고려시대 밀교 치유 문화의 양상과 특징

Abstract

Diseases hold a very important place in personal and social human affairs. Efforts have long been made in various aspects to treat diseases. Therapies have been searched for in religion as well as medicine and pharmacology. This study focused its investigation on esoteric Buddhist treatment methods during Goryeo among such religious therapies. In Goryeo, they published dharani scriptures related to illness. Jangsu-myeoljoi-gyeong (長壽滅罪經) and Buljeongsim-darani-gyeong (佛頂心陀羅尼經) are some of the examples of dharani scriptures published for therapeutic purposes. Beomseo-chongji-jip (梵書摠持集), a collection of dharanis, contains Je-ilche-jilbyeong-darani [除一切疾病陀羅尼, dharani eliminating all diseases] and Jyeongje-ilche-anjilbyeong-darani [淨除一切眼疾病陀羅尼, dharani eliminating all eye diseases]. The publication of a dharani scripture was a precondition of dharani-based Buddhist prayers. There had been cases of treating illness through Buddhist prayers based on a dharani since ancient times, and Hyetong(惠通) of Samgukyusa (三國遺事) is a good example. The religious sect of esoteric Buddhism that inherited the line of Hyetong in Goryeo was Chongji-jong (摠持宗), which seems to have been partially responsible for royal medicine and engaged in relief activities for people to end an infectious disease. During the period of Yuan (元)'s interventions, Yeom Seung-ik (廉承益) became a favorite of the king for his ability of treating illness through his spells. He was not a Buddhist monk, and his case reflects the wide spread of disease-treating spells among common people those days. The establishment of a ritual was one of the traditional therapies. In Goryeo, various esoteric Buddhist rituals were held for therapeutic purposes. Marijicheon-doryang (摩利支天道場), Gongjakwang-doryang (孔雀王道場), and Buljeongsim-doryang(佛頂心道場) were established to expel infectious diseases, and Sojae-doryang (消災道場) and Boseong-doryang (寶星道場) were established to treat the illness of kings and queens. They were intended to treat illness by eliminating the causes of epidemics and diseases by the virtue of dharanis. Esoteric Buddhist therapies containing Taoist elements were also developed. One example is the utilization of Eight-Gate Transformation (奇門遁甲) and talismans. In early Joseon, Buddhist monks of Chongji-jong were said to have contributed to the treatment of diseases by using Eight-Gate Transformation. They were used to predict a good direction for the treatment of a patient. This practice of Chongji-jong Buddhist monks in early Joseon seems to have inherited the heritage of Goryeo, which suggests that Eight-Gate Transformation was one of the therapies practiced by esoteric Buddhist monks in Goryeo. Talismans are commonly known to be used in Taoism and shamanism, but Buddhist scriptures, especially esoteric Buddhist scriptures, contain a variety of talismans. Buljeongsim-darani-gyeong has talismans on its last page and records that one can treat his or her illness by burning the talisman and taking its ash. This therapy proposed by this scripture seems to have enjoyed considerable popularity in Goryeo, when its simplified versions comprised only of dharani phrases and talismans were made. These various esoteric Buddhist therapies demonstrate that human beings made utmost efforts to overcome their personal and social crises. Therapies are a total reflection of a society's contemporary politics, religion, ideas, and culture. Esoteric Buddhist therapies may seem like superstitions in the eyes of modern people, but they must have been reliable treatment methods whose efficacy was guaranteed within the thinking system of people during Goryeo.