Monument for the Incense Burial Ceremony in Heungsa-ri, Sacheon

Maehyang ("incense burial") refers to a ritual of burying fragrant wood in the ground or burning incense to honour the gods of heaven and earth, and a maehyangbi is a stele recording the process, timing and groups involved in performing such a ritual. The inscription is carved on an almost unworked natural stone, whose surface is markedly uneven. The characters vary in size, are not well aligned horizontally or vertically, and the number of characters differs from line to line. Nevertheless, the script has an archaic quality that offers a glimpse of the local calligraphic style of the period. According to the deciphered text, at a time of social turmoil in the late Goryeo period, more than 4,100 people, organised into a mutual aid society (gye) centred on Buddhist monks, held an incense burial ceremony at this place to pray for the king's long life, the prosperity of the nation, and the peace of the people. The inscription was composed by the monk Dalgong, written by Suan, and carved by Kim Yong, and the stele was erected in 1387, the thirteenth year of King U of Goryeo. As a stele whose purpose and date of erection are clearly established, it is a valuable source that reveals a forgotten aspect of traditional Korean folk custom and shows a cross-section of late Goryeo society.

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Where it is

Region

Sacheon, Gyeongnam

Designation

Treasure · 보물