조선 초기 문명사의 전환과 김시습의 <유금오록(遊金鰲錄)>

Abstract

With the founding of Joseon Dynasty, the process of Confucian transformation, which had been going on since the late 14th century, came to fruition. The Koryeo Dynasty, whose system had been fundamentally and philosophically operated based on Buddhism, was transformed into a Confucian-based nation by gentry(Sadaebu) class. Even though Neo-Confucianists owed much to the philosophical basis of Buddhism, they built their own world by condemning Buddhism as heterodoxy. Koryeo Intellectuals who studied in Yuan Dynasty after this dynasty had accepted Neo- Confucianism as a national study became a pioneering class that made Confucianism their philosophical basis. It is reasonable, nevertheless, to state that the process of Confucian transformation was completed in the first half of the 16th century. To transform the philosophical basis of Buddhism into Confucian one was not able to accomplish in a short period of time. Furthermore, intellectuals were inevitably confronted with lots of controversial and fierce arguments during this process. Kim Si-Seup, a scholar, writer, and also Buddhist monk, is an important figure during this transition period from Buddhism to Confucianism. Although he became a monk-his Buddhist name is 'Suljam'-due to some political matters, he was always interested in bureaucracy of Confucian society. In addition to studying Buddhist scriptures in depth, he, with a profound understanding of Confucian classics as well, pursued reconciliation between Confucianism and Buddhism. His inner reflection and ideological conflicts, in that process, were expressed in his poetry written in Chinese. It is 『Yugeumorok(遊金鰲錄)』, which is a collection of poems and whose title means ‘the record of rambling and savoring moments on Geumosan, that projects images of Kim Si-Seup’s inner world closely. Through 『Yugeumorok(遊金鰲錄)』, this paper, therefore, discusses how Kim Si-Seup strived to combine Buddhism with Confucianism as well as how he tried to depict his own inner conflicts as a monk into his works.