繭紫掖模偃疇濠

2. CHONDOGYO-WHAT KIND OF RELIGION IS IT?

Chondogyo Viewed Through the Tenets of the Church

   The fundamental tenet of Chondogyo is human beings are Heaven (innaecheon, 嬣珙蘢). This means nothing less than that man is God. This principle was boldly set forward by Revered Teacher Euiam, the third head of Chondogyo, and remains a cardinal tenet of the Church to the present day. Although this tenet was formalized under Revered Teacher Euiam, it has its origins in the Great Master?s affirmation I serve God within me (sicheonju, 蒮蘢颸); words which give expression to that which is at the very heart of Chondogyo religious thought. On the fifth day of the fourth month in the founding year of Podeok (1860), the Great Master, through a defining religious experience, came to the sudden recognition that the one and only God, Hanulnim, does not reside in a place removed from man, but is enshrined within the very heart and mind of man. It was precisely this realization that made I serve God within me the most important, indeed, the cardinal teaching of the faith. This important tenet means nothing less than that human life is the kingdom of God, or it is hell, depending on whether or not serving God is realized within the heart. It precludes the possibility of a heaven or hell, either on earth or in a dimension separate from earth, or of a distinct and separate paradise, purgatory, or netherworld such as described by existing religions of the world before the post-cosmic creation. Thus it is the Great Master's teaching that Hanulnim, or God, does not live in a distant transcendent place but exists within our hearts while at the same time filling all space.
   The succinct expression of this teaching by the Great Master is I serve God within me. These words are at the very core of Chondogyo religious doctrine. This teaching, however, reaches well beyond a religious dimension to have implications for society as well. It connotes a basic egalitarianism by which all human beings, innately containing God within themselves, are fundamentally equal. When viewed from the perspective of Joseon times, with its stratified social class system distinguishing between high (yangban, 欳絯) and low (cheonmin, 蘅硠), this teaching of the Great Master was nothing short of revolutionary. This fundamental egalitarianism goes well beyond Western stipulations that all men are equal under the law and before God. It is an emphatically spontaneous and quintessentially Korean egalitarianism opening new horizons of creation.
   The ideology of I serve God within me elucidated by the Great Master came to be expressed as A human being is God (insicheon, 嬣蒻蘢) in Master Haeweol's time. Because man is God, this ideology evolved to become the socio-ethical principle treat a human being as you would treat God (sainyeocheon, 瓿嬣濆蘢). Thus, in accordance with its cardinal tenet Human beings are God (innaecheon, 嬣珙蘢), the Chondogyo faith regards the command to treat a human being as you would treat God?as a socio-ethical principle.
   Chondogyo thought continuously evolved and expanded, from I serve God within me to a human being is God, to the moral principle treat a human being as you would treat God, until, under the leadership of Revered Teacher Euiam, human beings are God (innaecheon, 嬣珙蘢) became a formal tenet of the religion.
   Having adopted the egalitarian principle of innaecheon, however, does not mean that Chondogyo was proposing the notion of human superiority and dominion over the world. The true teaching of Chondogyo is that, just as human beings are God, so too is every other thing in the universe. Master Haeweol once said, The sound of the bird singing in that tree is also an example of 'I serve God within me? meaning that the myriad things of the universe all consist of God and therefore are God. Thus, to fully comprehend this teaching we must come to know Master Haeweol's thought of Honoring the Three (samgyeongsasang, 葀杶皵萭).
   Honoring the Three is yet another expression of I serve God within me and Human beings are God. It is without question an idea revealing the genuine oneness of the universe that transcends and thus avoids the baneful influence of individualism that became so prevalent after Western Europe's modernization.
   The Chondogyo tenet Human beings are God, its origins in the Great Master's I serve God within me, is an important tool for humanity in realizing its aspirations of achieving a life at one with the universe. Chondogyo, anticipating a new dimension to life in the post-cosmic creation (hucheon-gaebyeok, 涖蘢刳隀) can be called a religion that aspires to a life at one with the universe. It is a life overflowing with that which mankind most fervently desires, namely genuine equality and freedom in which not just humankind but humankind and nature, or even more fully expressed, humankind, nature, and God, are united in perfect harmony. This is the construction of a paradise on Earth that is the ultimate religious objective of Chondogyo.

Chondogyo Viewed Through Its Religious Objective

   Chondogyo is a religion with very clear religious objectives. They are to support the nation and comfort the people(boguganmin, 嗝玿颭硠), spread truth throughout the world(podeokcheonha, 鱣适蘢欞), deliver people every-where from suffering(gwangjechangsaeng, 恇藄鵿蛺), and thereby construct a paradise on earth (jisangcheonguk, 礜葞蘢玿). It is a religious objective that takes into consideration very realistic problems, and differs from those religions of the world before the post-cosmic creation whose religious objective is to seek out eternal life in a different spatial dimension, such as the kingdom of heaven or paradise. One might say the true, authentic face of Chondogyo is visible in its circumvention of such dualistic structures as the mundane world and the Kingdom of heaven or hell, this life and Nirvana, life and death, reality and the transcendent, God and man, and so on. Thus Chondogyo? religious objective to construct a paradise on earth does not simply stop with the mundane world. Rather, it is the ultimate path to eternal life in the true cosmological sense, in that there is a qualitative change and transition that is inclusive of life and death, reality and the transcendent, and this life and Nirvana.
   Let us look at what kind of religion Chondogyo is by focusing in greater detail on the religious objective it espouses.

1) Chondogyo and its Great Undertaking to Spread Truth Throughout the World(Podeokcheonha, 鱣适蘢欞)

   Chondogyo is a religion proclaimed to the world by the first founder and leader Great Master Su-un on April 5th, 1860 by the Western Gregorian calendar, and in the Chinese sexagenary cycle year of gyeongshin. During a long search for the Way that would deliver the world from chaos and destruction the Great Master on that day experienced a defining religious moment when he met Hanulnim, or God, and received from him a talisman and an incantation. Thus this date when the Great Master received the Way from God is remembered as the founding year of Podeok. In this respect it differs from other religions of the world before the post-cosmic creation which mark their beginnings with the birth date of the founder.
   After this defining religious experience the Great Master received from God the Great Cosmic Way by which to properly inform mankind, after which he unveiled this teaching to the world as Eastern Learning (娵鱹, Donghak). At the time there existed in Asia, to which Korea owes its origins, no translation of the Western word religion(賾敁). Words used at the time to mean religion were Way(do, 堀), Learning (hak, 鱹), and Doctrine (gyo, 敁). At that time, therefore, the religion came to be called Eastern Learning (Donghak) in accordance with the Great Master naming it so, saying, Although the Way is the Way of Heaven, Learning is the Eastern Learning. This remained the case until December 1st, 1905 of the Western calendar, when the third head of Chondogyo, Revered Teacher Euiam, proclaimed to the entire world that the name Eastern Learning would be changed to Chondogyo. This is how Donghak came to be called Chondogyo today.
   One of the fundamental ideas of Eastern Learning the Great Master has bequeathed to us is the awakening of the people of the world infected with the corrupt and selfish every man for himself mentality to the existence of God, who is the origin of all things in the universe. This is a teaching in which he emphasized the need to live life in accordance with the virtuous example God has established for us. In other words, the reason for the discord and chaos, and the endless argument and malicious behavior in the world is because people place emphasis on a corrupt and selfish every man for himself mentality. Thus they are unaware that God constitutes the very essence of their being. The Great Master, in his chapter On Propagating Truth in Donghak Scripture describes this condition of humanity as follows: These days all people of the world follow their own selfish desires and ignore the principle and will of Heaven.
   Seen in this way, the basic doctrine of Eastern Learning lies in the truth that human beings must throw off corrupt selfishness and live in accordance with the principle and will of Heaven. In order to achieve this one must be aware of God? existence as described by the phrase I serve God within me, and its implicit meaning, namely that God is enshrined within the heart of each individual. It is not enough that we feel gratitude for the virtuous example God has given to all things in the universe; every member of the Chondogyo faith must convey this heavenly truth to others in the world. Indeed, he or she must become a person who spreads truth throughout the world. In this respect, implicit in the Chondogyo faith is the great task of spreading truth throughout the world. That is to say, the fundamental idea underpinning the Chondogyo faith is that, by widely propagating truth and virtue there will be established a world that follows the principle and will of Heaven. Taken one step further, all humankind, even all the myriad things of the universe, will be seen as one in a world that glorifies equality, peace, and harmony.

2) Deliver People Everywhere From Suffering (Gwangjechangsaeng, 恇藄鵿蛺) and Supporting the Nation and Comforting the People (Bo-guKanmin, 嗝玿颭硠)

   For the important Chondogyo principle of spreading truth throughout the world to be realized, the suffering people of this world must be rescued from their misery and despair. Therefore one of Chondogyo? important objectives is to deliver people everywhere from suffering. The purpose, in other words, is to rescue the people of the world from misery and despair by guiding those who have descended into lives of corrupt selfishness, malicious infighting, and erroneous ideas onto the proper path. In addition to the deliver people everywhere from suffering objective is Chondogyo? religious objective to support the nation and comfort the people, which assists the nation and the people by opening the way for all to live in peace and comfort. This was especially pertinent during the waning years of the Joseon period when the Great Master revealed the Way. To be precise, it was during the middle of the 19th century when the Western Powers were employing tactics of intimidation in demanding trade relations with the East. Catholicism, or Western Learning (seohak, 鄐鱹), which at the time was entering Korea with renewed vigor and force, had wreaked political, social, and even cultural havoc among the people. This expanding Western encroachment into the East, accompanied by the transmission of Western Learning, was bringing a sense of anxiety and crisis to Joseon society and to all of East Asian society.
   At this time the Great Master strongly emphasized that, in order to overcome this crisis of the nation and the people and to plant the banner of supporting the nation and comforting the people, not only the ruling elite class but the common people as well had to profoundly understand the present reality, to be strong, and to take action. That is to say, the power to overcome this national crisis not only lay with the privileged ruling elite yangban(欳絯) class but with the common man as well, and by stressing this point the Great Master awakened the masses to the realization that they, in and of themselves comprised this vital force. It was a teaching that opened the eyes of the masses to the fact that their lives, their existence, was the main driving force in the world.
   Thus the support the nation and comfort the people consciousness championed by Chondogyo proved to be a most important idea, in that historically it introduced a modern dimension by which the common people now comprised the nucleus of power in initiating and effecting historical change. In this respect Chondogyo is a religion whose modern teachings of self-determination lie at the very heart of Korea? indigenously inspired modernization. In other words, during the mid-19th century still considered to be part of the feudal period of Korean history, it was this kind of religion, this kind of thought, and not the encroachment of the West, that played the pivotal role in the country? modernization.
   The idea of supporting the nation and comforting the people was carried over from the Great Master to Master Haeweol. In the last years of the Joseon dynasty, as Western and, most importantly, Japanese predatory designs on Korea became clear, Master Haeweol held aloft the banner to repel the West and repel Japan and, as leader of the Donghak revolution, he summoned the collective will of the people to fight against unjust foreign intervention and occupation. The spirit of supporting the nation and comforting the people was carried on by Revered Teacher Euiam? leadership of the people? nationwide March First Independence Movement. This was further carried forward by Venerable Teacher Chunam who, at the height of Japan? repressive policies in colonized Korea, called for the Muin(氰寲) prayer for the destruction of Japan, so that Korea might be saved. Since August 15, 1945, when Korean independence was restored, this spirit has been carried forward by the national movement for reunification. Thus, in accordance with the spirit of its religious objectives to deliver people everywhere from suffering and to support the nation and comfort the people Chondogyo has fought against injustice in the form of foreign encroachment, occupation, and dispossession of national sovereignty. In the narrow sense Chondogyo can be thought of as a religion which led the movement for independence of a people and a nation. In the broader sense, however, it is a religion carrying forward the Movement of the Post-Cosmic Creation which can reveal to humankind a new dimension to life.

3) The Post-Cosmic Creation and Returning to the Origin and Becoming One (Donggwiilch?, 婞秎擩鐎)

   The Great Master called the present era, with its endless fighting and disorder brought on by the every man for himself mentality, the last phase of the world before the post-cosmic creation. In other words, having entered the last phase of the world before the post-cosmic creation the world? predestined fate of chaos is upon us. Quoting from On Propagating Truth in Donghak Scripture, the Great Master relates that in this period a horrible malady has spread throughout the world, allowing no one even a moment? peace. It is a destiny of injury and suffering.
   But the Great Master added that this confusion and chaos presaged the new post-cosmic creation. The Great Master teaches that, with the fate of the world before the post-cosmic creation nearly spent, the new era of the post-cosmic creation will soon be upon us, and all the people of the world must prepare for this. Thus, according to the Great Master, the world before the post-cosmic creation is old and corrupt. The Great Master viewed the times of crisis in which he lived as the labored breathing of the world before the post-cosmic creation in its death throes, having crumbled, bereft of virtue, and disobedient of the laws of Heaven.
With the Great Master? revealing of Eastern Learning thought to the world there was the ultimate opportunity to confront the world before the post-cosmic creation and to prepare to enter upon the post-cosmic creation. Thus the Great Master gave us this important system of thought by which humankind can unlock a completely different creation, namely the ?ost-cosmic creation.?br>    The post-cosmic creation means not only a material creation but a creation of consciousness as well. In other words, this post-cosmic creation is brought about through serving God within the self, by which the people of the world, whose minds and actions are infected with the spirit of selfishness, will be changed into the might and mind of God. Going further, it is a state in which one? virtue is one with the virtue of the universe(璅蘢礜╪剢适) through the realization of serving God within the self. In this way, the person who achieves this creation of consciousness is called a person of virtue(gunja, 珋磾) and a transcendent sage on earth(jisang-sinseon, 礜葞蜺鉆).
   A person of virtue or a transcendent sage on earth is one who realizes his existence as the infinite I. That is to say, he is someone who has mastered and fully comprehends the virtue and truth of God. This is the ideal type of person demanded of these critical times beset with corruption and decadence.
   However, the Great Master? fundamental argument is that, in contradistinction to the teachings of existing religions of the world before the post-cosmic creation, it is not only the exceptional or extraordinary person who can become such a person of virtue or transcendent sage on earth. Rather, all the people of this world, in complete disregard for such class distinctions as elite and common, or high and low, can become such a person. Thus, in the saying From the day one enters the Way one becomes a person of virtue, we can see that the common notion of the altogether rare man of virtue (gunja, 珋磾) has changed. In its new meaning the man of virtue(gunja, 珋磾) includes every individual on earth. Likewise, so-called otherworldly beings (sinseon, 蜺鉆) become very real transcendent sages on earth. Thus the world constructed by such transcendent sages on earth, that is to say, the world in which all people have achieved the state of transcendent sage on earth is indeed the world of the post-cosmic creation, while at the same time it is the world of returning to the origin and becoming one. Seen in this way, returning to the origin and becoming one is the very opposite of the selfish individualistic every man for himself mentality. Rather, it means that the will of God is the will of the self, in which we go back to our origins of having a heart and mind that is one with God. At the same time it is an expression denoting the truth that transcendent sages on earth are one, with all bearing the totally impartial and completely selfless heart and mind of God. Thus, in referring to people, it is an important concept allowing us the opportunity to move beyond the individualistic I or ego and to recognize society as a place of we and us communality.
   This world of returning to the origin and becoming one is the heaven on earth aspired to in Donghak and Chondogyo. In other words, the ultimate religious aim of Chondogyo is to establish heaven or paradise on earth in which all people enjoy equality and freedom in a return to the origin and become one society and a return to the origin and become one world erected by transcendent sages on earth bearing the heart and mind of God. This is precisely the post-cosmic creation aspired to in Chondogyo.
   Thus, in accordance with the inevitable coming of the post-cosmic creation, Chondogyo is a religion intent on establishing a newly-dimensioned order, a newly-dimensioned life, and a newly-dimensioned world.