A Study on Dongmu's Thoughts about the Eight Items of "The Great Learning(Ta hsueh)"

동무(東武)의 "대학(大學)" 팔조목(八條目)에 대한 견해 고찰(考察)

1. Objectives This study was purposed to find Dong's thoughts about the eight items of the "The Great Learning(Ta hsueh)" 2. Methods It was researched through comparative and overall study on the Dong-mu's thoughts in "Gyukchigo(格致藁)" 3. Results (1) Dongmu reinterpreted the eight items of the "The Great Learning(Ta hsueh)" as the relations between the subject and the object from the ontologic assumption of Affairs Mind Body Objects as the principle of existence and correlation, summarized into four categories, and classified into the individual and subjective affairs, and the universal and objective affairs. The four categories of the eight items of the "The Great Learning(Ta hsueh)" are correlated with the individual and the universal ethics of behavior, and connected with the element for overcoming the individual inclination of mind and wickedness. (2) After the individual and subjective human was established, the eight items of the "The Great Learning(Ta hsueh)" were classified into two categories, and coupled up with each two items('Being sincere in their thoughts' with 'Extending to the utmost their knowledge', 'Rectifying their hearts' with 'Investigating things', 'Cultivating their persons' with 'Illustrating illustrious virtue throughout the kingdom', 'Regulating their families' with 'Ordering their own states'). Being based on this, 'Being sincere in their thoughts', 'Rectifying their hearts', 'Cultivating their persons' and 'Regulating their families' were understood as four individual and subjective human-basic-essential activity. Especially, mind, heart, body and family(power) were regarded as the four basic element in human existence and activity, and in correlation with universe and society, set up as the subjective element in Dongmu's epistemology, theory of nature and emotion, theory of morality and theory of moral cultivation.