• The Journal of Korean Medical History
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.41-53
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• 2013

In this paper, King Kyung-Jong's strange diseases which had been exacerbated by the Sinim-Sahwa(辛壬士禍) are researched and discussed. The subject will be described mostly based on health and medical records from "The Daily Records of Royal Secretariat of Chosun Dynasty(承政院日記)" and "The Annals of the Choson Dynasty(朝鮮王朝實錄)". Sinim-Sahwa had occurred for two years. It is thought that the beginning of it was 'a controversy on a proclamation of a crown prince, Yeon Ing Goon'. At the first year of Kyung-Jong's ruling, August 21, the No-Ron demanded a king's heir be decided as soon as possible, the king asked Yeon Ing Goon as his successor because of his 'strange diseases'. In October of the same year, the conflict between No-Ron and So-Ron parties reached its peak after a dispute about 'regency from behind the veil for the crown prince' at that time. Kyung-jong added that he had a mysterious and heavy disease and there was little hope to recover from it. Some opposing courtiers emphasized the king was in his good health and there weren't any actual diseases he suffered. But Kyung-Jong stubbornly persisted the diseases he had were so heavy that he couldn't get well readily. In detail, he announced his disease had so deeply rooted in internal organs that he could feel some kind of heat and fire arousal form his heart, then rage and resent soaring. Eventually, on 16th, the No-Ron party followed the king's demand, thus the king's health and illness condition itself was gradually getting off the subject. It seems that Kyung-jong's strange diseases was hwa-byung(火病). His symtoms are similar to the symtoms of hwa-byung. Environment he lived, was enough to cause hwa-byung. as a result, Sinim-Sahwa was the event what his hwa(火) was erupted.