Kim Bu-sik - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Kim Busik was an official and a scholar during Korea

Korea

Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...

's Goryeo

Goryeo

The Goryeo Dynasty or Koryŏ was a Korean dynasty established in 918 by Emperor Taejo. Korea gets its name from this kingdom which came to be pronounced Korea. It united the Later Three Kingdoms in 936 and ruled most of the Korean peninsula until it was removed by the Joseon dynasty in 1392...

period. He is best known for compiling the Samguk Sagi
Samguk Sagi
Samguk Sagi is a historical record of the Three Kingdoms of Korea: Goguryeo, Baekje and Silla. The Samguk Sagi is written in Classical Chinese and its compilation was ordered by Goryeo's King Injong Samguk Sagi (History of the Three Kingdoms) is a historical record of the Three Kingdoms of...

, the oldest extant record of Korean history.

Kim Busik was the great-grandson of Kim Wi-yeong, who was submitted to the Goryeo Dynasty court that replaced Unified Silla

Unified Silla

Unified Silla or Later Silla is the name often applied to the Korean kingdom of Silla, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, when it conquered Baekje in 660 and Goguryeo in 668, unifying the southern portion of the Korean peninsula...

, becoming the governor of Gyeongju

Gyeongju

Gyeongju is a coastal city in the far southeastern corner of North Gyeongsang province in South Korea. It is the second largest city by area in the province after Andong, covering with a population of 269,343 people according to the 2008 census. Gyeongju is southeast of Seoul, and east of the...

Province. Kim Busik's father and three brothers were also officials of the Goryeo court.

Although he was a practicing Buddhist

Korean Buddhism

Korean Buddhism is distinguished from other forms of Buddhism by its attempt to resolve what it sees as inconsistencies in Mahayana Buddhism. Early Korean monks believed that the traditions they received from foreign countries were internally inconsistent. To address this, they developed a new...

, he supported Confucianism

Korean Confucianism

Korean Confucianism is the form of Confucianism developed in Korea. One of the most substantial influences in Korean intellectual history was the introduction of Confucian thought as part of the cultural influence from China...

over Buddhism as the guiding principle of governance, and favored presenting tributes to the Chinese

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

emperor to prevent a conflict and in deference to the lofty (Sadae
Sadae
Sadae is a Korean historical and philosophical term.It may also refer to:* Sadae , a governmental office of Taebong* Sadaejuui , a modern Korean polemical term...

).

In 1121 Kim Busik was appointed as Royal Diarist, or ji, to the court of Emperor Yejong

Yejong of Goryeo

Yejong of Goryeo was the 16th monarch of the Korean Goryeo dynasty.-Biography:He was the eldest son of king Sukjong and Queen Myeongui...

. In 1123, along with two other historians, was charged with preparing Yejong's Veritable Records (Sillok).http://www2.hawaii.edu/~dkane/Intro.htm

See also