King
Sejong:King
Sejong:
Korea's Finest Ruler
By Alain Burrese
King
Sejong the Great is regarded as the most enlightened king in Korean history.
King Sejong was born in 1397, and ascended the throne in 1418 at the age of 21.
He was the fourth king of the Choson dynasty. He died in 1450 at the age of 54.
During his 32-year reign, King Sejong energetically promoted learning. He was
responsible for the creation of the Korean Hangul alphabet, and this scientific
alphabet is his most known achievement. This alphabet enabled literacy to become
more available to the general population, who could not be expected to master
the classical Chinese language that was the official written language of Korea
at the time.
By visiting Yongnung, King Sejong's tomb and reading translations of King
Sejong's personal journals, I have been able to learn more about Korea's finest
ruler. (Journal translations by David Bannon) King Sejong was a scholar,
philologist, musician, poet, and a skilled swordsman. This last fact attracted
me, since I also study the martial arts and ways of the warrior. And like King
Sejong, I believe a person needs to combine the physical training with education
and spiritual practices to become a whole person.
King Sejong often referred to his sword and swordsmanship in his journal. And
like a true warrior, he practiced the ways of war, but preferred peace. An entry
from his journal states, "The sword is a weapon of peace. With this sword I
stand ready to defend my lineage, my family, my friends, and always, always our
blessed country." And indeed, the fifteenth century is remembered as an age
of peace and prosperity under King Sejong's rule. His contributions to Korean
society were many during this period.
In 1420, King Sejong established the Chipyon chon (Hall of Worthies), a royal
research institute. He gathered the foremost scholars and writers of the time
and had them compile some 20 works on history, geography, astronomy,
mathematics, military science, pharmacology, and agriculture. These also
included encyclopedias on Chinese medicine and Korean medicine (hanyak). Of the
many valuable books that were published during his reign, a collection of King
Sejong's own poems praising Buddha entitled Worin Chon-gangjigok were also
published.
King Sejong had great respect for scholarship, but as you can see in this letter
that he wrote to Song Sammun (1418-1456), one of the scholars working on the
Korean alphabet, he also stressed balance. "Unlike many other occupations,
scholars have the greatest responsibility to the people. Their work can
ultimately improve the lives of all people for many decades. But if an academic
becomes lost in his study, he cannot see how his work can benefit others.
Therefore, like a well-balanced fencing stance, or a reasonable argument, the
scholar's life must be even and balanced." You will notice the reference to
training with the sword in this quote, and in fact, King Sejong referred to the
sword and training often. Like other warriors, he believed that life's problems
could be solved in shaping the mind and body through the discipline of the
sword. Like many modern martial artists and warriors, he pursued his craft for
physical, mental and spiritual benefits. In the same letter as quoted above, he
addressed the creation of devising the phonic alphabet, again using a fencing
metaphor:
"When I spar with the sword, I must judge to attack quickly, giving no
quarter with ferocity, or to carefully assess my opponent's weaknesses, and land
telling blows judiciously. Your problem - and indeed all of life's difficulties
- can be seen in this light. I have no doubts that my sword will cut. It is up
to my judgment based on experience and training to know how and when to lay the
blade. I trust your experience and training will also lead you to a successful
resolution of this problem."
King Sejong governed his people with affection and virtue. He was willing to see
his own mistakes and was quick to point out other's integrity, thus endearing
him to his friends and subjects alike. King Sejong's strength of character and
remarkable intellect were combined with genuine humility. In his journal, he
wrote, "All that I am, or will be, I have learned from my family, my
friends, my teachers, and training with the sword."
King Sejong's tomb and Sejong Hall are beautiful, and a fitting tribute to this
outstanding ruler. I encourage anyone who wants to learn more about this great
king to visit this site. And I encourage everyone to seek the same physical,
mental and spiritual balance that King Sejong was seeking.
This appeared in the June 23, 1997 issue of the Korea Herald.