Unified Silla , or Late Silla , is the name often applied to the historical period of the Korean kingdom of Silla after its conquest of Goguryeo in 668 AD, which marked the end of the Three Kingdoms period . In the 7th century, a Silla–Tang alliance conquered Baekje in the Baekje–Tang War . Following the Goguryeo–Tang War and Silla–Tang War in the 7th century, Silla annexed the southern part of Goguryeo, unifying the central and southern regions of the Korean peninsula .
34-522: Unified Silla existed during the Northern and Southern States period at a time when Balhae controlled the north of the peninsula. Unified Silla lasted for 267 years until it fell to Goryeo in 935 during the reign of King Gyeongsun . North Korean historians criticize the term "Unified Silla" as traditionally "Unified Silla" is considered to be the first unified kingdom of the Korean people. According to
68-586: A World Heritage Site . Unified Silla carried on the maritime prowess of Baekje , which acted like the Phoenicia of medieval East Asia , and during the 8th and 9th centuries dominated the seas of East Asia and the trade between China, Korea and Japan, most notably during the time of Jang Bogo ; in addition, Silla people made overseas communities in China on the Shandong Peninsula and the mouth of
102-606: A census of all towns' size and population, as well as horses , cows and special products and recorded the data in Minjeongmunseo (민정문서). The reporting was done by the leader of each town. A national Confucian college was established in 682 and around 750 it was renamed the National Confucian University. The university was restricted to the elite aristocracy. However, in Silla society, because
136-423: A 'whole world (천하)'. More to this, Silla gave noble ranks to the nobles of Goguryeo and Baekje as a token of unification. So a historically more accurate term for this era would be Unified Silla. In 660, King Munmu ordered his armies to attack Baekje. General Kim Yu-sin , aided by Tang forces, defeated General Gyebaek and conquered Baekje. In 661, he moved on Goguryeo but was repelled. Silla then fought against
170-481: A Korean identity for Balhae in South Korea. These efforts led to the incorporation of Balhae into Korean history as part of the "Northern and Southern Dynasties" based on instances in which the Silla court referred to Balhae as the "northern court". According to this narrative, Goryeo was the first unification of Korea, since Balhae co-existed with Unified Silla while occupying former Goguryeo territory north of
204-665: A Silla prince whose influence made Mount Jiuhua one of the Four Sacred Mountains of Chinese Buddhism. Unified Silla and the Tang maintained close ties. This was evidenced by the continual importation of Chinese culture . Many Korean monks went to China to learn about Buddhism . The monk Hyecho went to India to study Buddhism and wrote an account of his travels. Different new sects of Buddhism were introduced by these traveling monks who had studied abroad such as Seon and Pure Land Buddhism . Unified Silla conducted
238-864: A commentary to the Cheng weishi lun , but this has not survived. Choo (2006: p. 125) holds that though the Heart Sutra is generally identified as within the auspice of the Second Turning of the Dharmacakra (Sanskrit), Woncheuk in his commentary provides an exegesis from the Third Turning : Within the Mahāyāna doctrinal classification, the Heart Sūtra belongs to the Buddha's Second turning of
272-453: A model for North and South Korea's unification. Kim openly declared that "We have a national responsibility to develop a response to China’s Northeast Project and its claims that Koguryŏ and Parhae belong to Chinese history." After the unification wars, the Tang dynasty established territories in the former Goguryeo, and began to administer and establish communities in Baekje. Silla attacked
306-684: A whole. North Korea recognises Goryeo as the first country that unified the Korean people. The people of Silla considered themselves to be a kingdom of unified Koreans and called it "삼한일통" which means unifying three kingdoms. As he lay on his death bed, one of the main generals "Kim Yu-sin", wrote this term "삼한일통" in a letter to King Munmu. From this, the Kings of Silla continued to hold this perception and it may be seen in King Sinmun's instalment of "9 counties (9주)" and "9 서당 (9 Legions)". In ancient Asia, number 9 refers to great things, and 9 counties means
340-712: The Faxiang school of the disciples of Kuiji. Woncheuk's work contributed to the development of Chinese Buddhist thought. He influenced the development of the theories of Essence-Function and the Ekayāna (One Vehicle). His work was also influential on the development of the Huayan school. While in Tang China, Woncheuk took as a disciple a Korean-born monk named Dojeung ( Chinese : 道證 ), who travelled to Silla in 692 and propagated Woncheuk's exegetical tradition. His work
374-706: The Nambukguk sidae ('South–north states period') replaced the Unified Silla period (668–935). The reason for this was that he believed that the loss of Manchuria was the primary reason for Joseon's decline. This line of thinking was continued by I Jonghwi, who wrote the Dongsa (Eastern History). In the 1960s, the North Korean scholar Pak Se-yong argued that Balhae was "a part of Korean history", "a state founded by people of Koguryŏ", and that its territory
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#1732801829292408-510: The Yangtze River . Unified Silla was a prosperous and wealthy country, and its metropolitan capital of Gyeongju was the fourth largest city in the world. Buddhism flourished during this time, and many Korean Buddhists gained great fame among Chinese Buddhists and contributed to Chinese Buddhism, including: Woncheuk , Wonhyo , Uisang , Musang , and Kim Gyo-gak , a Silla prince whose influence made Mount Jiuhua one of
442-567: The bone-rank system was used for the election of officials rather than the imperial examination process that was used in Confucianism, the National Confucian University did not have great appeal to the nobility class of Silla. Silla was very scientifically and technologically advanced for the time. There was an emphasis put on astrology especially as it was closely tied to agriculture. This allowed them to accurately record events such as solar eclipses and lunar eclipses. Woodblock printing
476-671: The 8th and 9th centuries dominated the seas of East Asia and the trade between China, Korea and Japan, most notably during the time of Jang Bogo ; in addition, Silla people made overseas communities in China on the Shandong Peninsula and the mouth of the Yangtze River . Unified Silla was a golden age of art and culture, as evidenced by the Hwangnyongsa , Seokguram , and Emille Bell . Buddhism flourished during this time, and many Korean Buddhists gained great fame among Chinese Buddhists and contributed to Chinese Buddhism, including: Woncheuk , Wonhyo , Uisang , Musang , and Kim Gyo-gak ,
510-518: The Balhae and Silla languages. One terminology that people of Balhae used to describe "a king" is Gadokbu (transcribed as 可毒夫). Woncheuk Woncheuk ( Korean : 원측 ; MR : Wŏnch'ŭk , c. 613–696) was a Korean Buddhist monk who worked in seventh century China . Woncheuk was a follower of Paramārtha (499-569) and the Shelun school of Yogacara . This school defended
544-781: The Chinese in Baekje and northern Korea in 671. The Tang dynasty then invaded Silla in 674 but Silla defeated the Tang army in the north. Silla drove the Tang forces out of the peninsula by 676 to achieve unification of most of the Three Kingdoms. Unified Silla was a golden age of art and culture, and Buddhism became a large part of Silla culture. Buddhist monasteries such as the Bulguksa are examples of advanced Korean architecture and Buddhist influence. State-sponsored art and architecture from this period include Hwangnyongsa Temple, Bunhwangsa Temple, and Seokguram Grotto,
578-527: The East". However, Balhae was severely weakened by the 10th century, and the Khitan Liao dynasty conquered Balhae in 926. Goryeo absorbed some of Balhae's territory and received Balhae refugees, including the crown prince and the royal family, but compiled no known histories of Balhae. Due to the lack of linguistic evidence, it is difficult to make a definitive conclusion for the linguistic relation between
612-502: The Four Sacred Mountains of Chinese Buddhism. Silla began to experience political troubles in the late 9th century. This severely weakened Silla and soon thereafter, descendants of the former Baekje established Later Baekje. In the north, rebels revived Goguryeo, beginning the Later Three Kingdoms period. Unified Silla lasted for 267 years until, under King Gyeongsun , it was annexed by Goryeo in 935. Balhae
646-635: The Korean peninsula. Acceptance of this new narrative was not immediate. In 1981 a South Korean scholar called the Northern–Southern Dynasties an "interesting new interpretation", and as late as 1990 there was still no consensus. However, by now the Northern–Southern Dynasties paradigm is widely accepted in South Korean academia. According to Kim Eun Gug, the adoption of this position was necessary to counter Chinese claims on Goguryeo and Balhae as part of Chinese history as well as to provide
680-499: The Middle Chinese pronunciation of his name is 圓測 /ɦˠiuᴇnťʃʰɨk̚/. Woncheuk ( pinyin : Yuáncè ) was also known as Chinese : 西明法師 ; pinyin : Xīmíng Fǎshī , which is a namesake attributed to the temple of the same name where he did his exegesis . Woncheuk was initially a follower of Paramārtha 's (499-569) Shelun school (攝論宗) and later lived at Xi Ming Temple as a student of Xuanzang . The Shelun school
714-408: The North Korean perspective, Goryeo was the first state to unify the Korean people as Silla failed to conquer the most part of Goguryeo and Balhae still existed after the establishment of "Unified Silla"; Balhae also occupied territory north of the Korean peninsula. North Korean historians use the term "Late Silla (후기신라)" as using the word "late" suggests that Silla never unified the Korean people as
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#1732801829292748-417: The Tang dynasty for nearly a decade. During its heyday, the country contested with Balhae , a Goguryeo–Mohe kingdom, to the north for supremacy in the region. Throughout its existence, Unified Silla was plagued by intrigue and political turmoil in its newly conquered northern territory, caused by the rebel groups and factions in Baekje and Goguryeo, which eventually led to the Later Three Kingdoms period in
782-465: The interpretations of Xuanzang and Kuiji in favor of the views of Paramārtha. Woncheuk's work was revered throughout China and Korea , even reaching Chinese rulers like Emperors Taizong , Gaozong of Tang and Empress Wu of Zhou . Woncheuk's exegetical work also influenced Tibetan Buddhism and the greater Himalayan region. Woncheuk was born in Korea . The Zhengzhang Shangfang reconstruction of
816-414: The late 9th century. Gyeongju remained the capital of Silla throughout the whole existence of the dynasty, which demonstrates the power of the governmental system employed in Silla. By using the “Bone Clan Class” system , a small group of powerful people (the 'bone clan') was able to rule over a large number of subjects. To maintain this rule over a large number of people for an extensive period of time, it
850-493: The northern areas of the Korean Peninsula , much of Manchuria, and expanded into present-day Russian Maritime Province . In a time of relative peace and stability in the region, Balhae flourished in culture, especially during the long reign of the third King Mun (r. 737–793) and King Seon . At that time, Balhae was a culturally advanced country, so that even China referred to this kingdom as "a prosperous country of
884-412: The principal philosophical ideologies of the elite as well as the mainstays of the period's architecture and fine arts. Its last king, Gyeongsun , ruled over the state in name only and submitted to Wang Geon of the emerging Goryeo in 935, bringing the Silla dynasty to an end. Unified Silla carried on the maritime prowess of Baekje , which acted like the Phoenicia of medieval East Asia , and during
918-539: The south and north of the peninsula, respectively. The Northern and Southern States period is a historical paradigm born out of advocacy for a Korean identity for Balhae and to incorporate it as an integral part of Korean history. The name of the period was coined by Yu Deuk-gong (1749–1807) during the Joseon era. He wrote the Balhaego (Treatise on Balhae) and proposed a new periodization for Korean history in which
952-426: The view that there was a ninth consciousness called the "pure consciousness" ( amalavijñāna ), as opposed to just the eight consciousnesses of classical Yogacara. This position had been rejected by Xuanzang and Kuiji . Woncheuk later became a student of Xuanzang (ca. 600–664) and worked in his translation team. Woncheuk's works attempt to reconcile the two traditions of East Asian Yogacara and often diverges from
986-416: Was "composed of most of the former territory of Koguryŏ and an expansive, newly acquired portion". Pak made broader claims on the continuity of Balhae with modern Korea, contending that "bloodline and culture are an important component of the bloodlines and cultural traditions of the Korean race". Based on findings of joint Chinese-North Korean archaeological excavations in the 1960s, Chu Yŏnghŏn advocated for
1020-604: Was also influential on the Japanese branch of Yogacara, the Hosso school, since Hosso monks like Gyosin (ca. 750), Genju (723–797), and Gomyo (750–834) relied on Woncheuk's works. Woncheuk is well known amongst scholars of Tibetan Buddhism for his Commentary on the Saṃdhinirmocana sūtra which was translated into Tibetan in the ninth century. Choo (2006: p. 123) lists Woncheuk's three extant works: Woncheuk also wrote
1054-458: Was founded after Goguryeo had fallen. Its name was another transcribed version of Mohe , a Tungus Tribe speaking a language like Manchurian and Sibe. It was founded in the northern part of former lands of Goguryeo by Dae Joyeong , a former Goguryeo general or chief of Sumo Mohe, after defeating the military of central government of Tang dynasty at the Battle of Tianmenling . Balhae controlled
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1088-469: Was important for the government to keep the unity of the bone-rank system and hold the governed subjects in a low social status. Despite its political instability, Unified Silla was a prosperous country, and its metropolitan capital of Seorabeol (present-day Gyeongju) was the fourth-largest city in the world at the time. Through close ties maintained with the Tang dynasty , Buddhism and Confucianism became
1122-458: Was known for its synthesis of Yogacara teachings with tathāgatagarbha thought and for its doctrine of a pure consciousness ( amalavijñāna ). Woncheuk wrote various works on Mahayana Buddhism. His interpretations of Yogacara often differ from that of the school of Xuanzang and his student Kuiji and instead promotes ideas closer to those of the Shelun school . Due to this, his work was criticized by
1156-471: Was used to disseminate Buddhist sutras and Confucian works. During a refurbishment of the " Pagoda That Casts No Shadows ", an ancient print of a Buddhist sutra was discovered. The print is dated to 751 CE and is one of the oldest discovered printed material in the world. Northern and Southern States period The Northern and Southern States period (698–926 CE ) is the period in ancient Korean history when Unified Silla and Balhae coexisted in
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