Ssanggyesa ( ko, 쌍계사) is a head temple of the Jogye Order of

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, the ...

. It is located on the southern slopes of

Jirisan Jirisan is a mountain located in the southern region of South Korea. It is the second-tallest mountain in South Korea after Jeju Island's Hallasan, and the tallest mountain in mainland South Korea. The 1915m-high mountain is located in Jiri ...

, southwest of sacred Samshin-bong Peak, in the Hwagye-dong Valley of Hwagae-myeon, Hadong County, in the province of

Gyeongsangnam-do South Gyeongsang Province ( ko, 경상남도, translit=Gyeongsangnam-do, ) is a province in the southeast of South Korea. The provincial capital is at Changwon. It is adjacent to the major metropolitan center and port of Busan. The UNESCO World H ...

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

. The temple was founded in 722 by two disciples of Uisang named Sambeop and Daebi. It is said that they were guided to the location by a ''Jiri-sanshin'' in the form of a tiger, after being instructed by him in dreams to look for a site where arrowroot flowers blossomed through the snow. They had travelled China for study, and returned with the skull of and a portrait of "Yukcho" (

Hui-neng Dajian Huineng (); (February 27, 638 – August 28, 713), also commonly known as the Sixth Patriarch or Sixth Ancestor of Chan (traditional Chinese: 禪宗六祖), is a semi-legendary but central figure in the early history of Chinese Chan Budd ...

, the Sixth Patriarch of ''Seon'' enBuddhism) which they respectively buried under the Main Hall and enshrined in it (the skull was later dug up and enshrined in a stone pagoda, which is still there). In the 9th century the temple was renamed "Ssanggyesa" (Twin-Streams Monastery) by Jingam (Meditaition-Master Jin-gam-seonsa, 774–850). He is also credited with creation of ''

Beompae Beompae (, also written ''pomp'ae'' or ''pŏmp'ae'') is a Korean genre of Buddhist chants and songs., one of three key traditional Korean song types, together with ''gagok'' and ''pansori''. Description There are three kinds of ''beompae'': ...

'' (Korean-style Buddhist music & dance) after having studied Chinese Buddhist music in

Tang Dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...

China. He composed "Eosan" ish Mountainwith paleumryul ight tones and rhythmswhile watching fish swim in the nearby

Seomjin River The Seomjingang River is a river in South Korea. It drains southeastern Jeollabuk-do as well as eastern Jeollanam-do and western Gyeongsangnam-do provinces, and flows into the Korea Strait. The Seomjin rises from Palgongsan and flows for 212.3 ...

, and therefore the spacious lecture-pavilion still dedicated to ''Beompae'' performance and education at the front of Ssanggye-sa is named ''Palyeong-ru''. A stele dedicated to Jingam-seonsa and written by

Choi Chi-won Choe Chiwon (; 857–10th century) was a Korean philosopher and poet of the late medieval Unified Silla period (668-935). He studied for many years in Tang China, passed the Tang imperial examination, and rose to the high office there before r ...

still stands in the temple; it is designated Republic of Korea National Treasure 47. Most of the rest of the temple dates to the 17th century or thereafter, because all its buildings were burned to the ground by Japanese invaders during the Seven Year War.

External links

Official site, in KoreanTour2Korea profilePhoto galleryKoreaTemple profile
Buddhist temples of the Jogye Order Religious organizations established in the 8th century Buildings and structures in South Gyeongsang Province Buddhist temples in South Korea Hadong County Tourist attractions in South Gyeongsang Province 8th-century establishments in Korea Religious buildings and structures completed in 722 {{commonscat, Ssanggyesa (Hadong)

See also

External links