Bocheonism (, "religion of the vault of heaven/firmament") was one among more than 100

new religious movements A new religious movement (NRM), also known as a new religion, is a religious or spiritual group that has modern origins and is peripheral to its society's dominant religious culture. NRMs can be novel in origin, or they can be part of a wider re ...

Korea Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...

of the family of religions called

Jeungsanism Jeungsanism () is an English word with two different uses: as a synonym of Jeung San Do (증산도), a Korean new religious movement, or to designate a family of more than 100 Korean new religious movements that recognize Kang Jeungsan ( Gang Il-S ...

, rooted in

Korean shamanism Korean shamanism, also known as () is a religion from Korea. Religious studies, Scholars of religion classify it as a folk religion and sometimes regard it as one facet of a broader Korean vernacular religion distinct from Buddhism, Taoism, Dao ...

and recognizing Gang Il-sun (Kang Jeungsan) as the incarnation of

Sangje Haneunim or Hanunim () is the sky god in Korean mythology. In the more Buddhist-aligned parts of these religions, he is identified with Indra. In the more Taoist-aligned parts of these religions, he is identified with Okhwang Sangje (). Under tha ...

, the Supreme God. It was founded by Cha Gyeong-seok (1880–1936) on Ibam Mountain in Daeheung-ri, Ibam-myeon,

Jeongeup Jeongeup (; ), is a city in North Jeolla Province, South Korea. The city limits include Naejang-san National Park, a popular destination particularly in autumn due to its foliage. Jeongeup is on the Honam Expressway and Honam Line, with the ...

North Jeolla Province North Jeolla Province, officially Jeonbuk State (), is a Special Self-governing Province of South Korea in the Honam region in the southwest of the Korean Peninsula. Jeonbuk borders the provinces of South Chungcheong to the north, North Gyeo ...

, in the year 1911. Today this site is part of Naejangsan National Park. Cha Gyeong-seok was originally a

Donghak Donghak () was an academic movement in Korean Neo-Confucianism founded in 1860 by Choe Je-u. The Donghak movement arose as a reaction to seohak (), and called for a return to the "Way of Heaven". While Donghak originated as a reform movement ...

( Cheondoist) priest, who converted to

after meeting Gang Il-Sun. After Gang's death, Goh Pan-Lye (Subu, literally “Head Lady,” 1880–1935, although in Kang's circle there was more than one "Subu"), a female disciple of Kang Jeungsan, around September 1911 gathered around her a number of Kang's followers. Cha Gyeong-seok was Goh's male cousin and became the leader of Goh's branch. Dissatisfied with this situation, Goh separated from Cha in 1919 and established her own new religion. Cha continued under the name Bocheon-gyo, which was adopted in 1921, at a great ritual held in

Hamyang County Hamyang County (''Hamyang-gun'') is a county in South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. It is home to the Wooden Seated Statue of Buddha in Beopinsa (법인사), the Standing Statue of Buddha in Deokjeonri (덕전리), the Three-Level Stone Pagoda ...

South Gyeongsang Province South Gyeongsang Province (, ) is a province in the southeast of South Korea. The provincial capital is at Changwon. It is adjacent to the major metropolitan center and port of Busan. The UNESCO World Heritage Site Haeinsa, a Buddhist temple tha ...

. Eventually, Bocheonism became the largest Korean new religious movement and possibly the largest religion in Korea, with some six million followers,Robert Pearson Flaherty, “Korean Millennial Movements,” in ''The Oxford Handbook of Millennialism'', edited by

Catherine Wessinger Catherine Lowman Wessinger (, born 1952) is an American religion scholar. She is the Rev. H. James Yamauchi, S.J. Professor of the History of Religions at Loyola University New Orleans where she teaches religious studies with a main research fo ...

, Oxford: Oxford University Press 2016,, 326-347 (335). including leading activists in the

Korean independence movements The Korean independence movement was a series of diplomatic and militant efforts to liberate Korea from Japanese rule. The movement began around the late 19th or early 20th century, and ended with the surrender of Japan in 1945. As independence a ...

. Bocheonism, however, declined rapidly after Cha's death in 1936, and fragmented into several competing group, as did Goh's organization. The largest among these branches is

Jeung San Do Jeung San Do (), occasionally called Jeungsanism, meaning "The Dao/Tao of Jeung-san", although this term is better reserved for a larger family of movements, is a new religious movement founded in South Korea in 1974. It is one of more than 100 K ...

. Cha prophesied that the unification of the world would take place beginning in Korea. Branches of Bocheonism are also credited with encouraging local culture in the Jeongeup region, including the pungmulgut performance tradition.

Sources

* Kim Jaeyoung. ''Bocheongyo and Religions of Korea''. Shin Achulpansa, 2010. Korean language only. * Lee Chi-ran. Chief Director, Haedong Younghan Academy.
The Emergence of National Religions in Korea
'.

References

{{reflist, 1

External links

증산도 공식 홈페이지
Korean new religions North Jeolla Province 1911 establishments in Korea Jeung San Do

See also

Sources

References

External links