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Bulryeongsa Temple – 불령사 (Cheongdo, Gyeongsangbuk-do)
Temple History Bulryeongsa Temple is located in eastern Cheongdo, Gyeongsangbuk-do to the southwest of Mt. Hyoyangsan (582.3 m). This mountain is also known as Mt. Horangsan. The name of the temple, Bulryeongsa Temple, means “Buddha’s Spirit Temple” in English. As for the name of the temple, it’s called Bulryeongsa Temple because it’s believed that the valley is filled with Buddhist devotion. It’s also believed that the temple was first founded in 645 A.D. by the famed monk Wonhyo-daesa (617-686 A.D.). Eventually, the temple would fall into disrepair. It would eventually be rebuilt in 1912 by the monk Bongju. Afterward, and in 1930, Bulryeongsa Temple was repaired by the abbot Lee…
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Deoksa Temple – 덕사 (Cheongdo, Gyeongsangbuk-do)
Temple History Deoksa Temple is located in northern Cheongdo, Gyeongsangbuk-do on Mt. Jugusan inside the Deokjeolsan Natural Ecology Park. There are no written records as to when the temple was first founded. However, according to oral tradition, it’s believed that Deoksa Temple was first founded during Unified Silla (668-935 A.D.). The temple would later be reconstructed by the famed monk Muhak-daesa (1327-1405). The present incarnation of Deoksa Temple dates back to the reign of King Seonjo of Joseon (r. 1567-1608). In 1576, Hwang Eung-gyu, who was the governor of Cheongdo County, noted that the topography of Mt. Jugosan resembled that of a running dog according to pungsu-jiri (geomancy, feng shui).…
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Yongcheonsa Temple – 용천사 (Cheongdo, Gyeongsangbuk-do)
Temple History Yongcheonsa Temple is located in northwestern Cheongdo, Gyeongsangbuk-do to the east of Mt. Biseulsan (1,083.4 m). The main historical sources for Yongcheonsa Temple comes from the Temple Chronicles (寺蹟記) carved on woodblocks in 1702 by Kim Jin-gyu (1658-1716), as well as the Yongcheonji (湧泉誌) compiled in 1703 by the monk Haenggyu. These two historical texts were later combined in 1927 as The History of Yongcheonsa Temple, Gakbuk-myeon, Cheongdo County (淸道郡 角北面 湧泉寺 事蹟). According to the Temple Chronicles (寺蹟記), after the famed monk Uisang-daesa (625-702 A.D.) returned from his studies in Tang China (618-907 A.D.), he founded the Ten Hwaeom Temples (Hwaeom-sipchal) throughout the Silla Kingdom (57 B.C.…
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Jinwolsa Temple – 진월사 (Yeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do)
Temple History Jinwolsa Temple is located to the northeast of Mt. Hakkasan (882 m) in southern Yeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do. Purportedly, Jinwolsa Temple was first founded by the famed monk Uisang-daesa (625-702 A.D.) during the reign of King Munmu of Silla (r. 661-681 A.D.). According to a temple legend, Uisang-daesa built Jinwolsa Temple prior to the construction of Buseoksa Temple in 676 A.D. After hearing in a dream that the construction of a temple at the foot of Mt. Hakkasan, whose topography was said to resemble a crane, would remove any and all obstacles towards the founding of Buseoksa Temple. With all that being said, there are no artifacts that date back…
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Choamsa Temple – 초암사 (Yeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do)
Temple History Choamsa Temple is located in the southeastern portion of Sobaeksan National Park in northwestern Yeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do. Choamsa Temple, which means “Thatched Hut Temple” in English, is thought to have been founded by the famed monk Uisang-daesa (625-702 A.D.). There are two legends regarding the founding of the temple by Uisang-daesa. In the first legend, it states that in 676 A.D., while Uisang-daesa was travelling around the peninsula to select a site to build the future Buseoksa Temple, he stayed and practiced in a temporary thatched hut to the southeast of Mt. Sobaeksan (1,439 m). In the second legend, Uisang-daesa had already begun the construction of Buseoksa Temple, when the…
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Gakhwasa Temple – 각화사 (Bonghwa, Gyeongsangbuk-do)
Temple History Gakhwasa Temple is located in Bonghwa, Gyeongsangbuk-do to the south of Mt. Gakhwasan (1,202 m). The name of the temple means “Awakening Flower Temple” in English. According to the “Taebaeksan Gakhwasa Reconstruction Record,” it’s believed that Gakhwasa Temple was first founded by Wonhyo-daesa (617-686 A.D.) some time during the reign of King Munmu of Silla (r. 661-681 A.D.) possibly in 676 A.D. However, the “Gakhwasa Turtle Stele,” which is believed to date back to the early Goryeo Dynasty (918-1392), states that the temple was first founded in 686 A.D. During the reign of King Yejong of Goryeo (r. 1105-1122), the monk Muae Gyeeung rebuilt Gakhwasa Temple. After this,…
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Huibangsa Temple – 희방사 (Yeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do)
Temple History Huibangsa Temple is located to the southwest of Mt. Sobaeksan (1,439.6 m) in Sobaeksan National Park in Yeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do. There are two conflicting dates as to when Huibangsa Temple was first founded. One story has the temple being first founded in 643 A.D. by the monk Duun. However, since the monk Duun was active in the 8th century, and there are no surviving artifacts from the 7th century, it’s more likely that Huibangsa Temple was first built at a later date. According to the Hanguk Sachal Jeonseo, it states that Huibangsa Temple was first established in 861 A.D. Generally, scholars believe that the temple was established during the…
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Heukseoksa Temple – 흑석사 (Yeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do)
Temple History Heukseoksa Temple is located in eastern Yeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do to the northwest of Mt. Bakbongsan (389.2 m). As for the name of the temple, Heukseoksa Temple, it means “Black Rock Temple” in English. There are two traditional possibilities for the name of the temple. The first possibility comes from the general dark color of rocks near the temple. The second possibility is explained through a village named Heukseok some 600 metres southeast of the temple. And it’s in this village that there’s a massive black rock, which is thought to have inspired the name of Heukseoksa Temple. It’s believed that Heukseoksa Temple was first founded by Uisang-daesa (625-702 A.D.).…
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Yeongju Propagation Centre – 영주포교당 (Yeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do)
Temple History The Yeongju Propagation Centre, which is a temple, is located in urban Yeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do just to the east of Guseong Park. The Yeongju Propagation Centre is also known as Hongbeopsa Temple, which means “Great Dharma Temple” in English. During the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910), there was a temple site for Hyangseodang (the revitalization of Buddhist practice) on the current location of the Yeongju Propagation Centre. It was first established in 1371 by Ha Ryun, who was the appointed magistrate of Yeongju. The former temple helped serve as a local Buddhist organization for villagers that sought guidance. After the Gabo Reform (갑오개혁, 1894–1896), this system was abolished. As a result,…
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Birosa Temple – 비로사 (Yeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do)
Temple History Birosa Temple is located in Sobaeksan National Park in Yeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do. As for the name of the temple, it gets its name from Birojana-bul (The Buddha of Cosmic Energy). The temple was first founded in Unified Silla (668-935 A.D.) by the monk Jinjeong and was originally known as Sobaeksansa Temple. Jinjeong, who was so poor that he couldn’t marry, devoted himself to the care of his widowed mother. Jinjeong heard that Uisang-daesa (625-702 A.D.) was teaching several monks on Mt. Taebaeksan, so Jinjeong left home to become a monk under Uisang-daesa, where he studied Hwaeom Buddhism. However, upon hearing of his mother’s death three years later, Jinjeong entered…