The moment
Choe Je-u, born into a fallen yangban family in Gyeongju, said in 1860 that Heaven had given him a teaching to protect the nation and its people, an 'Eastern Learning' to answer the 'Western Learning' of the Catholics. Donghak held that every person bears Heaven within and so all are equal, and it drew a following among the rural poor. The state executed Choe in 1864, but the movement survived and grew.
People: Choe Je-u, Son Byeong-hui