Art
and culture in Korean Buddhism
(1) Representative Korean Buddhist Temples
The 2,500 year history of Korean Buddhism has given rise
to many large temples. Among them, the Three Jewel Temples
are the most famous and largest Korean Buddhist temples.
The three jewels in Buddhism are Buddha, Dharma and Sangha.
The Three Jewel Temples represent each aspect: Tongdosa
Temple represents the Buddha because there is a famous
stupa (or pagoda) housing relics of Buddha from China;
Haeinsa Temple represents the teaching or Dharma, because
there is a large number of Buddhist scriptures; and Songgwangsa
Temple represents the Buddhist community or Sangha, as
about fifteen Korean patriarchs have come from this temple.
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Tongdosa Temple : Tongdosa Temple was built in
646 by Master Jajang during the reign of Queen Seondeok.
One of the great monks in Korean Buddhism, Master Jajang,
carried Buddha's relics from China and he enshrined them
at Tongdosa Temple. As a result, unlike other temples,
there is no statue of Buddha in the Main Hall. Instead,
Buddhists worship the Stupa.
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Tongdosa : Temple The Diamond Precepts platform
is behind the Main Hall. On the platform is a bell-shaped
stupa surrounded by a stone barrier. The gate is finely
decorated with dragons, clouds and two protector guardians.
There are protective deities on the four corners of the
platform. The ball-shaped stupa is decorated with lotus
patterns, lotus blossoms, lotus petals, the Four Virtues
and gods on the base and upper parts. In front of the
stupa lies the lovely Nine Dragons Pond. Originally very
large, the pond was home to nine dragons.
▲ The
Stupa(or pagoda) in Tongdosa : Temple Haeinsa
Temple is the second representative temple. Its name means
"reflection on a smooth sea." It is the description
of deep meditation in the Avatamsaka Sutra. Originally,
Haeinsa Temple was a small hermitage built by Master Sunung
and Master Ichong at the time of their return from China
in 802. The wife of King Aejang was sick, and the two
monks had helped to cure her. The King built Haeinsa Temple
in honor of the monks. The temple has since been enlarged.
Behind the Main Hall are two buildings that were constructed
in 1488 housing the wooden blocks of the Tripitaka Koreana
and the Buddhist scriptures. The Tripitaka Koreana was
originally carved in the 11th century in a temple on Ganghwa
Island. The possession of these wooden blocks was said
to protect the country against invasion.
However, the
blocks were burnt by Mongol invaders. In the 13th century,
production of a new set of blocks was undertaken at the
order of King Gojong. It took about 16 years to carve
52,330,152 characters on 81,258 blocks. These were transported
from Ganghwa Island on the heads of nuns to Haeinsa for
safe-keeping.
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Songgwangsa Temple : Songgwangsa Temple means,
Spreading Pine Temple and it was established on Mt. Jogye
by Master Jinul (1158-1210). In 1190, Jinul created a
Concentration and Wisdom Community for practicing Buddhism
together. Searching for the ideal location, he carved
a crane out of wood, which he then released. The crane
flew away and finally landed in the place where Songgwangsa
Temple is today. The Master's Portrait Hall was built
and the temple came to represent the Sangha, the followers
of Buddha.
Jinul's Buddhist
philosophy created an ancient Buddhist debate that continues
still. He believed that enlightenment could be quite easily
reached but that practice must continue afterwards in
order to get rid of the habit energies. This is called
the Sudden Awakening and Gradual Cultivation as opposed
to Sudden Awakening and Sudden Cultivation, wherein after
a struggle to reach the difficult stage of enlightenment,
cultivation is no longer necessary.
