• Journal of Daesoon Thought and the Religions of East Asia
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.39-60
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• 2021

This essay analyzes the meaning of "modern civilization" and the ways it relates to religion conceived as a "The Fellowship of Daesoon Truth (Daesoon Jinrihoe)." We take the expression "Fellowship of Truth" in the broadest sense as indicative of a human companionship with the true nature of the Real. We therefore understand the term to be practically equivalent with the concept of "religion" as connoting the ideas of bond, relationship, debt, and duty toward the Ultimate Reality, toward fellow human beings, and toward the cosmos in general. On this basis, our intent is to assess the nature and limits of the relationship between religion as a fellowship of the Truth and the tenets of modern civilization. Within this overarching perspective, the case of Daesoon Jinrihoe is particularly significant and fruitful for two sets of reasons. Firstly, this is so because Daesoon is typically branded a "new religious movement" open to modernity while it is also true that at least some of its representatives are wary of the negative implications of the modern world. Secondly, the significance of a study of Daesoon in light of the notion of religion as a "The Fellowship of the Truth" lies in that it asserts being rooted in tradition, which raises the question of its relationship with modernity.

• Journal of the Daesoon Academy of Sciences
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• v.34
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• pp.107-139
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• 2020

This paper primarily focuses on the highest deity, the Upper Thearch of the Nine Heavens (officially translated as 'The Supreme God of the Ninth Heaven'), in the Korean new religious movement (NRM) Daesoon Jinrihoe and the true minister of the myriad spirits in the Taiwanese NRM, Yiguan Dao, the Upper Thearch of Manifest Luminosity. As the two both serve as highly representative "Upper Thearch" beliefs in emerging NRMs, I attempt a comparative analysis of the source of these beliefs, their characteristics, and the links that exist between them. On the basis of ancient Chinese classics and Daoist texts, along with Daesoon Jinrihoe's scriptures and works from Yiguan Dao's Canon, I try to understand the distinguishing features of cosmological ideas from both religious movements. For example, because the Upper Thearch of the Nine Heavens could not bear to see the human realm growing ever more disordered and in order to improve worldly conditions, he traveled to the harmonized realm of deities, and therefore descended into the world to make a great itineration and enlighten the people through his teachings. In the end, he came to Korea and was reborn as Kang Jeungsan (secular name: Kang Il-Sun) in Gaekmang Village. In the Human Realm, he spread his transformative teachings to the people which were later became the doctrines of the Virtuous Concordance of Yin and Yang, Harmonious Union between Divine Beings and Human Beings, the Resolution of Grievances for Mutual Beneficence, and Perfected Unification (jingyeong 真境) with the Dao. Yiguan Dao; however, explains that the source of humanity is the "Heaven of Principle" (Litian 理天), and people are "Buddha's Children of the Original Embryo" (Yuantai Fozi 原胎佛子), created by the Upper Thearch of Manifest Luminosity, who came to world to govern and impart spiritual refinement, before returning to his native place in the Heaven of Principle. Yet, because he became infatuated with the world of mortals, he forgot the path of his return. Therefore, the Eternal Mother sent Maitreya Buddha, the Living Buddha Jigong 濟公, and the Bodhisattva of Moon Wisdom (Yuehui pusa 月慧菩薩) to descend to the human world and teach the people, so that they may acknowledge the Eternal Mother as the root of return, achieve their return to the origin, and go back to the home of the Eternal Mother in the Heaven of Principle. Both Daesoon Jinrihoe and Yiguan Dao refer to their highest deity, the true ministers of the myriad spirits, with the simple title "Upper Thearch." This phenomenon also has some ties to God in the western Biblical tradition but also has some key differences. In investigating the sources of these two deities, we find that they likely took shape during the Yinshang (殷商) period and have some relationship to the Upper Thearch of Chinese antiquity. The questions raised in this research are quite interesting and deserving of deeper comparative study.

• Journal of the Daesoon Academy of Sciences
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• v.41
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• pp.27-61
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• 2022

Documentation related to Mugeuk-do (Limitless Dao) is rare in comparison to other Korean new religions given that it has been open to the public and translated since the 1970s. Due to its rarity, the documentation has been used uncritically, without there being any comparative study or historical research. It is undeniable that distortions and fallacies are embedded in these documents, and this has resulted in quite a few problems in precisely understanding Mugeuk-do and Daesoon Jinrihoe (The Fellowship of Daesoon Truth), an order that has inherited the legacy of Mugeuk-do. In this regard, this study aims to critically define the characteristics and limitations of the major documents related to Mugeuk-do that were published by the colonial government in the 1920s~1930s and recorded by multiple orders in the 1970s-1980s through comparisons. An attempt to conduct this research allows for the discovery of a solution to the problem of uncritical usage of those materials. The documents produced by the colonial government that can be used as basic texts to study Mugeuk-do are The General Conditions of the Religion Mugeuk-do (無極大道敎槪況) and Unofficial Religions of the Korea (朝鮮の類似宗敎). These can be found through bibliography, comparison, and historical research. Chapters 6, 7, and 8 of The General Conditions of the Religion Mugeuk-do are a possible source on the order that reflects the circumstances of Mugeuk-do until 1925. In the case of Unofficial Religions of the Korea, if the descriptive perspective on unofficial religions is excluded, the articles written about the circumstances post 1925 have credibility. Another document that describes multiple orders and can be used as a basic text is chapter 2 of 'Progress of the Order' in Daesoon Jinrihoe's The Canonical Scripture. This is because its record precisely reflects the conditions of the era, with regard to the fact that it is the freest from distortions caused by changes in the belief system and it is less biased towards certain sects or denominations. Furthermore, the collection period of the articles is the earliest. Accordingly, as basic texts, Chapters 6, 7, and 8 of The General Conditions of the Religion Mugeuk-do and the articles from Unofficial Religions of the Korea after 1925, as well as chapter 2 of 'Progress of the Order' in The Canonical Scripture are appropriate for studying Mugeuk-do. In addition, Overview of Bocheonism, History of Jeungsan-gyo, and The True Scripture of the Great Ultimate can be utilized as references after removing distortions and fallacies through comparative study. Henceforth, relevant documents should be utilized to establish comprehensive data on Mugeuk-do through comparative and historical research.