618 henrik h. sørensen
As far as we can tell, Esoteric Buddhism of the Chosŏn period con-
tinued the practices of the Sinin and Ch’ongji schools
of the Koryŏ (see Sørensen 2005, 49–84). However, in order to fully
appreciate the Esoteric Buddhist tradition that existed under the
Chosŏn, it is important to note that it existed as a phenomenon tran-
scending sectarian boundaries and in essentially non-denominational
contexts despite the fact that the Sŏn tradition was the dominant form
of Buddhism.
After the old Koryŏ schools of Buddhism were forced to merge dur-
ing the early fifteenth century, the two Esoteric Buddhist schools were
incorporated into the new dual structure of Sŏn and Kyo.^5 This meant
that monks trained in Esoteric Buddhist lore came to function primar-
ily as ritual specialists within this new institutional structure. In fact,
there is good reason to see the transmission of ritual practices and the
associated practices such as Buddhist music, painting, and knowledge
of spell-writing in Sanskrit to have been the province of monks trained
in Esoteric Buddhism.
chŏnsŏ (hereafter HPC), vol. 7, 252b–279a, as well as Hyŭjŏng’s Samga kugam
(Magic Mirror of the Three Families) (HPC vol. 7, 616a–634b). For a discussion
of the doctrinal and philosophical issues at stake, see Han 1981, 78–124. 5
By the time that the Koryŏ ended, Korean Buddhism consisted of eleven schools or
denominations, including two branches of Sŏn (Chogye and Imje ), and the
Ch’ŏnt’ae, Ch’ongji, Pŏpsa , Sŏja , Hwaŏm, Tomun , Chungdo
, Chaŭn , Sinin, Sihŭng , and Namsan schools. Accord-
ing to both traditional Buddhist sources and historical records, the two Esoteric Bud-
dhist denominations, the Sinin and the Ch’ongji, were absorbed into the Chungdo
and Chogye schools of Buddhism, respectively, during the first attempt at reform-
ing that religion. This merger took place in 1407 C.E. on the basis of a decree that
ordered the Buddhist denominations to merge into seven denominations: the Chogye
(Sŏn), Ch’ŏnt’ae, Hwaŏm, Chaŭn, Chungsin (Chungdo and Sinin schools),
Ch’ongnam (Ch’ongji and Namsan schools), and Sihŭng schools. In 1424
C.E. (the sixth year of King Sejong’s reign), only eighteen years later, the Ch’ŏnt’ae,
Ch’ongnam, and Chogye schools were finally merged into the school of Sŏn, while the
other (mainly doctrinal ) schools of Buddhism (i.e., the Chungsin, Hwaŏm, Chaŭn,
and Sihŭng ) were merged into the school of Kyo (“doctrinal Buddhism”). Officially
the Kyo tradition was dominated by Hwaŏm Buddhism, but in reality it encompassed
a wide range of diverse practices and cults, all equally important. The dual division
of Sŏn and Kyo followed the norm set for Buddhism under the Ming, and it lasted
the remainder of the dynasty. To some extent this division may still be perceived in
today’s division between the Chogye and the T’aego traditions. For a detailed
discussion of the mergers and the creation of the dual denominational structure of
Chosŏn Buddhism, see Hŏ 1986, 522–548.