W a y m a r k s ~: Jongmyo Daeje - Royal Ancestral Hall of the Joseon

Each year on the first Sunday in May the Royal Ancestral Memorial Rite of the Joseon Dynasty is held at the Jongmyo, the Royal Ancestral Shrine of the last Kings of Korea. The Yi family founded the Joseon (Choson) Dynasty in 1392, ruling Korea until 1910 when the monarchy was deposed by the Japanese colonial administration who ruled Korea until the end of the Second World War.

First constructed in 1394 the Jongmyo was built to house the ancestral memorial tablets (Sinju) of the Joseon Royal Family. The building complex has changed over time, notably when it burned down in 1592 during the Imjin War (1592-1598) when Korea was first invaded by neighbouring Japan. It was rebuilt in 1608 and has since been adapted and expanded – for me though it’s one of the old timber buildings surviving in Seoul which genuinely feels old. Many of the other old palaces and city gates have been heavily restored and/or wholly reconstructed in recent years having suffered significant depredations or wholesale destruction during the recent wars and colonial occupation of the city. There’s something very serene about this old building and its weathered flagstone courtyard. I also like its long, low and somewhat understated architecture too. Surrounded by evergreen trees it has a very real sense of atmosphere, ancient and revered.

During the five centuries of Joseon rule the King held ceremonies here five times a year to mark the four seasons and the winter sacrificial day (nabil). The Royal Ancestral Rite held in May was discontinued in 1910 under the Japanese but has since been revived, even though the monarchy itself has not been restored. However, I believe the ceremony is still superintended by descendants of the Royal Family. The ceremony, known as the Jongmyo Daeje, was first witnessed by ordinary folk when the “great rite” (Daeje) was revived in the 1960s. It is a Confucian ritual in which offerings of food and wine are offered up to the departed spirits of the Royal ancestors. Ceremonial recitations are made, traditional court music and dances are performed, with everyone taking part wearing elaborate and colourful traditional courtly costumes. This is the one day of the year when the doors of the spirit chamber (Sinsil) are opened up. Ordinarily when you visit Jongmyo the doors are closed and all you can see is the building’s exterior. The spirit chamber is the place where the mortuary tablets are housed. These tablets are enshrined in spirit chests (Sinjujang) which are located at the rear of the spirit chamber with the King’s tablet stored on the west side and the Queen’s on the east side. The building also contains various other pieces of ritual paraphernalia, such as book chests, parasols, fans, chests containing Royal seals, and other ritual utensils, such as plates, cups, ewers, ladles, and censers. In 1995 UNESCO added Jongmyo and the Royal Ancestral Rite to its list of protected world heritage sites.

When I visited in 2010 sadly I missed the Jongmyo Daeje by only a few days. There is a museum attached to the Jongmyo with two exhibition halls which explain the function of the building, the spirit tablets and their associated rituals, as well as the tenets of Confucianism which prescribe and regulate the manner in which the ancestors should be honoured and remembered. Seeing photographs of this lavish ceremony though it seems to be a fascinating event to witness. I hope I get the chance to go back one day and see it for myself.