The story of Toi-Gye
Toi-Gye was but one of the many nicknames of Yi Hwang, the most important Confucian philosopher of the Choseon Dynasty and a slightly older contemporary of Yul-Gok. Toi-Gye was born in Andong-gun in 1501. A highly intelligent man, Yi passed the public service exams at the age of 34, taking on a variety of important ministerial and academic posts including Minister of the Board of Ceremonies. However, he soon resigned from government service, returning to his beloved hometown where he became a scholar. Toi-Gye means ‘receding stream’ and refers to a small stream in Andong-gun.
Yi set up a school in Andong-gun, devoting his efforts to the education of future generations. He invited prominent scholars to teach Confucian classics and in only a short time, it became one of the country’s leading centres for academic thought. Yi was able to draw on his government connections to obtain money to make his school even bigger and better. As a result, the academy and the educational system it employed became the predominant style of school in the Choseon Dynasty. The school is still a centre for the study of philosophy. A wooden house just behind the academy has been the home of Yi's descendants for the past 16 generations.
Yi developed a practical teaching method that stressed the need to perfect oneself through the building of good moral character, learning and reflection. He had three main rules: loyalty to king; devotion to parents; and keeping the virtues of faithfulness, chastity and fidelity. His ideas were influential not only in Korea but also in Japan following the Meiji Restoration of 1868.
Toi-Gye was but one of the many nicknames of Yi Hwang, the most important Confucian philosopher of the Choseon Dynasty and a slightly older contemporary of Yul-Gok. Toi-Gye was born in Andong-gun in 1501. A highly intelligent man, Yi passed the public service exams at the age of 34, taking on a variety of important ministerial and academic posts including Minister of the Board of Ceremonies. However, he soon resigned from government service, returning to his beloved hometown where he became a scholar. Toi-Gye means ‘receding stream’ and refers to a small stream in Andong-gun.
Yi set up a school in Andong-gun, devoting his efforts to the education of future generations. He invited prominent scholars to teach Confucian classics and in only a short time, it became one of the country’s leading centres for academic thought. Yi was able to draw on his government connections to obtain money to make his school even bigger and better. As a result, the academy and the educational system it employed became the predominant style of school in the Choseon Dynasty. The school is still a centre for the study of philosophy. A wooden house just behind the academy has been the home of Yi's descendants for the past 16 generations.
Yi developed a practical teaching method that stressed the need to perfect oneself through the building of good moral character, learning and reflection. He had three main rules: loyalty to king; devotion to parents; and keeping the virtues of faithfulness, chastity and fidelity. His ideas were influential not only in Korea but also in Japan following the Meiji Restoration of 1868.