cultivators can mediate the infinitely layered and circulating universe, and through seong-gyeong-sin (誠敬信), they empathize with and resonate with spirits through principle (理).⁸⁸
⁸⁵ Jeon'gyeong, "Haengnog" 3-44.
⁸⁶ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-33; Ko Namsik, "The Principle of Setting the Mind through Principle and the Ultimate Tendency of Mind Cultivation," Daesoon Thought Comprehensive Review 13, 2001.
⁸⁷ Ko Namsik, "The Heavenly Perception of the Former Heaven and the Transcendence of the Supreme God: Regarding the Divine Way and the Supreme Authority over the Three Realms," Daesoon Thought Comprehensive Review 8, 1999, pp. 562-563.
⁸⁸ Hwang Taeyeon, "Confucius' Empathic Non-Action and Present-World Orientation and the East Asian Origin of Western Tolerationism, Part I," Korean Studies 36(2), 2013, pp. 73-74.
Next, regarding Haewon Sangsaeng (解冤相生), humans are uniquely beings capable of resolving grievances through principle. "Understanding" (理解, ihae) can be seen as meaning that grievances (寃, won) are necessarily resolved (解, hae) through principle (理); therefore, humans can resolve grievances through principle. In Daesoon Thought, the mural painting of the five immortals playing Go (五仙圍碁, oseon wigi) — symbolizing haewon — is expressed as "understanding" (이해, ihae). Haewon is the natural-scientific foundation of sangsaeng.⁸⁹ Because humans are beings that empathize and mediate, if the yin-yang of humans is not regulated, grievances make humans ill,⁹⁰ and one cannot be called a human being.⁹¹ Therefore, if there are tao-penetrating spirits in both East and West, the medicine of heaven (醫通, eutong) is only in Joseon.⁹² Humans are beings that heal the illness of the universe and circulate it from the center. Because the universe infinitely repeats and circulates, even the grievance harbored by a single person can block the energy of the world.
⁸⁹ The mural painting of the five immortals playing Go in Daesoon Thought, which symbolizes haewon, is expressed as "understanding" (이해). Haewon is the natural-scientific foundation of sangsaeng. (Pak Yongcheol, "A Study on the Realization of Haewon Sangsaeng," Daesoon Thought Comprehensive Review 4, 1998, pp. 213-241.)
⁹⁰ Jeon'gyeong, "Haengnog" 5-38; Cho Yeongsuk, "A Study on the Cosmological Ontology of Dongui Bogam," Taoist Culture Research 33, 2010, p. 141; Kim Mirim, "A Study on the View of Life Cultivation in Dongui Bogam," Ph.D. dissertation, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, 2009, pp. 163-165.
⁹¹ Jeon'gyeong, "Jesaeng" 43.
⁹² Jeon'gyeong, "Haengnog" 5-38.
The indigenous modernity found in the re-establishment of Daesoon Thought's View of the Three Realms, as examined above, can be summarized in three main points. First, the variability of the entire Three Realms — especially the variability of the Heavenly Realm. Daesoon Thought regarded the collapse of the Three Realms view not as a problem of the Three Realms view itself but as a problem of the Three Realms. The View of the Heavenly Realm in Daesoon Thought, represented by "the old heaven," granted the heaven that had been the supreme being throughout all historical periods in both East and West the limitation of being a being that can grow old, thereby re-establishing the collapsed View of the Heavenly Realm. In Daesoon Thought, the Three Realms are not the unchanging and reigning Three Realms of existing Eastern thought, but a variable Three Realms that can be changed by the Supreme God.
Second, the elevation of the status of the Earthly Realm within the Three Realms. Throughout the entirety of Eastern and Western history, the thought that elevated not only heaven but also the earth to the level of heaven and emphasized this — that the earth must be elevated as much as heaven — is found in almost no religion other than those that take Jeungsan as their object of faith. Daesoon Thought, by placing the Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang (陰陽合德), which elevates the earth, as the first phrase of the doctrine, presented the elevation of the status of the Earthly Realm most clearly among Jeungsan faith religious organizations.
Third, the interoperability (互換性, hohwanseong) of the Three Realms. In Daesoon Thought, the Three Realms change as a whole and their internal proportions are fluid, but they are mutually interoperable, centered on humanity as the mediator. Daesoon Thought holds that because Heaven, Earth, and Humanity, which arose from a common structure and principle, failed to communicate with each other due to grievances, many disasters arose. The reason mutual communication was blocked was that the earth was treated contemptuously compared to heaven, and humanity was exploited as a weak being without principles.⁹³ The changes in the views of Heaven, earth, and humanity in Daesoon Thought that appeared after Gucheon's descent into human form manifest as the variability (可變性, gabyeonseong), constancy (恒常性, hangseong), and interoperability (互換性, hohwanseong) of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity.
⁹³ Choi Won-hyeok, "A Comparative Study on Indigenous Modernity of Donghak Thought and Daesoon Thought," Studies on Humanities and Social Sciences (SHSC) 6(1), 2024.
In Daesoon Thought, the mutual destruction (相克, sanggeug) of the Three Realms appears as the disorder of the Three Realms (三界着亂, samgye chagnnan), and the mutual life (相生, sangsaeng) of the Three Realms appears as the success of heaven and earth (天地成功, cheonji seonggong). Because the disorder of the underworld (冥府, myeongbu) is a great problem, it is through the Cheonjigongsa that the disorder of the underworld — arising from the calamity (否劫, bigeob) of divine spirits and humans — is prevented, and through this process the heaven-human and earth-human relationships are restored and revitalized.
In the case of the View of the Human Realm, it is the view that the occurrence and resolution of all problems of the Heavenly Realm and the Earthly Realm are simultaneously accomplished through humanity. This is a time when heaven and earth require humanity in order to succeed,⁷⁹ and the success of heaven and earth⁸⁰ is accomplished through the sangsaeng of the heaven-human relationship.
⁷⁹ Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 30.
⁸⁰ Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 30.
Revitalization of Eastern and Western Earth-Human Relations as Manifested in the Earth-Human (地人) Relationship of Earthly Immortals (地上神仙)
In Daesoon Thought, the relationship between humanity and the earth is associated with the Earthly Immortals (地上神仙, jisang sinseon). In Daesoon Thought, the key to human growth and world development is the Harmonious Transformation of Spirits and Humans (神人調化, sinin johwa), and the method of sinin johwa is the Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang (陰陽合德, eumyang hapdeok). The reason sinin johwa is possible in Daesoon Thought is that both spirits and humans share the common principle of Taiji called yin-yang, and if each understands the complementary perspective of the other, they can be harmonized because they are the same principle. That the world grows through haewon sangsaeng (解冤相生) and dotong jigyeong (道通眞境, Ultimate Realm of Truth through Tao) through the harmonization of spirits and humans is the view of humanity related to the Later Heaven presented by Daesoon Thought.
The status of the human being in relation to the earth in Daesoon Thought — where one can become an Earthly Immortal — is encapsulated in the doctrine (宗旨, jongji). If this study's examination is correct that in Daesoon Thought the universe infinitely repeats and circulates according to the four virtues [as Principle] (原亨利貞[理]), infinitely layered and cyclical [as Gi], and humanity mediates through empathy [as Mind], then the status of humanity in the universe in Daesoon Thought is as a being that brings heaven and earth to success.⁸¹ The status of humanity in the universe that must bring heaven and earth to success is further divided into four in Daesoon Thought, according to the methods of empathy, as in the doctrine. Infinite layered circulation [of Principle-Gi] and empathy [of Mind] become the common principles for the status of humanity in the universe as found in Daesoon Thought. Let us examine the status of humanity as found in Daesoon Thought.
⁸¹ Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 30.
First, regarding the Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang (陰陽合德), humans must empathize with heaven and earth through time and space and can therefore become those who know the time (知人, jiin).⁸² Humans who know the time and know how to change according to the time continuously generate vital energy (生氣, saenggi).⁸³ To the extent that even the weather of heaven and earth can change with a single human thought, humans can achieve the union of virtue of yin and yang of body and mind through mujagi (無自欺, no self-deception). Through the empathy of the Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang, humans can well control the energies of spring, summer, autumn, and winter that move freely according to the principle of the waning and waxing of the moon. Because the universe infinitely repeats and circulates, yin-yang is the principle, and the principle becomes the circumstance (경우).⁸⁴
⁸² Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-30; Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-30; Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 1-21.
⁸³ Jeon'gyeong, "Haengnog" 5-38.
⁸⁴ Daesoon Jichim, p. 18.
Next, regarding the Harmonious Transformation of Spirits and Humans (神人調化), humans are uniquely beings with minds capable of suffering in a physical body that spirits cannot possess. In Daesoon Thought, divine spirits (神明, sinmyeong) can be interpreted as the gi (氣) of the four virtues (元亨利貞). The human mind is the place through which divine spirits enter and depart,⁸⁵ and as in the "principle-settles-the-mind method" (理定心法, ijeong simbeop), principle can settle the mind.⁸⁶ Through ansimansin (安心安身, settling the mind and stabilizing the body), the mind can be made to submerge (潛心, jamsim), and when the mind is submerged, like a woman living in a house called the universe, the mind becomes settled and one can empathize with spirits. ⁸⁷ Through incantation practice (呪文修鍊, jumun suryeon), cultivators can mediate the infinitely layered and circulating universe, and through seong-gyeong-sin (誠敬信), they empathize with and resonate with spirits through principle (理).⁸⁸
⁸⁵ Jeon'gyeong, "Haengnog" 3-44.
⁸⁶ Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-33; Ko Namsik, "The Principle of Setting the Mind through Principle and the Ultimate Tendency of Mind Cultivation," Daesoon Thought Comprehensive Review 13, 2001.
⁸⁷ Ko Namsik, "The Heavenly Perception of the Former Heaven and the Transcendence of the Supreme God: Regarding the Divine Way and the Supreme Authority over the Three Realms," Daesoon Thought Comprehensive Review 8, 1999, pp. 562-563.
⁸⁸ Hwang Taeyeon, "Confucius' Empathic Non-Action and Present-World Orientation and the East Asian Origin of Western Tolerationism, Part I," Korean Studies 36(2), 2013, pp. 73-74.
Next, regarding Haewon Sangsaeng (解冤相生), humans are uniquely beings capable of resolving grievances through principle. "Understanding" (理解, ihae) can be seen as meaning that grievances (寃, won) are necessarily resolved (解, hae) through principle (理); therefore, humans can resolve grievances through principle. In Daesoon Thought, the mural painting of the five immortals playing Go (五仙圍碁, oseon wigi) — symbolizing haewon — is expressed as "understanding" (이해, ihae). Haewon is the natural-scientific foundation of sangsaeng.⁸⁹ Because humans are beings that empathize and mediate, if the yin-yang of humans is not regulated, grievances make humans ill,⁹⁰ and one cannot be called a human being.⁹¹ Therefore, if there are tao-penetrating spirits in both East and West, the medicine of heaven (醫通, eutong) is only in Joseon.⁹² Humans are beings that heal the illness of the universe and circulate it from the center. Because the universe infinitely repeats and circulates, even the grievance harbored by a single person can block the energy of the world.
⁸⁹ The mural painting of the five immortals playing Go in Daesoon Thought, which symbolizes haewon, is expressed as "understanding" (이해). Haewon is the natural-scientific foundation of sangsaeng. (Pak Yongcheol, "A Study on the Realization of Haewon Sangsaeng," Daesoon Thought Comprehensive Review 4, 1998, pp. 213-241.)
⁹⁰ Jeon'gyeong, "Haengnog" 5-38; Cho Yeongsuk, "A Study on the Cosmological Ontology of Dongui Bogam," Taoist Culture Research 33, 2010, p. 141; Kim Mirim, "A Study on the View of Life Cultivation in Dongui Bogam," Ph.D. dissertation, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, 2009, pp. 163-165.
⁹¹ Jeon'gyeong, "Jesaeng" 43.
⁹² Jeon'gyeong, "Haengnog" 5-38.
The indigenous modernity found in the re-establishment of Daesoon Thought's View of the Three Realms, as examined above, can be summarized in three main points. First, the variability of the entire Three Realms — especially the variability of the Heavenly Realm. Daesoon Thought regarded the collapse of the Three Realms view not as a problem of the Three Realms view itself but as a problem of the Three Realms. The View of the Heavenly Realm in Daesoon Thought, represented by "the old heaven," granted the heaven that had been the supreme being throughout all historical periods in both East and West the limitation of being a being that can grow old, thereby re-establishing the collapsed View of the Heavenly Realm. In Daesoon Thought, the Three Realms are not the unchanging and reigning Three Realms of existing Eastern thought, but a variable Three Realms that can be changed by the Supreme God.
Second, the elevation of the status of the Earthly Realm within the Three Realms. Throughout the entirety of Eastern and Western history, the thought that elevated not only heaven but also the earth to the level of heaven and emphasized this — that the earth must be elevated as much as heaven — is found in almost no religion other than those that take Jeungsan as their object of faith. Daesoon Thought, by placing the Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang (陰陽合德), which elevates the earth, as the first phrase of the doctrine, presented the elevation of the status of the Earthly Realm most clearly among Jeungsan faith religious organizations.
Third, the interoperability (互換性, hohwanseong) of the Three Realms. In Daesoon Thought, the Three Realms change as a whole and their internal proportions are fluid, but they are mutually interoperable, centered on humanity as the mediator. Daesoon Thought holds that because Heaven, Earth, and Humanity, which arose from a common structure and principle, failed to communicate with each other due to grievances, many disasters arose. The reason mutual communication was blocked was that the earth was treated contemptuously compared to heaven, and humanity was exploited as a weak being without principles.⁹³ The changes in the views of Heaven, earth, and humanity in Daesoon Thought that appeared after Gucheon's descent into human form manifest as the variability (可變性, gabyeonseong), constancy (恒常性, hangseong), and interoperability (互換性, hohwanseong) of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity.
⁹³ Choi Won-hyeok, "A Comparative Study on Indigenous Modernity of Donghak Thought and Daesoon Thought," Studies on Humanities and Social Sciences (SHSC) 6(1), 2024.
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