King Sejong the Great: The Everlasting Light of Korea

Korean Spirit and Culture #2

by Diamond Sutra Recitation Group

Thoughts and legacies of King Sejong, the most enlightened ruler in five thousand years of Korean history.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Biography

108 pages, Paperback

First published July 25, 2008

Reviews

[John Eliade · Rating 2 out of 5]

Alexander the Great. Charles the Great (otherwise Charlemagne). Apparently Washington "the Great"? If Wikipedia's page on "List of People Known as The Great" is to be believed.

Add to that list 세종대왕 literally, Saejong Dae Wang, "Sejong Great King," or to us, King Sejong. Like the men described above, King Sejong did a lot of great things for Korea as and my review for the previous book in this series on Korean Culture and Society can indicate, this series leaves a lot to be desired and is best when it thinks its subject is actually boring.

For example, Koreans go nuts for Hangul. There's no reason not to be excited about this script. First off, it's a native Korean invention, it's linguistically beautiful, and it's incredibly easy to learn even if the language itself isn't. That said, there's also rumors floating out around there that foreigners can't speak Korean because "they don't know how to make the sound" but this logic somehow gets lost when Koreans evaluate themselves trying to speak Korean and assume it must be something genetic (this is out of Daniel Tudor's "Korea: The Impossible Country," not this book, but there's an infamous surgery that will "lengthen" one's tongue in order to speak English better because of a wide-spread belief that Koreans are biologically incapable of properly speaking English). So when Koreans talk about Hangul, it can get boring quickly because it's not all that fun to watch cultural masturbation. A lot of Koreans still believe there's a country out there called "Cie Cie" because they decided Hangul was better at adapting their native language than Latin. Not only is this ridiculous just by looking at a map (nope. Still no country called "Cie Cie"), but what they're talking about is the Cia Cia language spoken primarily in the TOWN of Bau-bau on the ISLAND of Buton in the COUNTRY of Indonesia (off the southern coast of Sulawesi for you map nerds out there). This takes a long time explaining, and most Koreans simply think you're full of shit who's out to attack their country by the time you finish explaining it anyway. Because the real money shot of that story is that Cia Cia speakers eventually gave up trying to implement Hangul into their society and it failed almost ten years ago. But the Koreans are still talking about it, thinking that Bau-bau-ites are all walking around reading newspapers covered in Hangul and learning Korean because why not, they can read it, right? (Nope.)

Based on some of my comments made while reading the book (and... above) you might think that I'm really hating this series. I'm not. I'm thoroughly enjoying it for the insight on first of all, how Koreans think, and secondly, on some really great leads to other more objective ideas regarding history and culture.

But this book isn't without its own merits in text either. Like I said, it's best when it thinks it's boring. Koreans seem to have invented movable type by every apparent document I've found, but the Koreans themselves seem oddly demure about this incredibly important invention. This book itself spends quite a few pages describing the invention, the process of its development, the amount of books that were written this way. But it's all done in a dry, fact-listing sort of manner that assumes you won't care. No, Diamond Sutra Recitation Group, this is a really important piece of history and I'm INTENSELY interested.

Unlike in the Yi Sun-sin book, you really get the sense of an inferiority complex driven by past historical forces (Colonialism and Division). The way this book ends is not with a beautiful memorial to King Sejong and all he's done to the nation (it could be put, and IMO was implied, but probably not intentionally by the authors that Sejong's reformation of the tax and penal codes, reorganization of military bases, and research into science and technology would become instrumental a century after his death during the Imjin Wars) but with a refutation of earlier historical mistakes by a Japanese historian who records a Korean rain gauge (invented by King Sejong, hence why the authors considered it relevant) with Chinese characters on the side as being of Chinese origin. The entire epilogue of this book is just an attempt to set the record straight that the rain gauge was of KOREAN origin and that the Chinese scholars at the time, referencing the Japanese historian, later inspiring Joseph Needham's influential "History of Science in China," ALL GOT IT WRONG AND THAT THE RAIN GAUGE WAS A KOREAN INVENTION.

Take what intense interest I have for moveable type, and just inverse that ratio for what I feel about a fucking rain gauge. It's a rain gauge. A cup with lines in it. And a part of me wants to try and imagine how a rain gauge can change the face of agriculture, but even after living on a farm, after spending a big chunk of my life thinking I was going to be a farmer, and still believing that the best thing we can do for the future is have vegetable gardens and eat our own produce, not a single part of me can get excited about a rain gauge.

Not only that, but who really gives a shit? Cups existed in China and Japan and basically everywhere else in some form or fashion. All it takes is a little academy of sciences to wonder, "Huh, how much does it rain per day?" I'm sure this idea didn't have to disseminate from Korea all the way to the West in order for some monk or farmer to just start wondering at if he can marginally increase crop yields. I don't know. Maybe some Science Historian will come set me straight one of these days, but I just can't get behind it.

This book is a perfect example of Koreans Discussing History. They will say things like, "King Sejong increased equality by reforming the tax code and penal system because he had such kindness and generosity to reform the system for those most suffering," there's an implicit, "because before Sejong, it was pretty bad and the poor suffered the most." But that goes unacknowledged and as soon as you begin to ask, defensiveness comes out, and they begin to point fingers, "Things were worse in Japan, and China, and Europe! You have no right to accuse Korea of such a thing."

I have no doubt that Sejong was a fascinating man. He seems to me that he was a Renaissance Man, well ahead of his time. His interests in music, astronomy, agriculture, law, philosophy, and the full strength of his spirit are things to be admired. But I fail to be truly inspired by Sejong because he doesn't yet seem like a full human being to me. This book makes him out to be quite a nerd, sitting in his Palace with all his books, wishing everyone would leave him alone so he could study and invent new things. (There's a great section about all these petty laws that officials keep recommending he put people in prison for and Sejong hand-waves them all away. "Sire! Someone was hunting a boar and the boar ran into a royal horse and it killed the horse! Should we chop the hunter's feet off for the offense?") And while I certainly didn't expect to see these things in the book, I'm much more interested in Sejong's banishment of Muslims from the country (mostly Indonesian merchants) or perhaps the issue regarding one of his own daughters, revealed to be having sexual relations with her maids (the ministers apparently brought it up asking Sejong to disown and disinherit her). But of course, these things were all left out of the book, and Sejong remains a big statue overlooking Gyeongbukgong, not the human figure I'm earnestly looking for.

[Tabea Nordhausen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really interesting book about King Sejong and his achievements. I wished the hangul part was longer, but overall a great read!

[Earl Grey Tea · Rating 2 out of 5]

Seeing the length of the book and the size of the actual text, I didn't go into this book with great expectations.

There was quite a bit that I did learn about the Great King Sejong, the Choson Dynasty and the history of Korea. I did walk away with more knowledge, which I am glad but it still wasn't the type of book that I was looking for.

If I was going to recommend this book to anyone, it would probably be an ex-pat who has been living in Korea for a few months and is slightly familiar with Korean history. As for me, I am looking for more depth in my pursuit of learning. Of course I want to hear about the great achievements that the Great King Sejong accomplished but I know that real life isn't perfect. When I read about history, I want the whole story, especially the parts that the average public school history book would omit.

[Joel · Rating 3 out of 5]

While it crosses over into uncritical hero-worship a little too often, this is still a succinct and accessible overview of the historical, military and cultural significance of King Sejong, including excerpts from historical sources and, especially when it deals with the development of hangul, corroborating analysis from international linguists and historians. It's a great entry to learning about these parts of Korean history and, particularly, how they are remembered by Korean culture.

[Ronja · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was quite a nice, brief summary of King Sejong's life and thoughts. It serves as a good introduction to his reign and the many scientific discoveries made in Korea during that time. The book is structured into topics, which makes it quite readable and easy to refer back to later. It describes King Sejong's thoughts on the given topics together with efforts he made to improve and change the technology and science that already existed.

[Anthony Piska · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sejong is arguably Korea’s most well-known and benevolent ruler. He exemplifies many of the most positive attributes one would look for in a king: compassion, wisdom, intelligence, ambition, and conviction. While most of his achievements are nothing short of outstanding, especially for the time period, this whole book is like one big celebration of his positive traits and actions. I didn’t really feel like I learned much about the historical context or culture of the time, except in a few brief comments. This whole book felt like one extra long Wikipedia page, with each chapter showcasing something great about Sejong’s character or technological achievements.

The section on Hangul, which is considered to be the magnum opus in Sejong’s legacy and even Korea in general, was my favorite part of this book, partly because I have a bias towards anything related to language and linguistics. Hangul is easily the most intelligently designed writing system in existence, and it is unique in its inception. It’s all the more impressive that it was designed almost 600 years ago. Sejong and the people he surrounded himself with were some of the smartest in the 15th century, not only in Korea, but in the entire world. The life of King Sejong provides a glimpse into the philosophy and mindset of the Korean people and what they are able to achieve. Sejong’s philosophy can perhaps play a part in explaining why Korea has quickly become one of most notable and influential countries around the world.

[Marija S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Concise account of achievements of a great man and an exceptional role model that schools in Europe do not teach about at all (it is a shame that the best way to get into history books is by killing and opressing a big enough amount of people to distinguish yourself from 'common' criminals) .

I had no idea King Sejong existed until I visited Sejongno, Gwanghwamun Plaza and a small museum complex under his statue in Seoul. He is an unjustly neglected ruler who did a better job at governing his kingdom and his people , was more progressive in understanding of laws and human rights, compassion and morality than some contemporary heads of states, also a great inovator, governer, scientist and a true genius. The Korean people may be proud for having had such an enlightened ruler. A true inspiration.

Too bad this book didn't include his biography in a classic, linear narration, so details about King Sejong's life have to be deducted from bits and pieces mentioned in chapters on his inventions and rulings.

[Dana · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was really excited to read this one after reading the Culture and Art book, but this wasn't nearly as engaging. I was an art major in college, so I may have had some bias here, but I also felt that this book was less engaging. The first 3 sections were decent, giving a brief overview of King Sejong and taking entries out of the Sillok to show examples of his character, but the sections after that I largely skipped over. Quite a bit of it was also repeated information from the Culture and Art book. Some of the dates too seemed to be inaccurate; in the section with the Sillok entries, it is clear the dates go in order, but toward the end, they are out of order and appear mixed up.

While I would recommend the Culture and Art book, I wouldn't recommend this one. Hopefully a better book about King Sejong comes out one day because I think he's definitely worth reading about.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a much better book than I expected! I am trying to learn more about Korea and scooped this up at my library.

Sejong was the sort of King people want to have. He seems to be nearly the ideal platonic philosopher king or enlightened despot. He seems to have been genuinely interested in knowledge for its own sake, but was practical enough to pursue studies that would benefit his kingdom.

Even as an absolute monarch he didn’t always have his own way. He invented the modern Korean alphabet, which is pretty fabulous, but battled his own nobles for years in order to implement it.

[Thomas Brooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Already wrote about the sister volume dealing with Admiral Yi in this series. There is a statue in the same Gwanghwamun Plaza, located in front of Gyeongbokgung Palace.

After reading this book feeling like King Sejong should not be just a hero for Korea, but for the whole planet. Enough Said.

[Andika Irawan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I lived in Daejeon for two months and my Korean teacher gave me this book. The book describes on the discoveries of what Korea had done during the era of King Sejong.

[Naomi Ruth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved learning more about Korean culture and King Sejong.

[Timothy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dry (it IS a textbook) but really fun information!

[Matthew Bulkeley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting read on the history and accomplishments of King Sejong.

[Muhammad Fachreza Rahmadian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy and light reading to gain insight on the life of king Sejong

[John Collings · Rating 4 out of 5]

What is one to do when they move to a new country, and know nothing about the culture there? Maybe they can pick a copy of a book that talks about that country's greatest leader, and he will quickly learn about the accomplishment and the contributions this tiny country has given to the world. This book is one of those books. At times it is a little dry, but the information that is held within its pages is very informative. Not only that, but I have now gained a new appreciation for King Sejong. Of course, this is not hard to do if I have never heard of him before, but after reading this book, I think he should be considered with some of the greatest leaders that have ever lived. HIs greatest accomplishments also happens to be one of my favorite passions, linguistics. He is credited as creating the Hangul alphabet that is now used in Korea. The intricacy of this alphabet is such a phenomenon that it is surprising that more cultures have not taken it up to use for their alphabet. He is also credited with some other great advancements in the areas of medicine, astronomy, and meteorology which heightens his importance to the culture of this part of the world. Granted some of the writing in this book comes across as propaganda, but the writers of this story have backed up their claims with a lot of documentation, and in some cases where there is some controversy about their claims, they do bring into the text what other people are saying about the claim. It does give them a little credence with their arguments. Overall, if you are ever visiting Korea, this is a good book to read because it will give you a little bit of the background to the culture you are about to experience.

[Fariza · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are reasons for him to be called as King Sejong the Great. His ability to manage a country through research and learning was something that we need to learn to. During his time, he empowered his own peoples by inventing an easier alphabet, collecting information about farming and distribute the research to all districts with orders specially made to write it in the easiest way for everyone can understand, he put the sun clock in public space for common people to know the time and he live a frugal life compared to other rulers due to his empathy towards his own peoples. With more than 10 kings in my country, I hope they can read and learn about king Sejong's life, especially his frugality life.

[Jonathan Bennett · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a decent overview of his life, and has several useful references in the bibliography as well. If you're looking for a really detailed assessment of Sejong's life, this book isn't for you. If you're looking for a book to give you some useful "hooks" or points of reference to hang your further research on, this is good source. and at 170 small pages, it will only take about an hour to skim or about 4 hours to read if you're a reasonably quick reader.

[Soyeun · Rating 3 out of 5]

The only other books I bought on King Sejong are in Korean. In Korean. The nine hour flight was crowded and even included a crying baby so I tackled this English version first.

King Sejong obviously deserves better but he'd approve of this simple introduction until the rest of us figure out a better way to tell his story.

It provided a good review and excellent context on the record keeping process at the time (for more information: http://sillok.history.go.kr/main/main...)

[Piper Winchester · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short, sweet and inspiring.
Yes I'm a little Sejong fangirl.
The guy was amazing, it shows his work beyond the Hangul

[Min Yoonah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't reat it ..fuck it