|
Kwanumsa (Kaesong)
Kwanŭm-sa is a Korean Buddhist temple located within Taehung Castle on Mt. Chonma near Kaesong, North Korea. The site is one of the National Treasures of North Korea. Named after Guanyin, the buddhist bodhisattva of compassion, this small temple is located in the valley between Mts. Chonma and Songgo. The temple was founded in 970 when a monk deposited two marble statues of the goddess in a cave behind the temple's current location. The temple itself was constructed in 1393 under the Koryo Dynasty, and later renovated in 1646 under the Joseon. The site contains many ancient relics, including a seven-story pagoda from the Koryo dynasty and the ancient Guanyin statues in Kwanum Cave. The doors of the main shrine, known as the Taeung Hall, are decorated with carved flowers and leaves; an old legend relays why the decorations on one door are unfinished. During the reconstruction of the temple during the Joseon dynasty, one of the main carvers was a twelve-year-old boy named Unna, fa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Korean Buddhist Temple
Buddhist temples are an important part of the Korean landscape. This article gives a brief overview of Korean Buddhism, then describes some of the more important temples in Korea. Most Korean temples have names ending in ''-sa'' (사, 寺), which means "temple" in Sino-Korean. Many temples, like Sudeoksa, offer visitors a Temple Stay program. Background A distinctive form of Buddhism evolved in Korea. This was facilitated by the geographical location and cultural conditions. Buddhism first arrived in Korea in 372 in Goguryeo. In 374 the influential Han Chinese monk Ado arrived in the kingdom and inspired King Sosurim of Goguryeo the following year. The first two temples Seongmunsa and Ilbullansa were built in 375 on the order of the king. Buddhism soon became the national religion of Goguryeo. With the advent of Taoism in 624 the rulers began to suppress Buddhism and its importance quickly declined. The Baekje Kingdom, on the other hand, flourished under the influence of Bud ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Taehung Castle
Taehung Castle is a mountain fortress of the early Goryeo period, located outside Kaesŏng, North Hwanghae Province, North Korea. Originally encompassing both Mts. Chŏnma and Songgo, the castle was first founded as a fortress for the defense of the capital, encircled by over 10 kilometers of stone walls. Today, many of the walls have become overgrown ruins. The fortress contains two small Buddhist temples, Kwanumsa and Taehungsa. North Gate The only one of the fortress' original six gates to survive to the present day, this gate is located just behind Pakyon Falls and is topped with a Joseon-dynasty pavilion. Kwanŭm Temple Named after Guanyin, the buddhist bodhisattva of compassion, this small temple is located in the beautiful valley between Mts. Songgo and Chŏnma. The temple was founded in 970 when a monk deposited two marble statues of the goddess in a cave behind the temple's current location. The temple itself was constructed in 1393 under the Koryo Dynasty, and lat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kaesong
Kaesong (, ) is a special city in the southern part of North Korea (formerly in North Hwanghae Province), and the capital of Korea during the Taebong kingdom and subsequent Goryeo dynasty. The city is near the Kaesong Industrial Region close to the border with South Korea and contains the remains of the Manwoldae palace. Called Songdo while it was the ancient capital of Goryeo, the city prospered as a trade centre that produced Korean ginseng. Kaesong now functions as the DPRK's light industry centre. During the Japanese occupation from 1910 to 1945, the city was known by the Japanese pronunciation of its name, "Kaijō". Between 1945 and 1950, Kaesong was part of South Korea and under its control. The 1953 Korean Armistice Agreement left the city under North Korean control. Due to the city's proximity to the border with South Korea, Kaesong has hosted cross-border economic exchanges between the two countries as well as the jointly run Kaesong Industrial Region. As of 2009, t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National Treasures Of North Korea
A National Treasure (국보; 國寶 : ) is a tangible artifact, site, or building deemed by the Government of North Korea to have significant historical or artistic value to the country. History The first list of Korean cultural treasures was designated by Governor-General of Korea in 1938 during the Japanese occupation with "The Act of Treasures of the Joseon dynasty". Nos. 1-50 Nos. 51-100 Nos. 101-150 Nos. 151-193 See also * Cultural assets of North Korea * Natural monuments of North Korea * National Treasure (South Korea) * Complex of Koguryo Tombs * History of Korea * Culture of Korea The traditional culture of Korea is the shared cultural and historical heritage of Korea and southern Manchuria before the division of Korea in 1945. Manchuria refers to the ancient geographical and historical region in Northeast Asia, includ ... * List of World Heritage Sites in Asia#North Korea (1) Footnotes {{reflist References * http://www.kcpia.or.kr/kcpia_mail/mail_tem ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Guanyin
Guanyin () is a Bodhisattva associated with compassion. She is the East Asian representation of Avalokiteśvara ( sa, अवलोकितेश्वर) and has been adopted by other Eastern religions, including Chinese folk religion. She was first given the appellation of "Goddess of Mercy" or "Mercy Goddess" by Jesuit missionaries in China. Guanyin is short for Guanshiyin, which means " he One WhoPerceives the Sounds of the World." On the 19th day of the sixth lunar month, Guanyin's attainment of Buddhahood is celebrated. Some Buddhists believe that when one of their adherents departs from this world, they are placed by Guanyin in the heart of a lotus, and then sent to the western pure land of Sukhāvatī. Guanyin is often referred to as the "most widely beloved Buddhist Divinity" with miraculous powers to assist all those who pray to her, as is mentioned in the ''Pumen chapter'' of ''Lotus Sutra'' and ''Kāraṇḍavyūha Sūtra''. Several large temples in East Asia ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bodhisattva
In Buddhism, a bodhisattva ( ; sa, 𑀩𑁄𑀥𑀺𑀲𑀢𑁆𑀢𑁆𑀯 (Brahmī), translit=bodhisattva, label=Sanskrit) or bodhisatva is a person who is on the path towards bodhi ('awakening') or Buddhahood. In the Early Buddhist schools as well as modern Theravada Buddhism, a bodhisattva (Pali: ''bodhisatta'') refers to someone who has made a resolution to become a Buddha and has also received a confirmation or prediction from a living Buddha that this will be so. In Mahayana Buddhism, a bodhisattva refers to anyone who has generated ''bodhicitta'', a spontaneous wish and compassionate mind to attain Buddhahood for the benefit of all sentient beings. Mahayana bodhisattvas are spiritually heroic persons that work to attain awakening and are driven by a great compassion (''mahakaruṇā''). These beings are exemplified by important spiritual qualities such as the "four divine abodes" (''brahmaviharas'') of loving-kindness ('' metta''), compassion (''karuṇā''), empathet ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Goryeo
Goryeo (; ) was a Korean kingdom founded in 918, during a time of national division called the Later Three Kingdoms period, that unified and ruled the Korean Peninsula until 1392. Goryeo achieved what has been called a "true national unification" by Korean historians as it not only unified the Later Three Kingdoms but also incorporated much of the ruling class of the northern kingdom of Balhae, who had origins in Goguryeo of the earlier Three Kingdoms of Korea. The name "Korea" is derived from the name of Goryeo, also spelled Koryŏ, which was first used in the early 5th century by Goguryeo. According to Korean historians, it was during the Goryeo period that the individual identities of Goguryeo, Baekje, and Silla were successfully merged into a single entity that became the basis of modern-day 'Korean' identity. Throughout its existence, Goryeo, alongside Unified Silla, was known to be the "Golden Age of Buddhism" in Korea. As the state religion, Buddhism achieved its highes ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Taehungsa
Daeheungsa, sometimes called Daedunsa, is a main temple of the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism. Daeheungsa is located on the slopes of Duryunsan (Duryun Mountain) in Samsan Township, Haenam County, in the province of Jeollanam-do near the southern limit of South Korea. Origins Daeheungsa is believed to date to the Three Kingdoms period (4th-9th centuries CE), although no exact record of its founding has survived some think Daeheungsa was founded by Adohwasang (Monk) in 514. Originally this temple was called Handeumjeol, after the mountain's original name, Mount Handeum. Chinese characters were eventually used, which caused it to be called Daedum, and from there the name changed again to Daeheungsa. The mountain's name was later changed to Mount Duryun. Daeheungsa received little attention until 1592 when Seosan Daesa (monk) organized and trained a guerilla army of 5,000 monks at the temple, to help defend the Korean people during the Imjin War(Japanese invasions). Treasures C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Korean Buddhism
Korean Buddhism is distinguished from other forms of Buddhism by its attempt to resolve what its early practitioners saw as inconsistencies within the Mahayana Buddhist traditions that they received from foreign countries. To address this, they developed a new holistic approach to Buddhism that became a distinct form, an approach characteristic of virtually all major Korean thinkers. The resulting variation is called ''Tongbulgyo'' ("interpenetrated Buddhism"), a form that sought to harmonize previously arising disputes among scholars (a principle called ''hwajaeng'' 和諍). Centuries after Buddhism originated in India, the Mahayana tradition arrived in China through the Silk Road in the 1st century CE via Tibet; it then entered the Korean peninsula in the 3rd century during the Three Kingdoms Period, from where it was transmitted to Japan. In Korea, it was adopted as the state religion of 3 constituent polities of the Three Kingdoms Period, first by the Goguryeo (also know ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Buddhist Temples In North Korea
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gradually spread throughout much of Asia via the Silk Road. It is the world's fourth-largest religion, with over 520 million followers (Buddhists) who comprise seven percent of the global population. The Buddha taught the Middle Way, a path of spiritual development that avoids both extreme asceticism and hedonism. It aims at liberation from clinging and craving to things which are impermanent (), incapable of satisfying ('), and without a lasting essence (), ending the cycle of death and rebirth (). A summary of this path is expressed in the Noble Eightfold Path, a training of the mind with observance of Buddhist ethics and meditation. Other widely observed practices include: monasticism; "taking refuge" in the Buddha, the , and the ; and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
.svg "Click for more on -> Buddhist Temples In North Korea")