Haenam Maengjilliamgangmaehyang Stele

A maehyangbi is a stele recording the motive, location, date and participating groups of a maehyang rite — the ritual burial of fragrant agarwood, performed in the hope that those making the wish would one day be connected with the Maitreya Buddha yet to be born, a form of Maitreya worship. This stele makes use of a rock on the north-west side of Mandaesan Mountain known as Janggunbawi, or "General Rock"; the text was carved into a sloping surface within a crevice of the rock, and its lettering survives in good condition. Notably, the inscription records that 58 members of a hyangdo (a lay religious confraternity) gathered together with a hundred village residents to perform the maehyang rite. From the content of the inscription, it appears that the text was carved after the rite was performed in 1406, the sixth year of King Taejong of Joseon. The maehyang rite had originally flourished during the Goryeo period and declined in scale in the early Joseon period, but in this region, where damage from Japanese pirate raids (waegu) was severe, it can be seen that the rite continued to flourish.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Haenam, Jeonnam & Gwangju

Designation

Provincial Monument · 시도기념물