율곡 이이의 죽음 철학

Abstract

Today, as life has been extended due to the development of science and medical technology, the question of what "well-dying" is and how to prepare for “good death” is considered important. The question of how to understand and accept death seems to have been a long-standing philosophical topic. The perspective of traditional philosophers on death can be an implication for reflecting on good death in contemporary society. In this regard, this paper aims to pay particular attention to Yulgok Yiyi’s philosophy on death. As Yulgok is known to have left mundane world in 1554 at the age of 19 to enter the temple in Geumgangsan to solve this death problem due to the death of his mother Shin Saimdang at the age of 16 in 1551, the issue of death can be one of the important keywords in Yulgok Yi’s life and philosophy. This paper analyzes the discussion of death that appeared in Yulgok's overall work and examine what meaning this can have today. To this end, this paper discusses that Yulgok’s perspective on death, which understood death as the disappearance of qi 氣, says that all of the body, perception, memory, and feeling are extinguished along with death, but it examines the essence of life through the fact that humans have a mind that conforms to li 理. In addition, this paper explores the fact that Yulgok’s mention of cultivating qi ultimately leads to sensitivity to other lives and open sensitivity to the death of other lives. And this paper examines contemporary meanings of Yulgok's death philosophy.