Gwalleuk was a Korean Buddhist monk from the kingdom of Baekje who lived during the time of King Wideok. In 602, he travelled to Japan and is known for helping to spread the teachings of Taoism and Buddhism to Japan. In particular, he brought over fangshu texts related to the likes of geomancy and onmyōdō (yinyang-based sorcery and divination),[1] as well as a calendar, according to the Nihon Shoki.[2] In 624, he was made a high priest (僧正 sōjō), possibly of Gangō-ji, for the rest of his life.[1]

Gwalleuk
Hangul
관륵
Hanja
Revised RomanizationGwalleuk
McCune–ReischauerKwallŭk

He is mentioned several times in Buddhist records in Japan, where he was known as Kanroku, the Japanese reading of his name.[3]

Asteroid

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The asteroid 4963 Kanroku discovered on 18 February 1977 by Hiroki Kosai and Kiichirō Furukawa of the Tokyo Astronomical Observatory was named after him.

References

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  1. ^ a b Shinʾichirō, Masuo; Elacqua, Joseph P.; 増尾伸一郎 (2013). "Chinese Religion and the Formation of Onmyōdō". Japanese Journal of Religious Studies. 40 (1): 19–43. ISSN 0304-1042. JSTOR 41955529.
  2. ^ Kotyk, Jeffrey (2018). "Japanese Buddhist Astrology and Astral Magic: Mikkyō and Sukuyōdō". Japanese Journal of Religious Studies. 45 (1): 37–86. doi:10.18874/jjrs.45.1.2018.37-86. ISSN 0304-1042. JSTOR 26854471. S2CID 165721991.
  3. ^ Kōjien entry for Kanroku (觀勒)

See also

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