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The Culture of Fengshui in Korea: An Exploration of East Asian Geomancy

Author:
Publisher: , 2006
Link to online store *

From the publisher’s website:

The term Fengshui, which literally means ‘wind and water,’ is the ancient Chinese art of selecting an auspicious site to provide the most harmonious relationship between human and earth. The term is generally translated as ‘geomancy,’ and has had a deep and extensive impact on Korean, Chinese, and other East Asian cultures. Hong-key Yoon’s book explores the nature of geomantic principles and the culture of practicing them in Korean cultural contexts. Yoon first examines the nature and historical background of geomancy, geomantic principles for auspicious sites (houses, graves, and cities) and provides an interpretation of geomantic principles as practiced in Korea. Yoon looks at geomancy’s influence on cartography, religion and philosophy, and urban development in both Korea and China. Finally, Yoon debates the role of geomancy in the iconographical warfare between Japanese colonialism and Korean nationalism as it affected the cultural landscape of Kyongbok Palace in Seoul.

Hong-key Yoon is associate professor in the School of Geography and Environmental Science at the University of Auckland, New Zealand.

Contents

Preface

Part I: The Nature And Historical Background Of Geomancy

  1. Introduction
  2. The Origin and Evolution of Geomancy in Korea
  3. The Introduction and Development of Geomancy in Korea

Part II: Geomantic Principles Into Practice

  1. Yin-Yang Theory and Geomancy
  2. The Geomantic Principles for an Auspicious Site
  3. The Principles of House Geomancy
  4. Grave Geomancy Landscape
  5. An Interpretation of Geomantic Principles
  6. The Cartography of Geomancy

Part III: Geomancy And Religion

  1. Geomancy’s Interaction with Buddhism
  2. Confucian Ethos and Geomancy

Part IV: Geomancy And Settlement

  1. The Use of Geomantic Ideas in Chinese, Japanese, and Korean Cities
  2. Seoul: A New Dynasty’s Search for an Auspicious Site
  3. The Social Construction of Kaesong

Part V: Geomancy and Iconography

  1. Iconographic Warfare and the Geomantic Landscape of Seoul
  2. Conclusion

Entry on Goodreads.com here.

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