Iryeon; Uisang; Hwaeom; Seon; Samguk yusa; Order of Nine Mountain Schools; Avatamsaka Sutra; Revised Edition on Caotong`s Five Categories
摘要
This treatise examines Iryeon`s Hwaeom philosophy and faith through a study of his biographical records and his most significant work, Samguk yusa. The premise that Iryeon`s philosophy has its roots in the Hwaeom school is supported by evidences that he prayed to Manjusri when Goryeo was facing a Mongol onslaught, and that he went to the ``place of non-residence`` at the behest of Manjusri where he achieved ``non-hinderance.`` Manjusri who appears in Samguk yusa is the same Manjusri we find in the Avatamsaka pantheon. And Iryeon`s philosophy, which is based on non-residence, non-expansion and non-contraction, and non-hindrance, is clearly linked to Uisang`s idea of ``non-resident enlightenment.`` It is in this context that we can understand his profession of philosophical lineage stemming from Jinul and his integration of Seon and Hwaeom can be understood. Other examples of the connection between Iryeon and Hwaeom include his reconstruction of Yongcheonsa, one of the Ten Main Hwaeom temples, and the establishment of a reformative religious society, Buril Gyeolsa (佛日結社) there; his completion of Samguk yusa and his passing at Ingaksa, a temple founded by Uisang, and Iryeon`s recognition by people as the incarnation of Dammugal Bodhisattva. In addition, his faith in Hwaeom (evident in Samguk yusa), as well as the Ornamented World philosophy and Vairocana, and his worship of the Avatamsaka Bodhisattvas and their pantheon, naturally led to view Hwaeom as superior of itself and to Uisang`s Hwaeom philosophy. The scripture Iryeon referred to when he was writing his opus magnum was the Eighty Avatamsaka. And his reverence for Uisang was a natural extension of his efforts to emulate the Bodhisattvas in caring for all mortals, based on the enlightenment of nonresidence and non-hindrance which is at the crux of his Hwaeom faith and philosophy. Thus the Gyeongcho Seon that is his religious hallmark could be considered as his unique Seon expression of the Hwaeom Bodhisattva Work (華嚴菩薩行).
