접견례를 통해 본 아이신-다이칭 구룬(Aisin-Daicing Gurun)의 세계

Abstract

By analyzing the practice of kowtow (genuflections and prostrations) and the physical embracement that the Aisin Gurun applied to various state rituals, this paper addresses the ways in which these ritual performances evolved during the course of the development of the Manchu state. When Manchu princes left Shenyang in order to attack the Ming or Mongols, and when they made a triumphant return from battlefields, Hong Taiji allowed his generals to perform kowtow and embrace him physically. This unique Manchu practice was performed with an intention of expressing the intimate personal relationship between Hong Taiji and his brothers and cousins, as well as the clear hierarchy between the khan and the imperial princes. This physical performance was also done at meetings between Mongol princes and Han Chinese generals, the two most important alliances for the Aisin Gurun. The body part of the khan that these guests were allowed to approach and embrace was strictly regulated according to the rank and status of each Mongol prince and Han Chinese general. For example, while high-class Mongol princes were permitted to embrace the khan’s shoulder, lower-class figures were only allowed to hold his knees or legs. Such division in the way in which people were permitted to approach the khan’s body made a visual representation of the visitor’s status in the Aisin Gurun’s world. As the Aisin Gurun further expanded throughout the 1630s, the ritual practices and processes performed on New Year’s Day and other various events for celebration became more elaborate and complicated. Details of the rituals, such as the number of kowtow that guests should perform and the location of where they stood and performed kowtow, all became specified according to the participants’ status and the nature of the events. Ceremonies of bestowing imperial titles and ranks, which took place after the establishment of the Daicing Gurun in 1636, show that many details of state rituals were revised in order to promote the status of the emperor and the imperial family. Finally, this paper analyzes the ceremony of the Chosŏn surrender to the Qing army that was held at Samjŏndo in February 1637, an event that was described in detail in Manchu documents. This paper argues that the kowtow of the Chosŏn king and princes at Samjŏndo was not an exceptional case that was only forced upon the Chosŏn; instead, it was part of the state ritual that the Manchus, Mongols and Han Chinese performed for many years in front of the khan-emperor as an official announcement of their incorporation into the world of the Aisin-Daicing Gurun.