120 t h e a n n a l s o f k i n g t’a e j o
ancestral rites at the shrine of the Wang clan. As for the rest of the clan
members, let them live wherever they find convenient outside the capital. In
addition, let their wives and children and servants live together as they used
to, and make sure that the local governments concerned take good care of
them so that they can live safely.
“1. Both civil and military examinations for public service are essential,
because we need more men of talent for the state. We shall nurture them by
establishing the national academy in the capital and provincial schools in
the local districts, increasing their number and encouraging them to devote
themselves to their studies.
“1. The civil service examinations, originally intended to find talented
people who are capable of serving the country, have degenerated to such a
degree that, rather than being fair and impartial, success or failure in them
is determined by private connections and favoritism, which is quite con-
trary to their original purpose. From now forth, the Civil Service Examination
Office of the National Academy (Sŏnggyungwan Chŏngnokso) and surveil-
lance commissioners (allyŏmsa) of local provinces shall select candidates
who are learned in the classics and exemplary in their conduct, and submit
their names along with their ages, family seats, the history of their imme-
diate ancestors for three generations, and the list of classics they have mas-
tered. Then the Reviewing Office (Chang’iso) of the National Academy
shall test the candidates’ knowledge of such texts as the Four Books (Sasŏ),^41
the Five Classics (Ogyŏng),^42 and Comprehensive Mirror to Aid in
Government (Tongjian)^43 and grade their ability according to the number of
texts they have mastered the depth of their understanding and so forth.
“This is the first stage of the examination process, and those who pass the
first stage will be turned over to the Board of Rites, which will test their
ability by having them compose documentary prose (p’yo), memorials, and
old-style rhyme prose (kobu). This is the second stage of the examination
process. The final stage will be the composition of essays on policy
(ch’aengmun). The thirty-three candidates who pass the final third stage
will be sent to the Board of Personnel, and the Board of Personnel will- The Analects, the Mencius, the Great Learning and the Doctrine of Mean.
- The Classic of Poetry, the Classic of Documents (Book of Documents), the Book of
Rites, and the Classic of Changes, and the Spring and Autumn Annals. - A Chinese history compiled by Smima Guang (1019―1086), a scholar-official of the
Song dynasty. Written in the form of chronicle, it covers the history from the Warring States
to the Five Dynasties, which spans almost 1,400 years.