On the Unity of Politics and Academics ​Bak Dal-ma (Late Da…

On the Unity of Politics and Academics
​Bak Dal-ma (Late Dangun Joseon, 397 BC / Era of King Weilie of Zhou) stated:
​"The formation and development of a people's culture are possible only when politics and academics are in complete alignment. Generally speaking, politics represents the conceptual, while academics represents the concrete. To maintain the prestige of politics—whether ensuring citizens strictly observe the law or fostering a sense of intimacy—one must recognize that politics provides the path for advancement, while academics provides the inclination for self-improvement. When these are shaped together through concrete daily life to suit the actual conditions of human existence, we achieve the unity of politics and academics.
​In this state, the ethics of the people flow through their daily lives according to the political climate, much like the circulation of blood in the body.
​Therefore, when conceptual political ideologies are dissolved into concrete living, life itself becomes the ideology, and the ideology becomes life. In short, when ideology melts into an individual’s practical circumstances, one takes culture as their life and culture as their conduct. This is what can truly be called 'embodying a concrete masterpiece' of living.
​Only then can academics become the pioneer of politics, and politics become the nurturer of academics. While politics and academics share this inseparable bond, people today—dazzled by the majesty of power—are absorbed by politics and forget the mission of academics. They seek to merge with a scholarship that has lost its autonomy. Consequently, lost and wandering academic theories have seized this opportunity to enter and, instead, cause harm to the lives of the people.
​It is my hope that leaders will distance themselves from useless scholarship, establish essential academics uprightly, and truly support the practical lives of the people."