Hyangga
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| Hyangga | |
| Hangul | 향가 |
|---|---|
| Hanja | |
| Revised Romanization | hyang-ga |
| McCune–Reischauer | hyang-ga |
Hyang-ga (Template:Lang-ko) were poems written using Chinese characters in a system known as hyangchal during the Unified Silla and early Goryeo periods of Korean history. Only a few have survived. The number of extant hyang-ga ranges between 25[1] and 27, depending on whether the hyang-ga are regarded as authentic or not.
Features
The hyangga were written using Chinese characters in a system known as hyangchal. They are believed to have been first written in the Goryeo period, as the style was already beginning to fade. 14 hyangga are recorded in the Samguk Yusa and 11 in the Gyunyeojeon. Wihong, the husband of Queen Jinseong of Silla, and the monk Taegu-Hwasang compiled a book about hyangga.[1]
The name hyangga is formed from the character for "back-country" or "rural village" (used by Silla people describing their nation, specifically to distinguish these distinctly Silla poems from pure Chinese literature) and the character for "song." These poems are accordingly sometimes known as "Silla songs."
Another dominant theme was death. Many of the poems are eulogies to monks, to warriors, and to family members — in one case, a sister. The Silla period, especially before unification in 668, was a time of warfare: the hyangga capture the sorrow of mourning for the dead while Buddhism provided answers about where the dead go and the afterlife.
Structure
The structure of hyangga is incompletely understood. The only[2] contemporaneous reference is a comment by the compiler of Gyunyeo's biography that "their poetry is written in Chinese in penta- and heptasyllabic lines, [while] our songs are written in the vernacular in three gu and six myeong".[3] What is meant by "three gu and six myeong" remains unresolved. Peter H. Lee interprets it as "three-line stanzas of six phrases each",[3] while Alexander Vovin translates it more literally as "three stanzas, six names".[2]
Since the work of linguist Shinpei Ogura in the 1920s,[4] surviving hyangga have traditionally been classified into one of three forms: a single-quatrain form used in folk songs; an intermediate two-quatrain form; and a ten-line form of two quatrains and a concluding couplet, the most fully developed form of hyangga.[3] This classification has been questioned in Korean scholarship since the 1980s,[5] and a new hypothesis, proposed by Kim Sung-kyu in 2016, suggests that there were really only two forms of hyangga, a single-quatrain form and a two-tercet form.[6] Kim interprets two consecutive lines of the ten-line form as one long line with a caesura and the so-called concluding couplet of the ten-line hyangga to be a refrain for each of the stanzas, forming two tercets with shared final lines.[7] Kim argues that apparently eight-line forms are the result of a line being lost during transmission.[8] The two hypotheses are illustrated below with the ten-line work Jemangmae-ga, written for the funeral of the poet's sister. The translation is from the Korean of Sung 2006.[9]
| Ten-line reading | Translation | |
|---|---|---|
|
(1) (2) (3) (4)
(5) (6) (7) (8)
(9) (10) |
生死路隱 此矣有阿米次肹伊遣 吾隱去內如辭叱都 毛如云遣去內尼叱古 於內秋察早隱風未 此矣彼矣浮良落尸葉如 一等隱枝良出古 去奴隱處毛冬乎丁 阿也 彌陀刹良逢乎吾 道修良待是古如 |
The path of life and death
Were [you] so afraid when it was here (4) That [you] went and could not say (3) Even the words, "I'm going"?
(6) Like leaves that float and fall hither-thither (5) By unripe autumn's early winds, Stemming from one branch Knowing not where [we] go.
(10) Ah, [you] will clear the road and wait (9) For me, to meet in the pure land. |
| Six-line reading | Translation | |
|---|---|---|
|
(1) (2) (3)
(4) (5) (6) |
生死路隱此矣有阿米次肹伊遣 吾隱去內如辭叱都毛如云遣去內尼叱古 阿也彌陀刹良逢乎吾道修良待是古如 於內秋察早隱風未此矣彼矣浮良落尸葉如 一等隱枝良出古去奴隱處毛冬乎丁 阿也彌陀刹良逢乎吾道修良待是古如 |
Were [you] so afraid when the path of life and death was here
That [you] went and could not say even the words, "I'm going"? Ah, [you] will clear the road and wait for me, to meet in the pure land.
Like leaves that float and fall hither-thither by unripe autumn's early winds, Stemming from one branch, knowing not where [we] go. Ah, [you] will clear the road and wait for me, to meet in the pure land. |
Example
A typical hyangga is "the Ode for Life Eternal" or, perhaps, "the Ode for Nirvana". The poem is a song that calls upon the moon to convey the supplicant's prayer to the Western paradise, the home of Amita (or Amitabha, the Buddha of the Western Pure Land Sukhavati). The poem's authorship is somewhat unclear; it was either written by a monk named Gwangdeok (hangul:광덕 hanja:廣德) or, one source says, the monk's wife.[10]
| Idu | Medieval Korean | Modern Korean | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 願往生歌 | 원왕생가 | 왕생을 기원하는 노래 | Ode to Eternal Life
(translation by Mark Peterson, 2006) |
| 月下伊低赤 | 달하 이제 | 달이여 이제 | Oh Moon! |
| 西方念丁去賜里遣 | 서방까정 가시리고 | 서방(西方) 넘어 가시려는고 | As you go to the west this night, |
| 無量壽佛前乃 | 무량수불전에 | 무량수불전(無量壽佛前)에 | I pray thee, go before the eternal Buddha, |
| 惱叱古音多可支白遣賜立 | 닛곰다가 살ㅂ고사서 | 일러서 사뢰옵소서 | And tell him that there is one here |
| 誓音深史隱尊衣希仰支 | 다짐 깊으샨 존에 울워러 | 다짐 깊으신 아미타불을 우러러 | Who adores Him of the deep oaths, |
| 兩手集刀花乎白良 | 두손 모도호살바 | 두 손을 모두어 | And chants daily with hands together, saying |
| 願往生願往生 | 원왕 생 원왕 생 | 왕생(往生)을 원하며 | Oh grant me eternal life, |
| 慕人有如白遣賜立 | 그럴 사람 있다 살ㅂ고사서 | 그리워하는 사람 있다 사뢰소서 | Oh grant me eternal life, |
| 阿耶 此身遣也置古 | 아으 이몸 기쳐두고 | 아아 이 몸을 남겨 놓고 | But alas, can any of the 48 vows be kept |
| 四十八大願成遣賜去 | 사십팔대원 일고살까 | 사십 팔 대원(大願) 이루실까 | While still trapped in this mortal frame? |
List
| Title | English | Author | Date | Graphs/lines[11] | Location | Text |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hyeseong ga[12] | Song of a Comet | Master Yungcheon | 594 | 83/10 | 2:228 |  혜성가
|
| Seodong yo[13] | Song of Seodong | King Mu of Baekje | c. 600 | 25/4 | 2:98 | 서동요
|
| Pung yo[14] | Ode to Yangji | anonymous | c. 635 | 26/4 | 4:187–188 | 풍요
|
| Won wangsaeng ga[15] | Prayer to Amitāyus / Ode for Life Eternal | Gwangdeok or his wife | c. 661–681 | 77/10 | 5:220 | 원왕생가
|
| Mo Jukjilang ga[16] | Ode to Knight Jukji | Deugo | c. 692–702 | 60/8 | 2:76–78 | 모죽지랑가
|
| Heonhwa ga[14] | Dedication of the Flower | an old herdsman | c. 702–737 | 34/4 | 2:79 | 헌화가
|
| Won ga[17] | Regret | Sinchung | 737 | 56/8 | 5:232–233 | 원가
|
| Chan Gipalang ga[18] | Ode to Knight Gipa | Master Chungdam | c. 742–765 | 71/10 | 2:80–81 | 찬기파랑가
|
| Dosol ga[19] | Song of Tuṣita Heaven | Master Weolmyeong | 760 | 37/4 | 5:222 | 도솔가
|
| Je mangmae ga[20] | Requiem for the Dead Sister | Master Weolmyeong | c. 762–765 | 75/10 | 2:79–80 | 제망매가
|
| Do Cheonsu Gwaneum ga[21] | Hymn to the Thousand-Eyed Sound Observer | Huimyeong | c. 762–765 | 81/10 | 3:158–159 | 도천수관음가
|
| Anmin ga[22] | Statesmanship | Master Chungdam | 765 | 98/10 | 2:79–80 | 안민가
|
| Ujeog ga[23] | Meeting with Bandits | Master Yeonghae | c. 785–798 | 75/10 | 5:235 | 우적가
|
| Cheoyong ga[24] | Song of Cheoyong | Cheoyong | 879 | 61/8 | 2:88–89 | 처용가
|
The 11 hyangga composed by Kyunyeo are:[25]
- Yekyeong Jebul ga (Veneration of Buddhas,
예경제불가) - Chingchan Yorae ga (In Praise of Tathagata/Buddha, 칭찬여래가)
- Gwangsu Gongyang ga (Abundant Offerings to Buddha, 광수공양가)
- Chamhoe Opjang ga (Repentance of Sins and Retribution, 참회업장가)
- Suhui Kongdeok ga (Rejoice in the Rewards of Virtue, 수희공덕가)
- Cheongjeon Beopyun ga (The Revolving Wheel of Law, 청전법륜가)
- Cheongbul Juse ga (Entreaty to the Coming of Buddha, 청불왕생가)
- Sangsun Bulhak ga (Faithful Observance of Buddha's Teachings, 상수불학가)
- Hangsun Jungsaeng ga (Constant Harmony with Other Beings, 항순중생가)
- Bogae Hoehyang ga (Salvation of All Living Beings, 보현회향가)
- Chonggyeol Mujin ga (The Everlasting Conclusion, 총결무진가)
See also
References
Citations
- ^ a b the translators of Il-yeon's: Samguk Yusa: Legends and History of the Three Kingdoms of Ancient Korea, translated by Tae-Hung Ha and Grafton K. Mintz. Book Two, page 107. Silk Pagoda (2006). ISBN 1-59654-348-5
- ^ a b Vovin 2017, p. 17.
- ^ a b c Lee P. 2003, p. 69.
- ^ Sung 1988, pp. 157–158.
- ^ Sung 1988, pp. 157–163.
- ^ Kim S. 2016, p. 194.
- ^ Kim S. 2016, pp. 183–193.
- ^ Kim S. 2016, pp. 194–203.
- ^ "生死路는 / 이에 있으매 두려워서 / '나는 간다' 말도 / 못다(또는 못) 이르고 간 것이오? / 날가을 이른 바람에 / 여기저기에 떠서 질 잎같이 / 한 가지에 나고도 / 가는 곳 모르는구나! / 아아! 彌陀刹에서 만날 나를 / (그대는) 길 닦아 기다릴 것이오." Sung 2006, p. 282
- ^ (in Korean)Several examples of Hwangga
- ^ Koo 1999, pp. 198–199.
- ^ Lee P. 2003, p. 74.
- ^ Lee P. 2003, pp. 70–71.
- ^ a b Lee P. 2003, p. 71.
- ^ Lee P. 2003, pp. 74–75.
- ^ Lee P. 2003, p. 72.
- ^ Lee P. 2003, pp. 72–73.
- ^ Lee P. 2003, pp. 77–78.
- ^ Lee P. 2003, pp. 71–72.
- ^ Lee P. 2003, pp. 75, 77.
- ^ Lee P. 2003, p. 79.
- ^ Lee P. 2003, pp. 78–79.
- ^ Lee P. 2003, pp. 79–81.
- ^ Lee P. 2003, pp. 73–74.
- ^ Koo (1999), p. 200.
Bibliography
- Kim, Seong-kyu (September 2016). "향가의 구성 형식에 대한 새로운 해석 (A New Approach to the form of Hyangga)". 국어국문학 (Korean Language and Literature). 176. 국어국문학회 (Society of Korean Language and Literature): 177–208. Retrieved September 1, 2019.
- Koo, Hung Seo (1999). "Teaching Classical Korean literature: HYANG'GA 鄕歌". The Korean Language in America. 3: 193–208. JSTOR 42922241.
- Lee, Peter H. (December 18, 2003). "Chapter 3: Hyangga". In Lee, Peter H. (ed.). A History of Korean Literature. Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press. pp. 66–87. ISBN 978-1-1394-4086-8.
- Sung, Ho-kyung (June 1988). "향가 연구의 함정과 그 극복 방안 (The Pitfalls of Hyangga Studies and How to Overcome Them)". 국어국문학 (Korean Language and Literature). 99. 국어국문학회 (Society of Korean Language and Literature): 153–163. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: ref duplicates default (link) - Vovin, Alexander (March 23, 2017). Man'yōshū (Book 1): A New English Translation Containing the Original Text, Kana Transliteration, Romanization, Glossing and Commentary. BRILL. ISBN 978-9-0043-4670-3.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: ref duplicates default (link)
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