• Journal of the Daesoon Academy of Sciences
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• v.44
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• pp.53-96
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• 2023

This article apprehends Yeongdae (靈臺), the most sacred shrine of Daesoon Jinrihoe which has earlier historical precedents, as an example of material religion. In East Asia, the first Yeongdae was a structure that King Wen of Zhou commissioned to be built. As the time passed by, the meaning of Yeongdae was changed to signify a mental yeongdae, the object and the aim of cultivation, and the notional mindset that appears in the Daoist meditation, Cunsi (存思, visualization). This implies that Yeongdae has signified both material and non-material objects. Throughout most of history, these two concepts had never been related to each other, but shifted in form and meaning depending on context. Daesoon Jinrihoe, which emerged in the modern era of Korea, used the concept of investiture of gods and combined the two into one. Accordingly, the Yeongdae, referred to by King Wen to indicate his shrine, was expressed as a spot wherein the gods were enshrined on the earth. As an innovation, Daesoon Jinrihoe argued that gods correspond to properly eligible human beings according to the degree of their cultivation and that sacred space was instead defined a spot within the human mind, a mental yeongdae, where the gods could be enshrined into humanity (神封於人). From the perspective of Lévi-Strauss, the factors that are discovered in the tradition of East Asia, namely, the Yeongdae of King Wen and the mental yeongdae of Zhuangzi can combined with consistency and established in the doctrinal system of Daesoon Jinrihoe. Such an attempt refers to bricolage which re-creates the traditional concepts of the past. In this regard, the concept of invented tradition coined by Eric Hobsbawm could also be used to conclude that the Yeongdae (the shrine of gods) of Daesoon Jinrihoe can be expressed as an invented Yeongdae, which transcends the existing categories of material yeongdae and non-material yeongdae.

• Journal of the Daesoon Academy of Sciences
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• v.22
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• pp.539-565
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• 2014

This paper provides the meaning of sacred places and pilgrimages in Daesoonjinrihoe, the most representative of the new religions in Korea. Daesoonjinrihoe stipulates Dojang(道場, it means temple complex) as the sacred places, which presently functions as the center of their religious faith. Also, The Daesoonjinrihoe devotees worship 15 deities at a sacred place, Yeongdae(靈臺). By seeing meanings of sacred places and pilgrimage in Daesoonjinrihoe, This article focuses on the process of the sacrificial rite of Daesoonjinrihoe related to the importance of religious ritual or place of faith and sacred places as pilgrimage sites. At this time, I explain the properties of sacrificial rite of it. The sacrificial rite of Daesoonjinrihoe, one of its major rites, is performed at both regular and irregular intervals. It is performed by either an individual or a group at a fixed time and place. The study of sacred places should focus not only artificial structures such as buildings but also the meanings given to them and the mechanism that created these meanings. Pilgrimage is journey undertaken by person who consider their destination sacred. By seeing meaning of pilgrimage, this paper focus on Daesoonjinrihoe' role in making a place pilgrimage sites and pilgrimage functions. The reason I focus on sacred places and pilgrimage in Daesoonjinrihoe is that these sacred places reflect people's attempt to invent religious memory and identity. Thus, I elucidate the role that Daesoonjinrihoe's sacred places and pilgrimage plays in remembering religious memory. I examine the messages that Daesoonjinrihoe's sacred places intend to convey to the followers through the created sacred places and pilgrimage. Sacred places are significant because it reflect important symbolic features of religion. Sacred places and pilgrimage are vehicles for remembering the religious memory and reinforcing various memories. Finally, Handing down of our valuable Daesoonjinrihoe's cultural heritage is our duty. So it is necessary to make an effort to conserve Daesoonjinrihoe's cultural heritage such as sacred places and concentration upon our interest continuously.

• Journal of the Daesoon Academy of Sciences
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• v.27
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• pp.35-77
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• 2016

All humans are subject to death, and this creates a motivation to construct theories regarding divine immorality (神仙思想) in order to satisfy the human desire (慾望) for eternal life (長生) and the avoidance of death(不死). In the concept of Earthly immortality (地上神仙) from Daesoonjinrihoe (大巡眞理會), devotees do not carry out their work in a deep mountain ranges far removed from human society. Instead, they cultivate themselves in Dao from within the human society (自身修道), chant incantation to benefit others, aspire towards immortal status (神仙), and promote harmony between divine beings and humans (神人調和) all without ever leaving human society. In the Yeoju Headquarters of Daesoonjinrihoe, members created a new place called a "Dojang (道場 temple complex)" to live as immortal humans in the here and now while they chant incantations (呪文) as an act of participation in the Immortal Realm of the Later World (後天仙境). Some key religious and fengshui (geomancy) oriented symbols used within the Yeoju Headquarters of Daesoonjinrihoe appear as follows: first, Cheonggye Tower (靑溪塔) represents faith in traditional astrology (星宿神仰) and reverence for the God of the Nine Heavens (九天上帝). Second, Daesoonjinrihoe (大巡眞理會) emphasizes the Saturn associated earth element from five phases (五行土星) and this represent the Later World due to numerological associations. Third, the Fengshui of the Yeoju Headquarters of Daesoonjinrihoe is a highly propitious (吉地) and also accentuates the Saturn associated earth element from five phases. Fourth, Yeongdae (靈臺) in the Yeoju Headquarters of Daesoonjinrihoe faces west where Jeungsan will come accompanied by other gods (神命). Fifth, the Yeoju Headquarters of Daesoonjinrihoe is in charge of property and receives happiness and prosperity (福祿) through its Fengshui. The Yeoju Headquarters of Daesoonjinrihoe is an earthly paradise for immortals (地上天國) forged to achieve the ultimate purpose of transforming its members into the Dotong (道通, those enlightened in Dao and thereby successful in their every endeavor) of the Later World. In accordance with Daesoon thought, the Saturn associated earth element from five phases is positioned in the middle of incantations, and Yeongdae, other architecture, and landscaping has all been arranged to correspond with Daesoon geomancy and numerology (後天數理).