한국불교의 칠성청(七星請) 의식 = The Big Dipper Ritual of Korean Buddhism

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

This paper expands on the existing literature on the astral beliefs of Tejaprabha Buddha faith and Big Dipper faith, which are fusions of Korean Taoism and Buddhism, in order to expand the study of the meaning and practices of the Chilseongcheong ritual (七星請, Big Dipper Ritual), which appears in texts documenting Korean Buddhist rituals, as well as modern Chilseongcheong rituals.
Tejaprabha Buddha faith in China emerged as a result of the Navagraha faith of India being introduced to China alongside Buddhism in around the middle of the second century and its fusion with the Polaris faith of indigenous Taoism. Moreover, it is estimated that the Tejaprabha Buddha faith spread to Korea in approximately the ninth century. Once in Korea, the Tejaprabha Buddha faith developed into a uniquely Korean form of Chilseong (Big Dipper) faith by fusing with an indigenous form of Big Dipper faith.
During the Joseon Dynasty, Taoist astral gods were incorporated as gods protecting Buddhism (護法神衆), and various forms of astral beliefs transformed in response to Big Dipper faith.
In the late Joseon Dynasty, Chilseong (the Great Bear), which was the center of the traditional folk belief in constellations, was incorporated into Buddhism, and accordingly, rituals related to the Big Dipper faith also became part of Buddhist rituals.
The Chilseongcheong, which is still practiced at Korean Buddhist temples, is much more complex and diverse than the practices of the mid-to-late Joseon Dynasty, presumably because the procedure reflected the continuous expansion of the ritual’s purpose.