Congratulations new Bhikkhus!

Ven. Hae Doh (along with Ven. Hae Moon, Ven. Hae Kwang) received their full Bhikkhu ordination in Korea this past week and are on their way back home now. Congratulations to them as well as the other 100+ monks that have committed to the next level!

Book explores 30 wonders of Korean Buddhism

Understanding a religious faith is difficult — spanning the scope from the history and culture to philosophy and practices, it would be nearly impossible to completely learn a given tradition in a short period of time, although people benefit greatly by using various sources, including books.

The Korea Buddhism Promotion Foundation has been working hard to make Buddhism and its unique culture and teachings accessible to both the local and foreign crowds, and it hopes to facilitate the process with a new book, “The Colors of Korean Buddhism: 30 Icons and Their Stories.”

The book introduces distinctive icons that represent Korean Buddhism, which also have been published in The Korea Times from February to September this year. The series was called “Icons of Korean Buddhism” and introduced 30 of the representative or most typical Korean Buddhist cultural items, personas and symbols.

Read the rest of the article from the Korea Times here.

30 Year Anniversary of October 27 Incident

October 27 marks the 30-year anniversary of the government’s illegal actions against the Buddhist community. Now, the Buddhist community demands the truth to be revealed, the restoration of honor for the victims, and compensation for victims. To commemorate the 30-year anniversary, there was a dharma service and a meeting of the victims at Jogyesa Temple on October 27.

What is the October 27 Incident?
New Military Government Search Temples and Takes Away Monks and Nuns

On October 27, 1980, the Korean Government illegally searched Buddhist temples and forcibly hauled away monks and nuns. This is the first time the Buddhist community was singly sought out and oppressed in modern Korean history. The government, which has newly seized power, as a “purification movement” searched 5731 temples and took away 1929 Buddhists to be interrogated. After the incident, there were distorted and exaggerated reports, and various false rumors circulated to cause immense damage to the Buddhist community. By these severe actions of the government, the human rights of numerous monks and nuns were violated, which led to a dramatic decrease in the number of Buddhist faithful as well as the Buddhist community losing social authority. Accordingly, the October 27 Incident is an abuse of government authority, which was a violation of religious freedom and human rights.

Read the full story on Korean Buddhism.net

Taego and IBS retreat of Western region (Los Angeles, CA).

Taego Monk Training and Ordination Ceremony (행자교육)

한국불교태고종행자교육, 35기득도식, 선암사
This is video from a Korean TV station showing the novice monk training and ordination ceremony that took place earlier this week. Muddy Water Zen's Bup Chon Sunim has an English interview near the end of the video starting at the 8:59 mark.

Note: If video doesn't play click on the box to watch on host site.

Taego Ordination (Congratulations Bup Chon Sunim)

Ven. Bishop Jongmae has confirmed through the president of the Taego order that the Samanera and Sameneri ordination of 104 new monks (both male and female) has been completed in Korea this morning. Congratulations to Brent Eastman on being ordained as Bup Chon Sunim! This Sunday, Muddy Water Zen will hold a special service to introduce Bup Chon Sunim as the newest clergy member of Muddy Water Zen and gather in a celebratory vegetarian potluck after the morning service. Please join us if you can.

Religion in Contemporary Korea

On August 10, 2010, Dr. John Goulde, professor of religion and director of the Asian Studies Program at Sweet Briar College, spoke at The Korea Society to middle- and high-school teachers as part of the New York City Department of Education’s After School Professional Development Program. Dr. Goulde specializes in the sociology, religion, and culture of North and South Korea. He received a bachelor’s degree from Seoul National University and completed his graduate work at Harvard University. In this second of two lectures, Dr. Goulde addresses religion in contemporary Korea.

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