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| yna@yna.co.kr 2022-10-31 15:20:20
SEOUL October 31 (Yonhap) -- “The Sarira Reliquaries of the West Pagoda at the Mireuksa Temple Site, Iksan” widely known as the a staple heritage which has unfolded the history of development of Mireuksa located in Northern Jeolla province and considered as the essence of the Baekje dynasty craftsmanship’s will be appointed as a national treasure.
Cultural Heritage Administration addressed on Monday that “The Sarira Reliquaries of the West Pagoda at the Mireuksa Temple Site, Iksan” which was selected as a treasure on June of 2018 will be appointed as the national treasure.
Sarira Reliquaries is often placed with Sarira inside the pagoda, as an offering.
The “Sarira Reliquaries of the West Pagoda at the Mireuksa Temple Site in Iksan” which consists of 9 pieces, starting with a gilt-bronze outer sarira jar, a gold inner sarira jar, precious beads and other offerings and more was found in 2009 inside the base and the Sarira Shrine made inside the core pillar of the West Pagoda at the Mireuksa Temple Site in Iksan.
The thin gold plaque consists of 193 Chinese characters arranged in 11 rows.
According the recorded data, the queen of Baekje Dynasty who is a daughter of the Sataekjeokdeok who is a high ranking official, Jwapyeong, donated catastrophic amount of money to construct the Buddhist temple in Year 639, also known as Gihae, and the enshrinement of the Buddha’s relic in the temple. This information drew a lot of attention from the academia.
Based on the Heritage of the Three States, one who constructed the Mireuksa Temple was Mu of Baekje and his queen, also known as Princess Seonhwa of Silla, daughter of Jinpyeong from Silla Dynasty, however, according to the writing found on “The Sarira Reliquaries of the West Pagoda at the Mireuksa Temple Site, Iksan” queen was addressed as the daughter of Sataekjeokdeok.
“Since the recently discovered ‘The Sarira Reliquaries of the West Pagoda at the Mireuksa Temple Site, Iksan’ introduces different perspective on stories carried on based off of the ‘Heritage of the Three States,’ by offering more in detailed information related to when, where and who was responsible for the construction of Mireuksa Temple, therefore out of many sarira reliquaries found, ‘The Sarira Reliquaries of the West Pagoda at the Mireuksa Temple Site, Iksan’ is considered very important.” addressed Cultural Heritage Administration.
Both of the gold inner sarira jar and a gilt-bronze outer sarira jar from the temple site of Mireuksa are designed to twist the central part of the body. Jars exhibit a voluminous stable body with curves which showcases intricate design.
Another discovery made at the Mireuksa Temple site includes six pieces of bronze lidded cases. One of the case had inscription of Dalsol Mokgeun which indicates a high ranked official of Baekje dynasty. Dalsol indicates the type of title government officials from Baekjae dynasty had, therefore Dalsol Mokgeun indicates the title Dalsol awarded by a person named Mokgeun.
Cultural Heritage Administration puts emphasis on “The Sarira Reliquaries of the West Pagoda at the Mireuksa Temple Site, Iksan” because it was discovered in one piece.
“This artifact represents the techniques of the craftsman from 7th century Baekje dynasty, at the same time this heritage found serves as an evidence for exchanges and foreign commerce during Baekje dynasty. Therefore, it is important historically, medically, academically important to preserve it by awarding the title of National Treasure.” addressed Cultural Heritage Administration.
Continuing on the administration notified six more heritage artifacts which will eventually be selected as a treasure in near future including “Oath written by Lee Bong-chang.”
The “Oath written by Lee Bong-chang” includes his rebellious set of mind against Japanese government during the Japanese colonial period where Lee Bong-chang joined the rebellion group “Patriots of Korea” as a first member on December 13 in 1913.
Lee Bong-chang took a photo with two hand grenades and the oath hanging on his chest after signing his oath.
The oath includes lines such as “I swear an oath that in order to protect the freedom of my country, I have joined 'Patriots of Korea' to kill the Japanese who are ruling over our country.” This oath serves as an important evidence to Lee Bong-chang’s engagement to South Korean freedom fighting movement during the Japanese colonial period.
Moreover, “Yogacarabhumi Sastra (Discourse on the Stages of Yogic Practice), the First Tripitaka Koreana,” “Commentary on the Avatamsaka Sutra (The Flower Garland Sutra),” “Buljo yeokdae tongjae (Biographies of Great Buddhists Since the Birth of Sakyamuni Buddha)” and more will be appointed as a treasure.
During the 30 days’ advance notice period Cultural Heritage Administration will be collecting opinions, and later on the appointment of the treasure will happen after a thorough discussion between Cultural Heritage committee.
On the other hand, Cultural Heritage Administration awarded “Cheongamjeong Pavilion at Bonghwa” located within the house of Andong Gwon Clan, “Ahnyang hall of Buseoksa Temple,” and more in total of three has been selected as the treasure.
(This article is translated from Korean to English by Joonha Yoo)
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