• (The)Study of the Eastern Classic
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• no.35
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• pp.161-188
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• 2009

Confucianism's concept of Ye is ruled by the absolute principle of the universe on one hand, and by "the rules of Ye(節文)" and "the rules of ceremony(儀則)", the principle of relative articulation on the other hand. The realizations of the absolute principle of Ye is depending on its usage in everyday life which is fundamentally conditioned by time and space. Thus, Ye's usage can be maximized when the fundamental principle and the condition of its usage make a mutual harmony. Of course, Ye and Ak(樂) are doing complementary roles for each other, since Ye is a principle of a division and Ak is a principle of combining features. However, the essence of Ye can be figured out as the characteristics of mutual reciprocity among things of hierarchy between the classes. Not only in Modern one But also in the medieval society, Ye was not a one-sided force. The essence of Ye does not retain the interests of an individual and the power of a group. If so, the formal aspects of Ye had been distorted. Confucianism demands a strict morality and ethics of a normal person as well as of the ruler. The characteristics of Ye is democratic and open to the condition of time and space. Yegyo should be rooted in everyday lives and realized as a usualness. Therefore, Shirak was an inevitable feature of Yegyo. During the 16th and the 17th century, Ye insinuated into everyday lives of the public in the Korean society. Yulgok Yiyi(李珥)'s Haejuhyangyak(海州鄕約) was estimated as the exemplary feature of Shirak.