[Essay Today] Sansong (山訟) 400 Years

Record from the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, Year 41 of King Yeongjo (1765).

On the 23rd day of the intercalary second month, the king went out at night to Heunghwamun (興化門) to personally inquire about Sim Jeong-choi and Yoon Hee-bok. This was due to a mountain grave dispute (山訟, a tomb-related lawsuit) between the Paju-based Paepyeong Yoon clan and the Cheongsong Sim clan. The mountain grave dispute between the two clans dates back to 1614. There was a tomb of Yoon Gwan, who served as a Goryeo prime minister, in Paju, but it was lost over time. During King Hyojong’s reign, Sim Ji-won, who served as Yeonguijeong (Prime Minister), established his father’s tomb directly above Yoon Gwan’s burial site that same year. In 1658, the court granted land in this area to be used as the clan’s burial ground. Sim Ji-won was also buried there in 1662. His tomb appeared to have been placed as an overlapping burial (壓葬) on Yoon Gwan’s tomb. Overlapping burial refers to the practice of burying descendants at the head part of an existing grave, which was taboo during the Joseon period.

One hundred years passed after Sim Ji-won’s death. In 1763, while the Yoon clan was searching for Yoon Gwan’s tomb, they demolished the flat stone platform (계체) in front of Sim Ji-won’s tomb. The Sim clan was outraged and demanded that the governor of Goyang punish the Yoon clan for damaging Sim Ji-won’s tomb. Unable to handle the dispute between these prestigious families, the governor referred the matter to the central government, which eventually involved King Yeongjo himself. The king ordered that the tombs of Yoon Gwan and Sim Ji-won be respected as they were, but the Yoon clan refused to back down.

Finally, King Yeongjo declared, "If strict measures are not taken, discipline will collapse and social morals will be endangered." Despite being seventy-one years old and frail, he personally went to inquire. Ignoring concerns from those around him about his health, he stayed up all night to conduct the inquiry and subsequently punished both Sim Jeong-choi and Yoon Hee-bok, even exiling them. Yoon Hee-bok, who was also over seventy, died en route to exile. The mountain grave dispute between the two families continued thereafter.

The Paepyeong Yoon and Cheongsong Sim clans were powerful aristocratic families in Joseon. According to the "Comprehensive Information on Historical Figures" by the Academy of Korean Studies, the Paepyeong Yoon clan produced 346 civil service examination passers and 317 military examination passers. It was also the family that produced the most queens (four). The Cheongsong Sim clan produced 198 civil service examination passers and 131 military examination passers. They had three queens and among thirteen prime ministers, nine served as Yeonguijeong. Since this was a matter of pride for these prestigious families, neither side was willing to yield.

The two clans finally found a resolution in 2005. On August 4 of that year, they agreed to relocate nineteen tombs and memorial stele of the Cheongsong Sim clan, including Sim Ji-won’s tomb, to a 2,500-pyeong area provided by the Paepyeong Yoon clan. The grand councils of both clans publicly announced this agreement on April 10, 2006, putting an end to the long-standing mountain grave dispute. This was 392 years after Sim Ji-won buried his father in Yoon Gwan’s tomb and 241 years after King Yeongjo’s personal inquiry. The clans stated in the agreement, "Although this was done out of a sincere desire to properly honor our ancestors, there was a risk of misunderstanding in the world, so we have made a magnanimous decision to resolve 400 years of conflict." They further specified, "Both clans will respect each other, honor the ancestral tombs of previous generations, and cooperate to manage them permanently."

Since ancient times, our ancestors have considered pungsu (geomancy) when building houses or selecting burial sites. They especially valued 'eumtaek pungsu' (geomancy of burial sites), believing that properly chosen ancestral graves bring blessings to descendants. However, the dispute between the Yoon and Sim clans is difficult to view simply as greed over auspicious land. It was likely a manifestation of sincere devotion to family honor and the well-being of ancestors. Because of this, the dispute was honorably resolved, allowing a new chapter in history to be written.

Heo Jin-seok, poet and professor at Korea National Sport University