Choe Chiwon

SOUTH KOREA, North Gyeongsang, Gyeongju; Unified Silla dynasty

Choe Chiwon was a poet during the Unified Silla period (668–935). He is deemed by Korean scholars to be the originator of Chinese literature in Korea and was given the honorable titles of Confucian Master of Dongguk and Patriarch of Literature in Dongguk.
In 869, Choe traveled to China to study and was appointed the county official of Lishui, Xuanzhou after passing the highest civil service exams in China. In 884, shortly after returning to Korea as a Chinese ambassador, political unrest prompted Choe to resign his official duties. As a result, he retreated to Haeinsa Temple where he studied Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism, writing many works while he was there.
Although some of his poems have been lost, the inscriptions on the Four Mountain Steles still remain. These include, Stele of Master Jingam at Ssanggyesa Temple in South Gyeongsang, the Stele of Daesungboksa Temple in Gyeongju, the Stele of Master Ranghye of Seongjusa Temple in South Chungcheong, and the Stele of Master Jijeung of Pongamsa Temple in Mungyeong, North Gyeongsang.