Temple History Magoksa Temple, which means “Hemp Valley Temple,” in English, is located outside the beautiful city of Gongju, Chungcheongnam-do. There are two competing stories as to when the temple was actually first built. One states that the temple was first built by the famed monk Jajang-yulsa (590-658 A.D.) in 640 A.D. Jajang-yulsa is also the very same monk to have built Tongdosa Temple in Yangsan, Gyeongsangnam-do. Another states that the temple was founded by the monk Muyeom (800-888 A.D.) upon his return to the Korean peninsula in 845 A.D. after studying in Tang China. Like so many temples in Korea, Magoksa Temple has quite the creation story surrounding its…