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

Although there has recently been an increase of interest in Koreanintangible cultural assets both within the country and abroad, thereality is that there is no foundation for systematic research anda general lack of understanding of the current situation in orderto preserve and pass on Buddhist intangible cultural assets. Thisthesis focuses on the pre-tasks required to set up a foundation forsystematic study and a base to pass on Buddhist intangible culturalassets. In order to do this, a classification system of Buddhist intangibleassets has first been created to serve as a base for research andexamination of existing progress. The types of Buddhist intangiblecultural assets were classified into the following, with input fromthe Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism: ceremony and service,handicrafts, living habits, knowledge and customs of meditativepractice, and oral tradition and expression. This system was further subdivided into higher and middle-level classifications pertype. Subjects which presently require the greatest attention wereseparately classified under their own section. Second, I examine the standards determing which subjectsshould be looked into for further research. For this, I took theperspective of the intangible cultural asset's ‘historicity, scholasticvalue, artistic value and regional diversity.' The value of preservinga particular asset becomes an important metric to decide whichsubject should be prioritized, and which subject should beresearched and registered when there are multiple subjects thatare able to inherit a particular asset. Establishing standards forresearch and preservation is also a necessary first step in criticallyreflecting on existing notions that are not used to recognizingvarious Buddhist intangible cultural assets as inheritances thatcan be passed on, as well as reorganizing the classification ofintangible assets. Third, I deal with the actual methodologies of study. Consideringthe nature of Buddhist intangible cultural assets, after the priorityresearch categories are decided, the survey to determine thepresent condition of the asset is divided into several steps and theinvestigation details and methods for each step are described. Thissurvey may be a general survey of samples, which outlines theinheritors of an asset and selects subjects for further investigation. On the other hand, detailed survey is reserved for those assetswhere the lineage of transmission is very clear. Because of thecomparatively simple patterns of approach for general surveysaccording to the characteristics of the asset, this paper delves indetail on methodologies of detailed surveys. Although detailedsurvey methods also may differ, this paper assumes the standardused for events such as ceremonies and services which are held ata certain space and time.