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Samguk yusa (Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms)
c. 1281 (monk Iryeon)· Book, artwork, monument or document· Culture, religion & science
Well documentedSolid records, physical evidence or scientific consensus.
A private collection of history, myth and Buddhist lore compiled around 1281 by the monk Iryeon.
See it on the Korean History map →What happened
The Samguk yusa (삼국유사) was written by Iryeon (1206–1289), a Seon monk who became national preceptor in 1283. Its five volumes gather what official history left out: the Dangun myth of Gojoseon, the founding story of Gaya, tales of kings and commoners, Buddhist miracles, temple histories, and 14 hyangga, Silla songs in Korean written with Chinese characters used for sound and meaning. Iryeon often named his sources and added his own notes.
Why it matters
It preserves myths and early Korean poetry found nowhere else, and gave Koreans the Dangun story as a shared origin.
How we know
Printed editions survive, the oldest complete one from 1512, with older fragments from early Joseon; Iryeon's memorial stele at Ingaksa temple records his life.
Still debated
How much his disciple Mugeuk added, and how reliable its early stories are, are debated.
Connections (3)
▸Samguk yusa (Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms) is the earliest surviving record of Dangun founding mythWell documented
The connection
Iryeon opens the Samguk yusa with Gojoseon: Hwanung, son of the heavenly lord Hwanin, descends to Mount Taebaek; a bear that endures 21 days in a cave becomes a woman and bears Dangun, who founds Joseon. Iryeon cites a 'Book of Wei' and an 'Old Record' (Gogi), so the story predates him.
When and how
Written down around 1281 by the monk Iryeon; a verse version followed in Yi Seung-hyu's Jewang ungi of 1287.
How we know
No earlier text with the myth survives. The 'Book of Wei' he quotes is not found in Chinese histories of that name, and the Gogi is lost.
Debates and open questions
How old the myth really is, whether the bear reflects an early clan totem, and how the 2333 BC date, fixed only in Joseon's Dongguk tonggam (1485), arose.
▸Samguk yusa (Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms) was written in the aftermath of Mongol invasions of KoreaMostly agreed
The connection
Iryeon lived through the Mongol wars, which burned temples like Hwangnyongsa in 1238. He compiled the Samguk yusa around 1281, under Mongol overlordship. Many historians read it as an effort to preserve a shared Korean past, starting history with Dangun so that Korea's origins stood level with China's.
When and how
Around 1281, near Gyeongju and at Ingaksa temple, while Goryeo was supplying the Mongol invasion of Japan.
How sure are we?
The dating follows Iryeon's life and internal clues; the text states no purpose, so the link to the wars is an interpretation.
Debates and open questions
Whether a national-identity motive is a modern reading projected onto a monk's Buddhist collection is debated.
▸Samguk yusa (Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms) added myths and legends left out of Samguk sagi (History of the Three Kingdoms)Well documented
The connection
Kim Bu-sik, a Confucian, left out much he thought unreliable. A century later the monk Iryeon gathered what remained: the Dangun myth, Gaya's founding, Buddhist miracles, temple legends and Korean-language songs. The title Yusa, 'remaining matters,' signals a supplement, and Iryeon often notes where the 'national history' differs.
When and how
1145 (Samguk sagi) and about 1281 (Samguk yusa); Kim Bu-sik at the court in Kaesong, Iryeon in Gyeongsang temples.
How we know
Comparing the two texts shows what Iryeon added; he cites the official history and points out disagreements.
Debates and open questions
Whether Iryeon meant a deliberate counterweight to Kim Bu-sik's Confucian, Silla-centered view, or simply a Buddhist collection, is debated.