후천세계가 지향하는 인간상 탐구: 정역의 지인(至人) 중심으로

The theory of post-heaven provided Korea’s many emerging national religions with spiritual ground. The I Ching originated in China emphasizes the principles of change or static aspects of world, while Right I Ching, which Il-Bu Kim suggested, underlines dynamic aspects of world. Il-Bu Kim is perceived to open a new stage in the history of philosophy of I Ching in this regard. His most remarkable contribution is the view of Great Opening Era of Post-Heaven, according to which the clock of cosmos shows the era of great change from Pre-Heaven to Post-Heaven and in the world of Post-Heaven everything will take its proper place. As to human society, Il-Bu Kim foresaw the change from disharmony to harmony, imbalance to balance and era of xiaoren to that of junzi. The advent of such a new world, however, asks human’s moral revolution as a prerequisite.

In the tradition of East Asian thought, human is the center of the Samjae, Heaven-Earth-Human and the only being which could participate in the growth of Heaven and Earth. Without the change of human mind, however, human can neither participate in the growth of Heaven and Earth nor expect the right change of Heaven and Earth. Even though the world of nature changes according to the principle of cosmic harmony, as the Right I Ching predicts, the real change of Heaven and Earth can be achieved only with moral change of human. The human in the Right I Ching is a free man who sticks to nothing and communicates with cosmos with empty mind. This is the very image of perfect man(至人). The perfect man in the Right I Ching is the main agent of everything, that’s to say, the main agent of the great opening to Post-Heaven Era. This is the reason why most leaders of Koran emerging religions concentrate on the change of human.

In this regard, Jeung-San Kang encouraged people to become the perfect man through the purification of mind and body and the great opening of inner man, depending on the metaphysical principle of the Right I Ching. Cheok and Resolution of grievances for the mutual beneficence of all life are what he suggested as a method of the great opening of inner man. Such a view is based on the thought that the accumulated sinful behaviors are obstacles to cosmic change and the time of mutual beneficience opens with the removal of the obstacles. If such religious practices are so effective, as Jeung-San Kang says, that future world could consist of perfect men who have achived the great opening of inner man, moral change, and change of consciousness, we could expect that the activities of xiaoren will be shrinked and junzi will be welcomed, as the Right I Ching predicts.