조선 후기 민중사상과鄭鑑錄의 기능

Abstract

Jeonggamnok (鄭鑑錄) is a foundation of the thoughts of the general public in the late Joseon period. Its key argument is that the Jeong clan (鄭氏) would rise while the Lee clan (李氏) declines (李亡鄭興). The book says a savior of the Jeong clan (鄭眞人) would one day come out from an island with his soldiers and establish a new kingdom (海島起兵說) to replace Joseon. It also suggests propitious places such as sanrim (山林) or goonggoongcheo (弓弓處) for the people of the time to evacuate and survive from a war. The said theory of Leemangjeongheung (李亡鄭興) sometimes colligates with shamanism and the beliefs of the Maitreya or a living Buddha, but it generally collaborates with Haedogibyeongseol (海島起兵說). During the late Joseon period, vast numbers of drifting people such as runaway slaves went into islands. When one sees this phenomenon in connection with Haedogibyeongseol (海島起兵說), the drifters could be understood as a soldier and their leaders as the savior. The people’s movements related to Jeonggamnok (鄭鑑錄) have a periodical features. During the reign of King Sookjong, numbers of political incidents relevant to the beliefs of the Maitreya or a living Buddha occurred, and wild rumors were going around as well. When King Yeongjo was reigning, a series of rebellious posters were put up on a wall. Any political uprisings during his time were regarded to be committed by the remnants of the 1728 Rebellion. The succeeding King Jeongjo witnessed the popularization of the Korean translation of Jeonggamnok (鄭鑑錄) and, during his time, many political revolts were conspired along with continued spread of rebellious messages. The government tried to get rid of Jeonggamnok (鄭鑑錄) when any uprisings happened related to the book and also strengthened Confucian edification for the people via King’s note and etc. The rulers regarded the prime movers of the revolts as the ones with a traitorous mind and put a lot of efforts to depend goodness and to expel wickedness. Those prime movers of the uprisings were mainly ruined peers. They had a close contact with the people at the time and tried to stir up the popular passion by preaching the philosophy of Jeonggamnok (鄭鑑錄). They continuously attempted to rise up against the government and were believed to be a person with a special ability among the general public. Their aim was to remove a status system from the society and to enhance economic equality. They claimed for a restoration of goodness and called themselves as the righteous army. The philosophy of Jeonggamnok (鄭鑑錄) acted as the ideological background of the political uprisings at the time and it also stimulated the social awareness of the people in the late Joseon period through the social and political changes it caused.