# Ten Injunctions of Taejo (943)

URL: https://allhistories.com/korea/timeline/943-ten-injunctions-of-taejo
Location: Kaesong, Goryeo
Themes: Politics

Shortly before his death in 943, Taejo is said to have entrusted his officials with the Ten Injunctions (Hunyo sipjo), a set of instructions intended to guide future kings of Goryeo. The text is preserved in the later official history Goryeosa. The injunctions urged rulers to protect and support Buddhism while preventing monasteries from growing too powerful, to honor the Buddhist festivals of Yeondeunghoe and Palgwanhoe, and to heed geomantic principles in choosing sites for temples. They called for the Western Capital of Pyongyang to be treated as especially important, warned against imitating the customs of the Khitans, and advised kings to listen to criticism and lighten the burdens on the people. Historians have debated whether the text was fully authentic or was later edited, and one article disparaging people from the southwest has been particularly controversial. Nonetheless, the injunctions were cited throughout the dynasty as a statement of founding principles. The Ten Injunctions reveal how Goryeo combined Buddhism, geomancy and Confucian statecraft in its political ideology.

## Why it matters
The injunctions became Goryeo's founding charter for Buddhism, foreign policy and kingship.

Ruler at the Time: [Taejo of Goryeo](https://allhistories.com/korea/rulers/taejo-of-goryeo)

## Sources
- [Wikipedia — Taejo of Goryeo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taejo_of_Goryeo)
- [Wikipedia — Yeondeunghoe](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yeondeunghoe)
- [Wikipedia — Goryeo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goryeo)