Yi Saek (

Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula * Korean cuisine * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl **Korean dialects and the Jeju language ** ...

: 이색,

Hanja Hanja (Hangul: ; Hanja: , ), alternatively known as Hancha, are Chinese characters () used in the writing of Korean. Hanja was used as early as the Gojoseon period, the first ever Korean kingdom. (, ) refers to Sino-Korean vocabulary, ...

: 李穡, 17 June 1328 – 17 June 1396), also known by his pen name Mogeun (

: 목은), was a

writer and poet. His family belonged to the Hansan Yi clan. Yi Saek played a crucial role in the introduction and localisation of philosophy of

Zhu Xi Zhu Xi (; ; October 18, 1130 – April 23, 1200), formerly romanized Chu Hsi, was a Chinese calligrapher, historian, philosopher, poet, and politician during the Song dynasty. Zhu was influential in the development of Neo-Confucianism. He con ...

. He studied Neo-Confucianism in

Yuan Dynasty The Yuan dynasty (), officially the Great Yuan (; xng, , , literally "Great Yuan State"), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after its division. It was established by Kublai, the fif ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...

and opened an academy after his return to

Goryeo Goryeo (; ) was a Korean kingdom founded in 918, during a time of national division called the Later Three Kingdoms period, that unified and ruled the Korean Peninsula until 1392. Goryeo achieved what has been called a "true national unificat ...

, and from his academy the founders of

Joseon Dynasty Joseon (; ; Middle Korean: 됴ᇢ〯션〮 Dyǒw syéon or 됴ᇢ〯션〯 Dyǒw syěon), officially the Great Joseon (; ), was the last dynastic kingdom of Korea, lasting just over 500 years. It was founded by Yi Seong-gye in July 1392 and r ...

were educated. Many of his disciples, such as

Jeong Do-jeon Jeong Dojeon ( Korean: 정도전, Hanja: 鄭道傳, 1342 – October 6, 1398), also known by his pen name Sambong ( Korean: 삼봉), was a prominent Korean scholar-official during the late Goryeo to the early Joseon periods. He served as the firs ...

and

Gwon Geun Gwon Geun (1352–1409) was a Korean Neo-Confucian scholar at the dawn of the Joseon dynasty, and a student of Yi Saek. He was one of the first Neo-Confucian scholars of the Joseon dynasty, and had a lasting influence on the rise of Neo-Confucian ...

, used Neo-Confucianism as the ideological basis for overthrowing the

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

kingdom of

and establishing Confucian Joseon. However, Yi Saek himself remained loyal to the Goryeo Dynasty and didn't believe the wiping out of Buddhism, as Jeong Do-jeon insisted, would be of any benefit. Yi Saek believed in the co-existence of the "Three Disciplines":

Confucianism Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a Religious Confucianism, religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, ...

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

and

Taoism Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmony with the '' Ta ...

. Yi Saek resigned from all political positions after the founding of the Joseon Dynasty. Not much is known about how he died, but some say that he was murdered while crossing a bridge, like

Jeong Mong-ju Jeong Mong-ju (Korean: 정몽주, Hanja: 鄭夢周, January 13, 1338 – April 26, 1392), also known by his pen name Poeun (Korean: 포은), a historical figure during the transition period of the Korean dynasty moving from Goryeo (918-1392) to ...

(four years earlier in 1392). When he was offered the position of Prime Minister by

Yi Seong-gye Taejo of Joseon (4 November 1335 – 27 June 1408), born Yi Seong-gye (), was the founder and first ruler of the Joseon dynasty of Korea. After ascending to the throne, he changed his name to Yi Dan (), and reigned from 1392 to 1398. He was ...

, Yi Saek turned the offer down and told him that he could not serve two kings (of

and

Joseon Joseon (; ; Middle Korean: 됴ᇢ〯션〮 Dyǒw syéon or 됴ᇢ〯션〯 Dyǒw syěon), officially the Great Joseon (; ), was the last dynastic kingdom of Korea, lasting just over 500 years. It was founded by Yi Seong-gye in July 1392 and re ...

). Yi Seong-gye subsequently ordered his men to kill him if he was not able to cross the bridge in time, and if he does cross it in time, to let him go. He died because he didn't cross the bridge in time. Yi Saek left various poetry, essays and letters compiled in ''The Collected Works of Mogeun''.

Family

* Grandfather ** Yi Ja-seong (이자성, 李自誠) * Grandmother ** Lady Yi of the Wolsan Yi clan (울산 이씨, 蔚山李氏) * Father ** Yi Gok (이곡, 李穀) (25 August 1298 - 28 January 1351) * Mother ** Lady Kim of the Hamchang Kim clan (함창 김씨, 咸昌金氏) *** Grandfather - Kim Taek (김택, 金澤) * Wife and children ** Lady Gwon of the Andong Gwon clan (안동 권씨) *** Son - Yi Jong-hak (이종학) *** Son - Yi Jong-seon (이종선) **** Daughter-in-law - Lady Gwon (권씨); daughter of Gwon Geun (권근) ***** Grandson - Yi Gye-ju (이계주) ****** Great-Grandson - Yi Gae (이개) (1417 - 1456) ***** Grandson - Yi Gye-rin (이계린) (1401 - 1455) ****** Granddaughter-in-law - Lady Yi of the Cheongju Yi clan (정경부인 청주 이씨, 貞敬夫人淸州李氏)She is the daughter of Princess Jeongsun (정순공주, 貞順公主) (1385 - 1460) and Yi Baek-kang (이백강, 李伯剛) (1381 - 1451). Princess Jeongsun was the eldest daughter and child of

Queen Wongyeong Queen Wongyeong (원경왕후 민씨; 29 July 1365 – 18 August 1420) of the Yeoheung Min clan, was the primary wife of Taejong of Joseon, and the mother of Sejong the Great. She was queen consort of Joseon from 1400, and was honored as Queen J ...

and King Taejong ***** Grandson - Yi Gye-jeon (이계전) ***** Grandson - Yi Gye-won (이계원)

In popular culture

* Portrayed by Lee Dae-ro in the 1983 MBC TV series ''

The King of Chudong Palace ''The King of Chudong Palace'' () is a 1983 South Korean historical television series, the first installment of the drama series ''500 Years of Joseon Dynasty'' by director Lee Byung-hoon and writer Shin Bong-seung. It aired on MBC from March ...

''. *Portrayed by Jeon In-taek in the 2005–2006 MBC TV series '' Shin Don''. * Portrayed by Park Ji-il in the 2014

KBS1 The Korean Broadcasting System (KBS) () is the national broadcaster of South Korea. Founded in February 1927, it is one of the leading South Korean television and radio broadcasters. KBS operates seven radio networks, ten television channels, ...

TV series ''

''. * Portrayed by Kim Jong-soo in the 2015-2016 SBS TV series ''

Six Flying Dragons ''Six Flying Dragons'' () is a South Korean television series starring Yoo Ah-in, Kim Myung-min, Shin Se-kyung, Byun Yo-han, Yoon Kyun-sang and Chun Ho-jin. It aired on SBS on Mondays and Tuesdays at 22:00 for 50 episodes beginning on October ...

''.

References

Korean Confucianists Korean male poets 1328 births 1396 deaths 14th-century Korean philosophers 14th-century Korean poets 14th-century Korean calligraphers {{Confucianism-stub

Family

In popular culture

See also

References