Korea Journal of Buddhist Studies ISSN:1598-0642(Print) 불교학연구

Since the 17th century, Buddhist sects in Joseon had unified around the Seon (Jp. Zen) School under the Linchi Seon 臨濟禪 tradition. However, this did not mean that the academic tradition of the Doctrinal School disappeared; rather, it was merged into the meditation-oriented Seon School. Therefore, the Buddhist education course at the time was designed around the idea of amalgamating the Seon and Doctrinal schools. Zhuandenglu 傳燈錄 and chanting practice were the main themes of Seon studies, while Doctrinal studies focused mainly on the Avataṃsaka Sūtra since the various sects of Doctrinal Buddhism unified under the Hwaeom School (Ch. Huayan zong) 華嚴宗 in the early Joseon period. In particular, the fact that thousands of people gathered several times since the 18th century to listen to lectures on the Avataṃsaka Sūtra in southern Korea is historically significant because it contradicts the general idea of an oppressed Buddhism during the Joseon period. Thus, this study aims to elucidate the historical surroundings of the reawakened tradition of Huayan study in the late Joseon period. Since the consolidation of Buddhist sects in the early Joseon period, the tradition of Buddhist practice coalesced around the union of Seon and Doctrinal schools and Buddhist education in seminaries subsequently followed this mold. In 1681, a Chinese ship ran aground on Imja Island in South Jeolla Province, and several Buddhist books were gathered from the wrecked ship by the monk Baegam Seongchong 栢庵性聰 (1631–1700) and later published. Among these published books were Hwaeomsocho 華嚴疏鈔 and Hoehyeongi 會玄記. When these books became standard reading in seminaries in the 18th century, the study of the Avataṃsaka Sūtra was reawakened. This revitalization created an environment where monks would travel around the country to learn under prominent teachers of the Sūtra, spawning a tradition of transcribing collections of annotations made by renowned lecturers.