Moral Vigilance Before Heaven: Sindok and Moral Responsibility in Jeong Yak-yong’s Confucian Thought

This article examines Jeong Yak-yong’s reinterpretation of sindok 愼獨 as moral responsibility before Heaven. It argues that hidden intention, Heaven’s scrutiny, admonition through the moral mind, human response, sincerity, and conduct form a single structure of responsibility. Comparison with Zhu Xi shows that Jeong does not discover an inward meaning of du 獨 absent from Neo-Confucianism. His distinctiveness lies in the personal and sovereign character given to Heaven and in the way Heaven’s admonition is mediated through the moral mind. Heaven is presented not as an abstract norm but as a spiritually lucid presence that sees hidden intention, commands and cautions, and is served with reverence; yet its demand becomes known within the agent and does not determine the response. This double structure exemplifies inner transcendence: moral authority exceeds the empirical self while becoming inwardly accessible in cultivation. The article thereby distinguishes Jeong’s account from secular moral self-regulation and from a modern notion of conscience. It also acknowledges possible Christian resonances without equating Sangje 上帝 with the Christian God or reducing Jeong’s argument to Catholic influence.