Chapter V, Sec. 3–5: Views of Humanity, Heaven-Earth & Human Relationships

In the passage quoted above, the greatest contribution of Emperor Yao is said to have been transmitting "the grace of Heaven and the principles of Earth" to humanity — that is, enabling human beings to recognize the blessings of Heaven and Earth. Regarding Innaecheon, Daesoon Thought by contrast presents the harmonious transformation of humanity and the divine, or Sinui-ido (神人依導, Divine-Human Guidance), as the greatest task of human beings. (Daesoon Jinrihoe Yoram, "Chwiji.") [Footnote: Daesoon Jinrihoe Yoram, "Chwiji."]

[Footnote: Although references to Cheonju (the Lord of Heaven) and Sangje appear in Donghak Thought, expressions concerning Divine Spirits (神明, sinmyeong) and the Divine Way (神道, sindo) are almost entirely absent. This applies to the Three Powers (三才, samjae) as well: the expression "Three Realms" (三界, samgye), which presupposes the realm of divine spirits, is also virtually absent from Donghak Thought. Daesoon Thought, through the Divine Way (sindo) that Donghak Thought was unable to embrace within the Confucian canon, transcends the limitations of the Human Way (人道, indo) that Donghak Thought had proposed.]

[Footnote: In response to the human arrogance embodied in Innaecheon (Humanity is Heaven), Daesoon Thought foregrounds the concept of the Three Realms (samgye). Rather than becoming like Heaven, human beings participate as Gucheon (the Supreme Heaven) transforms the old heaven into a new one. Among religious organizations that believe in Gang Jeungsan, Daesoon Thought is particularly notable for foregrounding the Three Realms, given that the term "Daesoon" (大巡) is an abbreviation of "Samgye Daesoon Gaebyeok Gongsa" (三界大巡開闢公事, the Public Works of the Grand Circuit of the Three Realms for the Opening of a New Heaven and Earth).]

[Footnote: To explain Daesoon Thought centered on the Three Realms: the Three Realms, harmonized by Sangje, descended into chaos (samgye-challan) on account of human resentment, and as this advanced to the point of total annihilation of the Three Realms (samgye-jinmyeol), Sangje — in response to the appeals of divine spirits, Buddhas, and bodhisattvas — diagnosed the Three Realms through the Grand Circuit (Daesoon) and then carried out the Public Works of the Three Realms (samgye-gongsa) to bring about the Opening of a New Heaven and Earth (samgye-gaebyeok). This entire sequence is the Samgye Daesoon, and the thought accompanying it is Daesoon Thought.]

[Footnote: The Three Realms of Daesoon Jinrihoe are operated by countless divine spirits. In Daesoon Thought, the Three Realms being operated by divine spirits is because divine spirits are entities supremely devoted to truth.]

On a certain day in the first month of the jeongmi year, while Kim Gwang-chan and Sin Won-il were serving Sangje, he said to them, "Spirits (gui-sin) are supremely devoted to truth; therefore I adjudicate the Works of Heaven and Earth together with them," and wrote the following on the wall: (Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-19.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-19.]

In the passage above, "supremely devoted to truth" means being thoroughly faithful to one's role and proper domain as a divine spirit. Unlike human beings, who possess both the hun (魂, spiritual soul) and the baek (魄, corporeal soul) and are thereby endowed with versatility but cannot be fully devoted to a single role, divine spirits in Daesoon Thought possess only one of the two — either hun or baek — and can therefore be wholly devoted to a single role, enabling them to operate the workings of Heaven and Earth. Accordingly, in Daesoon Thought, the harmonious cooperation between divine spirits and human beings in operating the Three Realms becomes the key to the new workings of Heaven and Earth.

Not only in the operation of the cosmos, but also in connection with modern science and technology, and with human destiny in the Underworld (冥府, myeongbu), the Three Realms of Daesoon Thought are closely bound to reality. In the view of the Three Realms in Daesoon Thought, the Heavenly Realm (天界) includes the Celestial World (天上界) and the Underworld (冥府), while the Earthly Realm (地界) includes the Subterranean World (地下界). Among these, the Celestial and Subterranean Worlds are the origin of today's scientific civilization, while the Underworld is also where human beings' gratitude-repayment toward Heaven, Earth, Sincerity, Reverence, and Faith is evaluated.

One day Sangje said to Kim Hyeong-ryeol, "The Westerner Matteo Ricci (利瑪竇) came to the East intending to establish a heavenly kingdom on earth, but the deeply rooted corrupt customs of Confucianism made ready reform impossible, and he was unable to fulfill his wish. He did, however, open the boundaries between the Celestial and Subterranean Worlds, causing divine spirits who had each firmly guarded their respective domains without crossing into one another's territory to now circulate freely. After his death he led the divine spirits of Eastern civilization to the West and opened the way for cultural fortune (文運) there. From that time forward, the subterranean spirits modeled themselves on all the wondrous methods of the Celestial World and applied them to the human realm. All the material culture of the West is modeled on the form of the Celestial Kingdom." (Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-9.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-9.]

The passage above reveals, first, the Harmonious Transformation of Divine Spirits and Humanity (神人調化, sininjohwa) in Daesoon Thought — the idea that through the interchange between Celestial and Subterranean spirits, Heaven and Earth are operated and the human realm is also transformed. Second, it shows that in Daesoon Thought the Heavenly Realm includes the Celestial World where heavenly spirits dwell, while the Earthly Realm includes the Subterranean spirits. Third, it demonstrates the interchange of the Three Realms — namely, that the exchange between Celestial and Subterranean spirits is closely related to the human realm, and that the boundaries between the Celestial and Subterranean Worlds may be transformed through a figure who once existed in the human realm.

Sangje said to Kim Hyeong-ryeol: "In the Former Heaven, all things in the human world were governed by mutual conflict (相克, sanggeuek), so that resentment accumulated and filled the Three Realms. Heaven and Earth thereby lost their proper way, disasters of every kind arose, and the world became wretched. Therefore I will set the proper measures of Heaven and Earth in order, harmonize the divine spirits, resolve the accumulated resentments of ten thousand ages, and establish the blessed land of the Later Heaven through the Way of Mutual Life (相生, sangsaeng), thereby saving the people of the world. Whatever the matter, great or small, resentments must first be resolved through the Divine Way. If the proper measures are first firmly established and brought into harmony, that will serve as a foundation and human affairs will naturally be accomplished. This is what is meant by the Public Works of the Three Realms (三界公事, samgye-gongsa)." He then began a part of the works relating to the Underworld (冥府公事). (Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-3.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-3.]

The passage above reveals the following. First, Heaven-Earth and humanity are entities that mutually nurture and are nurtured by one another. Second, the Underworld is the place where the divine spirits of Heaven and Earth evaluate human beings. However, this mutual growth has not been properly evaluated because human things have been dominated by mutual conflict; only resentment has grown, and this is shown to be the cause of chaos in the Three Realms. Third, the passage shows that the Underworld belongs to the Heavenly Realm and that the Underworld is the place where the affairs of the Three Realms are synthesized.

The view of the Three Realms in Daesoon Thought — in which everything from the operation of the cosmos to science and technology and even human destiny in the Underworld is determined by the divine spirits of Heaven and Earth — holds that Heaven and Earth take precedence over human affairs, extending even to the determination of all matters.

事之當旺在於天地 必不在人 (Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 3-47. Sa-ji-dangwang-jae-eo-cheonji pil-bu-jae-in: "That any affair comes to its proper flourishing is rooted fundamentally in Heaven and Earth, and not necessarily in human beings." — Education Department, "Cheonji Saeng-in Yong-in," Daesoon Hoebo 13, 1989.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 3-47. Sa-ji-dangwang-jae-eo-cheonji pil-bu-jae-in: "That any affair comes to its proper flourishing is rooted fundamentally in Heaven and Earth, and not necessarily in human beings." (Education Department, "Cheonji Saeng-in Yong-in," Daesoon Hoebo 13, 1989.)]

萬事分已定 浮生空自忙 (Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 3-47. Mansa-bun-ijjeong bu-saeng-gong-jamang: "The lot of all affairs is already determined; yet people of this fleeting world busily stir about in vain." — Education Department, "Mansa-bun-ijjeong," Daesoon Hoebo 148, 2013.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 3-47. Mansa-bun-ijjeong bu-saeng-gong-jamang: "The lot of all affairs is already determined; yet people of this fleeting world busily stir about in vain." (Education Department, "Mansa-bun-ijjeong," Daesoon Hoebo 148, 2013.)]

From these two passages: the first clearly shows that in the view of the Three Realms in Daesoon Thought, Heaven and Earth take precedence over human beings in the order of things — just as, even when a child has surpassed the parents, this is due to the parents' grace, so the parents remain primary. A similar relationship obtains between Heaven-Earth and humanity. The second passage goes further, showing that even when human beings may have outperformed Heaven and Earth, this was already predetermined by Heaven and Earth.

From the foregoing discussion, the view of the human realm (人界觀, ingye-gwan) in Daesoon Thought may be summarized as follows. First, the view of the Three Realms in Daesoon Thought consists of Gucheon's Sangje (the Supreme Deity of the Nine Heavens) as the highest deity, and the Three Realms of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity harmonized by Sangje. In the view of the Three Realms in Daesoon Thought, Heaven and Earth nurture the ten thousand things on Sangje's behalf, while Sangje observes and surveys all of Heaven (觀鑑萬天, gwangam-mancheon). (Daesoon Jinrihoe Yoram, p.7.) [Footnote: Daesoon Jinrihoe Yoram, p.7.]

Heaven and Earth in turn entrust each segment of the nurturing of all things to the infinite divine spirits who take charge of their respective parts. Heaven and Earth ascend and descend to meet one another; since Heaven and Earth are yin and yang, Heaven plans (企劃) while Earth implements (施行). (Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-42.) Thus, as seen in the principle of "Heaven determines, Earth follows" (乾定坤順, geonjeong-gon-sun), celestial civilization plans (Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-9.), and the subterranean spirits model and fashion its wonders to bestow them upon the human realm (Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-9.). Heaven and Earth, through Sincerity-Reverence-Faith (誠敬信, seonggyeongsin) (Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-66.), nurture humanity with supreme devotion to truth (Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-19.). Human beings, having received life, longevity, and blessings through the nurturing of Heaven and Earth by means of sincere Sincerity-Reverence-Faith (Daesoon Jinrihoe Yoram, p.20.), bear the obligation to repay the grace of Heaven and Earth with Sincerity-Reverence-Faith in return. Yet humanity — now capable through modern science of rivaling Heaven and Earth — betrayed Heaven and Earth, denied the existence of divine spirits, and set about developing and conquering Heaven and Earth. Consequently, even Heaven and Earth came to seek only to kill human beings, ushering in an age of chaos in the Three Realms (Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-11.), and in response to the appeals of divine spirits, Buddhas, and bodhisattvas, Sangje conducted a Grand Circuit of the human realm and first bestowed Heavenly Mandate and Divine Teaching upon Suun (Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-9.) — at which point Donghak Thought emerged. Although Suun received the Heavenly Mandate and Divine Teaching, he could not transcend the limits of the Confucian canon (Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-9.), and so Sangje descended through the Three Realms directly in human form (Jeon'gyeong, "Haengno" 1-10.) — this being the background for the Daesoon Thought view of the human realm expressed as the descent of Gucheon in human form (九天의 人身降世, gucheon-ui-insin-gangse). [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 2-42.] [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-9.] [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-9.] [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-66.] [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-19.] [Footnote: Daesoon Jinrihoe Yoram, p.20.] [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-11.] [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-9.] [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-9.] [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Haengno" 1-10.]

While it has been clearly established in Daesoon Thought that the existence and roles of entities in the Three Realms, which are filled with divine spirits, operate through the principles of yin-yang and the Five Agents, both the East and the West have, since antiquity, postulated a Celestial Realm and an Earthly Realm filled with divine spirits that intervene in the human realm — much as Daesoon Thought does. The view of the Three Realms in Daesoon Thought in fact shares many common elements with the pre-modern cosmological worldviews of both East and West. Since the view of the Three Realms in Daesoon Thought also encompasses the Three Powers of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity along with the realm of divine spirits, the conceptions of the Celestial, Earthly, and Human Realms found throughout Eastern and Western history and antiquity may also be collectively referred to as the Three Realms and compared with one another. The view of the Three Realms in Daesoon Thought is close to a revitalized cosmology that integrates the ancient cosmological worldviews of East and West — which modernity had discarded — with modern science.

If the view of the human realm in Daesoon Thought as described above were to be expressed in compact form, it could be characterized as a view of humanity centered on Sinui-ido (神人依導, Divine-Human Guidance). If Donghak Thought achieved liminality — that is, a transition from an ontological view of the Three Realms to a generative view — Daesoon Thought, through Sinui-ido, revitalized the relationship between divine spirits and humanity that is inherent in the generative view of the Three Realms.

b. Bullyeongiryeon (不然其然) and Seongsajaein (成事在人)

The conclusive difference between the views of humanity in Donghak Thought and Daesoon Thought lies in Seongsajaein (成事在人, "The Accomplishment of Affairs Rests with Humanity"). The Seongsajaein of Daesoon Thought means that the determination of whether affairs succeed, previously located in Heaven, is now transferred to human beings. The difference between the appearance of Heaven-beyond-Heaven (天外天, cheon-oe-cheon) in Donghak Thought and the descent of Gucheon in human form in Daesoon Thought ultimately manifests as Seongsajaein.

Fights among people cause fights among ancestral spirits in the Celestial World; it is only after the celestial fighting ends that the outcome of human fighting is decided. (Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 1-54.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 1-54.]

In the passage above, the expression "it is only after the celestial fighting ends that the outcome of human fighting is decided" refers to the Former Heaven principle of Seongsajaecheon (成事在天, "The Accomplishment of Affairs Rests with Heaven"). In Donghak Thought, where the concept of divine spirits does not appear, what determines the outcome of fighting is cosmic energy (氣, gi). In Daesoon Thought, however, it is divine spirits that determine the outcome of fighting. Even the principle in Daesoon Thought that divine spirits determine human conflicts undergoes a reversal of the positions of humanity and divine spirits after Gucheon's descent in human form.

In the Former Heaven it was said: "Planning affairs (謀事, mosa) rests with humanity, and accomplishing affairs (成事, seongsa) rests with Heaven." But now, planning rests with Heaven and accomplishment rests with humanity. Moreover, no matter how much you may wish to die, you will not be able to; you will only die when I release you. (Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 3-35.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 3-35.]

In the passage above, the expression "now, planning rests with Heaven and accomplishment rests with humanity" means that after Gucheon's descent in human form, the locus of decision-making shifted from divine spirits to human beings. That the positions of planning (謀事) and accomplishing (成事) are reversed after Gucheon's descent in human form is because, through that descent, the ultimate value of humanity was for the first time illuminated. It is because the value of humanity — as beings possessing both body and mind, the yin and yang — was revealed through Gucheon's descent. If before the descent the great affairs of the world were accomplished by the divine spirits of Heaven and Earth, after the descent they are accomplished by human beings; this is the meaning of Seongsajaein.

Sangje suddenly rebuked Park Gong-u when he came to Guritgol after quarreling with his wife, saying: "When I am harsh, I possess all the harshness in the world; when I am good, I possess all the goodness in the world. How can you, standing before me, engage in such dishonest behavior? Now the divine spirits of Heaven and Earth will seek out positions of fortune (運數, unsu), moving in and out of each person and each household, testing their capacity. If one's nature is not generous and one's household loses its harmonious spirit, the divine spirits will mock that person and say he lacks the capacity to be entrusted with great affairs, and they will lead one another away. How can one who is devoted to the great work be even momentarily negligent in one's thoughts?" (Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 1-42.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 1-42.]

In the passage above, the expression "the divine spirits of Heaven and Earth will seek out positions of fortune" means that after Gucheon's descent in human form, human beings have been transformed into positions of fortune (運數, unsu) where accomplishment (成事) occurs. That the positions of humanity and divine spirits are reversed through Gucheon's descent in human form is because divine spirits have fallen into spiritual calamity (否劫, bigeop) and humanity has fallen into physical calamity (災劫, jaegeop). When the views of humanity in Donghak Thought and Daesoon Thought are compared, Daesoon Thought, compared to Donghak Thought, reinforces fractal thinking through an expansion of correlative thinking. In Daesoon Thought, human beings take the role of yang and divine spirits take the role of yin. (Jeon'gyeong, "Jese" 43.) The Harmonious Transformation of Divine Spirits and Humanity also operates according to the principle of the Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang (陰陽合德, eumyang-habdeok). [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Jese" 43.]

Accomplishing affairs (成事) and planning affairs (謀事) may be understood in terms of the yin-yang and Five Agents of orderly arrangement (調理, jori) and Gi-transformation (氣化, gihwa). The relationship between orderly arrangement and Gi-transformation is reversed in the Later Heaven compared to the Former Heaven. In Donghak Thought, it is the divine spirit that takes the role of earth (土), which mediates among wood, fire, metal, and water, arranging them in order.

In the relationship of Seongsajaein, orderly arrangement and Gi-transformation manifest as human orderly arrangement and divine-spirit Gi-transformation. This is analogous to the relationship between earth and wood-fire-metal-water in the Five Agents framework. Notably, in Daesoon Thought, the orderly arrangement of human beings and the Gi-transformation of divine spirits constitute a cyclical orbit of yin-yang and the Five Agents centered on humanity.

The orderly arrangement of human beings, analogous to earth, and the Gi-transformation of divine spirits, analogous to wood-fire-metal-water, has also been present in both Eastern and Western traditions. In traditional Eastern thought, entities representing the four directions — analogous to wood, fire, metal, and water — have long been expressed as divine animals in the form of the Four Guardian Deities (四神圖, sashindo). In the West as well, deities have been represented as animals. The Western equivalent of the Four Guardian Deities — earth, water, fire, and wind — was regarded by Gaston Bachelard as the fundamental complexes of human imagination. (Tang Hyeon-seon, "Jilbereuoe Dyuranui Sangsanggye Yeongu" [A Study of Gilbert Durand's Imaginary], Master's thesis, Hongik University Graduate School, 2009, pp.28-30.) [Footnote: Tang Hyeon-seon, "Jilbereuoe Dyuranui Sangsanggye Yeongu," Master's thesis, Hongik University Graduate School, 2009, pp.28-30.]

Gilbert Durand, following Bachelard, argues that the ultimate end of imagination is where human symbols become divine and meet, with human symbols first becoming animals and ultimately becoming divine. Whereas until now human beings have sought to become divine, in Korean simjeong culture (心情文化, culture of the heart) it is especially the divine that seeks to become human. (Park Jeong-jin, (Yeosullyuruhakseo-seol) Hanguk-munhwa Simjeong-munhwa [Korean Culture as Heart Culture: A Preface to Art Anthropology], Mirae Munhwasa, 1990, pp.130-146.) [Footnote: Park Jeong-jin, Hanguk-munhwa Simjeong-munhwa, Mirae Munhwasa, 1990, pp.130-146.]

[Footnote: The theory of principle and vital force (理氣論, igiron) of the Former Heaven's yijing studies, which Confucius is said legendarily to have transmitted to Daoist hermits, differs from the Neo-Confucian igiron of Later Heaven yijing studies in that the Supreme Ultimate (太極) and yin-yang Five Agents possess the character of both principle (理) and vital force (氣), and thus encompasses Confucianism, Buddhism, Daoism, and Western learning alike. Yet even Shao Yong's igiron could not adequately respond to Matteo Ricci's criticisms, due to the distortions inherent in yin-yang itself in the Former Heaven and the lack of explanatory power regarding modern science, and the relationship between divine spirits and humanity in the East collapsed. The theory of yin-yang and the Five Agents has both positive and negative aspects. Western scholars tend to evaluate it as objectively as possible, placing it at a minimum on a par with a primitive form of science. Representative figures include Marcel Granet, Angus Graham, Benjamin Schwartz, and Joseph Needham. (Kim Gi, "Eumyang-ohaengseol-ui Jujahak-jeok Jeok-yong-yang-sang-e Gwanhan Yeongu" [A Study on the Neo-Confucian Application of Yin-Yang Five Agents Theory], Ph.D. dissertation, Sungkyunkwan University, 2012, p.4.) By contrast, Eastern scholars tend to regard yin-yang and the Five Agents as more superstitious. (Bang In, "Godae-Jungguk-ui Uju-ron-ui han Hyeongt'ae-ro-seo-ui Eumyang-ohaengseol" [Yin-Yang Five Agents Theory as One Form of Cosmology in Ancient China], Jonggyo Yeongu 4, 1988, p.71.)]

In Daesoon Thought, the quality of liminality in the view of the human realm is also strengthened. The arrogance and materialism of humanity are subjected to reflection (Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-9.), and the first and primordial resentment of humanity is resolved. The flesh of humanity is symbolically removed (Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 3-14.); exile is imposed from Maljeomdo (Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 2-1.); and revitalization is expanded through the paradigm of the White-Robed General and White-Robed Minister (白衣將軍 白衣將相, baeguijanggun baeguijangsang). (Jeon'gyeong, "Haengno" 3-53.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-9.] [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 3-14.] [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 2-1.] [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Haengno" 3-53.]

In the view of the human realm in Daesoon Thought, the elevation of humanity's status is expressed more explicitly than in Donghak Thought. Donghak Thought, having been unable to introduce the concept of divine spirits, expresses the Harmonious Transformation of Divine Spirits and Humanity as "Bullyeongiryeon" (不然其然). "Bullyeongiryeon" means that even those things that are incomprehensible to human beings (不然, bullyeon, "not so") will, through cultivation, eventually become things that can be understood (其然, giryeon, "so it is"). In Daesoon Thought, much of what was Bullyeon in Donghak Thought appears as Giryeon. Because human beings are divine spirits enclosed within a body, they can awaken the divine spirit within and communicate with the divine spirits outside. Transforming and developing through the body into new divine spirits is the purpose for which human beings were born. (Jeon'gyeong, "Jese" 43.) One must find the divine spirit within in order to find one's lost self and be able to walk the path of the human being who brings Heaven and Earth to their fulfillment. Accordingly, in Daesoon Thought, the Opening of a New Heaven and Earth (開闢, gaebyeok) is the success of Heaven and Earth, which is possible only after the emergence of Exemplary Persons of the Tao (道通君子, dotong-gunja) — namely, the world of the Ultimate Realm of Truth (道通眞境, dotong-jinggyeong) in which the dignity of humanity (人尊, injeon) is realized. [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Jese" 43.]

In Daesoon Thought, the Harmonious Transformation of Divine Spirits and Humanity (sininjohwa) becomes the principle of the Opening of a New Heaven and Earth through which Heaven and Earth succeed through human beings. The reason Harmonious Transformation is possible is explained in Daesoon Thought through the yin-yang Five Agents principles of the exchange of metal and fire (金火交易, geumhwa-gyoyeok) and earth overcoming water (土克水, to-geuk-su). Just as the terms "divine spirits fallen into spiritual calamity" and "human beings fallen into physical calamity" suggest, divine spirits corresponding to the Heavenly and Earthly Realms and human beings in Daesoon Thought possess two mutually incompatible attributes in terms of essence and substance. This manifests in the form of "Divine-Human Guidance" (神人依導, sinuiido). (Yi O-ryeong, Dijiro-geu: Hangukin-i Ikkeun Cheomdan-jeongbo-sahoe, geu Mirae-reul Ilneun Ki-weo-deu [DigiLog: The Keyword for Reading the Future of the Advanced Information Society Led by Koreans], Seoul: Saenggak-ui Namu, 2006.) The divine spirits of Heaven and Earth on which Heaven and Earth are grounded are also divine spirits; thus divine spirits, like the digital, are supremely devoted to truth but oriented in only one direction, while human beings, though not precise, possess bodies that can flexibly adapt to change. (Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 46.) Just as the principle of "Heaven is round, Earth is square" (天圓地方) suggests — where the attribute (属性) moves in two directions like a circle (yang) and the substance (實體) moves in one direction like a square (yin) — the combination of these two attributes produces the Harmonious Transformation of Divine Spirits and Humanity and resolves problems. Kim Ji-ha expressed the principle of integrating these two opposing elements of substance and attribute as "the aesthetics of white shadow" (흰그늘의 미학), which Kim Ik-du has interpreted as liminality. (Kim Ji-ha, (Mihakgangeui) Huin Geuneul-ui Mihak-eul Chaj-a-seo [In Search of the Aesthetics of White Shadow: Aesthetics Lectures], Seoul: Silcheon Munhaksa, 2005; Kim Ik-du, "Dong-asia Sasang Sogeui Hwahae-wa Sangsaeng — Hanguk-ui Geun-hyeondae Jeonbuk-ui Sasang-undong-gwa geu Jeongae Yangsang" [Reconciliation and Sangsaeng in East Asian Thought — The Ideological Movement of Modern and Contemporary Jeonbuk, Korea, and Its Development], Proceedings of the 93rd East Asian Ancient Studies Conference, 2023.) The indigenous modernity of Daesoon Thought emphasizes the liminality and revitalization of correlative thinking. [Footnote: Yi O-ryeong, Dijiro-geu, Seoul: Saenggak-ui Namu, 2006.] [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 46.] [Footnote: Kim Ji-ha, Huin Geuneul-ui Mihak-eul Chaj-a-seo, Seoul: Silcheon Munhaksa, 2005; Kim Ik-du, "Dong-asia Sasang Sogeui Hwahae-wa Sangsaeng," Proceedings of the 93rd East Asian Ancient Studies Conference, 2023.]

In Donghak Thought, the Heaven-Human (天人) relationship did not achieve the revitalization of the Daoist development, but in Daesoon Thought it is concretely revitalized. Among religious organizations that take Jeungsan as their object of faith, Daesoon Thought is unique in honoring the divine status of the Supreme Deity with the full honorific title: "Gucheon Eungwon Noeseong Bohwa Cheonjeon Gangseongsangje" (九天應元雷聲普化天尊姜聖上帝).

3. Comparison of Indigenous Modernity in the Heaven-Earth Relationship in Donghak Thought and Daesoon Thought

a. Spirits of Heaven and Earth (天地鬼神, Cheonji-guisin) and Sincerity-Reverence-Faith toward Heaven-Earth (天地誠敬信, Cheonji-seonggyeongsin)

"Cheonji-guisin" (Spirits of Heaven and Earth) and "Cheonji-seonggyeongsin" (Sincerity-Reverence-Faith toward Heaven-Earth) are, respectively, the representative terms in Donghak Thought and Daesoon Thought for the Heaven-Earth relationship, appearing for the first time in each tradition. Cheonji-guisin and Cheonji-seonggyeongsin also clearly illuminate the difference between Donghak Thought, which emphasizes the appearance of Heaven-beyond-Heaven (天外天), and Daesoon Thought, which emphasizes the descent of Gucheon in human form. First, in Donghak Thought, in the case of Cheonji-guisin — meaning that Heaven and Earth are beings created by the yin-yang principles of the transcendent Heaven (超越天) — the term "guisin" (鬼神, spirits) refers to the Heaven-beyond-Heaven of Donghak Thought, and does not refer to divine spirits (神明, sinmyeong). On the other hand, Daesoon Thought's Cheonji-seonggyeongsin — which holds that Heaven and Earth operate through the Sincerity-Reverence-Faith of Heaven and Earth, that the ten thousand things are nurtured through Heaven and Earth, and that human beings' blessings and longevity are thereby determined — emphasizes the Sincerity-Reverence-Faith of divine spirits.

Both Donghak Thought and Daesoon Thought emphasize "Heaven above Heaven," or transcendent Heaven (超越天), and thus the concept of Heaven and Earth here differs from the traditional East Asian concept of Heaven and Earth as yin and yang. When Heaven is regarded as transcendent Heaven, the corresponding Earth also corresponds to both Heaven and Earth. Both Cheonji-guisin and Cheonji-seonggyeongsin refer to the attitude of the divine spirits of Heaven and Earth toward the transcendent deity and the transcendent deity itself.

Examining more specifically: first, in Daesoon Thought, the Three Realms coexist with divine spirits and are operated through the Sincerity-Reverence-Faith of those divine spirits.

天地誠敬信 (Cheonji Seonggyeongsin, Sincerity-Reverence-Faith of Heaven and Earth) (Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-66.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-66.]

"Life (生), longevity (壽命), and blessings (福祿) are the grace of Heaven and Earth; by fulfilling the great principle of repaying the grace of Heaven and Earth (天地報恩, cheonji-bo-eun) with Sincerity-Reverence-Faith (誠敬信), one fulfills the Human Way." (Daesoon Jinrihoe Yoram, "Hunhoe.") [Footnote: Daesoon Jinrihoe Yoram, "Hunhoe."]

These two passages mean that since human life, longevity, and blessings are grace bestowed through the Sincerity-Reverence-Faith of the many divine spirits who operate Heaven and Earth, human beings must also, modeling themselves on Heaven and Earth, repay that grace with Sincerity-Reverence-Faith in order to qualify as persons worthy to receive the grace of Heaven and Earth. This is the background for Sincerity-Reverence-Faith (Seonggyeongsin) being the Three Essential Principles (三要體) among the tenets of Daesoon Jinrihoe. (Daesoon Jinrihoe Yoram, "Sinjeo.") [Footnote: Daesoon Jinrihoe Yoram, "Sinjeo."]

In contrast to Donghak Thought, which emphasizes the significance of the first appearance of the transcendent deity, Daesoon Thought, which emphasizes Gucheon's descent in human form, stresses a different dimension of Heaven and Earth. First, Cheonji-guisin in Donghak Thought is a term emphasizing that Heaven and Earth are the Gi-transformation (氣化作用) of the ultimate vital energy (至氣, jigi) of the transcendent Heaven. Before Donghak Thought emerged, Neo-Confucianism also described Heaven and Earth as "guisin" (spirits), but in Neo-Confucianism this meant a substantive explanation of the workings of yin and yang. Donghak Thought, however, went further than Neo-Confucianism in emphasizing the transcendent Heaven. The meaning that Heaven and Earth are guisin was not a reference to the workings of yin and yang but rather emphasized that they are the Gi-transformation of the transcendent Heaven, thereby providing a new modern turning point in Neo-Confucianism. (Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-6.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-6.]

天地亦是 鬼神이오 鬼神亦是 陰陽인줄 이같이 몰랐으니 經傳 살펴 무엇하며 道와 德을 몰랐으니 賢人君子 어찌알리

"Heaven and Earth are guisin, and guisin are but yin and yang — Not knowing this, what use is studying the classics? Not knowing the Way and virtue, how could the worthy and noble know?" (Yongdam Yusa, "Dodeokga.") [Footnote: Yongdam Yusa, "Dodeokga."]

In the passage above, "guisin" and "the Way and virtue" (道德) signify the transcendent Heaven, while "the classics" (經傳) and "the worthy and noble" (賢人君子) refer to the way of the heaven-under-heaven that Donghak sought to overcome. Donghak Thought pursued a modernity that transcended Neo-Confucianism through the transcendent Heaven, but by failing to encompass the concept of divine spirits, it ultimately could not go beyond the Confucian canon.

Donghak Thought, accepting the concept of guisin only in the sense of transcendent Heaven and unable to incorporate the concept of divine spirits who receive the commands of the transcendent Heaven, did not achieve a successful modernity due to this absence of the divine-spirit concept. Accordingly, Daesoon Thought, having incorporated the concept of divine spirits, expresses Heaven and Earth through Sincerity-Reverence-Faith (誠敬信, seonggyeongsin) in counterpoint to Donghak Thought's expression of Heaven and Earth as guisin.

Sincerity-Reverence-Faith is a term that centrally expresses the relationship between the transcendent Heaven and humanity within East Asian correlative thinking based on yin-yang and the Five Agents. Donghak Thought itself also describes its own teaching as a "Sincerity-Reverence-Faith thought."

吾道博而約不用多言義 別無他道理誠敬信三字 (Donggyeong Daejeon, "Jwajam." Odo-bagi-yak bullyong-da-eon-ui byeolmu-ta-do-ri seonggyeongsin-samja: "Our Way is broad yet concise; there is no need for many words on its principles. There is no other principle whatsoever — it is three words: Sincerity-Reverence-Faith.") [Footnote: Donggyeong Daejeon, "Jwajam." Odo-bagi-yak bullyong-da-eon-ui byeolmu-ta-do-ri seonggyeongsin-samja: "Our Way is broad yet concise; there is no need for many words on its principles. There is no other principle whatsoever — it is three words: Sincerity-Reverence-Faith."]

Sincerity-Reverence-Faith (誠敬信) developed from the concept of Sincerity (誠) in the Doctrine of the Mean, gradually expanding to encompass Reverence (敬) and Faith (信), and appeared in Donghak Thought as a compound term encompassing all three. The reason Donghak Thought treats Sincerity-Reverence-Faith together is, like the compound "vital essence-vital energy-vital spirit" (精氣神), to simultaneously express the respective elements of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity that each of the three contains. In fact, Sincerity (誠) has been translated by Western researchers today as "creativity." (A. N. Whitehead, D. R. Griffin, and D. W. Sherburne, Process and Reality, New York: Free Press, 1929, pp.10-11; cited in Roger Ames and David Hall, trans. Jang Won-seok, Ilsang-sa-e Chokjeom Majchu-gi: Jungyong-ui Beonyeok-gwa Cheolhakjeok Haeseok [Focusing on the Familiar: A Translation and Philosophical Interpretation of the Zhongyong], Seongnam: Academy of Korean Studies Press, 2019, pp.50-51.) [Footnote: A. N. Whitehead, D. R. Griffin, and D. W. Sherburne, Process and Reality, New York: Free Press, 1929, pp.10-11; cited in Roger Ames and David Hall, trans. Jang Won-seok, Ilsang-sa-e Chokjeom Majchu-gi, Seongnam: Academy of Korean Studies Press, 2019, pp.50-51.]

Yet although the same term "Sincerity-Reverence-Faith" (誠敬信) is used, the concept of Sincerity-Reverence-Faith is the area of greatest divergence among Donghak Thought, Daesoon Thought, and indeed Confucian thought as well. Sincerity (誠) was emphasized from Confucian thought onward because Sincerity was the point of connection between Heaven and humanity. Just as the utmost sincerity brings one into unity with Heaven, Sincerity was the primary channel between Heaven and humanity, the primary method of the human "sudden penetrating comprehension" (活然貫通, hwallyeon-gwantong), and was therefore most highly valued in Confucian thought. Early Western-learning (西學) thinkers who encountered Western learning through Confucianism — such as Yi Byeok — also regarded Sincerity as the link between Confucianism and Western Christianity. Donghak Thought emphasizes Sincerity in the sense of revitalizing the lost Confucian tradition, but what differs from Confucianism is that its Sincerity is directed not toward the Heaven-and-Earth Heaven but toward the transcendent Heaven that created Heaven and Earth. Daesoon Thought, by contrast, goes further: this Sincerity is also applied to the Heaven and Earth created by Gucheon, so that the concept of Sincerity in Daesoon Thought appears within the triangular structure of Gucheon, divine spirits, and human beings. In Daesoon Thought, the human repayment of grace through Sincerity applies to both Gucheon and Heaven-Earth simultaneously.

The concept of guisin (spirits) is also the area of greatest divergence among Daesoon Thought, Donghak Thought, and indeed Confucian thought. As the expression "Cheonji-seonggyeongsin" shows, in Daesoon Thought the concept of guisin or divine spirits is linked to Sincerity-Reverence-Faith, but in Donghak Thought or Confucian thought it is not. In Daesoon Thought, the role of the divine spirits of Heaven and Earth — which was not specified in Confucian thought or Donghak Thought — is emphasized. This can be examined in more detail as follows.

From the perspective of natural philosophy, the concept of guisin explained as vital energy (氣, gi) that disperses could not guarantee the eternity of the guisin who are the objects of ancestral rites; and the religious concept of guisin, which supplemented eternity to support the significance of ancestral rites, was not a theory that fit smoothly within the Neo-Confucian doctrine premised on the finitude of vital energy.

Guisin interpreted from the natural-philosophical standpoint of Neo-Confucianism are beings that are the union of principle (理, i) and vital energy (氣, gi), moving back and forth between essence and phenomenon, between being and non-being. When such a concept of guisin is applied to human affairs, it refers to beings in the process from primordial nothingness to birth, and from death back to primordial nothingness. In the theory of principle and vital force, guisin are not incomprehensible supernatural entities but rather the intermediate process through which various things and phenomena in nature come into being and cease to be — a concept that grasps nature, composed of principle and vital force, from the perspective of its transformative operation. As one scholar wrote: "What manifests outwardly is vital energy (氣) and what subtly inheres within it is principle (理); these taken together are called guisin." (Nam Hyo-on, trans. Pak Dae-hyeon, Chugangji [Collected Works of Nam Hyo-on], Seoul: Minjok Munhwa Ch'ujinhoe, 2007, vol. 5, 35b.) [Footnote: Nam Hyo-on, trans. Pak Dae-hyeon, Chugangji, Seoul: Minjok Munhwa Ch'ujinhoe, 2007, vol. 5, 35b.]

This understanding holds that guisin are not at the level of primordial beings like principle or vital energy themselves, but rather exist as realities in nature — formed when principle and vital energy are bound together — and exercise a governing power (主宰力, jujaelyeok) that spontaneously generates transformation. If guisin were understood solely through vital energy, they would be perceived as entirely material; conversely, if regarded solely through principle, they would remain at the level of abstract, principial beings. Therefore, for guisin to be wondrous beings that possess governing power in themselves, they must have both elements of principle and vital energy. The question of which of the two should be given greater weight in explaining guisin — and whether the co-presence of principle and vital energy is a matter of parallel coexistence (竝存, pyeongjeon) or of complete unity (合一, habil) — became a sustained topic of discussion among later Neo-Confucian scholars.

Neo-Confucianism holds that the human body, like all other things, is constituted of vital energy. The birth of a human being occurs when the vital energy of father and mother, together with the vital energy circulating in the surroundings at that moment, combines in the mother's womb to form an independent living being. Human death is the reverse of this process: when the life of an independent human being comes to an end, the vital energy composing the body disperses and disappears back into nature. Yet this dispersal of vital energy does not happen instantaneously at the moment of death; rather, it proceeds gradually over a long period of time. The logic by which the elaborate and ceaseless ancestral rites performed by the royal court and aristocratic families throughout the Joseon period were directed toward a real, actually existing being — rather than being a fiction or a mere concept — was based on precisely this point. The guisin of a deceased person who is the object of ancestral rites — the so-called "human spirit" (人鬼, in-gwi) — although finite in that it is in the process of dissolution, nonetheless exists as a real being capable of receiving the ancestral rites until its complete dissolution.

It has been argued by some Neo-Confucian scholars that the doctrine of the immortality of the soul is a strained theory when measured against the premise of Neo-Confucian dualism of principle and vital force, which assigns only vital energy the capacity for action while reserving a purely principial character for principle. However, the point we should meaningfully recognize is that the entity called "principle" (理, i) as conceived by Joseon Neo-Confucian scholars was not merely a natural and ethical principle devoid of will and deliberation, but was also understood as a luminously spiritual (靈明, yeongmyeong) existence that underwrites the eternity of human being. (Korean Research Society for the History of Thought, Joseon Yuhak-ui Gaenyeomdeul [Concepts of Joseon Confucianism], Yemun Seowon, 2002.) [Footnote: Korean Research Society for the History of Thought, Joseon Yuhak-ui Gaenyeomdeul, Yemun Seowon, 2002.]

A notable difference in the Heaven-Earth and Earth-Human relationships of Donghak Thought and Daesoon Thought lies in their differing perceptions of the West. If Donghak, as the first to assert indigenous modernity, emphasizes a position in opposition to Western learning (西學) — as the name "Donghak" (Eastern Learning) itself suggests — then Daesoon Thought, as the term "Daesoon" (Grand Circuit) suggests, emphasizes embrace and inclusion. Accordingly, Daesoon Thought, in relation to indigenous modernity, presents the Eastern origins of Western modernity. Surveying recent research on the formation of Donghak Thought in relation to indigenous modernity: Donghak Thought originated from the Eastern origins of Western modernity, was reversely re-imported to the East together with Western learning, and then developed autochthonously in the East — taking the form of a revelation from Sangje through "the dialogue with the Heavenly Teacher" (天師問答, cheonsajomundap), as Neo-Confucianism was synthesized with late Chinese Daoism, such as Southern Elixir Daoism (南丹道教, nantan-dogyeo), that had developed indigenously in China. (Kim Yun-gyeong, Hanguk Dogyosa [A History of Korean Daoism], Seoul: Munsacheol, 2020.) [Footnote: Kim Yun-gyeong, Hanguk Dogyosa, Seoul: Munsacheol, 2020.]

b. Enduring Presence of Tao and Gi (道氣長存, Dogi-jangjon) and Mutual Life (相生, Sangsaeng)

The concept of Sangsaeng (Mutual Life) is the term that shows the most representative difference between Donghak Thought and Daesoon Thought in their conceptions of Earth. The fact that the concept of Sangsaeng is used in connection with abstract concepts — as in Haewon Sangsaeng (解冤相生, resolving resentment through mutual life) — appears for the first time in Daesoon Thought among Jeungsan thought traditions. The reason Sangsaeng, as used in yin-yang and the Five Agents, can be used alongside abstract concepts in Daesoon Thought is rooted — as seen in orderly arrangement (jori) and Gi-transformation (gihwa) — in the relationship between Gucheon and divine spirits, understood as the mediation of wood-fire-metal-water by earth.

Although the concept of yin-yang and the Five Agents also appears in Donghak Thought and functioned as the standard of science in the East for more than two thousand years since Dong Zhongshu, the use of the core concepts of yin-yang and the Five Agents alongside expressions such as Haewon Sangsaeng is a theoretical derivation from the standpoint of Gucheon — alongside the Three Realms, the Three Powers, and the Former Heaven and Later Heaven. In Daesoon Thought, yin-yang and the Five Agents are the principle by which Gucheon operates the Three Realms together with yin-yang, the Three Powers, and the Five Agents (音陽合德 三才確立 五行具備, eumyang-habdeok samjae-hwakrib ohaeng-gubib), as expressed in the "Founding Charter of Mugeukdo" (無極道 取旨書, Mugeukdo-chwijiseo).

In Daesoon Thought, Gucheon operates yin-yang and the Five Agents in accordance with the arrangements of the River Diagram (河圖, Hado) and the Luo Writing (洛書, Nakseo), and accordingly the spontaneous transformation of growth-flourishing-harvesting-storing (生長斂藏, saeng-jang-yeom-jang) occurs without deliberate action (無爲而化, muwiihwa). Divine spirits, in accordance with Gucheon's intention, fulfill their roles as the divine spirits of Heaven and Earth through infinite overlapping, which constitutes the world-view of Daesoon Thought's indigenous modernity as presented by Gucheon.

Here, mutual conflict (相克, sanggeuek) and mutual life (相生, sangsaeng) are elevated beyond the operating principles of yin-yang and the Five Agents to become the core principles of all things. Traditional mutual conflict and mutual life, through indigenous modernity, are applied to everyday things and become the standard for evaluating and judging those everyday things. (Jeon'gyeong, "Jese" 43.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Jese" 43.]

Yin-yang and the Five Agents also appear in Donghak Thought, but mutual conflict and mutual life are not emphasized. The importance of mutual conflict and mutual life is emphasized during the Works of Heaven and Earth (天地公事, cheonji-gongsa) conducted by Gucheon after the descent in human form, through the mediation of yin-yang and the Five Agents. (Jeon'gyeong, "Jese" 43.) Yin-yang and the Five Agents appear not only in the importance of the Infinite Ultimate (無極, mugeuk) emphasized by Donghak Thought, but also in the importance of the Supreme Ultimate (太極, taegeuk). [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Jese" 43.]

The Supreme Ultimate unfolds from yin-yang into the Three Powers and the Five Agents, ultimately becoming yin-yang and the Five Agents. What remains unchanged in yin-yang and the Five Agents is the central element of earth (土), the unseen middle. The yin and yang that Dong Zhongshu combined with the Five Agents are fully integrated only through the River Diagram and Luo Writing (Hado Nakseo) rediscovered by Shao Yong. Shao Yong publicly revealed the River Diagram, Luo Writing, and Eight Trigrams (八卦) of Fu Xi (伏羲) — legendarily said to have been transmitted to Daoist thinkers by Confucius — and unified yin-yang and the Five Agents with the Eight Trigrams. (Ko Hoe-min, trans. Kwak Sin-hwan, Sogang-jeol-ui Seoncheok-yeonghak [Shao Yong's Yijing Studies of the Former Heaven], Seoul: Simsan, 2007.) According to Shao Yong's interpretation of yin-yang and the Five Agents, unified through the River Diagram and Luo Writing, the universe is an infinite repetition of yin-yang and the Five Agents, in which wood-fire-metal-water move in mutual conflict and mutual life centered on earth (土) at the middle. If yin-yang and the Five Agents signify endless transformation, there must exist something that remains unchanged — enabling yin-yang and the Five Agents to transform endlessly, just like the Supreme Ultimate — and this is principle (理, i), which, corresponding to the yin-yang Five Agents of vital energy (氣), takes on the attributes of Yuan-Heng-Li-Zhen (元亨利貞, original nature-penetration-appropriate benefit-firm correctness). In fact, the concept of Yuan-Heng-Li-Zhen is used to refer to the four common attributes of cyclically recurring patterns, such as spring-summer-autumn-winter, morning-noon-evening-night, and early life-prime-middle age-old age. Just as in infinite nested cycles, it is said that Yuan-Heng-Li-Zhen inheres in each individual affair and each individual thing, as well as in all affairs and all things. (Yun Yong-nam, "Juja (朱子) I-seol (理說)-ui Jae-guseong" [Reconstituting Zhu Xi's Theory of Principle], Dongyang Cheolhak Yeongu 8, 1988, pp.52-54.) Ultimately, in Shao Yong's system, principle (理) is earth (土) — the invisible center in the Five Agents — and Yuan-Heng-Li-Zhen; while vital energy (氣) is wood-fire-metal-water — the phenomena manifesting around the periphery in the Five Agents — and yin-yang and the Five Agents themselves. (Choe Jin-deok, "Jujahak-ui I-giron-gwa Guisinron" [Neo-Confucian Theory of Principle-Vital Force and Theory of Spirits], Yangmyeonghak 23, Korean Yangming Studies Association, 2009, pp.381-383.) [Footnote: Ko Hoe-min, trans. Kwak Sin-hwan, Sogang-jeol-ui Seoncheok-yeonghak, Seoul: Simsan, 2007.] [Footnote: In fact, the concept of Yuan-Heng-Li-Zhen is used to refer to the four common attributes of cyclically recurring patterns such as spring-summer-autumn-winter, morning-noon-evening-night, and early life-prime-middle age-old age. Just as in infinite nested cycles, Yuan-Heng-Li-Zhen inheres in each individual affair and thing, as well as in all affairs and all things. (Yun Yong-nam, "Juja I-seol-ui Jae-guseong," Dongyang Cheolhak Yeongu 8, 1988, pp.52-54.)] [Footnote: Choe Jin-deok, "Jujahak-ui I-giron-gwa Guisinron," Yangmyeonghak 23, Korean Yangming Studies Association, 2009, pp.381-383.]

In yin-yang and the Five Agents, mutual conflict is as indispensable as mutual life. However, since balance is important in both, an excessive tilt toward mutual conflict raises the concern that mutual conflict will be maximized. The indigenous modernity of Donghak Thought pursues the power of mutual conflict — as seen in the emphasis on the Enduring Presence of Tao and Gi (道氣長存, dogi-jangjon), Gi-transformation, and anti-Japanese sentiment (斥倭, cheokwae).

In Donghak Thought, the phrase "dogi-jangjon" (道氣長存, Enduring Presence of Tao and Gi) appears in the "Ipchunsi" (立春詩, Spring Couplet Poem) written by Suun at the beginning of the gyeongsin year, just before the Dialogue with the Heavenly Teacher (天師問答), when he resolved to dedicate himself fully to cultivation:

道氣長存邪不入, 世間衆人不同歸 (Dogi-jangjon sa-bullib, segan-jungin bu-donggwi: "Preserving the vital energy of the Way enduringly, evil things cannot enter; I shall not follow the course of the multitudes of this world.") [Footnote: Dogi-jangjon sa-bullib, segan-jungin bu-donggwi: "Preserving the vital energy of the Way enduringly, evil things cannot enter; I shall not follow the course of the multitudes of this world."]

The passage above may seem a simple expression of firm resolve in one's cultivation, but the Jeon'gyeong reveals that it contains a significant meaning from the perspective of mutual conflict and mutual life.

In Suun's verse it says "道氣長存邪不入 (dogi-jangjon sa-bullib)" — that with the enduring presence of the vital energy of the Way, evil cannot enter. But Sangje said instead: "眞心堅守福先來 (jinsim-gyeonsul bok-seonrae) — guard the true mind firmly, and blessings come first." (Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 2-3.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 2-3.]

In the passage above, Suun's "dogi-jangjon" (Enduring Presence of Tao and Gi) is contrasted with "jinsim-gyeonsul" (guard the true mind firmly). The passage contrasts "dogi-jangjon" with "jinsim-gyeonsul," emphasizing the idea of meeting force with force. Regarding meeting force with force, the Jeon'gyeong states the following.

"Repaying evil with evil is like washing blood with blood." (Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 1-34.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 1-34.]

The injunction against repaying evil with evil does not mean, in the Jeon'gyeong, that one should accede to the unjust demands of others. On the contrary, the Jeon'gyeong criticizes the failure to refuse unjust demands as weakness. The point is simply to emphasize that in resolving problems, mutual conflict must be resolved through mutual life.

The area where mutual conflict and mutual life are most prominently manifested in the indigenous modernity of Donghak Thought and Daesoon Thought concerns the relationship with the West and Japan. Regarding the West first:

東有大聖人曰東學 西有大聖人曰西學 (Jeon'gyeong, "Haengno" 5-38. Dongyudae-seongin waldong-hak seoyudae-seongin walseohak: "In the East there is a great sage who calls it Eastern Learning; in the West there is a great sage who calls it Western Learning." — Education Department, "Dolbyeongpung," Daesoon Hoebo 119, 2011.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Haengno" 5-38. Dongyudae-seongin waldong-hak seoyudae-seongin walseohak: "In the East there is a great sage who calls it Eastern Learning; in the West there is a great sage who calls it Western Learning." (Education Department, "Dolbyeongpung," Daesoon Hoebo 119, 2011.)]

In the passage above, Daesoon Thought regards Western learning as on the same level as Eastern learning, belonging to the ranks of the sages. Unlike Donghak Thought, which expressed great wariness toward the West, Daesoon Thought regards East and West as being in a Sangsaeng relationship of the Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang (陰陽合德, eumyang-habdeok). A figure such as Matteo Ricci appears as someone who pierced the boundary between East and West and transmitted celestial civilization to the Earth. In fact, even in the Silhak (Practical Learning) of the late Joseon period, there was an ambivalent attitude toward Western learning.

[Footnote: Among the Seongho school, representative of Joseon late-Silhak, Christian thought is seen to have provoked roughly three types of response. The first was the position exemplified by An Jeong-bok: accepting that there was something to learn from Western learning as science, while clearly rejecting Christian thought as religion or philosophy. The second was the opposite — embracing Christian thought as a religion and proceeding to the point of actual faith. Seongho's disciples classified as the "pro-Western faction" (信西派, Sinseopa) — Yi Byeok (1754-1786), Gwon Cheol-sin (1736-1801), Yi Seung-hun (1756-1801), Yi Ga-hwan (1742-1801), and others — fall into this category. The third was the effort, stimulated by Christian thought, to return to the original standpoint of ancient Confucianism and to establish a new theoretical system for questions of nature and humanity. The philosophy of Jeong Yak-yong (Dasan, 1762-1836), the most representative figure of late-Joseon Silhak, falls into this third category. (Korean Research Society for the History of Thought, Joseon Yuhak-ui Gaenyeomdeul, Yemun Seowon, 2002.) Jeong Yak-yong, the leading scholar of the period, is said to have accepted Sangje and the theory of principle and vital force but rejected yin-yang and the Five Agents — the theoretical foundation of divine spirits. (Kim Seon-hui, "Yuhakja-ga Bala-bon Yusin-ron-jeok Segye" [A Theistic World as Seen by a Confucian Scholar], Conference Proceedings, Korean Association for the Study of Religion, 2014; Jeon Seong-geon, "Dasan Yeongji-seol-ui Sinhakjeok Ganeungseong" [The Theological Possibility of Dasan's Theory of Numinous Knowledge], Conference Proceedings, Korean Association for the Study of Religion, 2014.)]

Regarding Japan next: the first event to be realized after Jeungsan's (Gang Jeungsan's) ascension to Heaven was the "resolution of Japan's resentment" (일본해원, Ilbon-haewon). (Ko Nam-sik, "Geun-hyeondaegi Gang Jeungsan Seungseueng-e Natanan Ilbon Gwallyeon Girok-ui Yangsang-gwa Uimi — Daesun Jeongyeong (1929-1965)-eul Jungshim-euro" [Patterns and Meanings of Japan-Related Records in the Transmission of Gang Jeungsan in the Modern and Contemporary Period], Ilbon Geundae Hak Yeongu, 2023.) In contrast to Donghak Thought's characterization of the Japanese as "dog-like Japanese enemies" (개같은 왜적놈), Daesoon Thought says that since the Japanese are Japanese people, one should at least treat them generously in one's manner of speech. (Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 2-4.) [Footnote: Ko Nam-sik, "Geun-hyeondaegi Gang Jeungsan Seungseueng-e Natanan Ilbon Gwallyeon Girok-ui Yangsang-gwa Uimi," Ilbon Geundae Hak Yeongu, 2023.] [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 2-4.]

Sangje said one day: "If I were to hand Joseon over to the West, the discrimination of races would make the oppression severe and there would be no way to survive. If I were to hand it to China, that people's sluggishness would make them unable to manage the aftermath. As for Japan, since the time of the Japanese invasions of the 1590s, a resentment has been tied between the spirit-practitioners of Joseon and Japan, and so it must be entrusted to them in order for the resentment to be resolved. Therefore I intend to endow them temporarily with the vital energy of unifying the world under heaven (一時天下統一之氣) and the vital energy of the great brilliance of the sun and moon (日月大明之氣), so that they might render their service. There is, however, one thing I cannot give them — and that is Benevolence (仁, in). If I were to endow them even with Benevolence, all under heaven would go to them. Therefore I endow you with Benevolence — guard it well." He then said: "You will become people who are at ease. They will merely work; illuminate all matters clearly for them. When they have finished their work and depart, they will go away empty-handed without receiving their wages, so treat them generously in your manner of speech."

The Jeon'gyeong presents, as a historical interpretation of indigenous modernity, a path of Sangsaeng (mutual life) in which — beyond the mutual conflict with Japan, and after the resolution of Japan's resentment, connected from the fall of Baekje through to the Japanese invasions of the 1590s — Joseon can become a superior nation through receiving China's gratitude-repayment.

4. Comparison of Indigenous Modernity in Heaven-Human and Earth-Human Relations in Donghak Thought and Daesoon Thought

a. Human Way (人道) and Divine Way (神道) in the Heaven-Human Relationship

Daesoon Thought distinguishes between the Human Way (人道, indo) — pursued by human beings — and the Divine Way (神道, sindo) — operating through divine spirits — calling them "Heavenly Mandate" (天命, cheonmyeong) and "Divine Teaching" (神敎, singyo) respectively.

When Sangje was in Gucheon, divine spirits (sinseong-bul-bosal) appealed to him that none but Sangje could rectify the Three Realms that had fallen into chaos. He descended to the Celestial Revelation Tower (天啓塔, Cheongyetap) of the Great Law Kingdom (大法國, Daebeop-guk) in the West, made a grand circuit of the Three Realms and traversed the whole world, then stopped in the Eastern land, resided in the Mireuk Golden Statue (彌勒金像) at Geumsan Temple (金山寺) on Moak Mountain (母岳山) for thirty years. He then bestowed Heavenly Mandate and Divine Teaching upon Choe Suun to establish the Great Way, but in the jiahzi year (甲子年) withdrew the Heavenly Mandate and Divine Teaching, and in the xinwei year (辛未年) decided to descend himself into the world. (Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 1.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 1.]

The essential difference between the Divine Way and the Human Way is that since divine spirits are constituents of Heaven and Earth, the Divine Way entails structural transformation. There are those who regard the Divine Way as the ultimate reality and as the basis for Haewon Sangsaeng. (Kim Ui-seong, Daesoon Sasang-ui Cheolhakjeok T'angu [A Philosophical Investigation of Daesoon Thought], Ph.D. dissertation, Sungkyunkwan University, 2017.) Therefore the Divine Way, which parallels the Works of Heaven and Earth, manifests as the re-establishment of the Heaven-Human relationship. [Footnote: There are those who regard the Divine Way as the ultimate reality and as the basis for Haewon Sangsaeng. (Kim Ui-seong, Daesoon Sasang-ui Cheolhakjeok T'angu, Ph.D. dissertation, Sungkyunkwan University, 2017.)]

"When great and small affairs are governed through the Divine Way, wondrous and immeasurable achievements are accomplished — this is spontaneous transformation (無爲化, muwi-hwa). I will rectify the Divine Way, align all things with the proper principle, and determine the boundless fortune of the blessed land; as the proper measures arrive in their turn, new foundations will open.

"If the past Japanese invasions of the 1590s had been handled by Choe Pung-heon (崔風憲), it would have been pacified within three days; if Jinmuk (震默) had dealt with it, it would not have exceeded three months; if Song Gu-bong (宋龜峰) had handled it, it would have been pacified in eight months. This is merely because the methods of Daoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism differ. In ancient times the field was narrow and affairs were simple, so using only one method was sufficient to rectify the chaos. But today East and West have entered into exchange, the field has widened and affairs have grown complex, and without combining all methods, chaos cannot be rectified." (Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 73.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Yesi" 73.]

In the passage above, the expression "as the proper measures arrive in their turn, new foundations will open" indicates that since divine spirits are constituents of Heaven and Earth, the Divine Way entails structural transformation. Ultimately, Daesoon Thought regrets that Donghak Thought, having insufficiently understood the Divine Way — that is, "Heavenly Mandate" and "Divine Teaching" (신교, singo) — scarcely mentions divine spirits and did not significantly depart from the Human Way. Traditionally, the Human Way has meant the way of human artifice, while the Divine Way has meant the necessary, natural way of nature. Daesoon Thought also follows the traditional distinction between the Human Way and the Divine Way. (Daesoon Jichim, Chapter 1, Section 1.) [Footnote: Daesoon Jichim, Chapter 1, Section 1.]

In Donghak Thought, the appearance of Heaven-beyond-Heaven was revolutionary, but since it could not explain the existence and role of divine spirits, the relationship between Heaven-beyond-Heaven and humanity could not transcend the Confucian scope of the Human Way. Donghak Thought chose the path of the Human Way (人道) — communicating with Heaven-beyond-Heaven by doing one's utmost as a human being.

One day the disciples, following Sangje's instruction, were writing while thinking of the great commanders throughout history, when Gyeong-seok asked Sangje: "Can founding sovereigns also be called great commanders?" Sangje replied: "They can." Gyeong-seok then enumerated, in order, the Yellow Emperor, Tang, Wu, Taigong, Liu Bang the founder of Han, and at the end wrote down Jeon Myeong-suk and presented it to Sangje. Sangje asked: "Why did you place Jeon Myeong-suk at the end?" Gyeong-seok replied: "If you read the text from the left, Jeon Myeong-suk is in first place." Sangje affirmed this and said to the disciples: "Jeon Myeong-suk is the greatest commander of ten thousand ages. Rising as a common scholar in white clothes, he was able to move all under heaven." (Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-34.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-34.]

In the passage above, the Donghak Peasant Movement sought to honor the lowborn (天人, cheonin) and make them into aristocrats (兩班, yangban). It served as the fuse for a series of events extending from the Sino-Japanese War through the Russo-Japanese War and the First and Second World Wars. Donghak Thought is evaluated not only at the time but even today as the genuine original modern ideological movement, more so than the French Revolution, and an annual World Revolutionary Cities Solidarity Conference is held in Jeongeup in its honor. However, in Daesoon Thought, in the Heaven-Human relationship, the Divine Way (神道) — communicating together with the divine spirits of Heaven and Earth — is emphasized more than Donghak Thought's Human Way (人道) of seeking direct communication with Heaven-beyond-Heaven.

水生於火 火生於水 金生於木 木生於金 其用可知然後 方可謂神人也 陰殺陽生 陽殺陰生 生殺之道 在於陰陽 人可用陰陽然後 方可謂人生也 人爲陽 神爲陰 陰陽相合然後 有變化之道也 不測變化之術 都在於神明 感通神明然後 事其事則謂之大仁大義也

(Jeon'gyeong, "Jese" 43. Su-saeng-eo-hwa hwa-saeng-eo-su geum-saeng-eo-mok mok-saeng-eo-geum gi-yong-ga-ji-yeon-hu bang-ga-wi-sinya: "Water is born from fire and fire from water; metal is born from wood and wood from metal — only after one can know their uses may one truly be called a Divine Human. Eum-sal-yang-saeng yang-sal-eum-saeng saeng-sal-ji-do jae-eo-eumyang in-ga-yong-eumyang-yeon-hu bang-ga-wi-insaeng-ya: When yin is killed yang lives, and when yang is killed yin lives; the Way of life and death lies in yin and yang — only after a human being can employ yin and yang may one truly be called a human life. In-wi-yang sin-wi-eum eumyang-sang-hap-yeon-hu yu-byeonhwa-ji-do-ya: A person is yang and a divine spirit is yin — only after yin and yang are mutually harmonized is there a Way of transformation. Bul-cheuk-byeonhwa-ji-sul do-jae-eo-sinmyeong gam-tong-sinmyeong-yeon-hu sa-gi-sa-cheuk-wi-ji-daein-daeuiya: The wondrous arts of unpredictable transformation all reside in the divine spirits (神明); only after one has resonated with and communicated with the divine spirits and then accomplished one's affairs may it be called Great Benevolence and Great Righteousness (大仁大義, daein-daeuei)." — Yang Mu-mok, "Salvation Truth as Eumyang Habdeok and Democracy," Daesoon Sasang Nonchong 2, 1997, pp.175-176.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Jese" 43. (Full classical Chinese text and Korean translation as in original.)]

In the passage above, since a person is yang and a divine spirit is yin (人爲陽 神爲陰), and since a person must know how to employ yin and yang to be called a human life (人可用陰陽然後 方可謂人生也), the concept of yin-yang emphasized and pursued in Daesoon Thought advocates for the proper alignment of yin and yang (正陰正陽, jeong-eum-jeong-yang) and the attainment of the Union of Virtue (合德, habdeok) through harmonization — thereby showing that an ideal world can be constructed. (Yi Ho-yeol, Daesoon Sasang-ui Eumyang-non-e Gwanhan Yeongu [A Study on the Theory of Yin-Yang in Daesoon Thought], Master's thesis, Daejin University, 2015.) A human being fulfills the minimum condition for being a person who knows how to employ yin and yang only after learning to work together with divine spirits (感通神明然後 事其事). [Footnote: The concept of yin-yang emphasized and pursued in Daesoon Thought advocates for the proper alignment of yin and yang and the attainment of the Union of Virtue through harmonization, thereby showing that an ideal world can be constructed. (Yi Ho-yeol, Daesoon Sasang-ui Eumyang-non-e Gwanhan Yeongu, Master's thesis, Daejin University, 2015.)]

Sangje said to Kim Hyeong-ryeol: "In the Former Heaven, all things in the human world were governed by mutual conflict (相克, sanggeuek), so that resentment accumulated and filled the Three Realms. Heaven and Earth thereby lost their proper way, disasters of every kind arose, and the world became wretched. Therefore I will set the proper measures of Heaven and Earth in order, harmonize the divine spirits, resolve the accumulated resentments of ten thousand ages, and establish the blessed land of the Later Heaven through the Way of Mutual Life (相生, sangsaeng), thereby saving the people of the world. Whatever the matter, great or small, resentments must first be resolved through the Divine Way. If the proper measures are first firmly established and brought into harmony, that will serve as a foundation and human affairs will naturally be accomplished. This is what is meant by the Public Works of the Three Realms." He then began a part of the works relating to the Underworld. (Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-3.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 1-3.]

In the passage above, the statement "Whatever the matter, great or small, resentments must first be resolved through the Divine Way" reveals that Donghak Thought and Western modernity, failing to understand the elements of divine spirits and resentment, could not show successful results in great and small affairs alike.

In Daesoon Thought, the characteristic of Confucianism is regarded as being centered on a human-centered doctrinal system that does not emphasize divine spirits — referred to as "decorum and regulations" (儒志凡節, yuji-beomjeol). In fact, Confucianism has traditionally maintained the convention of "reverence toward but keeping distance from spirits" (敬而遠之, gyeong-i-won-ji) — acknowledging divine spirits (敬) while not drawing near to them (遠之). ("Fan Chi asked about wisdom. The Master said: 'Devote yourself to what is right for the people; be reverent toward spirits and deities but keep them at a distance — this may be called wisdom.'" Analects, "Yongya.") [Footnote: "Fan Chi asked about wisdom. The Master said: 'Devote yourself to what is right for the people; be reverent toward spirits and deities but keep them at a distance — this may be called wisdom.'" (Analects, "Yongya.")]

The re-establishment of the view of the Three Realms connects to the Heaven-Human relationship through the re-establishment of the divine-human relationship in terms of orderly arrangement (jori) and Gi-transformation (gihwa). After Gucheon's descent in human form, orderly arrangement and Gi-transformation can now transform mutual conflict into mutual life, making possible the harmonization of divine spirits and the resolution of human resentment through human beings.

The difference between Donghak Thought, which emphasizes the appearance of Heaven-beyond-Heaven, and Daesoon Thought, which emphasizes Gucheon's descent in human form, lies in the mediation of human contradiction through empathy — that is, the human employment of yin and yang — which operates through human orderly arrangement and divine-spirit Gi-transformation. Shao Yong, like the Jeon'gyeong, shows that human beings can bring divine spirits into orderly arrangement through the empathy and righteousness of the heart.

b. Heart-Urgency in the Confucian Way (心急道儒, Simgeup-doyu) and Exemplary Person of the Tao (道通君子, Dotong-gunja) in the Earth-Human Relationship

The most prominent difference between Donghak Thought and Daesoon Thought in the view of the Earthly Realm (地界觀, jigye-gwan) is that the Opening of a New Heaven and Earth in Daesoon Thought explicitly specifies the attainment of the Tao (道通, dotong) by twelve thousand Exemplary Persons of the Tao (道通君子, dotong-gunja) through Geumgangsan (Diamond Mountain), and thereafter the Ultimate Realm of Truth (道通眞境, dotong-jinggyeong), and that orienting itself toward the emergence of Exemplary Persons of the Tao is described as the "true Donghak." In Donghak Thought, which does not involve divine spirits, the realization of the Way manifested as social practice. In the society of the time, the realization of the Way was the this-worldly aspiration that even the common people could become kings and aristocrats. For those practicing Donghak Thought, the meaning of the appearance of Heaven-beyond-Heaven ultimately resulted in what is called "Simgeup-doyu" (心急道儒, Heart-Urgency in the Confucian Way — those Donghak practitioners impatient for the fruits of cultivation). (Yu Ji-yeon, "Hwang Hyeon (1855-1910)-ui Dong-hak-e Daehan Inshik-gwa Bipan: Oha Gimun-eul Jungshim-euro" [Hwang Hyeon's Understanding and Critique of Donghak: Focusing on the Oha Gimun], I-won Haksul Nonchip 2, 2004, pp.1-54.) [Footnote: Yu Ji-yeon, "Hwang Hyeon-ui Dong-hak-e Daehan Inshik-gwa Bipan," I-won Haksul Nonchip 2, 2004, pp.1-54.]

"Simgeup-doyu" refers to the subjects addressed in Suun's poetic admonition to his followers found in "Tan-Doyu-Simgeup" (歎道儒心急, "Lamenting the Heart-Urgency of the Confucian Way Practitioners") in the Donggyeong Daejeon, thought to be a late composition. (Kim Gi-seung, "Suun Choe Je-u Jeojak-ui Yeondae-gi-jeok Geomt'o" [A Chronological Review of Suun Choe Je-u's Works], Donghak Hakbo 3, 2002, pp.159-162.) Suun called his Donghak followers "doyu" (道儒, Confucian Way practitioners), and in this poem he cautioned against those followers who impatiently desired rapid results from their cultivation, calling them "simgeup-doyu." The full text reads:

"The great fortune of mountains and rivers all returns to this Way; its source is most deep and its principles most far-reaching. Only by firmly establishing my heart's pillar will I know the taste of the Way; only when a single thought resides here will all things go as I wish. Sweep away turbid energy and nurture clear energy as one would tend an infant. Not merely by the extremity of one's heart, but only by rectifying the heart does one arrive. Subtle luminous intelligence naturally flows out with a transcendent quality, and all affairs to come will return to one principle. Do not deliberate upon the small faults of others in your own heart; bestow your small wisdom upon others. Thus, do not devote this great Way to small matters. When encountering great affairs, if you exhaust your deliberation, assistance will naturally come. The great fortune of wind and clouds follows one's capacity. The mysterious mechanism does not reveal itself — do not make your heart urgent. On the day of success, you will forge a fine transcendent affinity. The heart is originally empty; responding to things, it leaves no trace. Through the cultivation of the heart, virtue is known; only illuminating virtue is the Way. It resides in virtue and not in persons; it resides in faith and not in effort; it resides in what is near and not in what is far; it resides in sincerity and not in seeking. Though it seems not so, it is so; though it seems far, it is not far." (Chondogyo Scripture.) [Footnote: Kim Gi-seung, "Suun Choe Je-u Jeojak-ui Yeondae-gi-jeok Geomt'o," Donghak Hakbo 3, 2002, pp.159-162.] [Footnote: Full text of "Tan-Doyu-Simgeup" (Chondogyo Scripture) provided in original.]

山河大運 盡歸此道 其源極深 其理甚遠 固我心柱 乃知道味 一念在玆 萬事如意 消除濁氣 兒養淑氣 非徒心至 惟在正心 隱隱聰明 仙出自然 來頭百事 同歸一理 他人細過 勿論我心 我心小慧 以施於人 如斯大道 勿誠小事 臨勳盡料 自然有助 風雲大手 隨其器局 玄機不露 勿爲心急 功成他日 好作仙緣 心兮本虛 應物無迹 心修來而知德 德惟明而是道 在德不在於人 在信不在於工 在近不在於遠 在誠不在於求 不然而其然 似遠而非遠

By contrast, in Daesoon Thought — where divine spirits are introduced through Gucheon's descent in human form — the aim was to realize the terrestrial immortals (地上神仙, jisang-sinseon) and celestial kingdom on earth of the present world, but not to covet kingship and aristocratic status with impatient urgency (欲速不達, yoksokbuldal) as in Donghak Thought. (Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 3-41.) Daesoon Thought, with the long-term vision that looks far ahead to the Later Heaven, was devoted to the ordinary affairs of daily life. Daesoon Thought, oriented toward the Later Heaven, explicitly specifies Geumgangsan and the appearance of Exemplary Persons of the Tao (道通君子) after the Opening — elements that do not appear in Donghak Thought — and states that orienting toward the emergence of Exemplary Persons of the Tao is the "true Donghak." (Jeon'gyeong, "Gweonji" 1-11.) Since the view of the Three Realms in Daesoon Thought aims at the emergence of Exemplary Persons of the Tao as its primary task, the Earth-Human relationship also unfolds centered on Exemplary Persons of the Tao. In the Earth-Human relationship in Donghak Thought, Exemplary Persons of the Tao and Geumgangsan are not specified, but they appear through references to the phrase "outstanding persons arise from excellent land" (人傑은 地靈이라) and allusions to immortals (신선). [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gongsa" 3-41.] [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gweonji" 1-11.]

[Footnote: Although Donghak Thought — which was a practical embodiment of "making the entire nation into yangban" — further maximized the strength of the egalitarian ideal by extending even to "making the entire nation into kings and aristocrats," the Jeon'gyeong interprets Suun as having failed to transcend the Confucian canon. (Kim Sang-jun, "On-nara-ga Yangban Doegi — Joseon Hugi Yugyo-jeok Pyeongdeung-hwa Mekeo-nizeum" [Making the Entire Nation Yangban — The Mechanism of Confucian Equalization in the Late Joseon Period], Sahoe-wa Yeoksa (formerly Hanguk Sahoe-sa Hakhoe Nonmunjip) 63(0), 2003, pp.5-29.)]

Sangje said one day to Kim Hyeong-ryeol: "The Westerner Matteo Ricci (利瑪竇) came to the East intending to establish a heavenly kingdom on earth, but the deeply rooted corrupt customs of Confucianism made ready reform impossible, and he was unable to fulfill his wish. He did, however, open the boundaries between the Celestial and Subterranean Worlds, causing divine spirits who had each firmly guarded their respective domains without crossing into one another's territory to now circulate freely. After his death he led the divine spirits of Eastern civilization to the West and opened the way for cultural fortune there. From that time forward, the subterranean spirits modeled themselves on all the wondrous methods of the Celestial World and applied them to the human realm. All the material culture of the West is modeled on the form of the Celestial Kingdom." He continued: "That civilization became biased toward material things, further fostering the arrogance of humanity, and ultimately — through the impulse to shake the principles of Heaven and conquer nature — continued to commit all manner of sins, diminishing the authority of the Divine Way. The proper Ways of the Heavenly Way and human affairs were thereby violated, the Three Realms fell into chaos, and the source of the Way was about to be cut off. All the primordial divine spirits, Buddhas, and bodhisattvas gathered and appealed to Gucheon about this calamity of humanity and the realm of divine spirits. Therefore I descended to the Celestial Revelation Tower (天啓塔) of the Great Law Kingdom (大法國) in the West, made a grand circuit of all under heaven, then stopped in this Eastern land, resided in the Mireuk Golden Statue (彌勒金佛) in the Three-Story Hall (三層殿) at Geumsan Temple (金山寺) on Moak Mountain (母岳山) for thirty years, and then revealed the Great Way for saving the world (濟世大道) to Choe Je-u. But Je-u was unable to transcend the Confucian canon and illuminate the true meaning of the Great Way, and so in the jiahzi year (甲子年) I withdrew the Heavenly Mandate and Divine Teaching (神敎), and descended into the world in the xinwei year (辛未年)." (Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-9.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gyoun" 1-9.]

In the passage above, "the true meaning of the Great Way" (대도의 참뜻) serves as an alternative modernity to Western modernity, which was biased toward material things and fostered human arrogance. Daesoon Thought presents the intent of Donghak Thought as a thought that transcends Confucianism. Just as ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny, "the true meaning of the Great Way" had to be a new truth that transcended Confucianism and gathered together only the best of all principles. Accordingly, the "true Donghak" that Donghak failed to realize was one that transcended the modernity of "making the entire nation into kings and aristocrats" to realize "terrestrial immortals."

One day Sangje traveled with Gyeong-seok from Nong-am to Jeongeup. On the way they stopped at the Wonpyeong tavern, called over a passing traveler, bought drinks and offered them, and said: "This road is the path of the Southern Joseon vessel. It must carry much cargo before it departs." They then hastened on their way. When they had traveled thirty li, he said: "A great encampment is thirty li from the start," and spent the night at the house of Park Gong-u, who resided at the ancestral hall of the Choe clan in Song-wol-ri, Gobu. He said to Gong-u and Gyeong-seok: "Now that I have met the person I was to meet, the communication of refined spirit (通精神, tongjeongshin) flows forth. My affairs are things that even parents and siblings do not know." He further said: "I descended to the Celestial Revelation Tower (天啓塔) of the Great Law Kingdom (大法國) in the West, made a grand circuit of all under heaven, took the great authority of the Three Realms, opened a new Heaven and Earth of the Three Realms, and established the blessed land — intending to save the people of the world who had fallen into extinction. The reason I stopped in your Eastern land while making my circuit was precisely to first aid the insignificant and obscure minor peoples buried in the midst of calamity, and to resolve the resentments accumulated over ten thousand ages. Those who follow me will obtain eternal blessings, not age and not die, and will enjoy the joys of an eternal blessed land — this is the true Donghak. In the Gung-eul Song (弓乙歌) it says: 'The mountains and rivers of Joseon are famous mountains. The Exemplary Persons of the Tao (道通君子) are born again.' This refers to my work as well. Among Donghak believers it is transmitted that the Great Teacher (大先生) will be reborn — this means that the Representative Teacher (代先生) will be born again. I am that Representative Teacher." (Jeon'gyeong, "Gweonji" 1-11.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gweonji" 1-11.]

In the passage above, the original intent of Donghak manifests as developing into indigenous modernity heading toward a new world — the Later Heaven — beyond merely advocating the Confucian-based "anti-feudalism and anti-foreign intervention," which is identified as the "true Donghak."

The new world of the Later Heaven is the world of terrestrial immortals and Exemplary Persons of the Tao, and terrestrial immortals represent another mode of the Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang (陰陽合德) between Earth and humanity, which are themselves a yin-yang relationship. The aspiration of terrestrial immortals is becoming manifest in today's reality. If we introduce correlative thinking — the yin-yang and Five Agents framework that has not received attention in previous research on indigenous modernity in Donghak Thought and Daesoon Thought — terrestrial immortals can be understood as follows in terms of the relationship of the Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang between Earth and humanity:

From the concept of the Three Powers of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity, human beings have long been regarded as equal in standing with Heaven and Earth. Yet there has been almost no explanation of why human beings can be equal in standing with Heaven and Earth. Daesoon Thought clearly articulates what it calls Sininjohwa (Harmonious Transformation of Divine Spirits and Humanity): human beings can be interchangeable with Heaven and Earth, and Heaven and Earth can succeed only when human beings are present — this is the human-centeredness of Heaven-Earth mediation. In Daesoon Thought, although human beings are incomparably smaller in scale and function compared to Heaven and Earth, human beings are interchangeable with Heaven and Earth in that they organically combine the two aspects of Heaven and Earth as yin and yang — and thus human beings become ontologically equivalent to Heaven and Earth. Before Daesoon Thought, human beings were only formally equated with Heaven and Earth in standing through the frameworks of the Three Powers and Three Realms. Before the emergence of Daesoon Thought, human beings were in reality like dust compared to Heaven and Earth. It is through human attainment of the Tao that human beings can become beings who mediate and render Heaven and Earth interchangeable — this is the characteristic of the Earth-Human relationship in Daesoon Thought.

Daesoon Thought has expressed the process from Donghak through the Donghak Peasant Revolution to Jeungsan Thought as a process of harmonization through the stages of Jangnan (作亂, creating disorder), Dongnan (動亂, stirring disorder), and Chiran (治亂, governing disorder). (Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 3-30; Ko Nam-sik, "Joseon Malgi Gang Jeungsan-ui Yeoksa Insik-gwa Joseon-gwan" [Gang Jeungsan's Historical Consciousness and View of Joseon in the Late Joseon Period], Dong-asia Godae-hak 59, 2020, pp.239-270, 259.) If the correlative thinking of the concept of "harmonization" (조화, johwa) that began in Donghak Thought is interpreted as "liminality," one can compare the modernity that appears in Donghak and in Daesoon Thought as the "true Donghak," centered on the concept of the view of the Three Realms — in which correlative thinking is concentrated. Daesoon Thought, which claims to be the true Donghak, concretizes yin-yang and the Five Agents as ideological autochthony from the early "Founding Charter of Mugeukdo" onward, with its call for the Union of Virtue of Yin and Yang (陰陽合德), the Establishment of the Three Powers (三才確立), and the Completion of the Five Agents (五行具備) — more specifically than Donghak Thought. (Murayama Jijun, "Mugeukdo-chwijiseo" [Founding Charter of Mugeukdo], in Joseon-ui Yusa-jonggyo [Quasi-Religions of Joseon], Daegu: Keimyung University Press, 1991.) [Footnote: Jeon'gyeong, "Gyobeop" 3-30; Ko Nam-sik, "Joseon Malgi Gang Jeungsan-ui Yeoksa Insik-gwa Joseon-gwan," Dong-asia Godae-hak 59, 2020, pp.239-270, 259.] [Footnote: Murayama Jijun, "Mugeukdo-chwijiseo," in Joseon-ui Yusa-jonggyo, Daegu: Keimyung University Press, 1991.]