고려 왕실의 태실(胎室)에 대하여 (About the Goryeo Royal Family’s Taeshil(胎室))

서지정보

· 발행기관 : 한국역사연구회
· 수록지 정보 : 역사와 현실 / 124호 / 243 ~ 277페이지
· 저자명 : 장지연

초록

이 글에서는 고려 왕실의 태실에 대해 살펴보았다. 태실은 절차에 따라 태반을 보관용기에 담고 吉地를 찾아 묻어 그 주변을 특별하게 수식한 곳이다. 고려와 조선 왕실의 태실은 주변국에서는 찾을 수 없는 독특한 문화인데, 고려는 이러한 태실 문화의 시작으로서 주목할 가치가 있다. 이 글에서는 다음과 같은 결론을 얻었다. 첫째 고려 왕실의 태실은 태조 왕건 때부터 조성되었으나 그 의례 형식을 완비한 것은 11세기 초로 추정한다. 이는 현종~문종대로, 고려의 다른 국가의례 및 제도가 성립한 시점이기도 하다. 둘째 고려 왕실의 태실은 사찰과 결합하여 태실 주인의 복뿐만 아니라 국가적인 기원을 펼치고 왕실 권위를 상징한 장소였다. 이 때문에 폐위된 국왕의 경우, 태실이 철거되곤 하였다. 셋째 태실은 우뚝 솟은 높은 곳에 조성됐는데, 이는 산천신앙에서 기원한 것으로 조선의 태실에도 이어졌다. 조선에서는 풍수 지식이 변화하면서 읍치나 왕릉의 입지가 달라졌는데, 이에 비하면 태실은 고려풍수의 입지적 특징이 가장 늦게까지 남은 셈이다. 고려 왕실의 태실은 고려풍수의 전반적인 특징- 태조 왕건의 상징성, 산천신앙의 변형, 불교 및 지방통치와 결합, 왕실과 국가의 권위와 기원 등-을 공유했다. 조선 왕실에서는 고려의 전통을 따라 태실을 조성했으나, 그 대상인물이 확대되고 조성 장소 및 성격과 위상이 변화했다.

영어초록

Examined in this article is the Goryeo Royal Family’s Taeshil(胎室) places. Taeshil refers to a special place chosen as an auspicious ground ideal for a ‘placenta’ -from a royal birth (and put in a container)- to be buried and preserved. The surrounding area would be decorated as well.
This establishment of Taeshil places, practiced by people of the Goryeo and Joseon dynasties, is a culture unique to the Korean peninsula, and can hardly be found in adjacent countries. The Goryeo period marked the very beginning of such practice and culture, and examination of it revealed the following results.
First, Taeshil places were established since the days of Founder King Taejo (太祖) Wang Geon(王建), but protocols for the practice seems to have been firmly established only in the early 11th century. This would coincide with the reigns of kings Hyeonjong(顯宗, r.1010∼1031) and Munjong(文宗, r.1046∼ 1083), when Goryeo’s other rituals and institutions were completed as well.
Second, Taeshil places of Goryeo were oftentimes established in or near the Buddhist monasteries. They not only served as places symbolizing the Kings’ authority, but also functioned as a prayer ground wishing fortune and luck for not only the individuals related to the Taeshil but the entire dynasty as well. That was why the Taeshil places for dethroned kings were dismantled from time to time.
Third, Taeshil places were usually established in high places such as hills, due to the time’s belief in mountain and stream deities. Such geographical conditions continued into the Joseon period, and construction of its own Taeshil places. In Joseon, different Pungsu(風水) theories were developed, which led to different locations chosen for the local administrative centers or royal mausoleums. Yet Taeshil was a different matter, as we can see that Taeshil was the one area where the Goryeo Pungsu theories continued to prevail even later on.
The Goryeo Royal family’s Taeshil places shows us all the general qualities of the Goryeo Pungsu culture: the symbolic image of the Founder King, influenced by the mountain & stream deity belief, merging of Buddhism and local governing, and the authority of the state and royal family, which affects the destiny of the entire country, etc. Following the Goryeo tradition, the Joseon Royal family also established Taeshil places, yet the range of individuals to receive such places was widened. The places, and their general status was also changed from how they had been during the Goryeo period.

참고자료

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