244 t h e a n n a l s o f k i n g t’a e j o
Chinese court, returned to present a copy (pubon) of the letter from the
Ministry of Rites. The king was extremely pleased and bestowed on him a
horse as a gift.5th Day (Kyŏngsin)
When the royal carriage arrived in Ch’ŏngju, Magistrate Chin Yŏŭi and
Administrator Min Tosaeng and others greeted the king by performing a
ceremonial dance called narye^26 in the northern suburbs of the town, and
the elders of the villages bowed down to the ground before the royal car-
riage, singing songs.6th Day (Sinsa)
There was a sinister red glow in the south.8th Day (Kyemi)
The royal carriage arrived at the foot of Mt. Kyeryong.9th Day (Kapsin)
There was a ring around the sun until the evening. Leading many officials,
the king inspected the mountains and rivers of the site for the new capital.
Then he ordered the officials, including Sŏng Sŏngnin, right director of the
State Finance Commission; Kim Chu, assistant consultative councilor of
the Chancellery; and Yi Yŏm, Chancellery scholar, to make observations on
the topographical features of the site in relation to marine transportation
and the construction of roads. He also ordered Prince Ŭian Yi Hwa and
Nam Ŭn to inspect the sites on which city walls were to be constructed.10th Day (Ŭlyu)
Kwŏn Chunghwa, left director of the State Finance Commission and con-
current director of the Astronomical and Meteorological Observatory, pre-
sented the diagrams of the Royal Ancestral Shrine, Altars of Earth and
Grain, royal palaces, and markets. The king ordered geomancy experts,- It is a ritual dance of exorcism for warding off evils, performed in wintertime or on
some festive occasions.