• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.54 no.1
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• pp.238-259
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• 2021

Gameunsa Temple is a Buddhist temple from the mid-Silla period. Construction began during the reign of King Munmu and was completed during the second year of King Sinmun's reign (682). This study is based on the results of excavations at the Gameunsa Temple site, exploring the findings presented in the literature in the field of history. This study also investigates the characteristics of the construction plan of Gameunsa Temple and its correlation with the political, social, and religious environment of the time. The results of the study are as follows: (1) First, it is confirmed that all of the buildings in the central block of Gameunsa Temple, such as the pagoda and corridor, the central gate, and the auditorium, fit within 216 cheoks by 216 cheoks (Goguryeo unit of measurement, estimated dimensions 353.30 mm), in terms of the base structure. This fact is highly significant considering the intent of the King in the mid-Silla period to advocate Confucian political ideals at the Donghaegu sites (Daewangam, Igyeondae Pavilion, and Gameunsa Temple), as confirmed by the relationship between the 'Manpasikjeok legend' and the Confucianism of the etiquette and the music; the relationship between the name of the 'Igyeondae Pavilion' and the 'I Ching'; and the relationship between the 'Taegeuk stones excavated from the Gameunsa Temple site' and the 'I Ching.' Additionally, it may be presumed that the number in the "Qian 216" on the Xici shang of 'I Ching' was used as a basis for determining the size of the central block in the early stages of the design of Gameunsa Temple. The layout of the halls and pagodas of Gameunsa Temple was planned to be within a 216-cheok-by-216-cheok area, from the edge to the center, i.e., on the central axis of the temple, in the following order: the central gate and auditorium, the north-south position of Geumdang Hall, the south corridor, the east-west buildings of the auditorium and the winged corridor, the east-west corridor, and the central position of the east-west stone pagoda. (2) Second, the coexistence of Confucianism and Buddhism in the architecture of Gameunsa Temple is based on the understanding of the Golden Light Sutra, originating from the aspirations of King Munmu to obtain the immeasurable merits (陰陽調和時不越序 日月星宿不失常度 風雨隨時無諸災横) and the light of the Buddha, which is metaphorically represented by the sun and the moon illuminating the whole world of Silla, a new nation with a Confucian political ideology, for a long time by "circumambulating the Buddha (旋繞)". It is also presumed that Gyeongheung, who was appointed by King Munmu to be the Guksa in his will and appointed as the Gukro after the enthronement of King Sinmun, was deeply involved in the conception and realization of the syncretism of Confucianism and Buddhism.