• Journal of Korean Philosophical Society
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• v.137
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• pp.57-79
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• 2016

The purpose of this paper is to explain MacIntyre's critique of moral pluralism of modern society and reveal the limits of his critique of liberalism. It is a distinctive feature of the social and cultural order that we inhabit that disagreements over central moral issues are peculiarly unsettleable. Debates concerned with the value of human life such as those over abortion and euthanasia, or about distributive justice and property rights, or about war and peace degenerate into confrontations of assertion and counter-assertion because the protagonists of rival positions invoke incommensurable forms of moral assertion against each other. We usually call this situation 'modern moral pluralism' and concede as the natural outcome of the activities of human reason under free institution. But in After Virtue, MacIntyre vigorously criticizes modern moral pluralism. The main cause he took which brought about this state of affairs was the failure of 'the Enlightenment project'. According to MacIntyre, the Enlightenment project which has dominated philosophy for the past three hundred years promised a conception of rationality independent of historical and social context, and independent of any specific understanding of man's nature or purpose. But not only has that promise in fact been unfulfilled, the project is itself fundamentally flawed and the promise could never be fulfilled. In consequence, modern moral and political thought are in a state of disarray from which they can be rescued only if we revert to an Aristotelian paradigm, with its essential commitment, and construct an account of practical reason premised on that commitment. But one of the deepest difficulties with the argument of After Virtue is that the very extent of its critique of the modern world seems to cast doubt on the possibility of any realistic revival under the conditions of modernity of the Aristotelianism which MacIntyre advocates. Especially when we consider we are not only the characters found in our narratives but also we ourselves are the author of our own narratives. Moral pluralism is not seen as disaster but rather as the natural outcome of the activities of human reason under enduring free institutions.

• The Korean Journal of Archival Studies
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• no.21
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• pp.247-281
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• 2009

Local governments in Korea, sixteen in total, shall establish local government archives to and manage preserve their permanent archives to comply with the Public Records Management Act amended in October 2006. National Archives of Korea(NAK) directed the local governments to recruit legally qualified archivists by the end 0f 2006 and to plan on the establishment and operation of the local government archives by the end 2007. However, none of the government archives was established by far. Government officials in NAK and the local governments raised the limits of the budget and human resources. What is more serious is that they don't concern why the archives are necessary and what missions and functions the archives should have. In this paper, I summarized the present situation and problems in establishing the local archives, and what we will do to establish normal government archives. First, local governments should establish "local government records commissions" and employ qualified archivists. The local government records commission should comprise concerned and qualified members. The records commission, as a policy and decision-making body, should make plans and implement the plans to establish the local archives, establish professional training programs to produce qualified archivists, promote local archives community activities, determine operational issues, and make a long-term development plan satisfying local demands. Second, the local government archives share existing repositories of NAK. Third, after the establishment of the archives, the local archives should perform normal records and archives management of the local governments as records acts mandate, do general records surveys and appraise the records created in the local governments. The local government archives should collect valuable local archives including private archives, and arrange and make usable them to provide access. They also promote and coordinate various cultural heritage community activities related to the local archives.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
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• v.49 no.4
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• pp.64-73
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• 2021

The purpose of this study is to present a method to assess the landscape aesthetic value of Bukhansan National Park using geotagged images that have been shared on social media sites. The method presented in this study consisted mainly of collecting geotagged image data, identifying landscape images, and analyzing the cumulative visibility by applying a target probability index. Ramblr is an application that supports outdoor activities with many users in Korea, from which a total of 110,954 geotagged images for Bukhansan National Park were collected and used to assess the landscape aesthetics. The collected geotagged images were interpreted using the Google Vision API, and were subsequently were divided into 11 landscape image types and 9 non-landscape image types through cluster analysis. As a result of analyzing the landscape types of Bukhansan National Park based on the extracted landscape images, landscape types related to topographical characteristics, such as peaks and mountain ranges, accounted for the largest portion, and forest landscapes, foliage landscapes, and waterscapes were also commonly found as major landscape types. In the derived landscape aesthetic value map, the higher the elevation and slope, the higher the overall landscape aesthetic value, according to the proportion and characteristics of these major landscape types. However, high landscape aesthetic values were also confirmed in some areas of lowlands with gentle slopes. In addition, the Bukhansan area was evaluated to have higher landscape aesthetics than the Dobongsan area. Despite the high elevation and slope, the Dobongsan area had a relatively low landscape aesthetic value. This shows that the aesthetic value of the landscape is strongly related not only to the physical environment but also to the recreational activities of visitors who are viewing the scenery. In this way, the landscape aesthetics assessment using the cumulative visibility of geotagged images is expected to be useful for planning and managing the landscape of Bukhansan National Park in the future, through allowing the geographical understanding of the landscape values based on people's perceptions and the identification of the regional deviations.

• Journal of Korea Entertainment Industry Association
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.169-178
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• 2021

The Korean girl group "Kara" has suffered the trilemma of its de facto failure to debut, the crisis of team breakup, and the CEO crisis of the agency. But the group has made an outstanding achievement in the history of Korean pop music after overcoming all odds. Their success strategy has never been disclosed by insiders involved in Kara's total music projects. This study has been carried out in the analysis of the strategy to provide academic implications and to honor the contribution of the late CEO Ho-yeon Lee and Kara's key member Ha-ra Gu. Therefore, between Nov. and Dec. 2020, we conducted in-depth interviews with managers, composers, stylists and Ha-ra Gu(Only in 2019, before her death) who took part in the project. The research model is set up by combining Porter's Competitive Advantage Strategy and the music value chain model into categories of "Product Innovation Differentiation (PD)" (producing, album production, performance activities) and "Marketing Differentiation (MD)" (market targeting, image specialization, promotion and communication). The analysis showed that the PD focused on complete rediscovered harmonization and revalued members' personality and sincerity with peppy songs and dainty dances as well as emission of "bright energy" which caused healing effects instead of mimicking other star singers recklessly. In terms of MD, they selected Japan's 10-20s as their main market, increasing intimacy with fans and media with the image of cute+pretty+classy+sexy. The result suggests that Poter's differentiation can function as a meaningful strategy frame in the fostering, hit, and revival of idol groups. In addition, it reaffirmed that spontaneous and passionate activities of early-stage or celebrity fan may serve as a valid catalyst for realizing differentiation, as Kara's caller of Japanese actor Gekidan Hitori caused a strong "priming effect" that drove Kara's unexpected wonderful success in Japan.

• The Journal of the Convergence on Culture Technology
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• v.9 no.5
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• pp.255-262
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• 2023

In the early 20th century, Yeomjae Song Tae-hoe (念齋 宋泰會, 1872-1941), a disciple and onetime adopted son of teacher Song Su-myeon(宋修勉, 1847-1916), moved to Gochang and laid the foundation for Gochang calligraphy and painting, and it can be seen that a full-fledged flow began. Yeomjae Song Tae-hoe was a scholar and calligrapher of the late Joseon Dynasty and modern period from Hwasun, Jeollanam-do. He is a person who created the foundation of Gochang calligraphy and painting while working as an educator in Chinese literature, calligraphy, and painting, mainly in his hometown of Hwasun and Gochang, while engaging in creative activities. He was intelligent from a young age and showed an extraordinary talent for calligraphy. At the age of 16, he passed the Jinsa exam (童蒙進士) and became the youngest student to study at Sungkyunkwan. He was active by holding exhibitions nationwide based in Gochang and Jeonju, and was also an educator who fostered younger students by establishing Gochang High School (currently, Gochang Middle and High School) to cultivate national spirit and history. Yeomjae drew strong and healthy landscape paintings under the absolute influence of the painting style of Saho Song Su-myeon, and dealt with various materials of southern school literati paintings such as flowers and birds and four plants. In particular, he is a representative calligrapher who encompasses the early modern era and the modern era in that he expressed his interest in new cultural artifacts as well as the realization of a modern-oriented realistic landscape based on Korean natural beauty. He laid the foundation for modern and contemporary calligraphy and painting. Goam Lee Eung-no (顧菴 李應魯, 1904-1989), a world-renowned painter, learned the basics of ink painting from Yeomjae in his late teens.However, compared to his various artistic and social activities, it is regrettable that he is limited and evaluated as a local writer.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.172-205
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• 2011

Go bears significant meanings in terms of cultural and entertaining functions in Asia Eastern such as China and Japan. Beyond the mere entertaining level, it produces philosophical and mythic discourse as well. As a part of effort to seek an identity of Korean traditional garden culture, this study traced back to find meanings of rock-go-board and taste for the arts which ancestors pursued in playing Go game, through analysis and interpretation of correlation among origin of place name, nearby scenery, carved letters and vicinal handed-down place name. At the same time, their position, shape and location types were interpreted through comprehensive research and analysis of stone-go-boards including rock-go-board. Particularly, it focused on the rock names related to Sundoism(仙道) Ideal world, fixed due to a connection between traces of Sundoism and places in a folk etymology. Series of this work is to highlight features of the immortal sceneries, one of traditional landscaping ideals, by understanding place identity and scenic features of where the rock-go-boards are carved. These works are expected to become foundation for promotion and preservation of the traditional landscaping remains. The contents of this study could be summarized as follows; First, round stone and square board for round sky and angled land, black and white color for harmony of yin and yang and 361paths for rotating sky are symbols projecting order of universe. Sayings of Gyuljungjirak(橘中之樂), Sangsansaho(商山四皓), Nangagosa(爛柯故事) formed based on the idea of eternity stand for union of sky and sun. It indicates Go game which matches life and nature spatiotemporally and elegant taste for arts pursuing beauty and leisure. Second, the stone-go-boards found through this research, are 18 in total. 3 of those(16.1%), Gangjin Weolnamsaji, Yangsan Sohanjeong and Banryongdae ones were classified into movable Seokguk and 15(83.9%) including Banghakdong were turned out to be non-movable rock-go-boards carved on natural rocks. Third, upon the result of materializing location types of rock-go-boards, 15 are mountain stream type(83.9%) and 3 are rock peak type(16.1%). Among those, the one at Sobaeksam Sinseonbong is located at the highest place(1,389m). Considering the fact that all of 15 rock-go-boards were found at mountainous areas lower than 500m, it is recognizable that where the Go-boards are the parts of the living space, not far from secular world. Fourth, there are 7 Sunjang(巡將) Go with 17 Hwajeoms(花點), which is a traditional Go board type, but their existences, numbers and shapes of Hwajeom appear variously. Based on the fact, it is recognizable that culture of making go-board had been handed down for an extended period of time. Among the studied rock-goboards, the biggest one was Muju Sasunam[$80(82)cm{\times}80(82)cm$] while the smallest one was Yangsan Sohandjeong Seokguk ($40cm{\times}40cm$). The dimension of length and breadth are both $49cm{\times}48cm$ on average, which is realistic size for actual Go play. Fifth, the biggest bed rock, an under-masonry with carved Go-board on it, was one in Muju Sasunam[$8.7m{\times}7.5m(65.25m^2)$], followed by ones in Hoengseong Chuiseok[$7.8m{\times}6.3m(49.14m^2$] and Goisan Sungukam[$6.7m{\times}5.7m(37.14m^2)$]. Meanwhile, the smallest rock-go-board was turned out to be one in Seoul Banghak-dong. There was no consistency in directions of the Go-boards, which gives a hint that geographical features and sceneries of locations were considered first and then these were carved toward an optimal direction corresponding to the conditions. Sixth, rock-go-boards were all located in valleys and peaks of mountains with breathtaking scenery. It seems closely related to ancestors' taste for arts. Particularly, rock-go-boards are apprehended as facilities related to taste for arts for having leisure in many mountains and big streams under the idea of union of sky and human as a primitive communal line. Go became a medium of hermits, which is a traditional image of Go-game, and symbol of amusement and entertainment with the idea that Go is an essence of scholar culture enabling to reach the Tao of turning back to nature. Seventh, the further ancient time going back to, the more dreamlike the Go-boards are. It is an evident for that Sundoism, which used to be unacceptable once, became more visible and realistic. Considering the high relation between rock-go-boards and Sundoism relevant names such as Sundoism peak in Danyang Sobaeksan, 4 hermits rock in Muju and Sundoism hermit rock in Jangsu, Sundoism hermit rocks and rock-go-boards are sceneries and observation spots to express a communication of worship and longing for Sundoism. Eighth, 3 elements-physical environment such as location type of the rock-go-boards, human activities concentrated on 8 sceneries and Dongcheongugok(洞天九曲) setup and relevancy to Confucian scholars, as well as 'Sangsansaho' motif and 'Nangagosa' symbolic meaning were used as interpretation tools in order to judge the place identity. Upon the result, spatial investigation is required with respect to Sunyoodongcheon(仙遊洞天) concept based on enjoyment to unify with the nature rather than Dongcheongugok concept of neo-Confucian, for Dongcheon and Dongmoon(洞門) motives carved around the rock-go-boards. Generally, places where mountain stream type rock-go-boards were formed were hermit spaces of Confucianism or Sundoism. They are considered to have compromised one other with the change of times. Particularly, in the rock-go-board at the mountain peak, sublimity-oriented advent of Sundoism is considered as a significant factor to control place identity. Ninth, including where the rock-go-boards were established, the vicinal areas are well-known as parts of Dongcheongugok and Palkyung(八景) mostly. In addition, many of Sundoism relevant expressions were discovered even in the neighboring carvings written by scholars and nobility, which means sophisticated taste based on longing for Sundoism world played a significant role in making go-board. The rock-go-board is an integration of cultural phenomena naturally managed by seclusion of scholars in the Joseon Dynasty as well as remains and essence of Korean traditional landscaping. Some rock-go-boards out of 17 discovered in South Korea, including ones in Sobaeksan Sinsunbong, Banghak-dong, Chungju Gongili, Muju Sasunam, Yangsan Eogokdong Banryongdae Seokguk, are damaged such as cracks in rocks or fainted lines by hardships of time and hand stains. Worse yet, in case of Eunyang Bangudae Jipcheongjeong board, it is very difficult to identify the shape due to being buried. Rock-go-boards are valuable sculptures in terms of cultural asset and artwork since they reflect ancestors' love for nature and longing for Sundoism world. Therefore, they should be maintained properly with right preservation method. Not only rock-boards itself but also peripheral places are excellent cultural heritages and crucial cultural assets. In addition, vicinal sceneries of where rock-goboards and pavilion spots are the representative remains of embracing prototype of Korean traditional landscaping and major parts of cultural properties.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Traditional Landscape Architecture
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.78-97
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• 2016

The objectives of this study are to examine the context of the establishment of Suhoe Gugok, Byeokgye Gugok Vally, and Nosan Palkyung, which have been established in Seojong-myeon of Yangpyeong-gun, by literature review and site investigations, and to determine the sceneries of Byeokgye scenic site as enjoyed and managed during the period of Hwaseo Lee, Hang-ro(華西 李恒老). The results of the study are as follows. First, Byeokgye Gugok Vally(黃蘗九曲) and Nosan Palkyung(蘆山八景), which have been established after the period of Hwaseo and theorized to have been established around key scenic areas associated with Hwaseo's activities, the analysis results showed that they were collecting sceneries of modern times. The extensive overlap between Byeokgye Gugok Vally and concentrated scenic elements of Suhoe Gugok(水回九曲), and the artificial configuration from the end point of Suhoe Gugok to the beginning point of Nosan Palkyung, reveal the pattern of space conflict and hegemony between Byeokgyes of Suip-ri and Nomun-ri. This is likely to be caused by the conflict between the historicity of the group that enjoyed Byeokgye prior to Hwaso's period and the strong territoriality of the space filled with the image of Hwaseo. Second, Byeokgye Gugok Vally was the secondary spatial system created by selecting the most scenic sites in Suip-ri while expanding the area of Nosan Palkyung. After establishment of Byeokgye Gugok Vally, the spatial identity of the entire Byeokgyecheon area was effectively established. This was a "Hwaseo-oriented" move, including the complete exclusion of the scenic sites from the pre-Hwaseo period such as Cheongseo Gujang and Suhoe Gugok's Letters Carved on the Rock. Consequently, the entire Byeokgyecheon area was reorganized into a cultural scenic site with Heoseo's influence. Third, Fifth, creations of Gugok(九曲) to determine the lineage of the Hwaseo School from Juja(朱子) to Yulgok(栗谷) to Uam(尤庵) to Hwaseo is likely to be an opportunity of birth and external motivation of the establishment of new Gugok Palkyung. In other words, Nosan Palkyung and Byeokgye Gugok Vally are likely to have been created as a reaction to the change of the center of the Hwaseo School to Okgyedong, and with strategic orientation based on the motivation and needs such as creation of the connecting space between Mui Gugok, Gosan Gugok, and Okgye Gugok, and the elevation of Hwaseo's status. Fourth, from the Hwaseo's Li-centric point of view, all revered sites in Beokwon(蘗園) that he managed existed as the spatial creative work to experience the existence of "li" through the objects in the landscape and the boundary of the spirit of emptiness of the aesthetic self. This clearly shows how Byeokgye Gugok Vally or Nosan Palkyung must be defined, and furthermore, appreciated and approached, prior to discussing it as the space associated with Hwaseo. Fifth, Nosan Palkyung was composed of cultural scenic landscapes of Gokjungkyung(曲中景) with eight scenic sites where Hwaseo gave his teachings and spend time around, in the Byeokgye of Nomun-ri area of Byeokgye Gugok Vally. The sceneries is, however, collected by depending on Hwaseo's Letters Carved on the Rock and poetry. Consequently, an inner exuberance of Nosan Palkyung is satisfied beside Byeokgye Gugok Vally, but its conceptual adequacy leaves room for questions.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.51 no.4
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• pp.4-23
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• 2018

Seo Byeong-o (徐丙五, 1862-1936) played a central role in the formation of the Daegu artistic community-which advocated artistic styles combining poetry, calligraphy and painting-during the Japanese colonial period, when the introduction of the Western concept of 'art' led to the adoption of Japanese and Western styles of painting in Korea. Seo first entered the world of calligraphy and painting after meeting Lee Ha-eung (李昰應, 1820-1898) in 1879, but his career as a scholar-artist only began in earnest after Korea was annexed by Japan in 1910. Seo's oeuvre can be broadly divided into three periods. In his initial period of learning, from 1879 to 1897, his artistic activity was largely confined to copying works from Chinese painting albums and painting works in the "Four Gentlemen" genre, influenced by the work of Lee Ha-eung, in his spare time. This may have been because Seo's principal aim at this time was to further his career as a government official. His subsequent period of development, which lasted from 1898 until 1920, saw him play a leading social role in such areas as the patriotic enlightenment movement until 1910, after which he reoriented his life to become a scholar-artist. During this period, Seo explored new styles based on the orchid paintings of Min Yeong-ik (閔泳翊, 1860-1914), whom he met during his second trip to Shanghai, and on the bamboo paintings of Chinese artist Pu Hua (蒲華, 1830-1911). At the same time, he painted in various genres including landscapes, flowers, and gimyeong jeolji (器皿折枝; still life with vessels and flowers). In his final mature period, from 1921 to 1936, Seo divided his time between Daegu and Seoul, becoming a highly active calligrapher and painter in Korea's modern art community. By this time his unique personal style, characterized by broad brush strokes and the use of abundant ink in orchid and bamboo paintings, was fully formed. Records on, and extant works from, Seo's early period are particularly rare, thus confining knowledge of his artistic activities and painting style largely to the realm of speculation. In this respect, eleven recently revealed nanjukseok (蘭竹石圖; orchid, bamboo and rock) paintings, produced by Seo in 1889, provide important clues about the origins and standards of his early-period painting style. This study uses a comparative analysis to confirm that Seo's orchid paintings show the influence of the early gunran (群蘭圖; orchid) and seongnan (石蘭圖; rock and orchid) paintings produced by Lee Ha-eung before his arrest by Qing troops in July 1882. Seo's bamboo paintings appear to show both that he adopted the style of Zheng Xie (鄭燮, 1693-1765) of the Yangzhou School (揚州畵派), a style widely known in Seoul from the late eighteenth century onward, and of Heo Ryeon (許鍊, 1809-1892), a student of Joseon artist Kim Jeong-hui (金正喜,1786-1856), and that he attempted to apply a modified version of Lee Ha-eung's seongnan painting technique. It was not possible to find other works by Seo evincing a direct relationship with the curious rocks depicted in his 1889 paintings, but I contend that they show the influence of both the late-nineteenth-century-Qing rock painter Zhou Tang (周棠, 1806-1876) and the curious rock paintings of the middle-class Joseon artist Jeong Hak-gyo (丁學敎, 1832-1914). In conclusion, this study asserts that, for his 1889 nanjukseok paintings, Seo Byeong-o adopted the styles of contemporary painters such as Heo Ryeon and Jeong Hak-gyo, whom he met during his early period at the Unhyeongung through his connection with its occupant, Lee Ha-eung, and those of artists such as Zheng Xie and Zhou Tang, whose works he was able to directly observe in Korea.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.45 no.4
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• pp.54-73
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• 2012

In this article, we examined the patterns of activities of the Sarmathians though in a humble measure, with a focus on the regions where the Sarmathian sheaths spreaded. One of the main weapons the mounted nomads like the Scythias, the Sarmathians, and the Alans used at war was a spear. Though complementary, a sword was the most convenient and appropriate weapon when fighting at a near distance, fallen from the horse to the ground. The Sarmathian swords continued the tradition of the Akinakes which the Scythias or the Persians used, but those of the Sarmathians showed some advances in terms of the easiness with which a sword was drawn out from a sheath, and the way the sheaths were worn to parts of a human body. It turns out that the Sarmathian sheaths, which were designed for the people to draw swords easily, having the sheaths attached to thighs through 4 bumps, spread extensively from Pazyryk, Altai, to South Siberia, Bactria, Parthia and Rome. The most noteworthy out of all the Sarmathian sheaths were the ones that were excavated from the 4th tomb in Tillatepe, Afghanistan which belonged to the region of Bactria. The owner of the fourth tomb of Tilla-tepe whose region was under the control of Kushan Dynasty at that time, was buried wearing Sarmathian swords, and regarded as a big shot in the region of Bactria which was also under the governance of Kushan Dynasty. The fact that the owner of the tomb wore two swords suggests that there had been active exchange between Bactria and Sarmathia. It seemed that the reason why the Sarmathians could play an important role in the exchange between the East and the West might have something to do with their role of supplying Chinese goods to Silk Road. That's why we are interested in how the copper mirrors of Han Dynasty, decoration beads like melon-type beads, crystal beads and goldring articulated beads, and the artifacts of South China which produced silks were excavated in the northern steppe route where the Sarmathians actively worked. Our study have established that the eye beads discovered in Sarmathian tomb estimated to have been built around the 1st century B.C. were reprocessed in China, and then imported to Sarmathia again. We should note the Huns as a medium between the Sarmathians and the South China which were far apart from each other. Thus gold-ring articulated beads which were spread out mainly across the South China has been discovered in the Huns' remains. On the other hand, between 2nd century B.C. and 2nd century A.D. which were main periods of the Sarmathians, it was considered that the traffic route connecting the steppe route and the South China might be West-South silk road which started from Yunnan, passed through Myanmar, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, and then went into the east of India. The West-south Silk road is presumed to have been used by nomadic tribes who wanted to get the goods from South China before the Oasis route was activated by the Han Dynasty's policy of managing the countries bordering on Western China.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.53 no.4
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• pp.2-31
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• 2020

CheomSeongDae (瞻星臺) is a stone structure built in Gyeongju, the former Silla Dynasty capital, during the reign of Queen Seondeok (632~647AD). There exist dozens of hypotheses regarding its original purpose. Depending on to whom you ask, the answer could be a celestial observatory, a religious altar, a Buddhist stupa, a monumental tower symbolizing scientific knowledge, and so on. The most common perception of the structure among lay people is a stargazing tower. Historians, however, have suggested that it was intended as "a gateway to the heavens", specifically the Trāyastriṃśa or the second of the six heavens of Kāmadhātu located on the top of Mountain Sumeru. The name "Cheom-seong-dae" could be interpreted in many different ways. 'Cheom (瞻)' could refer to looking up, staring, or admiring, etc.; 'Seong (星)' could mean a star, heaven, night, etc.; and 'heaven' in that context can be a physical or religious reference. 'Dae (臺)' usually refers to a high platform on which people stand or things are placed. Researchers from the science fields often read 'cheom-seong' as 'looking at stars'; while historians read it as 'admiring the Trāyastriṃśa' or 'adoring Śakra'. Śakra is said to be the ruler of Trāyastriṃśa' who governs the Four Heavenly Kings in the Cāturmahārājika heaven, the first of the six heavens of Kāmadhātu. Śakra is the highest authority of the heavenly kings in direct contact with humankind. This paper examined the usages of 'cheom-seong' in Chinese literature dated prior to the publication of 『Samguk Yusa』, a late 13th century Korean Buddhist historical book that contains the oldest record of the structure among all extant historical texts. I found the oldest usage of cheom-seong (瞻星臺) in 『Ekottara Āgama』, a Buddhist script translated into Chinese in the late 4th century, and was surprised to learn that its meaning was 'looking up at the brightness left by Śakra'. I also found that 'cheom-seong' had been incorporated in various religious contexts, such as Hinduism, Confucianism, Buddhist, Christianism, and Taoism. In Buddhism, there was good, bad, and neutral cheom-seong. Good cheom-seong meant to look up to heaven in the practice of asceticism, reading the heavenly god's intentions, and achieving the mindfulness of Buddhism. Bad cheom-seong included all astrological fortunetelling activities performed outside the boundaries of Buddhism. Neutral cheom-seong is secular. It may help people to understand the nature of the physical world, but was considered to have little meaning unless relating to the spiritual world of Buddhism. Cheom-seong had been performed repetitively in the processes of constructing Buddhist temples in China. According to Buddhist scripts, Queen Māyā of Sakya, the birth mother of Gautama Buddha, died seven days after the birth of Buddha, and was reborn in the Trāyastriṃśa heaven. Buddha, before reaching nirvana, ascended from Jetavana to Trāyastriṃśa and spent three months together with his mother. Gautama Buddha then returned to the human world, stepping upon the stairs built by Viśvakarman, the deity of the creative power in Trāyastriṃśa. In later years, King Asoka built a stupa at the site where Buddha descended. Since then, people have believed that the stairway to the heavens appears at a Buddhist stupa. Carefully examining the paragraphic structure of 『Samguk Yusa』's records on Cheomseongdae, plus other historical records, the fact that the alignment between the tomb of Queen Seondeok and Cheomseongdae perfectly matches the sunrise direction at the winter solstice supports this paper's position that Chemseongdae, built in the early years of Queen SeonDeok's reign (632~647AD), was a gateway to the Trāyastriṃśa heaven, just like the stupa at the Daci Temple (慈恩寺) in China built in 654. The meaning of 'Cheom-seong-dae' thus turns out to be 'adoring Trāyastriṃśa stupa', not 'stargazing platform'.