KIHWA

Kihwa (1376–1433) was a Korean monk of the late Koryŏ/early Chosŏn periods. He was also known by the monastic name Hamhŏ Tukt'ong. Kihwa was typical of the Sŏn (Chan) school masters of his time; he taught his followers the Imje (Linji) oriented kong'an (kŌan) method, along with other standard aspects of Sŏn practice. At the same time, he was one of the most focused and energetic advocates of the intrinsic resonance between meditation practice and scriptural study.

Kihwa is considered by many scholars of Korean Buddhism to be one of the best writers of the Korean tradition. He wrote important commentaries on the Yuanjue jing (Perfect Enlightenment Sūtra), the Jin'gang jing (Diamond SŪtra), and the Chan Yongjia ji (Collection of Yongjia of the Chan School). Kihwa was distinguished by his mastery of Chinese philosophy, but he eventually set aside his Confucian studies in favor of Buddhism. This philosophical background, coupled with his literary talents, served him well when he defended the Buddhist establishment against a rising neo-Confucian ideological movement. The treatise that Kihwa wrote in defense of Buddhism on this occasion, the Hyŏnjŏng non (Articulating the Correct), is considered one of the great works in Korean intellectual history. In this work, Kihwa argued that the three traditions of Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism are in basic agreement at a fundamental philosophical level. Kihwa passed away while residing at Chŏngsusa, located at the southern tip of Kanghwa Island, where his tomb can still be visited.

See also:Confucianism and Buddhism; Korea

Bibliography

Buswell, Robert E., Jr. "Buddhism under Confucian Domination: The Synthetic Vision of Sŏsan Hyŭjŏng." In Culture and the State in the Late Chosŏn Korea, ed. JaHyun Kim Haboush and Martina Deuchler. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Asia Center, 1999.

Muller, A. Charles. The Sūtra of Perfect Enlightenment: Korean Buddhism's Guide to Meditation, with Commentary by the Sŏn Monk Kihwa. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1999.

A. Charles Muller