Life and Achievements
Life and Achievements
Professor Rhi Ki-yong 李箕永 was born in Bongsan, Hwanghae Province (present-day North Korea) in 1922. His penname Buryeon 不然 comes from the phrase "buryeon ji daeyeon 不然之大然" ("the great suchness that is not-such") in the Geumgamg sammae gyeong ron (Exposition on the Vajrasamādhi sūtra) by Wonhyo. His Buddhist name is Seolbong 雪峯 (Snowy Peak) or Seobong 瑞峯 (Auspicious Peak).
He majored in Asian History at the Faculty of Law and Literature at Keijō Imperial University in 1941-1944 and studied history and philosophy at the Université Catholique de Louvain in Belgium in 1954-1960. He received a doctorate at Louvain in 1960 with a thesis titled “Aux origines du Tchan Houei" (On the Origins of Penitence in Buddhism). He returned to Korea in the same year and taught various courses on Buddhist studies, religious studies, French, and even art history at Dongguk University, Seoul National University, Sogang University, and Hongik University. In religious studies, he is known as having first introduced Eliade in Korea. He founded the Department of Indian Philosophy at Dongguk University and served as a professor as well as the director of the Institute of Comparative Thought, the dean of Liberal Arts, and the dean of the College of Buddhist Studies. In 1969, he moved to Yeungnam University and served as a professor, dean of Liberal Arts, and the director of the Institute of Silla and Gaya Culture. He also worked as the president of Kookmin University. When the Academy of Korean Studies was founded in 1978, he laid the foundation for the compilation of the Minjok muhwa dae baekgwa sajeon (Grand Encyclopedia of Korean Culture).
While in Europe, he studied Buddhist philology and Buddhist philosophy with Professor Étienne Lamotte, who is considered one of the greatest Buddhist scholars of the twentieth century. On his return to Korea, he introduced meticulous philological methods using texts in Indic languages in comparison with Chinese translations and thus contributed greatly to the modernization of Buddhist studies in Korean academia. He soon devoted himself to the study of Korean Buddhism, especially Wonhyo's thought. He conducted in-depth research and modern interpretation of Wonhyo's thought in numerous works. He is remembered as a world-renowned authority who avidly promoted the importance of Wonhyo's thought in Buddhist academia in and outside Korea.
In 1974, he founded the Korean Institute for Buddhist Studies (KIBS) to focus on systematic research on Buddhism and the education of lay Buddhists. The creation and operation of various research and education programs and the training of lay Buddhists at KIBS were all carried out under his leadership until his death. As a prominent lay Buddhist leader in modern Korean Buddhism, he was widely revered both by the monastics and lay Buddhists.
On November 9, 1996, shortly after delivering a keynote speech at an international conference organized by KIBS, he collapsed and passed suddenly. This earned him the eulogy "academic nirvāṇa." His cremated remains were scattered on a slope of Mount Namsan in Gyeongju, and a memorial stele was erected at nearby Borisa Temple. In addition, a memorial stupa was installed on the grounds of Yuma jeongsa, the KIBS practice center.
A memorial erected at Borisa in Gyeongju
Epitaph
Buryeon Rhi Ki-yong, a leading scholar and lay leader in modern Korean Buddhism is here on Mount Namsan in Gyeongju. Born in Bongsan, Hwanghae Province in 1922, he received a doctorate in Buddhist studies from the Université Catholique de Louvain in Belgium in 1960. After returning to Korea, he founded the Department of Indian Philosophy at Dongguk University, where he taught numerous students. He brought a new wind to the Korean Buddhist world and contributed greatly to the modernization of Buddhist studies in Korea. Especially, he is remembered as a great pioneer and a world-renowned authority on Wonhyo's thought. He aroused widespread interest in the subject at home and abroad through the discovery and innovative academic treatment of Wonhyo's thought. He was also a dedicated religious practitioner, who worked hard to foster lay Buddhism and bring the Bodhisattva ideal into daily life. Based on his thorough understanding of Mahāyāna Buddhism and his extensive knowledge and experience in Eastern and Western thoughts, he was able to enlighten Buddhists on the true meaning of Buddhism with wisdom just like that of Vimalakīrti and eloquence just like that of Pūrna Maitrayaniputra. He worked tirelessly as a leader in the Korean Buddhist community for the innovation and development of Korean Buddhism without heeding his health in his later years. After delivering a keynote speech at a conference in November 1996, he suddenly passed away at the age of seventy-four. The great teacher, who was called the "Wonhyo of our time," returned, as he always wanted, to the middle of the pine forests of Namsan, the Buddhist land of Silla, where monk Wonhyo strolled and the Hwarangs practiced. On the eighth Buddha's birthday after his passing, this monument is erected at Mireukgok on Namsan in memory of his profound ideas.
A memorial stupa erected at Yuma jeongsa, designed by Choi Insu.