(Translation) 純祖 1年 公奴婢制 革罷 綸音

Original Script

○綸音, 若曰:

1. 予方讀中庸矣。 凡爲天下國家, 有九經, 第六曰: ‘子庶民也。’ 朱夫子釋之曰: ‘視百姓猶吾子,’ 予未始不掩卷而歎也。 子之事父也, 哀苦而必赴焉, 父之育子也, 疾病而必救焉。君民之間, 眷顧蘄向之切, 亦猶父子云爾。

2. 我國內寺各衙門之有奴婢, 傳之者, 以爲始於箕子, 予則曰不然也。 箕子於東國, 設敎八條, 意八條者, 洪範之八政也。食貨爲首, 所以養生也, 司寇掌禁, 所以戢亂也。 以八政敎東民, 東民蚩蚩, 只知爲八條, 不知爲八政, 而盜者沒入爲奴婢, 卽八條之一也。 此蓋司寇之法所由來者, 與《中庸》九經, 相表裏也。

3. 若如近世所謂奴婢之制, 官之責之也至苛, 人之待之也至賤, 別其族黨, 殊其井疆, 至老死不能嫁娶, 則其政也叔季耳。 曾謂箕子之聖而爲是乎哉? 予則聞, 箕子之言曰: ‘斂時五福, 用敷錫厥庶民,’ 又曰: ‘無虐甇獨,’ 又曰: ‘作民父母, 爲天下王。"

4. 予以是益知奴婢之制, 不自箕子始也。 恭惟我肅宗大王, 爲衆慼詢于庭, 減奴貢之半, 婢貢三之一, 我英宗大王, 爰稽有衆, 除婢貢, 又減奴貢之半。而內司推刷之弊, 固自如焉, 鍼其膚以輸其實, 磨其乳以驗其字, 閭里騷然, 雞犬爲之不寧。

5. 於是, 有萬其命, 罔奠厥居, 夫別妻母別子, 叩膺抆血, 相顧錯愕, 不忍遽決。 往往投之空門, 自絶大倫, 其女子皓顚編髮, 流乞于市。官吏日踵門索錢, 鞭之扑之, 其喝如虎, 冒點則費一牛之直, 侵隣則刮百家之産, 行路寒心, 至於隕涕。

6. 唉! 彼無告, 獨何辜也? 及我先朝, 渙發德音, 特罷推刷命下之日, 老幼皷舞, 鴻渥闓澤, 薄于窮海。及至十有四年, 嶺南御史, 有言: ‘內司之奴負骸, 而訴於咸陽郡者。’ 聖心惻然以驚, 亟焚其籍, 徧問諸道方伯, 十行恩言, 七更其端, 精誠貫金石, 孚感及豚魚。

7. 道狀、籌啓, 紛然堆積於左右, 宸憂憧憧, 惟日夕愀乎恤乎, 當食則停筯而不進, 當寢則繞榻而不寢。筵諭庭誥, 反覆丁寧, 而有司之臣, 不能對揚休命, 雖一二減額, 寔非我先朝博施之盛意也。

8. 記昔先朝之訓曰: ‘羽籥不設而民驩之, 軒裳不加而民懷之者, 陰陽以統其精氣, 仁義以經其事業也。 故御和羹以平其神, 聽和聲以平其志, 納和言以平其政, 履和行以平其德。 今者民以奴婢名, 而冤鬱上干天和, 風雨不節, 禾麥不登, 予用玆疚心, 心不得和。 和予心者, 其在乎奴婢之革也。"

9. 此廷臣之所承聞而贊頌之者也。 今予踐位行禮, 思慕號呼, 念堂構之丕責, 鞏磐泰之洪基, 卽惟曰繼其志也, 述其事也, 繼志述事, 莫有先於奴婢之制。 且況王者莅民, 無貴賤無內外, 均是赤子, 曰奴曰婢, 區而分之, 豈一視同胞之義也?

10. 內奴婢三萬六千九百七十四、寺奴婢二萬九千九十三, 幷許爲良民, 仍令承政院, 聚奴婢案, 火之敦化門外。 其貢有需於經費者, 命壯勇營代給以爲式。 於戲! 予豈敢曰惠之云乎哉? 特先朝未卒之志事, 修而明之耳。

11. 自玆以往, 維千萬年, 安其田廬, 守其墳墓, 婚姻以時, 生齒日息, 稼穡不愆, 嬉遊謳歌。用副予體先朝子視之苦心。 【大提學尹行恁製。】

Translation

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Student 1 : (Jinsook You)

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予方讀中庸矣。 凡爲天下國家, 有九經, 第六曰: ‘子庶民也。’ 朱夫子釋之曰: ‘視百姓猶吾子,’ 予未始不掩卷而歎也。 子之事父也, 哀苦而必赴焉, 父之育子也, 疾病而必救焉。君民之間, 眷顧蘄向之切, 亦猶父子云爾。 I have read the Document of Mean and it reads: “All who have the government of the kingdom with its states and families have nine standard rules to follow. (omitted)1) The sixth is 'Treat your people as your children.’” Zhu zi’s exposition goes like this: Whenever I close the Book, I cannot help but exclaim, “When children serve their father, they should obey their father, whatever sacrifice it might require. When fathers raise their children, they should come to the rescue of their ailing or crippled children, however painful it might be. As for the relationship between the king and his subjects, they should take care of each other's expectations and wishes with sincerity just as sons and fathers do.”

1) Since it is a direct quotation from the Document of Mean and from the King skips to the sixth standard, I put parentheses here to indicate the omission from the first to fifth.

Student 2 : Martin

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我國內寺各衙門之有奴婢, 傳之者, 以爲始於箕子, 予則曰不然也。 箕子於東國, 設敎八條, 意八條者, 洪範之八政也。

In our country all court and public offices have slaves. According to tradition, it is considered that this started with Kija. I say that it is not like this. When Kija came to the East(ern Country)#1 , he established eight articles of instruction. The intention of the eight articles is the eight policies of the Great Plan#2.

食貨爲首, 所以養生也, 司寇掌禁, 所以戢亂也。以八政敎東民, 東民蚩蚩, 只知爲八條, 不知爲八政, 而盜者沒入爲奴婢, 卽八條之一也。 此蓋司寇之法所由來者, 與《中庸》九經, 相表裏也。

Food and basic commodities are primary, this means to nourish the lives. The minister of crime is in charge of prohibitions, this means to stop chaos. Using these eight policies to educate the people of the east, but the people of the east were ignorant and only knew this as the eight articles, but not as the eight policies. Thieves are to be divested and registered to become slaves; this is one of the eight articles. The upholding of these laws of punishment for the future with the Doctrine of the Mean, of the nine classics, together form the outer and inner.

1. Referencing the Sage Kija 箕子 who is said to have left the Zhou-Dynasty after the fall of Shang for the Korean peninsula to establish a new state. During Chosŏn times Kija was usually considered to have brought (Confucian-) culture to the peninsula and was venerated as an ancestor.

2. As written in the Shangshu 尙書 (Book of Documents) Kija proposed ideas of statecraft to King Wu of the Zhou-Dynasty summarized as the Great Plan 洪範

Student 3 : (Zhijun Ren)

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若如近世所謂奴婢之制, 官之責之也至苛, 人之待之也至賤, 別其族黨, 殊其井疆, 至老死不能嫁娶, 則其政也叔季耳。 曾謂箕子之聖而爲是乎哉? 予則聞, 箕子之言曰: ‘斂時五福, 用敷錫厥庶民,’ 又曰: ‘無虐甇獨,’ 又曰: ‘作民父母, 爲天下王。"

As to the so-called institution of male and female slaves, the government extracts from them harshly and severely, people treat them in demeaning and derogatory ways. Discriminate their clan and group, separate their place (where they could stay), they are not allowed to marry even till their days of old age and death, this is the policy of a declining age. Some may wonder, how could a sage like Kija do this? I have heard, Kija’s words state that: “(the king) concentrates in his own person the five (sources of) happiness, and proceeds to diffuse them, and give them to the multitudes of the people. ” Kija also said: “Do not oppress and mistreat the friendless and childless ” and “to be the parents of the populace, to be the king of all under heaven.”1

1. 《周书·洪范》“皇极：皇建其有极。敛时五福，用敷锡厥庶民。惟时厥庶民于汝极。锡汝保极：凡厥庶民，无有淫朋，人无有比德，惟皇作极。凡厥庶民，有猷有为有守，汝则念之。不协于极，不罹于咎，皇则受之。而康而色，曰：‘予攸好德。’汝则锡之福。时人斯其惟皇之极。无虐茕独而畏高明，人之有能有为，使羞其行，而邦其昌。凡厥正人，既富方谷，汝弗能使有好于而家，时人斯其辜。于其无好德，汝虽锡之福，其作汝用咎。无偏无陂，遵王之义；无有作好，遵王之道；无有作恶，尊王之路。无偏无党，王道荡荡；无党无偏，王道平平；无反无侧，王道正直。会其有极，归其有极。曰：皇，极之敷言，是彝是训，于帝其训，凡厥庶民，极之敷言，是训是行，以近天子之光。曰：天子作民父母，以为天下王。”

Student 4 : (King Kwong Wong)

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予以是益知奴婢之制, 不自箕子始也。 恭惟我肅宗大王, 爲衆慼詢于庭, 減奴貢之半, 婢貢三之一, 我英宗大王, 爰稽有衆, 除婢貢, 又減奴貢之半。而內司推刷之弊, 固自如焉, 鍼其膚以輸其實, 磨其乳以驗其字, 閭里騷然, 雞犬爲之不寧。

For this reason, I know more about the institution of slavery: it was not originated from Kija. The reverent great king of Sukchong felt sorrowfully for his people and consulted his court. He reduced tribute of male slaves by half and that of female slaves by one-third. As for the great king of Yongjong, his reform policies amounted to many. He abolished the tribute of the male slaves and again reduced the tribute of female slaves one-third. But for the evil of Naesach’uswae, it remained unchanged: female slaves are interrogated by stabbing needles into their skins, and their breasts are rubbed to examine their pregnancy. This caused turbulence among villagers, and for this hens and dogs are not at peace.

Student 5 : (Hu Jing)

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於是, 有萬其命, 罔奠厥居, 夫別妻母別子, 叩膺抆血, 相顧錯愕, 不忍遽決。 往往投之空門, 自絶大倫, 其女子皓顚編髮, 流乞于市。官吏日踵門索錢, 鞭之扑之, 其喝如虎, 冒點則費一牛之直, 侵隣則刮百家之産, 行路寒心, 至於隕涕

As a consequence, the multitude cannot find any place to reside. Spouses are torn apart and mothers and children get separated. People beat their breast and wipe the blood, astonishedly looking at each other but cannot bear the sudden separation. As a result, people become Buddhist monks in an endless stream, alienating themselve from the human relations. 1 Moreover, females braid theri white hair, wandering and begging around the marketplace. Bureaucrats call at houses asking for money everyday, by lashing whiping slaves, scolding at them like a tigher. If the slaves want to use other's name when making a roll call, they ask a cattle as payment; also, they embezzle neighborhood and plunder properties from hundreds of families. People passing by all feel pathetic and shed tears.

• 1 大倫 refers to the relationship of fathers and sons, spouses, monarch and his subjects, friends.

Student 6 : (Kanghun Ahn)

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唉! 彼無告, 獨何辜也? 及我先朝, 渙發德音, 特罷推刷命下之日, 老幼皷舞, 鴻渥闓澤, 薄于窮海。 及至十有四年, 嶺南御史, 有言: ‘內司之奴負骸, 而訴於咸陽郡者。 聖心惻然以驚, 亟焚其籍, 徧問諸道方伯, 十行恩言, 七更其端, 精誠貫金石, 孚感及豚魚。

"Alas! Why should those innocent people be treated as guilty, solely because they have nowhere to appeal?" Hence, the sound of virtue (royal words) resonated all across the country at the time of my predecessor.1) Indeed, old and young people danced together with drums out of delight, when the order was given to the people, through which the law of chasing after evaded slaves was abolished. Such enormous grace even spread out to poor and isolated villages. However, Yongnam officials said in the 14th year (1790): "There is a slave of an inner-official, who carried a skeleton of a body, and appealed to the magistrate of Hamyang."2) His highness found it pathetic and astounding, and hence ordered the (related) documents to be burned. Also, he reached out to the chief-magistrates of the provinces, bestowed upon them ten lines of gracious words, and endeavored to rectify the problems seven times in total. In this regard, his sincerity was powerful enough to penetrate metal and stones, and his earnest grace even extended to pigs and fish.

1) This refers to King Chongjo (reign: 1776-1800).

2) Hamyang is a county in Kyongsang Province.

Student 7 : (Jong Woo Park)

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7. 道狀、籌啓, 紛然堆積於左右, 宸憂憧憧, 惟日夕愀乎恤乎, 當食則停筯而不進, 當寢則繞榻而不寢。筵諭庭誥, 反覆丁寧, 而有司之臣, 不能對揚休命, 雖一二減額, 寔非我先朝博施之盛意也。 Even though reports sent from the provisional governors and the Border Defense Council (Pibyŏnsa) were piled up here and there, the royal worries were intensified. The king grieved for it all day long. When eating, the king's spoon stopped and did not proceed into his mouth. When night came, the king paced around the bedroom but could not go to sleep. During the royal lecture (kyŏngyŏn), the king made proclamations. At the court, the king issued instructions. He did this sincerely and repeatedly. However, the officials in charge were unable to carry out the royal decree as the king intended. Although the amount of burden [that slaves had to carry] has been alleviated, it is not that the previous kings’ great intention was fully executed.

Student 8 : (Masha)

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8. 記昔先朝之訓曰: ‘羽籥不設而民驩之, 軒裳不加而民懷之者, 陰陽以統其精氣, 仁義以經其事業也。 故御和羹以平其神, 聽和聲以平其志, 納和言以平其政, 履和行以平其德。 今者民以奴婢名, 而冤鬱上干天和, 風雨不節, 禾麥不登, 予用玆疚心, 心不得和。 和予心者, 其在乎奴婢之革也。"

According to the instructions of my predecessor,1 which said: "People were delighted when the court music was not set up,2 and the people missed [the time] when the numbers of distinguished people3 were not growing. Yin and Yang united the vital energies and benevolence and righteousness weaved the enterprise. Therefore, [the king] administers with a well-balanced soup4 to equalize the spirits, follows harmonious sounds to equalize the intentions, takes harmonious words to equalize the policy, and treads on harmonious paths to equalize the virtue. Nowadays, people are called by the names of no (male slave) and bi (female slave), and their disgruntled minds reached the harmonious heaven above. Wind and rain are out of control, rice and wheat do not sprout. With this sense of shame my mind cannot be at peace. In order to put my mind at peace, I cared about changes in nobi [situation]."

1. King Jeongjo

2. Literally, feathers and flutes, which in the ancient times were attributes of the musicians at the ceremonial rites and banquets at the court.

3. Literally, carriage and garments, stood for the image of a nobleman riding on a carriage.

4. With the help of the ministers who aided the governing?

Student 9 : (Kim Young)

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9. 此廷臣之所承聞而贊頌之者也。 今予踐位行禮, 思慕號呼, 念堂構之丕責, 鞏磐泰之洪基, 卽惟曰繼其志也, 述其事也, 繼志述事, 莫有先於奴婢之制。 且況王者莅民, 無貴賤無內外, 均是赤子, 曰奴曰婢, 區而分之, 豈一視同胞之義也?

This was what the officials at the court heard and praised [about my predecessor]. Now as I succeed the throne and conduct the rites, thinking [of my predecessor] and crying out [for him], I must remember the great responsibility of [continuing] his glorious tasks, and solidify the grand enterprise as firmly as a boulder and Mount Tai. Only then could I speak of succeeding my predecessor's will and carrying out his work. In succeeding his will and carrying out his work, nothing could come before [the abolishing of] slavery. What is more, when a king attends to his people, there is no high and low, inner and outer, all are his children. To speak of slaves, to classify them and discriminate among them, how could it be the meaning of seeing them equally as brothers and sisters?

Student 10 : (Irina)

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內奴婢三萬六千九百七十四、寺奴婢二萬九千九十三, 幷許爲良民.

36 974 of public slaves, 29 093 of private slaves, I gave them all a freedom.

仍令承政院, 聚奴婢案, 火之敦化門外.

All the slave registers from the Ministries of Personnel, I have burned in front of gate Donhwa-mun (1).

其貢有需於經費者, 命壯勇營代給以爲式。

??? The funds of slavery I substituted with military force. ??? (2)

於戲! 予豈敢曰惠之云乎哉?

Ah! Will I be able to say that I have done something generous?

特先朝未卒之志事, 修而明之耳。

The great enterprises the deceased King has undertaken, will be accomplished in the future.

(1) Donhwa-mun 敦化門|돈화문 is one of the gates in the royal palace Chandok-kun in Seoul.

(2) 壯勇營|장용영 was a system of military service, first founded in the eight year of King Cheonjo's reign (1784). ...

Student 11 : (Do hee jeong)

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自玆以往, 維千萬年, 安其田廬, 守其墳墓, 婚姻以時, From now on, It will succeed in ten million years and then to make happy house at the farm, to keep tomb, to marry at a well timed,

生齒日息, 稼穡不愆, 嬉遊謳歌 as the people live daily, the farm is not fault, they pleasurably sing and play

用副予體先朝子視之苦心。 come up to my expectations, which I model the late king who desire to intend the slave like son.

【大提學尹行恁製。】 【written by Haengim Yoon in first academician】

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Further Readings

• View together with (Korean text) King Yeongjo’s Admonition for the People” (Eoje gyeongmineum 御製警民音, 1762)
• View together with (Translation) King Jeongjo, “Royal dictum to encourage farming” (Gweonnong yuneum 勸農綸音, 1781)
• View together with 윤행임尹行恁(1762~1801)의 정치 활동과 학문 성향 Yoon Haeng-im(尹行恁)’s Political Activities and Academic Views