Research on Relief Measures during the Joseon Dynasty in Korea from the Perspective of Zhu Xi’s Neo-Confucianism

The Confucianism philosophy of ‘governing by nurturing the people’ played a crucial guiding role in the governance policies of the entire Joseon Dynasty in Korea. Although many of the relief measures in the Joseon Dynasty were imitations and references to ancient China and lacked originality, the implementation of these measures exceeded those of the previous Goryeo Dynasty both in form and content, gradually diversifying, systematizing, stabilizing, and concretizing and playing a huge practical role in social stability. At the same time, the reason why such relief measures could continue and develop in the Joseon Dynasty is due to the role of Confucianism philosophy, especially after the introduction of Zhu Xi’s Neo-Confucianism. It consistently spurred the rulers of the Joseon Dynasty to work towards the governance goal of governing by nurturing the people, allowing the charitable relief system to be fully executed and played out. Therefore, it is necessary to explore the relief measures in the context of the Confucianism philosophy in the Korean peninsula with a positive and affirmative attitude, in order to further reveal the unique humanistic spirit embodied in East Asian traditional culture during times of crisis.