Uru

Uru (于勒, ?~?) was a musician of Daegaya. After King Gasil of Gaya made the Gayageum (伽倻琴) by imitating the Chinese instrument zheng (箏), he ordered Uru to compose twelve pieces for the gayageum. Afterward, Uru submitted to King Jinheung (眞興王) of Silla and passed on the music of Daegaya to Silla. In Korea, he is counted, together with Wangsan-ak (王山岳) of Goguryeo and Park Yeon of Joseon, as one of the three great musical sages (樂聖) of Korea.

Life

According to Samguk sagi, Uru taught the gayageum, songs, and dance, but the Silla officials reduced the twelve pieces he had transmitted to five, calling them obscene music. Uru was angered, but after listening to the music he remarked, "It is joyful without being lewd, and sad without being grieving," and acknowledged the music they had altered.

Meanwhile, the great officials of Silla advised King Jinheung not to accept Gaya music, saying, "The music of a fallen nation that ruined Gaya is not worth emulating." However, King Jinheung said, "It was the King of Gaya who fell due to his obscenity; what crime did the music commit? The intention of the sages in making music was to move human emotions so that they would follow proper order. Whether a country is well governed or not has nothing to do with music." In the end, the Gaya music that Uru had transmitted is said to have been accepted as Silla's court music.

On Uru's Birthplace

Samguk sagi records "Uru, a musician from Seongyeol County (樂師省熱縣人于勒)," but does not specify any concrete place name beyond this. The current trend is to identify similar place names through phonetic and linguistic interpretation.

Legends

The Daedong jiji (大東地志) and the Goryeong gunji (高靈郡誌) state that Geumgok (琴曲), located north of Goryeong-eup, is the place where Uru led craftsmen to practice the gayageum. Geumgok was also called Jeongjeonggok (丁丁谷).¹

Seongyeol County, recorded in Samguk sagi as Uru's associated place, is identified with present-day Cheongpung-myeon, Jecheon-si, Chungcheongbuk-do, and Jangeumdae is traditionally said to be where Uru taught the gayageum, dance, and songs to three Silla disciples. Jeong Yak-yong's Abang Gangyeokgo (我邦疆域考) records Tangeumdae (彈琴臺) and Sahyujeong (四休亭) in Chungju as places where Uru used to wander. The existing relics, remains, and monuments associated with Uru are as follows.