Geumsunsa (temple)

This weekend was my first ever Buddhist TempleStay. We decided on Geumsun-sa and it was an amazing experience. Upon arriving at Geumsun-sa on Mt. Samgak (a part of Mt. Bukhan), we were given our “uniforms” which consisted of burgundy pants and vest. Not to spoil the ending, BUT, the pants were amazingly (and surprisingly) warm. Geumsun-sa temple monks follow the Joyge Order of Korean Buddhism. As a sidenote, the monks did not speak English, so most of the weekend we relied on our Korean friend to translate, or we just followed along!

Our TempleStay group consisted of us four English speakers (including one bilingual English/Korean speaker), a group of Korean university graduates, another woman, a university-age guy, and four young kids. Needless to say, on the comment sheet at the conclusion of the weekend, we all wrote that the kids should have a separate TempleStay- they were a bit much!

Continuing on… the first order of business was a tour of the various buildings and temples on the Geumsun-sa Monastery. It was established by Buddhist Monk Ven. Muhak (1327-1405). During the middle and later era of the Joseon Dynasty, it served as the royal family’s temple to pray to the Buddha. Unfortunately, during Japanese occupation, the buildings were completely destroyed. In 1949, rebuilding began and in 1994, the restoration of all the Monastery buildings and facilities has been completed. There is a 200-year-old tree at the temple which is the only remaining part of the original temple after the war.

After the tour, we had our first ceremony (Yebul) within a Buddhist temple, learning how to bow correctly, as well as how to sit with our hands in a hap-jang position (hands pressed together). During Yebul, we followed along with various chants. It was a somewhat short ceremony and the chants were very quick, but we put effort in to follow along. Monks practice Yebul three times a day, morning afternoon and early evening.

For dinner we experienced a Balwoo-gongyang (communal meal). An excerpt from Koreaabound.com: "The spirit of Balwoo is in Equality, Cleanliness, Thrift and Togetherness. Everybody shares the same food equally, food is cooked in a clean environment, there is no waste and social unity and harmony can be enhanced through this eating style. When eating, no private talking is allowed, except for the special recitation. Sit in a lotus position." It is very particular, from what goes into the bowls, where the bowls should be, where the silverware should be after eating specific dishes, etc. The biggest part is that no food (or water) is to be wasted, so any food you choose to put in your bowls must be consumed. The water used to rinse out your bowls after the meal, must also be consumed. Then the bowls are wiped clean and put away. The monk leading our TempleStay informed us that he has not used excess water to clean his bowls since last July. [Monks- “going green” waaaay before it was a craze.]

After the somewhat painful dinner (sitting cross-legged for nearly two hours), we performed the evening Yebul, then concluded the evening with some relaxing time making lanterns.

At 5am on Sunday we awoke to the light tapping of an instrument outside; our alarm clock. By 5:30 we were in the temple for morning Yebul. After the ceremony, we performed 108 Prostrations/ bows for Cultivation of Self then learned sat facing the sunrise for Seon meditation.

Following the morning ceremony (Yebul) and meditation, we had a relaxing cafeteria-style breakfast and prepared for our hike. We were unsure if we had to eat everything on our plates since it was more casual this time, but not wanting to find out the repercussions for disobedience, I shoveled down my seaweed mushroom soup first thing, so I could enjoy the rest of the meal.

The hike was the highlight of the weekend. We hiked Mt. Bukhan (“Bukhansan,” -san means mountain). We clipped spikes on our sneakers and headed up. The ice was pretty bad in parts, but after that hike, I’m a strong advocate for spikes. They were incredible. The view at the very top of one of the peaks was breathtaking. We got some amazing pictures and I’m sure nearly risked our lives in the meantime. It felt safe though, watching the monk prance ahead of us!

The conclusion of the TempleStay was a casual lunch and tea ceremony with the head monk. We were allowed to drink tea and ask the monk any questions about Buddhism or Geumsun-sa. I’m sure it was very interesting, but unfortunately, we missed out on most of what was said due to the language barrier. On a positive side, he seemed to be a nice guy and the tea was delicious. This is a lengthy post, so I’ll conclude there. I highly encourage anyone, of any religion, to experience a TempleStay. It’s a great time to learn about another religion and reflect on your life. Korea is 2/3 mountainous, so it’s wonderful to be able to escape from the claustrophobia of apartment buildings and crowds of people. Plus, you get to really see how flexible you are when forced to sit cross-legged for lengthy periods of time!

peace from the east