<최생우진기>의 禪小說的 美學 (Zen-Novelistic Aesthetics of ChoiSaengwoojingi)

서지정보

· 발행기관 : 어문연구학회
· 수록지 정보 : 어문연구 / 57권 / 111 ~ 133페이지
· 저자명 : 김현화

초록

본 논문은 그간 <최생우진기>에 대한 연구가 몽유구조와 도선사상에 편중된 논의에 회의적 시각을 가지고 출발하였다. 그래서 기왕에 살펴 본 <최생우진기>의 선적 구도 구현 논의에서 일보 나아가 이 작품이 지니는 선소설적 미학에 집중하였다. 고대의 구도(求道)를 통한 존재론적 깨우침은 <최생우진기>로 이어져 만개한 바, 『삼국유사』의 구도이야기와 선가의 ≪벽암록≫에 수록된 선화적 성격과 그 맥이 닿아 있음을 주목했다. 즉, <최생우진기>는 그 선의 세계를 보다 극적으로 장편 서사화하고 있는 작품이다.
이를 밝히기 위해 기재의 선적 사유체계의 가능성을 짚어 보고, <최생우진기>가 선소설 작품으로 창작된 배경을 살폈다. 그는 선승들과 교유하고 있었고, 그와 관련한 선시도 남기고 있는 바 이 작품의 선적 접근은 충분히 가능하다고 타진된다. 2장에서는 용궁이 화두적 공간으로 발현될 수 있었던 전조와 그것을 이어 받은 <최생우진기>의 진면목을 살폈다.
용궁이 화두적 공간으로 화할 수 있었던 전조로, 『삼국유사』에 수록된 몇 가지 공간 구조를 예로 들었다. ① 山上의 은혈과 ② 산상의 불세계 ③ 산상의 못에 관련한 예를 들어 그것이 <최생우진기>의 화두적 공간인 용궁으로 화현할 수 있었던 가능성을 논했다. 그를 바탕으로 이 작품의 용궁에 내포된 기재의 선 사유체계를 읽었다.
2장에서는 그러한 선적 기반 아래 <최생우진기>의 선화적 특질을 읽었다. 이 작품에 추구된 선은 ≪벽암록≫에서 구현되는 선이 그 모태가 되었음을 밝히고 선화적 서사에 치중했다. 그 결과 살아 있는 선을 표방했던 ≪벽암록≫의 일상적이고 경험적인 선이 이 작품에도 흐르고 있음을 이해했다. 또한 유산(遊山) 가운데 일어나는 오도의 구조를 취하는 점 역시 ≪벽암록≫과 연계돼 있음을 밝혔다. 최생의 부지소종은 안거를 끝내고 떠나는 선승들의 만행과 다를 바 없음을 살펴 이 작품이 선의 종지를 좇는 소설로 거듭났음을 살폈다.
이와 같은 논의들로 <최생우진기>는 선에 기반을 둔 창작배경을 가졌으며 또한 그러한 특질들로 선소설로서의 가치를 지닌다는 결론에 닿았다. 그러나 이를 검증할 수 있는 또 다른 작품, 예컨대 <용궁부연록>․<구운몽> 등의 선소설적 성격을 밝히는 연구는 차후의 과제로 남았으며, 이 작품의 전기소설성을 극복해야 하는 문제 역시 중요한 과제로 남아 있다.

영어초록

ChoiSaengWoojingi(崔生遇眞記) is one of the works brought from Kijaekiee(企齋記異), Chinese-written short novel series of Kijae Kwang-han Shin(企齋 申光漢, 1484-1555). Main story is experience of the palace of the sea king that ChoiSaeng in ImYoung(臨瀛) land visits the cave of Mountain Doota and meets the sea god and a wizard. Under Doga-conception which means exploration of the world of a wizard, this work includes the thinking-system of Zen. Thus, it presents Taoistic idea in the contents and implicates Zen idea by the metaphor and symbol. This is high status of literary expression but it is not yet dealt with in academic society. This paper is to search for the value of ChoiSaengwoojingi as a Zen-novel based on Zen-conception.
Kijae lived typical life of a scholar as one of Sarim Group that tried to implement Morality-politics with Gwang-jo Jo(趙光祖) and a member of prosperous Hoongu-family. However, he concerned about Zen and interacted with Buddhist priests in a mountain temple through all his life. He could learn the Buddhist thinking-system by interaction with Buddhist priests and, finally, implemented Zen-conception in ChoiSaengwoojingi. Zen idea of Kijae is to see through not only its life but also political and social order and world view of the ages. He tried to make a novelistic approach to manifest more flexible Zen idea.
The palace of the sea king is the place that shows the theme of this work and the character of Zen-novel. In this place, ChoiSaeng discusses Human-world of vain fame, wealth and ambitions with wizards and then realizes the condition that all creations are united. Thus, the palace of the sea king is the place of Zen for realization and its appearance is influenced a lot by Samkukyusa(三國遺事). Documents about hidden cave of a mountain (hidden hole) of a mountain, Buddhist world of a mountain, a pond of a mountain influenced Zen-like shaping of the palace of the sea king of ChoiSaengwoojingi. It means, Kijae received literary method of former ages and expressed his own idea in familiar emotional status.
Kijae(企齋) observes the political ruin of Gwang-jo Jo(趙光祖) who was a kind of accomplice in Kimyosahwa(己卯士禍) and experienced the disruption and deconstruction of Confucian world. As Gwang-jo Jo(趙光祖) was punished to death without proper execution of Kyunggukdaejon(經國大典), he realized that this world can not be controlled only by the morality of Confucianism. Kijae(企齋) turns his concern to the thinking-system of Zen that he had some interest in and tries to solve realistic problem in it. He created the space, the palace of the sea king, that all laws, conceptions and personal life are united as one to return the unfair world. So, the Palace of the Sea King is not normal place but the special place presented under writer's careful plan.
ChoiSaengwoojingi is close relation with the structure of Zen-dialogue of topic series, Byeokamrock(碧巖錄), of Zen-family that was known widely to the times when the author is alive. First, there are common features to pursue empirical Zen. The dialogue between ChoiSaeng and Jeunggond after ChoiSaeng finished 70-days exploration of the palace of the sea king is similar with ordinary and empirical dialogue related with 'Bob(飯)' of clause 76 in Byeokamrock. Zen is such a thing that is captured during living activity or experiencing something. ChoiSang and JeungKong who are main characters in the novel have a conversation about 'food' and the talk must be look like the 'food' of Zen sect that symbolizes realism of Zen. Zen ideaof the writer who experienced a Zen priest seemed to be expressed in a way of empirical conversation.
Also, the condition of realization is identical to the structure occurred after hanging around a mountain. As ChoiSaeng had a realization after hanging around Doota mountain, clause 34 and 36 of Byeokamrock also show the structure of the realization after hanging around a mountain. In Zen sect, 'climbing a mountain' means 'getting an enlightenment'. Spiritual experience that ChoiSang, main character in novel, had with Taoist hermits in the Palace of Sea King of the mountain's top is similar to spiritual experience that Zen priests of Zen sect had mysterious characters in unknown place. Kijae seems to understand to accept such a truth-seeking and spiritual awakening of Zen sect.
And it has same structure that the character enters a mountain in the end. Like ChoiSaeng, Zen-Buddhist priest enters a mountain in clause 25 of Byeokamrock. This means the entering to know better what he already realized. Even after Zen priests experienced the moment of spiritual awakening, ChoiSang digs medical herbs in a mountain area and disappeared suddenly as if he leaves this world to train himself more. This is not uncertainty or escape from the life after experiencing the world of Taoist hermits. It is literary element to show the Taoistic enlightenment.
ChoiSaengwoojingi is born again as a novel by actively accepting the story and special structure of Byeokamrock. And it acquires the value of Zen-novel by implementing Zen-conception that ego and world are united in it

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