Obangjae Hall Hojeongjip Woodblocks, Jinju

The surviving Hojeongjip woodblocks comprise 46 blocks printing 86 pages in all, with six blocks (twelve pages) missing. They consist of: two blocks (three pages) carrying the prefaces, one written by Yu Chi-myeong in 1844 and one by Yi Gyeong-jae; one block (two pages) for the genealogy chart; one block (two pages) for the table of contents; one block (two pages) carrying King Taejong's royal edict and King Jeongjo's memorial text; eleven blocks (21 pages) for Volume 1; ten blocks (20 pages) for Volume 2, of which four blocks (eight pages — pages 1, 2, 9, 10, 11, 12, 23 and 24) are missing; thirteen blocks (23 pages) for Volume 3, of which one block (two pages — pages 15 and 16) is missing; four blocks (eight pages) for the appendix; one block (one page) for the postscript, a further block of two pages (pages 2 and 3) also missing; and two blocks (four pages) for the Byeonmurok, a record refuting false accusations made against the family. Including the end-pieces, each block measures 45 cm by 30 cm overall; the printed text frame measures 31 cm by 21.5 cm; and the blocks are about 2 cm thick. The Hojeongjip carries two prefaces, by Jeongjae Yu Chi-myeong (1777-1861) and by Yi Gyeong-jae, with Yu Chi-myeong's placed first. Yu Chi-myeong's preface is dated to the Dano festival of the reigning king's tenth year, gapjin - that is, 5 May 1844 - while the date of Yi Gyeong-jae's preface is not recorded. The postscript was written by a collateral descendant, Yongwa Ha Jin-hyeon (1776-1846), whose date of composition is likewise unknown. In his postscript, Ha Jin-hyeon records that, with no direct descendants left and the family having suffered repeated wars, Ha Ryun's writings had been scattered and lost; a clansman, Ha Jin-dal, searched far and wide and produced a first draft, after which another clansman, Ha Sok, gathered the missing portions so that the volume was at last completed. A colophon at the end of the book states that it was published at Obangjae in the third month of the jeongmi year (1847). Taken together, the postscript and colophon show that Ha Jin-dal first collected Ha Ryun's surviving writings into a draft, which Ha Sok then completed by supplying the missing parts; prefaces were obtained from Yu Chi-myeong and Yi Gyeong-jae, Ha Jin-hyeon composed the postscript, and the book was published in 1847 at Obangjae, the mourning hall below Ha Ryun's tomb. Ha Jin-hyeon, the head descendant of Songjeong Ha Su-il, lived at Sagok in Jinju; a pupil of Namgye Yi Gap-ryong, he was a leading figure of the Siranggong branch of the Jinyang Ha clan, then settled at Sugok and Danmok, and he is also thought to have written the Byeonmurok refuting the claims made in the Record Vindicating Cha Won-bu. He therefore appears to have been the person who led the compilation and publication of this collection. The person whose writings the collection records is Hojeong Ha Ryun (1347-1416), courtesy name Dae-rim, whose father was Ha Yun-rin. He passed the Gukjagamsi examination in 1360 (the ninth year of King Gongmin) and the civil service examination in 1365. In 1388 he strongly opposed Choe Yeong's plan to invade Liaodong and was exiled to Yangju, but was restored to office that summer when Choe Yeong was removed from power following Yi Seong-gye's withdrawal of troops from Wihwado. In 1391 he became inspector-general of Jeolla-do. Sharing the political stance of Yi Saek, Jeong Mong-ju, Yi Sung-in and Gwon Geun, he at first opposed the founding of the Joseon dynasty, but, like Gwon Geun, soon changed his allegiance, becoming a provincial inspector of left Gyeonggi in 1393 (the second year of King Taejo). In these early years, however, his discord with Jeong Do-jeon kept him from any especially senior post. He became a councillor of the Jungchuwon in 1394 but resigned to observe mourning for his father. In 1396 he was appointed an academician of the Yemun Chunchugwan, and it was then that he clashed directly with Jeong Do-jeon over a dispute with Ming China concerning a diplomatic document (pyojeon). The dispute arose because Ming firmly demanded that Jeong Do-jeon, who had drafted the document, be sent to China under escort, on the grounds that it contained language insulting to Ming; Ha Ryun argued that Jeong Do-jeon should indeed be sent, and in 1396 he himself travelled to Ming as an envoy and settled the matter before returning. This earned him Jeong Do-jeon's enmity, and in 1397 he was demoted to magistrate of Gyerim. Even in that post he suffered further political hardship, being implicated in the case of Bak Ja-an and placed under house arrest at Suwon. As a result he grew close to Yi Bang-won, who had at the time been passed over for investiture as crown prince by Jeong Do-jeon's faction and was in danger of losing even his own troops; in 1398, at the First Strife of Princes, he gave Yi Bang-won his full support. For this service, once Jeong Jong had taken the throne, Ha Ryun was ranked first among the Merit Subjects for Stabilising the State and enfeoffed as Lord of Jinsan. When official posts were extensively reorganised that year he became a senior councillor, and worked tirelessly to secure Yi Bang-won's investiture as crown prince, so that by the time King Taejong came to the throne he already held ministerial rank and had begun to take the lead in state affairs. In 1400 (the second year of King Jeong Jong) he led a reorganisation of the official system as a senior state councillor, and held key posts including commander of the Three Armies Command and right state councillor; when King Taejong acceded that year he was ranked first among the Merit Subjects for Assisting the Enthronement. He went on to serve as chief examiner, reform the official system, and, while concurrently overseeing the Board of Taxation, put paper currency into circulation. In 1402 (the second year of King Taejong) he became left state councillor and, as congratulatory envoy for the enthronement of the Ming Yongle Emperor, travelled to Ming and brought back the royal seal and patent recognising the Joseon dynasty. In 1405 he became left state councillor and tutor to the crown prince, and the following year, as examiner for a special palace examination, selected ten successful candidates including Byeon Gye-ryang. He subsequently served as chief state councillor, left state councillor and left minister, and in 1416, at the age of seventy, retired from office and was enfeoffed as Lord Buwon of Jinsan. After his retirement he was sent by royal order to inspect the tombs of former kings in Hamgil-do, and died on the journey home. Ha Ryun excelled in poetry and prose and was deeply versed in yin-yang theory, medicine, astrology and geography; overseeing the court's literary affairs, he also took part in compiling the Dongguksaryak, an abridged history of Korea, and the Veritable Records of King Taejo. He contributed greatly to the early Joseon dynasty's move of the capital to Hanyang and to the establishment of its institutions, and, skilled in diplomacy, resolved numerous problems with Ming China in the dynasty's early years. Above all, he rendered outstanding service in assisting King Taejong to lay the foundations of the Joseon dynasty. His collected writings form the Hojeongjip, he is enshrined among the officials honoured alongside King Taejong, and his posthumous title was Munchung.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Jinju, Gyeongnam

Designation

Cultural Heritage Material · 문화유산자료