A Study of Historical References of Korean Royal Court Tea Culture through the Periods of Three Kingdoms，Goryeo Kingdom and Joseon Dynasty

Yang-Seok Yoo

Deptment of General Education，Kookmin University，Seoul，136-702，Korea.

1.Introduction

The history of Korea is divided into three periods:Three Kingdoms(57 B.C.-936 A.D)，Goryeo Kingdom(918-1392 A.D)and Joseon Dynasty(1392-1910A.D).The period of Three Kingdoms represents the early development of Korean tea culture.The tea culture of that period was described in many documents including the Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms and Historical Record of the Three Kingdoms.The Goryeo Kingdom represents the renaissance period of Korean tea.The blossoming tea culture of Goryeo Kingdom with elaborate ceremonial tea offerings and tea drinking practices of the royal court were well documented in a variety of documents such as the Official History of Goryeo and Illustrated Account of Goryeo.During the Joseon Dynasty，tea ceremonies were routinely conducted to greet visitors to the royal court.These procedures of Joseon royal court tea ceremonies were documented in many court documents including the Chronicle of the Joseon Dynasty［1］.These historical documents provide insight into the development of tea culture and sophistication of tea ceremonies of the royal court.

This paper examines historical references of tea culture of the royal court from the period of Three Kingdoms to Joseon Dynasty.Findings from this paper can promote further research on development of royal court tea culture in Asian countries.

2.Tea culture of Three Kingdoms(三國(guó)時(shí)代，57 B.C.– 936 A.D)

The Korean history from 57 B.C.to 936 A.D.is the period of Three Kingdoms.The three kingdoms are Shilla，Goguryo and Baekjae［2］.Through exchanges and returning of Buddhist monks who studied Buddhism in China，tea drinking was well established among Buddhist monks.They used tea for meditation as well as offerings［3］.

The Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms describes an encounter and exchange between King Gyeongdeok(reign 742-765 A.D.)and a Buddhist monk who paid tribute to Buddha with tea offerings.The documented exchange reflects the use of tea for religious offerings during this period:

In response to the King's question on where about the monk was traveling from，the Buddhist monk replied I am returning from the Southern Mountain.Every 3rdand 9thday of each month，I prepare and offer tea to Buddha.'In response to the king's request，the monk prepared tea for the king［4］.

In the royal court，a king mandated an ancestral rite to pay tribute to the founding king of Gaya and one of the offerings used during the ancestral rite was tea.The Memorabilia of the Three Kingdom documents that:

In the year of 661，King Munmu ordered a rite in memory of the King Kim Suro.Every year during holidays，ancestral rites were conducted with offerings including rice cake，rice，tea and fruit［5］.

The National Chronicle of the Three Kingdoms，which represents the official history of the three kingdoms，describes the expansion of tea during that period:

During the 3rdyear(828 A.D.)of King Hung Deuk，tea seeds brought from China by Dae Ryum were planted in Mt.Jirisan by the order of King.Although tea existed during the period of Queen Seon Deuk(632-647 A.D.)the popularity of tea further blossomed［6］.

From various historical references，the period of Three Kingdoms represents the early development of tea and tea culture in Korea.In the royal court，the tea drinking and the use of tea for ancestral rites of were described.These references reflect a close association between tea and Buddhism during this period.

3.The culture of Goryeo Kingdom(高麗，918-1392 A.D.)

Following the Three Kingdom period，the tea culture of Goryeo Kingdom further blossomed with the expansion of Buddhism.The founding king of Goryeo Taejo(reign 877-943 A.D.)made Buddhism the national religion［7］.The nationalization of Buddhism allowed tea ceremonies and tea offerings associated with Buddhist rituals to be codified as the royal court rituals.

According to the History of Goryeo and Illustrated Document of Goryeo，the Lantern festival and Harvest festival included tea offerings and tea drinking in the royal court.The tea offerings and tea drinking procedures were described to be refined and elaborate ceremonies of the court.The Official History of Goryeo describes how elaborate these tea ceremonies were:

The Lantern Festival-The master of ceremony receives the special message from king，walks down the steps and stands on the east side of the crown prince，and then bows to north，and then walks toward the west.All vassals and nobility，except the crown prince，are directed to bow to the king and divided into east and west stands.The king orders tea to be served.The master of ceremony bows deep when offering tea to the king.Tea is served to vassals and nobles.Once tea arrives to the vassals and nobles，the master of ceremony pronounces Bae'and all vassals and nobles bow.And then the master of ceremony pronounces Um'and all vassals and nobles drink tea，and then do slight bows as a sign of respect［8］.

The Harvest Festival-Tea food is served to the king and then to the crown prince，and then to vassals and nobles.Once tea food arrives for the vassals and nobles，the master of ceremony pronounces Bae'and all vassals and nobles(except the crown prince)bow and sit down in their places.After eating tea food，they all stand and do half bows as a sign of respect.Tea is first served to the king and then to the crown prince，and then to vassals and nobles.The master of ceremony pronounces Bae'and all vassals and nobles(except the crown prince)bow，and then drink tea and then do a half bow［9］.

These documents indicate that the tea drinking and offerings，as part of the court rituals，were well codified to properly display propriety and decorum.The ritualized practices of tea ceremonies of the royal court represent the highest form of propriety.

There are many documented references of tea drinking practices engrained in the activities of the royal court.The royal court ceremonies for important occasions such as greeting foreign dignitaries，births of princes，births of princesses，or coronations of princes included elaborate tea offerings and tea ceremonies.These elaborate tea ceremonies were reflected in the Official History of Goryeo Kingdom:

Conducting Ministers'Conference-The chief of Dabang(the tea agency)brings tea and returns to his place.The ministers and vassals move to the east of the king's place and bow［10］.

Receiving The Chinese Messenger-The king makes a remark to offer the first cup of tea to the messenger.The messenger responds by requesting that the king drink tea first.The messenger bows to the king and then sits down to drink tea.And then the messenger does a half bow while standing and returns to the original place［10］.

Deliberating Serious Punishment-The chief of Dabang(tea agency)brings a tea container.The court officers open the cover.The officer of the ceremony steps up，bows and then offers tea，and steps down.The lower level officers submit tea for tea preparation.The officer of the ceremony requests that tea be prepared and brought out［11］.

The Illustrative Account of Goryeo，written by a Chinese envoy，Hsu Ching，describes the offering of tea to Chinese envoys three times a day:

Once tea is prepared，tea is brought out on a lotus-leaf-shaped silver tray.Only when it is announced that everyone is served with tea，are people allowed to drink tea.As it takes some time for everyone to be served，the first tea is generally cold.In the residence，tea utensils of tea ceremonies are placed on a red table and these tea utensils are covered with a red table cover.Everyday tea is served three times and followed by hot herbal tea.Goryeo people call this hot herbal tea a medicinal drink and they become satisfied when all the envoys finish the drinks.If the envoys does not finish the drinks，they routinely go away angry as they perceive it as a sign of disrespect.So，all envoys make a point to finish all drinks［12］.

The intriguing descriptions of tea serving procedures and the arrangement of tea-utensils by Hsu Ching imply that the tea culture of Goryeo was rather different from that of the Song Dynasty of China.The documents indicate that Goryeo maintained unique ways of tea ceremonies and that made an impression to Hsu Ching.

4.The culture of Joseon Dynasty(朝鮮，1392-1910 A.D.)

During the last dynasty of Korea，Joseon Dynasty，the royal court rituals including tea ceremonies were categorized into five categories of royal court rituals.The five categories were:auspicious rites(吉禮)，ceremonial rites(嘉禮)，greeting rites(賓禮)，military rites(軍禮)and funeral rites(兇禮)［13］.The court rituals emphasized the Confucian propriety.Tea ceremonies were conducted for the greeting rites and ceremonial rites.The Chronology of Joseon Dynasty made close to 700 references of tea ceremonies of greeting rites during the Joseon Dynasty［14，15］.The tea ceremonies of the royal court to greet Chinese envoys are captured below:

Greeting Envoys from China-The king and the envoy bow and then stand，bow again，and then stand properly.After exchanging bows，a tea ceremony is conducted.Once the tea ceremony is completed the envoy is escorted to meet the crown prince and exchange bow［16］.

Court Celebration-For the celebration of the 80thbirthday of a king's mother，a four-day celebration was conducted.The celebration included the presentation of flower，wine and tea.Tea was ceremoniously offered to the king，queen，king's mother and princes and princesses［17］.

According to various royal court documents，the Joseon kings were quite knowledgeable about tea ceremonies;spoke about tea ceremonies and paid attention to the details of tea ceremonies.In the Chronicle of Royal Court，the 20thKing of Joseon，Gyeong-Jong(reign 1720-1724)explained the purpose of tea ceremony as"tea ceremony is conducted to greet and meet guest especially for the first time."The 21stKing of Joseon，Yong-Jo was described to be quite particular about tea and complained that there was too much water in the tea;the tea became cold and it tastes like ice water and the person who prepared should be punished［18］.

5.Results and discussions

The review of historical documents reveals increasing sophistication of royal court tea culture from the period of the Three Kingdoms to Joseon Dynasty.The practices of royal court tea ceremony practices of tea drinking and tea offering became increasingly ritualized as the practice became part of the royal court rituals.The codification of the tea ceremonies allowed compliance to the court rituals and proper display of court decorum were emphasized.

The historical documents described that tea was used as(1)day to day drink in the royal court(2)offerings for ancestral and religious rituals(3)ceremonial drinks for court ceremonies and greeting guests.The kings of the Joseon period were documented to be quite knowledgeable about tea.The codification of tea ceremonies as court rituals represents that tea ceremonies are representing the highest propriety of the court.The following sections discuss these findings:

1)Day to day drink-From the period of Three Kingdoms to Joseon Dynasty，there were many references of tea drinking by kings and court officers of the royal court.For example，a Buddhist monk preparing tea for King Gyeongdeok(r.742-765 A.D.)during the Three Kingdom period to Joseon ministers drinking tea during their conferences.The royal court maintained a long history of tea drinking and tea culture［4，10，11］.

2)Offerings for ancestral and religious rituals-The historical documents describe the use of tea as offerings for ancestral rites and Buddhist rituals.The documented practices of tea offerings for Buddhist rituals reached the peak during the Goryeo Kingdom with the adoption of Buddhism as the national religion［4，5，8，9］.

3)Ceremonial drink for court ceremonies and greeting guests-The tea was described to be served and offered during important court ceremonies and to greet guests.The royal court tea ceremony of greeting guests was documented in one of the five rituals of the court.The codification of tea for greeting guests that started in the Goryeo Kingdom lasted throughout the Joseon Dynasty［10，16，17］.

6.Conclusions

Developed through the Three Kingdoms，the royal court tea practices blossomed during Goryeo Kingdom.The royal court practices of tea ceremonies continued into Joseon Dynasty with close to 700 references of tea ceremonies being conducted during that period［13，14］.The tea drinking and tea offerings were important rituals of the court and the codification of tea ceremonies allowed compliance to the court decorum.The inclusion of tea ceremony in the court rituals represents the highest form of propriety and decorum.The inquisitive description of Goryeo tea ceremony by Hsu Ching implies that Goryeo maintained unique tea ceremony practices，which carried into the Joseon Dynasty.The pioneer of Korean tea，Myung Won Kim Mi-Hee led the effort to restore the royal court tea ceremonies in the modern times.Today，the royal court tea ceremony is an Intangible Cultural Asset［19］.A comparative analysis of royal court tea culture can provide additional insight into the historical development of royal court tea culture in Asian countries.

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The Names of Historical Documents Referenced in the Paper:

●The Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms(三國(guó)遺事)

●The Historical Record of the Three Kingdoms(三國(guó)史記)

●The Official History of Goryeo(高麗史)

●An illustrated Account of Goryeo(宣和奉使高麗圖經(jīng))

●The Chronicle of the Joseon Dynasty(朝鮮王朝實(shí)錄)