Learn life wisdom and the true dignity of an adult from Joseon's greatest intellectual giant!

Carefully selected by classic researcher Jo Yoon-je
93 Proverbs of Fertility Reinterpreted in Today's Language

Jo Yoon-je, a bestselling author with 700,000 copies sold and Korea's leading classical scholar, has been studying Dasan's life for a long time, extracting only the essence of the wisdom he imparted and reinterpreting it in today's language.
Even in the midst of the pain of 18 years of exile, which began in his forties, Dasan Jeong Yak-yong's passion for life and learning did not waver. Instead, he boldly fulfilled his calling by writing the 500-volume "Yeoyudangjeonseo" with only brush and ink.
Let's look at 93 life wisdoms about learning, hardship, life, reflection, relationships, and the world, gleaned from Dasan's writings, including 'Jachanmyojimyeong', 'Yeoyudanggi', 'Dosansa Sukrok', and 'Letters to Two Sons and Disciples'.
Not only can we apply these sparkling insights to our lives, we also learn what it means to live a truly dignified adult life.
Even after 200 years, Dasan's words, which have survived without being buried, will soothe our hearts that waver even in trivial matters and provide clear answers to all the worries we face in life.

Dasan did not create or fabricate writing, but wrote in a way that naturally expressed what was inside him.
A person who writes like this can, with his or her wealth of knowledge and experience, discuss the principles of living in the world, suggest the right path, pour out his or her emotions for the beautiful things of the world and his or her anger at the world's injustices, and write famous sentences that move people's hearts like water pouring from an inexhaustible spring.

Mencius defined an adult as follows:
“An adult is someone who sets all things right by setting himself right.” A person who does not set himself right but demands things from others, a person who usually acts well but becomes cowardly when faced with difficulties, a person who has social status and fame but is broken and worn out on the inside is not a true adult.
An adult is someone who first sets himself upright and then leads everything around him to set things up right.
Even without saying anything, people can sense the true dignity of an adult by looking at his life and writing.
--- From the "Preface"

King Jeongjo jokingly tested Dasan by asking him to "lecture on another chapter," but Dasan completed his lecture without any errors.
King Jeongjo must have admired Dasan's uncompromising old-fashionedness and been amazed by his academic talent.
What is revealed through this anecdote is the strictness of Dasan's scholarship towards himself.
He didn't fool anyone, but he tried not to fool himself.
If you don't compromise and go the right way, it may seem late, but it can be the fastest way.
The highest level of honesty is being honest with yourself.
--- 「Chapter 1.
From “Angigan (安其幹), fill it with the right intention and right mind and write it”

He wrote to fulfill his calling in the worst of circumstances.
I sat there silently, absorbed in writing, until my peach pit was punctured three times.
This is the idiom ‘piercing the bone three times’.
The reason his writing was able to deepen during his years of exile was because he used even his failing body as an opportunity for study and cultivation.
Even the hardships of a serious illness could not stop him.
Rather, it became the strength to hold on to one's heart and protect oneself to the end.
--- Chapter 2.
From “Showing off but not being real, staying in suffering and protecting one’s own path”

“If one wears proper clothing, has solemn eyes, and has a dignified demeanor like someone molded from clay, then you will know that his intention is in the study of the Way.
If he holds a book in his left hand and a brush in his right, and is reciting with all his might, you will know that his intention is in the sentences. If he is planting flowers or trees and walking around leisurely, you will know that his intention is in the countryside.”
--- 「Chapter 3.
From "Baegi-geun (培其根), putting down firm roots in my life"

And at some point in life, there comes a time when you have to start over completely.
Dasan wrote his own epitaph at the age of sixty, using that time as a starting point for a new life.
Looking back on my life, I decided for myself what kind of person I want to be remembered as in the future.
The trigger will be different for each person.
But if you look back at yourself and renew yourself at the most desperate and desperate moment in life, you have already taken a step forward.

Dasan called the twenty years he spent preparing for the exam and praising success "a time I lost."
We too may be satisfied with living a fiercely competitive life and working hard, but we may actually be losing ourselves.
No matter how successful or famous you are, if you lose yourself, your life is meaningless.
--- 「Chapter 4.
From “Incineration of the mind, accumulation of enlightenment, growth of self through examining the mind and accumulation of enlightenment”

Shin Jae-jung was a prominent scholar of his time who passed the civil service examination but did not pursue a government post and instead devoted himself to his studies.
In his later years, Dasan and he had several heated debates over academic differences.
But Dasan's attitude was always the same.
By first acknowledging the other person's knowledge and humbling himself, he prevented the academic discussion from devolving into an emotional conflict.
He showed the essence of a dignified debate that respects the other party without compromising his own opinion.
But in the end, he did not give up his argument.
It is cowardly to give up my claims because of pressure from power.
It is petty not to give up because of pride.
When I don't bend my subjectivity until the end, the other person actually acknowledges me.
--- Chapter 5.
From “Virtue is not lonely, associate with sincerity and treat with wisdom”

Dasan points this out precisely.
He criticizes those who unconditionally side with those who share the same views and attack those who disagree, preventing even discussion, and those who use academics, which were established to benefit the world, as a tool to corrupt the world.
How am I using what I've learned, and how should I use it? This is what Dasan asks us.

--- Chapter 6.
From “Proclaiming and Saving What You Have, Benefiting People Widely Through Giving and Teaching”