Jongmyo () is a

Confucian royal ancestral shrine The Confucian royal ancestral shrine () is a system of Confucian worship for royal ancestors in the East Asian region. Originating from Chinese culture, it was later redeveloped among countries in East Asian cultural sphere as cultural diffusio ...

in the

Jongno District upright=1, Bosingak bell pavilion Jongno District () is one of the 25 districts of Seoul, South Korea. It is the historic center of Seoul that contains Gyeongbokgung, the main royal palace of the Joseon dynasty, and the Blue House, the for ...

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

, South Korea. It was originally built during the

Joseon Joseon ( ; ; also romanized as ''Chosun''), officially Great Joseon (), was a dynastic kingdom of Korea that existed for 505 years. It was founded by Taejo of Joseon in July 1392 and replaced by the Korean Empire in October 1897. The kingdom w ...

period (1392–1897) for memorial services for deceased kings and queens. According to

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

, the shrine is the oldest royal Confucian shrine preserved and the ritual ceremonies continue a tradition established in the 14th century. Such shrines existed during the

Three Kingdoms of Korea The Three Kingdoms of Korea or Samhan (Goguryeo, Baekje and Silla) competed for hegemony over the Korea, Korean Peninsula during the ancient period of History of Korea, Korean history. During the Three Kingdoms period (), many states and statele ...

period (57–668), but these have not survived. The Jongmyo Shrine was added to the UNESCO

World Heritage World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

list in 1995.

Changdeokgung Changdeokgung () is a former royal palace in Seoul, South Korea. A UNESCO World Heritage Site and a Historic Sites (South Korea), Historic Site of South Korea, it is among the best preserved of all Korean palaces. It and its neighboring palace Cha ...

and Changgyeonggung lie to the north of Jongmyo. Yulgok-ro separated Jongmyo from the palaces from 1932 to 2019, until Yulgok-ro was turned into a road tunnel and the connection between Jongmyo and the palaces restored. The main buildings of Jongmyo were constructed in October 1394 when Taejo, founder and first king of

, moved the capital to Hanseong (present-day

). The shrine was destroyed by fire in the Japanese invasions of Korea (1592–1598), then rebuilt in early 1600s. The shrine continues to be the venue for the Jongmyo Daejae ancestor-worship ceremony, where descendants of the imperial family honor the spirits of their deceased ancestors.

History

When it was built in 1394 at the order of King Taejo, the Jongmyo Shrine was thought to be one of the longest buildings in Asia, if not the longest. The main hall, known as ''Jeongjeon'' (), had seven niches or ''myoshil'' (), each reserved for the

spirit tablet A spirit tablet, memorial tablet, or ancestral tablet is a placard that people used to designate the seat of a deity or past ancestor as well as to enclose it. The name of the deity or the past ancestor is usually inscribed onto the tablet. Wit ...

s of a king and his queens. The complex was expanded by

King Sejong Sejong (; 15 May 1397 – 8 April 1450), commonly known as Sejong the Great (), was the fourth monarch of the Joseon, Joseon dynasty of Korea. He is regarded as the greatest ruler in Korean history, and is remembered as the inventor of Hangu ...

(r. 1418–50) who ordered the construction of ''Yeongnyeongjeon'' (). This practice of expansion continued, with the growth of the complex moving from west to east, because of the need to house more memorial tablets during the reigns of later kings until there were a total of 19 ''myoshil''. However, during the 1592–1598 Japanese invasions of Korea, Japanese invaders burned down the original shrine and a new complex was constructed in 1601 and has survived to this day. The original spirit tablets were saved in the invasion by hiding them in the house of a commoner. A king's tablet was enshrined three years after his death, which is the end of the mourning period for a king. There are 19 tablets of kings and 30 of their queens, placed in the 19 niches. Each niche is very simple and plain in design. Only two kings' memorial tablets are not enshrined here.Jongmyo Shrine
at In addition to the tablet, there is a panel listing each king's accomplishments. The two most recent enshrinements occurred in 1973 and 1991 in ''Yeongnyeongjeon'' Room 16, for Crown Prince Euimin and his wife Crown Princess Bangja, respectively. The current ''Jeongjeon'' is National treasure No. 227 and is the longest building in Korea of traditional design.

Description

Viewed from the king's throne room at the royal palace Gyeongbokgung, Jongmyo Shrine would have been on the king's left while the Sajik Shrine, another important Confucian shrine, was on the right. This arrangement was derived from Chinese practice. also, because Changdeokgung Palace was older than Gyeongbokgung Palace, Jongmyo was connected to Changdeokgung Palace, and the king entered and left through the north gate instead of the south gate. The main halls are surrounded by hills. The south entrance gate was reserved for spirits to enter and exit, the east gate was for the king, and the west gate was for the performers of the royal ritual.Confucianism - Jongmyo Royal Ancestral Shrine
at The main building of the Jongmyo Shrine is divided into the Jeongjeon(정전/正殿) and the Yeongnyeongjeon(영녕전/永寧殿). The Yeongnyeongjeon Hall is dedicated to kings whose ancestors were old by the standards of the current reigning king or whose reigns were short-lived , while the Jeongjeon Hall houses portraits of kings whose accomplishments during their reigns are well known. The memorial tablets of 19 kings and 30 queens are enshrined in Jeongjeon, while the memorial tablets of 16 kings and 18 queens are enshrined in Yeongnyeongjeon. When the king visited this place, he followed a set route and ritualized procedures to wash himself and perform sacrifices, followed by a large number of people. In front of the main hall is the ''Woldae'' Courtyard, which is 150 meters in length and 100 meters in width.

Rituals and performances

Korean Royal Ancestral Ritual Music-Jongmyo Jeryeak-01

An elaborate performance of ancient court music (with accompanying dance) known as ''jongmyo jeryeak'' () is performed there each year for the ''jongmyo jerye'' ritual. Musicians, dancers, and scholars would perform Confucian rituals, such as the ''jongmyo daeje'' (royal shrine ritual) in the courtyard five times a year. Today, the rituals have been reconstructed and revived. The ''jongmyo daeje'' has been designated as Intangible Cultural Heritage No. 56 and is performed every year on the first Sunday in May. The ''jongmyo jeryeak'', the traditional court music of Joseon, is performed by the Royal Court Orchestra and has been designated as Intangible Cultural Heritage No. 1. This court music has its origins in Chinese court music that was brought to Korea during the

Goryeo Goryeo (; ) was a Korean state founded in 918, during a time of national division called the Later Three Kingdoms period, that unified and ruled the Korea, Korean Peninsula until the establishment of Joseon in 1392. Goryeo achieved what has b ...

period (918–1392).Performing Arts: Jongmyo Cherye-ak
at King Sejong composed new music for the ritual based largely on ''

hyangak ''Hyangak'', literally "indigenous/native music, folks music" is a traditional form of Korean court music with origins in the Three Kingdoms of Korea, Three Kingdoms period (57 BC – 668 AD). It is often accompanied by traditional folk dances o ...

'' (with some ''

dangak ''Dangak'' () is a genre of traditional Korean court music. The name means " Tang music", and the style was first adapted from Tang Dynasty Chinese music during the Unified Silla period in the late first millennium. It was continued through t ...

'') in 1447 and 1462. The songs invite the ancestral spirits to descend from heaven to enjoy the kings' achievements in founding the dynasty and defending the country in order to encourage their descendants to follow in their footsteps. Today, the members of the

Jeonju Lee Royal Family Association The Jeonju Lee Royal Family Association () is a family association based in South Korea founded by the Jeonju Yi clan, Jeonju Yi (Lee) clan, the household of Joseon and the Korean Empire, which previously ruled Korea. The association originated f ...

perform the rites to the accompaniment of music and dance provided by musicians from the National Center for Korean Traditional Performing Arts and dancers from the Gukak National High School.

References

Bibliography

External links