Sin Ton (; 21 January 1322 – 21 August 1371) a Korean

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

monk and scholar 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. His

Dharma name A Dharma name is a new name acquired during both lay and monastic Buddhist initiation rituals in Mahayana Buddhism and Pabbajjā, monastic ordination in Theravada Buddhism (where it is more proper to call it Dhamma or Sangha name). The name is ...

was P'yŏnjo () and he became a teacher and advisor of King Gongmin.

Biography

He was a Buddhist monk with the full confidence of King Gongmin, and who tried to reform the society of Goryeo. The king judged Sin Ton cleverness; in 1365, him gave him the

art name An art name (pseudonym or pen name), also known by its native names ''hào'' (in Mandarin Chinese), ''gō'' (in Japanese), ' (in Korean), and ''tên hiệu'' (in Vietnamese), is a professional name used by artists, poets and writers in the Sinosp ...

Cheonghan Geosa () and the noble title of Marquis Jinpyeong (). Sin Ton appointed a group of new high-level officials from the Sinjin faction of the

scholar-official The scholar-officials, also known as literati, scholar-gentlemen or scholar-bureaucrats (), were government officials and prestigious scholars in Chinese society, forming a distinct social class. Scholar-officials were politicians and governmen ...

s and drove out some people who had acquired too much power. He also promoted the setting up of the ''Jeonmin Byeonjeong Dogam'' (), a government office to reform the land in 1366; thus, he was met with the opposition of the powerful old aristocratic families. While surrounded by flatterers, he didn't have any supporters. Finally, King Gongmin executed Sin Ton in 1371.

Criticism

King Gongmin's attempt to regain the leadership of the state through the introduction of Sin Ton had achieved some success. However, for this purpose, King Gongmin had almost entrusted Sin Ton with full authority, and had to face criticism for allowing Sin Ton to be an equal to the monarch.

In popular culture

*Portrayed by Son Chang-min in the 2005–2006 MBC TV series '' Shin Don''. *Portrayed by Yoo Ha-joon in the 2012–2013 SBS TV series '' The Great Seer''.

Notes

References

Shin Don

1322 births 1371 deaths Goryeo Buddhist monks Assassinated Korean people People murdered in Korea Korean revolutionaries People from Changnyeong County People from South Gyeongsang Province Goryeo writers Yeongsan Shin clan {{Buddhist-clergy-stub

Biography

Criticism

In popular culture

See also

Notes

References