Record of the State of Garak駕洛國記

Record of the State of Garak 〔It was written in the Daekang era of the reign of King Munjong by a man of letters who was then Prefect of Geumgwan. It is given here in abridged form.〕

After heaven and earth opened, this land had no name as a country, and there was no such thing as king and subject.

There were only nine gan (干), Adogan (我刀干), Yeodogan (汝刀干), Pidogan (彼刀干), Odogan (五刀干), Yusugan (留水干), Yucheongan (留天干), Sincheongan (神天干), Ocheongan (五天干), and Singwigan (神鬼干). These were the chiefs who led the people, one hundred households in all, seventy-five thousand people.

For the most part they lived gathered in the mountains and fields, dug wells to drink, and plowed fields to eat.

It was the eighteenth year of Jianwu (建武) under Emperor Guangwu (光武帝), Shizu of the Later Han, the year imin, in the third month, on the day of the purification bathing (禊浴).

At Gujibong (龜旨峯), to the north of where they lived,〔It is the name of the peak. It looks like ten creatures lying prone, and so it is called that.〕 a strange sound came, as if something were calling. A crowd of two or three hundred gathered there, and something like a human voice, hiding its form and giving out only sound, said:

"Is there anyone here?"

The nine gan said, "We are here."

It spoke again. "Where is the place I am?"

They answered, "It is Guji."

It spoke again:

"Heaven commanded me to come to this place, found a new country, and become its king, and for that reason I have come down. You must dig the earth at the top of the peak and sing this:

Turtle, turtle, put out your head. If you do not put it out, we will roast you and eat you.

Do this, and leap and dance, and that will be your welcoming of the great king and leaping for joy."

The nine gan did as they were told, and all rejoiced, sang, and danced.

Before long they looked up and saw a purple cord hanging down from heaven and touching the ground. They went to the end of the cord and found a golden box wrapped in red cloth. They opened it and looked, and inside were six golden eggs, round as the sun.

The people were all surprised and glad, and together they bowed a hundred times. Then they wrapped it up again, carried it in their arms back to Adogan's house, set it on a couch, and each went his own way.

Twelve days passed, and at dawn the next day the people gathered again and opened the box. The six eggs had turned into boys, and their looks were very noble. They seated them on the couch, and the people bowed, congratulated them, and showed them every honor.

They grew day by day, and after little more than ten days they were nine cheok tall, like King Tang of Yin (殷). Their faces were like dragons, like Gaozu of Han. The eight colors of their eyebrows were like Emperor Yao, and their double pupils were like Emperor Shun.

On the fifteenth day of that month one of them ascended the throne. Because he had appeared first, he was named Suro (首露). He is also called Sureung (首陵).〔Sureung is the posthumous title given after his death.〕

The country was called Great Garak (大駕洛) or the State of Gaya (伽耶國), and it was one of the six Gaya. The other five each went back and became the lords of the five Gaya.

The country took the Hwangsan River (黃山江) to the east, the sea to the southwest, Jirisan to the northwest, and Gayasan to the northeast, and the south was its farthest end.

He had a temporary palace built and went in to live there, but he strove only for plainness and thrift. The thatch was left untrimmed, and the earthen steps were three cheok high.

In the second year, the year gyemyo, in spring, in the first month, the king said, "I wish to fix the site of the capital."

So he went out to Sindappyeong (新畓坪), south of the temporary palace,〔It was fallow land from of old, and was newly plowed and worked, so it is called that. The character 畓 is a character made and used in this country.〕 looked around at the mountains on every side, turned to those around him, and said:

"This land is narrow as a smartweed leaf, yet it is outstanding, a fit place for sixteen arhats to dwell. How much more so, since one becomes three and three becomes seven, is this truly the right dwelling place for the seven sages. If we open the land and set its borders, will it not be good in the end?"

He built an outer wall one thousand five hundred paces around, and fixed the sites for the government offices, the palace halls, the buildings of the various bureaus, the armory, and the granaries.

When this was done he returned to the palace and called up the able-bodied men, laborers, and craftsmen from all over the country. On the twentieth day of that month they began to lay the foundations, and on the tenth day of the third month the work was finished.

The palace and houses were built when the farming season was slack. They began in the tenth month of that year and were finished in the second month of the year gapjin. He chose a lucky day, entered the new palace, governed the myriad affairs, and was diligent in all his duties.

Suddenly the wife of King Hamdal (含達王) of the state of Wanha (琓夏國) conceived, and when her months were full she bore an egg. The egg turned into a man, and he was named Talhae (脫解). He came by sea. He was three cheok tall, and his head was one cheok around.

Gladly he went to the palace and said to the king, "I have come only to take the king's seat."

The king answered, "Heaven commanded me to take the throne, to give the country peace and comfort the people. I dare not go against Heaven's command and give you the seat, and I dare not entrust my country and my people to you."

Talhae said, "Then let us contest in magic."

The king said, "Very well."

In an instant Talhae changed into a hawk, and the king changed into an eagle. Then Talhae changed into a sparrow, and the king changed into a sparrowhawk. Between these not a moment passed. Talhae returned to his own body, and the king did the same.

Then Talhae bowed down and said, "That in the contest of magic the hawk escaped the eagle and the sparrow escaped the sparrowhawk was surely because of a sage's kindness that hates to kill. For me to contend with the king for his seat would truly be hard."

He bowed at once and withdrew. He came to the crossing outside Ingyo (麟郊) and went off along the waterway where ships from China come in to moor.

The king feared he might stay and plot a revolt, so he quickly sent out five hundred warships in pursuit. Talhae fled into the land of Gyerim, and the warships all returned.

But what is recorded here differs in many places from the Silla record.

In the twenty-fourth year of Jianwu (建武), the year musin, on the twenty-seventh day of the seventh month, the nine gan said at the morning audience, "Since the great king came down, he has not found a good mate. We ask that the finest of the maidens in our households be chosen and brought into the palace to be his consort."

The king said, "That I came down here was Heaven's command. That someone will be matched with me and become queen is also Heaven's command. Do not be troubled."

At last he ordered Yucheongan to take a light boat and a fine horse to Mangsando (望山島) and wait there, and also ordered Singwigan to go out to Seungjeom (乘岾).〔Mangsando is an island south of the capital, and Seungjeom is the land below the palace.〕

Suddenly, from the southwest of the sea, a ship with red sails and red flags came heading north. Yucheongan and the others first raised torches on the island, and the people on board raced across, landed, and came running.

The queen moored her ship at the crossing of Byeolpo (別浦), beyond the mountain, went ashore, and rested on a high hill. She took off the silk trousers she was wearing and offered them as a gift to the mountain spirit.

When the king and queen were together in the bedchamber, the queen said quietly to the king:

"I am a princess of the state of Ayuta (阿踰陀國). My surname is Heo (許), my name Hwangok (黃玉), and I am sixteen years old. When I was in my own country, in the fifth month of this year, my father the king and my mother the queen looked at me and said that last night in a dream they had together seen the Lord on High of heaven, who said, 'Suro, the king of the state of Garak, is one whom heaven sent down to take the great seat, a divine and holy man. He has now founded a new country but has not yet chosen a mate. You must send your princess to be his match.' When he had finished speaking he rose into heaven. After they woke, they said, the Lord on High's words still remained in their ears, and they told me to take leave of my parents here and go there. And so I set out on the sea and came searching from afar."

The king answered, "I have been somewhat divine from birth, and I knew in advance that a princess would come from afar. So when my ministers asked me to take a queen, I did not dare to follow them. Now a virtuous one has come of her own accord. It is a great blessing for this body of mine."

One day the king said to his ministers, "The nine gan are all heads of the officials, yet their ranks and names are all the names of lowly men and country folk, and not at all the titles of official posts. If word of this spreads outside, there will surely be the shame of being laughed at."

So he changed Ado to Agung (我躬), Yeodo to Yeohae (汝諧), Pido to Pijang (彼藏), and Odo to Osang (五常). For Yusu and Yucheon he kept the first character and changed only the second, making them Yugong (留功) and Yudeok (留德). He changed Sincheon to Sindo (神道) and Ocheon to Oneung (五能). For Singwi he kept the sound and changed only the meaning, making it Singwi (臣貴).

He took the official system of Gyerim, that is Silla, and set up the grades of gakgan (角干), ajilgan (阿叱干), and geupgan (級干), and for the officials below them he divided and fixed the posts after the systems of Zhou (周) and Han (漢). This was the way he reformed the old, made it new, set up offices, and divided their duties.

Then he governed the country, kept his house in order, and loved the people like his children. His teaching had authority without being harsh, and his government brought order without being severe.

Moreover, his living together with the queen was like heaven having earth, the sun having the moon, and yang having yin.

After several years there was the omen of a dream of bears, and the crown prince, Lord Geodeung (居登公), was born.

In the sixth year of Zhongping (中平) under Emperor Ling (靈帝), the year gisa, on the first day of the third month, the queen died at the age of one hundred and fifty-seven. The people of the country grieved as if the earth had collapsed, and buried her on the hill northeast of Gujibong.

So as not to forget her kindness in loving the people like her children, the village at the crossing where she first dropped anchor was named Jupochon (主浦村), the high hill where she took off her silk trousers was named Neunghyeon (綾峴), and the shore where the red flags came in was named Gichulbyeon (旗出邊).

The king often sang of his widower's pillow, and his grief was great. Ten years later, in the fourth year of Jian'an (建安) under Emperor Xian (獻帝), the year gimyo, on the twenty-third day of the third month, he died at the age of one hundred and fifty-eight.

The people of the country felt as if they had lost heaven, and their grief was greater than on the day the queen died.

At last they built a mortuary palace (殯宮) on level ground northeast of the palace, one jang high and three hundred paces around. There they buried him and named it the Shrine of King Sureung (首陵王廟).