Yi T'oegye ($~¥:l 1501-1570) was an eminent Neo-Confucian thinker who established an influential school of philosophy and scholarship in Korea'! T' oegye was also a great spiritual master, although he basically followed a Confucian lifestyle of public service, teaching disciples, and compiling volumes of work. We need to pay more attention to the spiritual depth of Korean Confucianism by discussing T'oegye's religious thought. This article presents T'oegye's interpretation of Confucian self-transcendence, as well as its modern implication for comparative religion. By focusing on his practice of spiritual cultivation, the article discusses how he developed what I consider to be a religious system of ethics and spirituality in light of the Zhu Xi tradition. I include several key examples, such as Heaven's Principle, moral evil, and transcending oneself. I shall interpret T'oegye's major works by using a textual approach, while considering some modern sources. The second section explores the topic in the context of interreligious dialogue. Since today's pluralistic world of religions naturally encourages cooperation and innovation, I propose a Confucian-based mode of interreligious thinking by assimilating T' oegye's experience and insights. This will allow us to discuss the key ongoing issues regarding "the ultimate reality" or "the transcendent." I conclude that the Neo-Confucian vision which I see through my dialogue with T'oegye and modern scholars engages a self-transcending way of wisdom, i.e., a transforming relationship among the world's spiritual traditions. A dialogue between T'oegye's spirituality and the converging core of world religions can enhance the global enterprise of comparative religion. I hope to shed some light on Confucian studies and interreligious dialogue through this article, which is based on a paper I presented at the conference, "Korean Confucianism in the Global Context: In Honor of Tu Weiming's Contributions."
목차
Abstract 1. T'OEGYE ON THE CONFUCIAN WAY OF SELFTRANSCENDENCE The Confucian tradition: T'oegye on self-transcendence: 2. IMPLICATION FOR A NEO-CONFUCIAN ANDINTERRELIGIOUS DIALOGUE Interreligious dialogue: preliminary reflections: Relevance of T'oegye's thought: CONCLUSION REFERENCES
키워드
Yi T'oegyeKorean Neo-Confucianismself-transcendenceHeaven's Principleinterreligious dialogue
저자
EDWARD Y. J. CHUNG [ a professor in the Department of Religious Studies and Director of the Asian Studies Program at the University of Prince Edward Island ]
한국연구원은 1970년 5월 한국 민속의 각 분야에 걸친 자료의 수집과 학술적 연구를 목적으로 '한국민속연구소'로 출발하였다. 그 후 1973년 5월 연구 분야를 확대하며 민속뿐만 아니라 한국학 전반에 걸친 연구를 위해 '한국학연구소'로 개편하였고, 다시 1989년 3월 한국의 국제적 위상의 부상과 함께 한국학 연구의 중요성이 높아짐에 따라 '한국학연구원'으로 확대, 개편하였다. 한국학연구원은 한국학 전반에 걸친 연구를 통해 지역과 민족문화 발전에 기여하며 한국학의 세계화를 위해서 학술활동을 강화하고 나아가 내·외국인에 대한 한국문화 교육을 담당하고자 한다.