敬窩 嚴命涉의 守道的 儒學繼承과 心性合一的 修養論

Abstract

Eom Myong-sup was born in 1906, the year following the year when the Protectorate Treaty between Korea and Japan was concluded. Having lived mainly in Jeonju region, he had lectured Confucianism till early in the new millennium and died at 98 in 2002 in Gokseong where he also tried to revive and propagate Confucianism This article looks into his life for ascetic practice, translation of Confucian Classics, succession of Jeon Woo’s theory of Seongsasimje(性師心弟: The nature is the teacher and the mind is a the student) and mind cultivation. Seeing first his scholarly life, he tried to succeed the tradition aiming at being a great man rather than fame and profit to realize such spirit of his in the real society while having set an aim and read books. Especially the series of his works, Saseosamgyeongjipjueon(四書三經集註諺解), Sohakjipjueonhae(小學集註諺解), Dokseogieui (讀書起疑) and etc., which he had written for 31 years must have been impacted mainly by his worry of Confucian culture and ideas that had been being pushed out by foreign power. In his theory of Neo-Confucianism and theory of mind cultivation, he asserted the theory of SeongCheonSimJi(性天心地: The nature is heaven and the mind is earth) under Jeon Woo’s theory of Seongsasimje(性師心弟). That is, he tried to build up Cheoninnhapil(天人合一: Heaven and man are unified in one) by applying the universe theory specified in the Book of Change onto the Theory of Man’s Nature. Especially Seongsimhapilche(性心合一体: the nature and mind become one as one body) he suggested at his 83 mainly showed his consciousness to realize the moral authenticity of his ego to an extremely high level. In conclusion, such attitude of his for succession of Confucianism and mind cultivation is based on his effort as a Confucian scholar of late Joseon dynasty to revive the Confucian culture having been likely to be cut in succession since Japanese occupation and spread out the real content of such Confucian culture through righteous succession and education of Neo-Confucianism. It also looks, moreover, that he wanted to seek the moral life that becomes one with the man’s nature through holy-purity of goodness of mind in such rapidly changing modern society.