Organizer and Chair: Edward J. Schultz, West Oahu College
Korean Buddhist Rituals and Ritual Manuals During the Chosôn Period
Henrik H. Sorensen, University of Copenhagen
Although Buddhism was no longer a dominating religion at the court under the Chosôn dynasty (1392-1910), its influence on the common people does not seem to have decreased significantly. Buddhist practices and the associated literature flourished. Buddhist rituals appear to have been highly popular during the Chosôn, and we find many examples of their performance, not only in the temples, but also among members of society in general. Under the preceeding Koryô dynasty (918-1392) the Buddhist rituals had increasingly come under the influence of the esoteric tradition (milgyo ), and this trend can be seen to continue under the Chosôn as well. Strong milgyo influence can be seen in rituals such as those dealing with cremation, liberation from the tortures of the Netherworld, feeding the "hungry ghosts," etc. Even rites designed for rebirth in the Western Pure Land of Amitabha can be seen as having assimilated esoteric elements. Likewise, by the mid-16th century dominating Sôn Buddhism comes under the sway of esoteric practices.
However, one of the most distinct features of Chosôn Buddhism is the emergence of a highly varigated liturgical literature, in which each ritual is provided with its own text. By the middle of the dynasty this trend gradually changes and we now begin to see a tendency towards codification of the ritual texts. Eventually this development gives rise to the first ritual manuals or ligurgical compendia among which the Chinôn chip (Collection of Mantras), the Pômûm chip (Collection of Sanskrit Sounds), and the Chakpôp chip (Collection of Methods [for Rituals]) are the most important.
The purpose of this presentation is to discuss the characteristics of the Buddhist rituals during the Chosôn dynasty, including a discussion of the types, role and function of these rituals as well as an introduction to some of the most important ritual manuals and their contents.
Discourses of Illness, Meanings of Modernity: A Cultural Construction of
"Sông-in-Byông" (Adults' Diseases)
June J. H. Lee, University of Hawai'i, Manoa
The paper presents an analysis of popular discourses that have been evolving around the issue of 'sông-in-byông ' (literally meaning, adults' diseases) in contemporary Korean society. These discourses gather around the ailing body of middle-aged white-collar Korean men which provides ample means of communicating many current social issues of Korea, such as aging, health, gender, generation gap, modernization, and so on. However, the analysis focuses on the ways in which the sông-in-byông is culturally constructed and used to define social boundaries, such as class, gender, and lifestyle. Particular emphasis is given to the ways in which the popular discourses of sông-in-byông are reflexive of both the cultural continuity and historical discontinuity of the ways Koreans have lived during the country's recent modernization. For this analysis, texts examined may include articles in medical and public health journals, popular newspaper or magazine articles, popular self-help manuals, television programs about health issues, as well as the transcripts of conversations between doctor and patient or interviews between researcher and informant. Several health practices are also discussed that constitute and reinforce existing discourses, and vice versa. This analysis has the potential to demonstrate the process by which biology and culture interact in the social construction of disease.
Korean Sôn Buddhism and Ecological Awareness
Simon Moon, University of Toronto
One of the most pressing issues facing humanity today is ecological survival; the issue of environment has accordingly become the foremost locus of discussion. The Korean government, under the slogan of industrialization, is proud of their economic achievements, unaware that their actions have resulted in severe damage to the natural environment, thereby creating an ecological crisis everywhere in Korea today. Koreans are now acutely aware of these problems and are seeking solutions in a variety of ways.
My interest is in analyzing how Korean Sôn Buddhists understand the human position within nature, and does this perspective provide any ecological sense? The information was derived from personal observations at Songgwang-sa monastery Sôn Buddhist monastery in South Korea, between 1993 and 1994. Specifically, I will focus attention on the case of a Songgwang-sa incident in 1980s when there were clashes between the monastery and the government concerning their industrial development plans. The government had plans to built an underground tunnel for a huge water reservoir, called the Chuan dam, across the monastery's mountain site. The Songgwang-sa incident is a clear demonstration of conflicts between the Buddhist monastic value of sacredness for the land, and the artificial disarrangement of the landscape by modern development planners.
This paper will highlight Buddhist monastic values and practices emphasizing environmental concerns, which could lead to global environmental healing. This cultural reflection will explore and shed some light on the issues of "ecological crisis" in reference to the Korean Buddhist wisdom, which are put in actual practice today.
Court Decisions on Women's Issues: Modern Institution and Traditional Value?
Young-tae Shin, University of Central Oklahoma
There have been phenomenal changes in legal decisions involving gender cases-sexual harassment, interpretation of the Equal Employment Law, and dissolution of marriage.
On the one hand, Korea has made great strides on various women's issues. On the other hand, interpretations of cases and laws, which tend to render decisions relatively favorable to women, indicate that the traditional value of gender roles is the backbone of court decisions.
The pressing question is: what are the long-term implications regarding women's issues in these built-in contradictions between modernity (institution) and tradition (culture). Could we interpret the legal decisions based on the traditional value regarding gender roles and family relations as positive progress for women? Or would such court decisions which tend to be favorable to each individual woman involved, be inimical to the women's movement as a whole? That is, how should we interpret these legal cases which reinforce traditional values? This is the issue that I would like to address in my paper. Cases quoted in this paper are based on reports in newspapers between 1994-1995.
The 1995 Local Elections in Korea
John Kie-chiang Oh, Catholic University of America
The local government elections of June 1995 marked a significant turning point in the evolution of South Korean politics. This paper examines historical backgrounds of the first, full-scale local elections in 34 years, the surprising results of the elections, the impact on Korean politics today, the significance in the quest for democracy in Korea and some ramifications for the future.
Historically, Korean politics and government had been tightly centralized, characterized as "the politics of the vortex." With the establishment of a "democratic" republic in 1948, the principle of local autonomy was incorporated into the constitutional framework for the first time, but the tentative experiment with local autonomy was abruptly terminated with the advent of a military regime in 1961. Only with the inauguration of a democratically elected civilian regime in 1993, the full-fledged local government elections of 1995 were made possible.
This paper examines important features of the election results of 15 mayoral and gubernatorial posts, 230 heads of smaller administrative districts, and some 5,400 council seats. Briefly, the results produced significant victories for the opposition parties, creating for the second time in Korean history a phenomenon of "a smaller ruling party and a larger opposition." Some view the results as a mid-term political appraisal of the current civilian government of President Kim Young Sam.
Overall, the elections signified a major political realignment and a sign of political sophistication of the Korean electorate. If the pattern of 1995 is continued in the 1996 National Assembly elections, the ramifications of the 1995 local elections would be far-reaching-just before the 1997 presidential election. Among other matters, the recent local elections imply that the Korean quest for democracy has reached a stage of consolidation.