{"collection":"scripture-revelation","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_47957/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_47957","id":"gutenberg_47957","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/47957","summary":null,"tags":["Art -- Korea","Buddhism -- Korea","Buddhist art","Category: Art","Category: History - Other","Category: Religion/Spirituality"],"text":"[Illustration: PLATE I\n          Kim Ku Ha, President of Buddhist Committee for 1917\n                                                               [Page 35]]\n\n\n\n\n                                 KOREAN\n                                BUDDHISM\n                         HISTORY\u2014CONDITION\u2014ART\n\n\n                            _Three Lectures_\n                                   BY\n                            FREDERICK STARR\n\n                                 BOSTON\n                         MARSHALL JONES COMPANY\n                                  1918\n\n                            COPYRIGHT, 1918\n                       BY MARSHALL JONES COMPANY\n                         _All rights reserved_\n\n                               PRINTED BY\n               THE UNIVERSITY PRESS, CAMBRIDGE, U. S. A.\n\n\n                    THIS BOOK ON KOREAN BUDDHISM IS\n                              _Dedicated_\n                                   TO\n                      MY FRIEND AND FELLOW-STUDENT\n                           \u201cKUGEN\u201d\u2014OGURI SAN\n                                OF TOKYO\n\n\n\n\n                              INTRODUCTION\n\n\nThe author does not over-estimate the importance of this little book: it\nis nothing more than its title claims. It consists of three lectures\ngiven to popular audiences, with the accompaniment of many\nillustrations. It represents, however, a considerable amount of work in\nan almost virgin field. It has involved hard journeys to remote mountain\nmonasteries, and days and nights of conversation and inquiry with many\nmonks and priests. It is not, however, a profound study nor an\nexhaustive presentation. It barely touches many a subject, which would\nalone furnish more material than could be treated in three such\nlectures. It but scratches the surface.\n\nThe material which it presents is however new. Outside of Mrs. Bishop\u2019s\naccount of her visit to the Diamond Mountain monasteries and scattered\nreferences in her book to a few local temples, there is almost nothing\non the subject of Korean Buddhism accessible to English readers. A\nglance at our bibliography will show that not one of the books or\narticles there listed appeared in the West. All were printed at Seoul,\nShanghai and Tokyo and publications appearing at those centers are\nlittle known outside. To aid serious readers, who may care to secure\nthem, the publishers\u2019 names are given in our list. The author has\ncarefully read all the items listed and acknowledges indebtedness to all\nthe authors.\n\nThe actual amount of material for the full study of Korean Buddhism is\nenormous. There are many voluminous works in Chinese and Korean dealing\nwith Korean history; when carefully sifted, these will yield many\nimportant facts. Many, perhaps all, of the monasteries have records of\ntheir history somewhat after the nature of annals; most of these are in\nmanuscript, but a few have been printed, presumably from wood-blocks cut\nat the establishment by the monks. There is a third source of\ninformation, as vast in bulk as either of the other two; it is the\ninscriptions on monuments, which are scattered in thousands over the\npeninsula. The gleaning of information from these three sources\u2014for the\nwork must absolutely be of the nature of gleaning\u2014will require many\nyears, but the work is worth the doing. It is urgent also. Every one of\nthese three sources is subject to destruction and even now is\nthreatened. Old books in Korea are being constantly lost and destroyed;\nnew editions of them are often carelessly and inaccurately reproduced;\nin some cases, the new editions are intentionally mutilated, important\npassages being suppressed. The monastery records are less secure than\never before; with the new life and energy in these old establishments,\nrenovation and clearing out of nooks and corners and overhauling of\naccumulations of papers, places documents, the value of which is unknown\nor unappreciated, in serious jeopardy. As for the monuments many are\ndisappearing and others are becoming undecipherable through weathering.\nThere is pressing need then of promptly securing these materials and\nmaking them available for study.\n\nThe Japanese are doing much good work. They are gathering old books and\nrecords. Up to 1915 more than one hundred and fifty thousand books,\nmanuscript and printed, had been gathered by the Government-General.\nAmong these were the \u201cAnnals of Yi\u201d numbering sixteen hundred and\nthirty-three volumes and the \u201cRoyal Diaries,\u201d aggregating thirty-one\nhundred and ninety-nine volumes, \u201call hand-written with the brush.\u201d Of\nthe \u201cAnnals\u201d there were four sets made under the Korean government for\nthe four old royal libraries. The \u201cRoyal Diaries\u201d were compiled at the\nking\u2019s orders; they dated from Yi Tajo himself, but those up to near the\nend of the sixteenth century were burned by the Koreans at the time of\nthe Hideyoshi invasion; those now existing cover the period from 1623 to\n1907. Japanese scholars have organized a society for reprinting old and\nrare Korean books and have gotten out many volumes. They are piling up\ndirect observations also. From 1909 to 1915, they conducted a\npeninsula-wide survey of ancient monuments and have printed the results\nin four fine volumes, with splendid illustrations, under the title\n_Chosen ko seki gafu_. They have taken steps toward the preservation\nand, where necessary, the reconstruction of important monuments and\nnotable buildings. They are copying the monastery records and ultimately\nwill have a complete set of all that remain. The originals ought to be\nleft in possession of the monasteries themselves, with the obligation to\nguard and keep them safely. As to monumental inscriptions, the\nGovernment-General has been equally industrious. Up to March, 1915,\nthere had been made thirteen hundred and seventy-seven direct rubbings\nfrom inscribed stones, of which forty-four represented Sylla,\nforty-three the period of the Koryu Dynasty and thirteen hundred and\nthree the Yi Dynasty. It is fortunate that this preservation of material\nis being undertaken. The world will profit by it, though it may still be\nlong locked up in Chinese characters.\n\nIn this book the work of Yi Nung Hwa is mentioned. His Buddhist magazine\nshould yield some data of value. If his History of Korean Buddhism is\nprinted it ought to be of high importance, as he naturally has a much\neasier task in consulting the original sources than any foreigner. If\nhis work is done with care and critical judgment it should be the\nnecessary foundation for all future study. All depends upon how he\nperforms his task. Readers who become interested in our lectures are\nadvised to read Bishop Trollope\u2019s admirable _Introduction_. It clears\nthe ground and indicates the direction of further studies.\n\nThe author has hundreds of negatives illustrating Korean Buddhism. One\nhundred and fifty pictures were used in the original lectures. When\ncutting down to what seemed the absolute limit, in selecting pictures\nfor the book, he found that he had more than double the number permitted\nby the necessary conditions. Further reduction was difficult and many\npictures have been rejected, which are more beautiful or interesting\nthan some of those that are included. The final choice was based upon\nthe desire to give as clear an idea as possible of actual conditions and\nto represent all the important phases presented in the lectures. One or\ntwo of the pictures were made by Manuel Gonzales in 1911; all the others\nare the work of Maebashi Hambei, who accompanied me, in my last three\nexpeditions to Korea, as photographer.\n\n                                                 Chicago, July 12, 1918.\n\n\n\n\n                                CONTENTS\n\n\n  Korean Buddhism: PAGE\n      History                                                           1\n      Condition                                                        32\n      Art                                                              66\n  Bibliography                                                         97\n  Notes                                                                99\n\n\n\n\n                         LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS\n\n\n  PLATE FACING PAGE\n  I Kim Ku Ha. President of Buddhist Committee for 1917    _Frontispiece_\n  II General view: Pomo-sa                                              2\n  III General view: Yuchom-sa, Diamond Mountains                        4\n  IV Sari monuments: Yuchom-sa                                          6\n  V Main Temple: Kumsan-sa                                             10\n  VI Sari monument pyramid, Kumsan-sa. (A relic of Buddha is\n          supposed to be enshrined here)                               16\n  VII Geomantic Mast: Chung-ju                                         18\n  VIII The Buddha: cave temple, Sukkul-am                              22\n  IX Bodhisattva figure, Sukkul-am                                     24\n  X Great Miriok: Eunjin. General view                                 26\n  XI Group at Fukoan, branch of Sinkei-sa; Diamond Mountains           28\n  XII Hain-sa: Building for the Wood-blocks                            34\n  XIII Hain-sa: Building for the Wood-blocks, interior                 38\n  XIV Great Buddha relief on rock face: Inner Kongo                    44\n  XV Sari monument to Muhak: Hoiam-sa                                  48\n  XVI Head-priest and Pagoda: Sinkei-sa, Diamond Mountains             50\n  XVII Main Temple: Yuchom-sa, Diamond Mountains                       52\n  XVIII Carved Door, Yuchom-sa                                         54\n  XIX Brahmanic Guardian of Buddhism: Songkwang-sa                     56\n  XX, A, B. Two Deva Kings, Guardians of World Quarters: Sukwang-sa    58\n  XXI Gigantic Deva King. Guardian of World Quarter: Pawpchu-sa. The\n          Korean standing by is a married man of normal stature        60\n  XXII Wall painting: The White Tortoise Scene of the _Sei-yeu-ki_:\n          Pongeum-sa                                                   66\n  XXIII Wall paintings on plaster: Sukwang-sa                          68\n  XXIV Great figures of Buddhist Trinity, seated: Pawpchu-sa. Sakya,\n          Monju, Fugen                                                 70\n  XXV Great figures of Buddhist Trinity, standing: Kumsan-sa. Amida,\n          Kwannon, Daiseishi. (Thirty feet or so in height)            72\n  XXVI Figures\u2014a Trio of Trinities: Sukwang-sa. (The figures are\n          said to be Kwannon, Amida, Daiseishi, Monju, Vairoshana,\n          Fugen, Jihi, Sakyamuni Teikakara)                            74\n  XXVII Figure and painting of Kwannon: Pomo-sa                        76\n  XXVIII Hall of the Ten Kings of Hell: Yongju-sa. (Notice\n          combination of figures and painting; the god of hell with\n          two helpers, five kings with small servants, two other\n          officers, and one of the two Brahmanic guardians)            78\n  XXIX Hall of Five Hundred Rakan: Sukwang-sa                          80\n  XXX Extraordinary combinations of Rakan figures: Hall of Five\n          Hundred Rakan: Songkwang-sa                                  82\n  XXXI Painting of the Seven Stars: Sukwang-sa                         84\n  XXXII Group painting: Sukwang-sa                                     86\n  XXXIII One of the Eight Scenes in the Life of Buddha: Sakya gains\n          Enlightenment: Pomo-sa                                       88\n  XXXIV The God of the Mountain: Fuko-an, branch of Sinkei-sa,\n          Diamond Mountains                                            90\n  XXXV Portrait of one of the chiefs of the Sixteen Kakan:\n          Chikchi-sa                                                   92\n  XXXVI Great painting: Pawpchu-sa                                     94\n  XXXVII Great painting displayed at Buddha\u2019s Birthday Ceremony:\n          Tongdo-sa                                                    94\n\n\n\n\n                            KOREAN BUDDHISM\n\n\n\n\n                        KOREAN BUDDHISM: HISTORY\n\n\nSince 1911 it has been my privilege to make four journeys into Korea, so\nlong known as \u201cThe Hermit Kingdom.\u201d To-day Korea has ceased to be an\nindependent nation; she has been completely absorbed by Japan and forms\npart of the Japanese Empire. I found much of interest in the country. I\nstudied the people and their daily life; I visited many of the famous\npoints of interest and beauty; I have studied somewhat into Korean\nhistory. Nothing, however, has more interested me than the study of\nKorean religions, particularly Buddhism. When asked to give some public\nlectures this summer, I consented gladly to speak for three evenings on\nthe subject of Korean Buddhism. My three lectures will deal with\nHistory\u2014Condition\u2014Art.\n\nThe history of Korea falls into three sharply marked periods. The first\nis known as the era of the Three Kingdoms\u2014it ended with the year 918, a\nyear easy to remember because exactly one thousand years ago. The second\nis the period of the Koryu Dynasty; it began with the year 918 and ended\nin 1392, a date easy for us to remember because precisely a century\nbefore the discovery of America by Columbus. The third period, known as\nthe period of the Yi Dynasty, began with 1392 and continued until 1910,\nwhen the independent history of Korea ended with its absorption by\nJapan.\n\nThe history of Buddhism in Korea is divided into the same three periods,\nas the things which caused breaks in the national history were related\nto the religion. We shall then speak of the Buddhism of the Three\nKingdoms, of the Koryu Dynasty and of the Yi Dynasty.\n\n                        [Illustration: PLATE II\n                         General view: Pomo-sa\n                                                               [Page 31]]\n\nThe early period is called the era of the Three Kingdoms because at that\ntime the peninsula was occupied by three different nations. The largest,\nin the north, was called Koguryu. Japanese pronounce the name as Koma.\nIt occupied more than half of the peninsula. Its capital city was\nP\u2019yeng-Yang, still a city of importance. The second kingdom was smaller;\nin the southwest of the peninsula, it was known by the name of Pakche,\nwhich is pronounced by the Japanese Kudara. The third kingdom occupied\nthe southeastern section of the peninsula. It was larger than Pakche,\nbut smaller than Koguryu, and was called Silla, Japanese, Shiragi. Such\nthen, were the three kingdoms which existed through a period of hundreds\nof years.\n\nUnfortunately all names in Korea have several pronunciations. They are\nusually spelled with Chinese characters. If a Chinese pronounces the\nname, he will pronounce it in a certain way, dependent upon what part of\nChina he comes from; a Korean will pronounce the same characters quite\ndifferently; a Japanese has still a different pronunciation. It is for\nthis reason that the Korean and Japanese names of these kingdoms differ;\nthe same characters are pronounced Koguryu by the Koreans and Koma by\nthe Japanese; Pakche on the Korean tongue becomes Kudara with the\nJapanese; and where the Korean says Silla, the Japanese says Shiragi.\n\nSuch then was the condition of the peninsula preceding 918. It was\ndivided into three kingdoms, each with its own ruler. Buddhism, a\nreligion which began in India, came to Korea by way of China. It\nnaturally first reached the northern kingdom. It was introduced in 369\nA.D. and its introduction was the result of foreign missionary effort.\nIn those days there was an Empire of China, but there were also various\nsmall Chinese kingdoms along the northern border of the Korean\npeninsula. Buddhism came to Koguryu from one of these little Chinese\nkingdoms, the king of which sent its message by the hands of a priest\nnamed Sundo, who brought idols and sacred texts. He was well received on\nhis appearance in P\u2019yeng-Yang. The king of the country placed the crown\nprince in his care for education. In a few years the new religion had\nmade great headway. It had brought with it art and education, and the\nkingdom of Koguryu became a center of culture and advancement.\n\n                        [Illustration: PLATE III\n               General view: Yuchom-sa, Diamond Mountains\n                                                               [Page 35]]\n\nFive years later, in 374, another priest named Ado was sent from the\nsame Chinese kingdom. His coming added impetus to the religion and two\ngreat monasteries were founded near P\u2019yeng-Yang, over one of which Ado\nwas placed, while Sundo had charge of the other. These two monasteries\nwere not only centers of religion, they were full-fledged universities\naccording to the ideas of the universities in those days.\n\nAfter they were founded Buddhism continued to spread rapidly so that in\n392 it became the official religion of the kingdom.\n\nWe are told that in the year 378, as the result of the coming of these\nforeign priests, the city of P\u2019yeng-Yang was laid out as a great ship.\nTo us this sounds strange. It is not easy for us to realize that a city\nwas really regarded as a great ship and that a mast was erected in its\nmidst, apparently in order that the sails of prosperity might waft the\nship to good fortune and success. Outside the city were stone posts to\nwhich the ship was to be tied up, and for many years it was forbidden to\ndig wells in the city because it was feared that if a well were dug, the\nboat would spring a leak and the whole place would be foundered. Such\nwas science in the fourth century. It seems strange to us now, but ideas\nof that kind were rife in those days; in fact they have not yet\ndisappeared from popular thought in Korea. I am not sure whether such\nideas are connected with Buddhism, or whether they only form a part of\nthat old geomantic philosophy which has so greatly influenced China,\nKorea and Japan through centuries. We find geomantic survivals of many\nkinds in many places. Old masts are scattered all over Korea, here and\nthere, sometimes in quite inaccessible places; built of wood, they rise\nto a great height, and are sheathed with metal, which may bear an\ninscription and date. Many other places than P\u2019yeng-Yang were thought of\nas great ships\u2014temples, cities, entire valleys. (Plate VII.)\n\n                        [Illustration: PLATE IV\n                       Sari monuments: Yuchom-sa\n                                                               [Page 55]]\n\nAt Tongdo-sa, a great monastery in the south of Korea, my attention was\ncalled to an iron ring fastened to a rock near the trail. They told me\nthat it was for the tethering of a great ox, that all the mound of earth\nand rock near there is considered to be a great ox lying down; a hole\nabout a foot in diameter in the rock, close by the trail, is said to be\nthe nostril of the creature, and a knoll of earth near by formed its\nhead, while the great body stretched out far beyond.\n\nAt Riri my attention was called to a mountain ridge and I was told that\nit was a running horse; two stone pillars stood on the level ground near\nby\u2014they were intended to prevent the horse from damaging the fields. It\nseems that many years ago it was realized that a running horse was\nlikely to do damage to growing crops; the wise men of the district were\ncalled together and consulted; they determined that they would destroy\nthe danger by erecting these pillars of stone, beyond which the horse\ncannot go.\n\nPerhaps ideas like these were taught in those old universities in 375\nA.D. Perhaps they were then, as now, individual and professional\nknowledge, not to be learned in schools.\n\nThe new religion next entered the little kingdom of Pakche. This was in\nthe year 384. This time it was not sent unsolicited by some little\nChinese kingdom, but came by request from China proper. The people of\nPakche knew what Buddhism had done for Koguryu and they asked the\nEmperor of China to send them a famous priest named Marananda. It seems\nthat he was a Hindu, who had a great reputation for learning. He brought\nwith him images and texts and all the paraphernalia necessary for the\ngorgeous ceremonials of his religion. He was received with great respect\nby the king and was lodged in the palace. Soon after ten other priests\ncame from China and the religion made rapid headway through Pakche. It\nwas from Pakche in the year 552 that Buddhism was sent for the first\ntime into Japan. The king of Pakche sent images and texts and a letter\nto the Emperor, Kimmei, saying that it was a good religion, and that he\nhoped the Japanese would accept it.\n\nLast of the three kingdoms to receive Buddhism was Silla, to which it\ncame about 424. It is reported to have come from the capital city of\nKoguryu, P\u2019yeng-Yang, and the priest who brought it was named Mukocha.\nHe appears to have gone down the Taidong River to the sea and then\naround the peninsula and up the east coast in order to reach Silla. He\nis always spoken of as a black man, or negro; perhaps he was actually an\nAfrican. There seems to have been some mystery about his arrival; it may\nbe that the people did not like his color, or were afraid of his strange\nappearance. He hired himself out as a plowman to a farmer named Morei.\nHis employer concealed him in a cave. It is said that when he was hidden\nin this cave it frequently shone with glory. Outside the cave there was\na peach tree, which burst into bloom with flowers of five different\ncolors, and in the winter, when there was snow on the mountains outside,\nirises and other flowers of wondrous fragrance are said to have broken\ntheir way up through the snow. The black monk is said to have worn a red\ncap and a crimson _kesa_. It would seem that the whole neighborhood must\nhave known about these wonders.\n\nAbout this time it is said that an ambassador from China came to the\nking of Silla at his capital city of Kyong Ju. The messenger brought\nvarious gifts, among them a substance which no one knew; it had never\nbeen seen before in Silla. It seems strange that the ambassador should\nnot have known what he brought, but it is asserted that he was ignorant\nin the matter, and so the king sent to the cave\u2014only ten miles away\u2014and\nordered the black monk to come to Kyong Ju to identify the gift. He had\nno trouble in recognizing it, because it was incense, common enough in\nChinese Buddhism, but before unseen in Silla. He told them that when\nburned before an idol with prayers of faith, the god was sure to answer\npetitions. It happened at the moment that the king\u2019s daughter was ill,\nand he begged the black monk to try the efficacy of incense and prayer.\nSeven days he spent in prayer before the idol and a cure was wrought.\nSoon afterwards Mukocha begged the king to send to China and the West\nfor artists to come and cut figures in the rock walls of his cave, as he\ndesired to make a chapel to the gods. The request was sent, the artists\ncame, and it is said that they spent forty years in carving the\nwonderful figures which to this day adorn the walls of the little\ncircular chapel in the mountain cave. It would require a separate\nlecture for me to tell you of my visit to that remarkable shrine, with\nits genuine treasures of art. (Plates VIII, IX.)\n\n                         [Illustration: PLATE V\n                         Main Temple: Kumsan-sa\n                                                               [Page 72]]\n\nI must, however, say something about the old capital city of Kyong Ju.\nIt had its period of glory, and its ruins are still impressive. Almost\nfifteen hundred years have passed since the black monk brought in the\nnew religion. To-day there remains only a little town, but all the\ncountry around is sprinkled with the relics of the past. Here is the\nsplendid grave of General Kim, twelve hundred years old. It is faced\naround with stone slabs, set firmly in place, twelve of them being\ncarved with the animals of the Eastern Zodiac. Here are the ruins of an\nice-house, perhaps nine hundred years old; cunningly built of stone,\nunder a mound of earth, with true arch-vaulting, it sheltered ice for\nthe chilling of food and the cooling of drink a thousand years ago.\nThere remains here a portion of a beautiful pagoda; much of it was\ndestroyed in the sixteenth century, when Hideyoshi\u2019s army of invasion\ncame from Japan and wrought havoc and destruction in Korea; built in the\nseventh century, it was a beautiful structure of splendid,\nthoroughly-baked black bricks and stone; stone doors below, moving on\nstone pivots set in stone sockets were decorated with carved work.\nTo-day only the three lower stories remain, but they serve to show that\nthe people were true artists. Here, too, one sees an astronomical\nobservatory, built of stone, a sort of tower of circular form, seventeen\nfeet through; it was intended for the observation of heavenly bodies;\nnearly thirteen hundred years of age, it is perhaps the oldest existing\nbuilding constructed for such purposes in the world.\n\nIn those fine days, Kyong Ju was a center of trade and industry.\nChinese, Koreans and Japanese were there; we are certain that Tibetans,\nIndians and Persians came thither, and it is claimed that merchants from\nArabia used to stand in its market place. Of course we all know of the\nantiquity of culture around the Mediterranean Sea; we appreciate its\nachievements, and love to think of its glories; but we are apt to think\nof the Far East as being eternally stagnant and it surprises us to learn\nof a busy mart of trade in Kyong Ju, Silla.\n\nAnd it had its scholars also. There was Ch\u2019oe Chuen. He was a poet and\nessayist; he was a skilled calligrapher, writing the beautiful Chinese\ncharacters famously; he was reckoned as one of the great sages and\nlearned men of his day in China proper, than which there was no higher\nhonor.\n\nDuring the period of the Three Kingdoms, Buddhism thus penetrated to\nevery part of the peninsula. It prospered. Splendid temples were built,\ngreat monasteries constructed, magnificent bells cast, beautiful pagodas\nerected, figures carved by thousands. Religions that prosper too greatly\nbecome corrupt. State religions tend to become curses. Religious\nendowments tie up money which the people need. The dead hand may hold\nunder restraint property which should be at work, helping the world. All\nthis happened with Buddhism in Korea. In the last days of the Three\nKingdoms Korean Buddhism was refined and artistic, impressive and\nbeautiful, but was corrupt and harmful rather than helpful.\n\nWe may, perhaps, take the date 685 A.D. as marking the greatest glory of\nSilla. At that time she was gaining power over the neighboring kingdoms\nand before her glory ended she ruled the whole peninsula.\n\nIn 876 the king of Silla was named Chung\u2014also called Hongang. During his\nrule the country was rapidly declining. He was followed by his brother,\nwho in turn was succeeded by his sister, who became queen of Silla in\n888. Her name was Man. The only reason why we mention these three rulers\nis that we wish to introduce the man who led up to the second period of\nKorean history. His name was Kun-ye. He was the son of king Chung, by a\nconcubine, but never became king of Silla. When his aunt, queen Man, was\nruling, he became a disturbing element, heading an insurrection. The\nglory of Silla was really past and the old kingdom was rapidly\ndeclining. Kun-ye was fortunate in having an excellent general, named\nWang-on, and made headway with his rebellion; founding a new kingdom in\ncentral Korea, he gradually extended his rule, through the skilful\nleadership of Wang-on, until much of the middle part of the peninsula\nwas under his control. But the man was mad, religiously mad. He was not\nonly a Buddhist; he called himself a Buddha. Under the cloak of religion\nhe did all kinds of wild and wicked things, and indulged in the most\nabsurd extravagances. Finally the burden of his tyranny and his\nreligious claims became so heavy that his officials plotted against him\nand begged his general, Wang-on, to dethrone him and seize the power.\nUltimately that very thing happened, and in the year 918, one thousand\nyears ago, Wang-on became the first king of a new dynasty, that of\nKoryu.\n\nBefore we leave the period of the Three Kingdoms, however, let us notice\ntwo interesting matters. You remember that Buddhism was brought to the\nThree Kingdoms by three priests\u2014Sundo, Marananda, Mukocha. Sundo was a\nman from Tibet; I suppose he represented the great Mongolian race, that\nhe was a yellow man; Marananda, who brought religion to Pakche was a\nHindu; presumably he represented the Caucasic peoples; he may have been\ndark, but our courts would probably have to call him a white man;\nMukocha was called a black man, a negro, and probably really represented\nthe Ethiopian race. Is it not interesting that the peninsula of Korea\nshould have received its first generally spread religion through\nrepresentatives of the three great races of the world, the yellow, white\nand black? Buddhism, the first universal religion that the world ever\nsaw, early made an appeal to all men, regardless of color and of race.\n\n                        [Illustration: PLATE VI\n                    Sari monument pyramid, Kumsan-sa\n          (A relic of Buddha is supposed to be enshrined here)\n                                                               [Page 72]]\n\nTwo famous men, Chinese, lived during this period. Their names were\nFa-hien and Hiouen-Tsiang. In 399 A.D. Fa-hien started on foot from\nChina, to visit India, to learn of Buddhism and Buddha in the old home.\nHe travelled many thousands of miles of weary pilgrimage in order to\nbring back with him fresh idols and correct texts and new inspiration\nfrom the cradle of the great religion. It was more than two hundred\nyears later, in 629, that Hiouen-Tsiang made the same journey. Think of\nthe danger these men passed through! They crossed deserts, which even\nto-day are almost impassable; they climbed difficult mountains and\ncrossed broad rivers; they journeyed through countries of hostile\npeoples; they had to travel without artificial means of transportation\nthrough districts of foreign speech; they did all just to visit the old\nhome of the Great Teacher, and to get his religion at first hand. We\nhave the record of their travels. Their simple diaries have been\ntranslated into various languages of Asia and into English, French and\nother European tongues. Fa-hien was fifteen years upon his pilgrimage,\nHiouen-Tsiang sixteen years. Both lived to come back to their homes to\nthe great advantage of their co-religionists.\n\nWe have no diaries written by old Korean pilgrims, but we know that\nduring the glow of early convertship many from the peninsula made the\nsame journey to the West.[1] Between 638 A.D. and 650 seven at least\nwent from Korea to India to study the new religion in its old home. Most\nof them died there, never returning to their native land.\n\nWe now come to the second division of Korean history and its Buddhism,\nthat of the Koryu Dynasty. You remember that General Wang-on, when his\nroyal master went crazy and the officials revolted, seized the kingly\npower. He removed the capital to Songdo. Silla quickly went to its final\nfall and the new kingdom controlled the whole peninsula. Wang-on\nrealized perfectly that the abuse of Buddhism had been the chief trouble\nwith Kung-ye. His coming into power was largely due to an\nanti-Buddhistic movement. Still, he himself was Buddhist and while he\ndid much to check the abuses of the religion he continued to practise it\non a more modest scale. At his new capital he ended the first year of\nhis rule, 918, with a famous festival of which we have a description.\n\n                        [Illustration: PLATE VII\n                        Geomantic Mast: Chung-ju\n                                                                [Page 6]]\n\n  There was an enormous lantern, hung about with hundreds of others\n  under a tent made of a network of silken cords. Music was an important\n  element. There were also representations of dragons, birds, elephants,\n  horses, carts and boats. Dancing was prominent and there were in all a\n  hundred forms of entertainment. Each official wore the long, flowing\n  sleeves, and each carried the ivory memorandum tablets. The king sat\n  on a high platform and watched the entertainment. (Hulbert.)\n\nYou see he was very far from cutting loose from Buddhism. In reality,\nthe religion flourished over the whole peninsula. When Wang-on died in\n942, he left a written message for his son and successor. It contained\nten rules of conduct for his guidance as king, which were numbered from\none to ten. Three had to do with religion, and, of course, that religion\nwas Buddhism. In the first rule he advised his son to continue to\nrecognize Buddhism as the state religion. The second rule was that he\nshould build no more monasteries. While it was a good thing to continue\nBuddhism, it was a bad thing to build more monasteries, as too much\nmoney had already been expended upon them. The sixth of the rules was\nfor the establishment of an annual Buddhist festival of the same nature\nas the one he had celebrated at the end of his first year. So Wang-on\ndid not destroy Buddhism but continued it.\n\nIn course of time the old religion regained much of its harmful and\ndestructive influence. From history we may cull a few events that\nillustrate its power. About the beginning of the eleventh century there\ncame from China a fuller development of Confucianism than had before\nexisted. About 1026 this influence became very strong; the official\nclass, as was natural, was Confucianist; it organized and directed\ngovernmental action; between the officials, Confucianists, and the\npriests, Buddhists, there grew up a deadly conflict which lasted on\nthrough all the centuries. In 1036 the king was devoutly Buddhistic. He\n\u201cdecreed that if a man had four sons one of them must become a monk;\nbecause of the Buddhist canon against the spilling of blood, the death\npenalty was changed to banishment; another great annual festival was\ninstituted. The king also encouraged the custom of having boys go about\nthe streets with Buddhistic books on their backs from which the monks\nread aloud as they went along, to secure blessings for the people.\u201d\n(Hulbert.)\n\nIn 1046 it is said the king fed and lodged ten thousand monks in his\npalace. In 1056 or thereabouts one son out of three was compelled to\nbecome a monk. In 1136 it is said that thirty thousand monks were\npresent at a single ceremony.\n\nUnder such circumstances, what would happen? When a religion had such a\nhold on the community\u2014building splendid monasteries, erecting great\ntemples, making idols into whose construction gilt of pure gold entered\nin quantity, making bells of metal that might have been better used for\npractical ends, draining the people of wealth by giving enormous\nproperties eternally into the possession of religious establishments\u2014a\ncrash was bound to come. It came in Korea. The country had been drained;\nthe people had been heavily burdened; the men who as monks and priests\nshould have led in instruction and good living were notorious examples\nof profligacy and corruption.\n\nAt last, in 1392, a man arose who fought against the king. The excuse\nfor his fighting was the fact that the government was given over to a\ncorrupt religion. Just as before it was the successful general who\nbecame the founder of a new dynasty; in this case also he had been loyal\nat first to the deposed king. The man\u2019s name was Yi, and his title Tajo,\nand he is commonly known in Korea as Yi-Tajo. He is revered as the\nfounder of the dynasty which has just ended. In 1392 the old kingdom of\nKorai disappeared and with it the dynasty of Koryu, and in their place\ncame the modern Chosen and the Yi Dynasty. Seoul became the new capital.\n\n                       [Illustration: PLATE VIII\n                   The Buddha: cave temple, Sukkul-am\n                                                               [Page 11]]\n\nBefore we leave this period let me say something about _miriok_ and\nprinting-blocks. The word miriok has given me considerable trouble; I\ncannot learn whether it is a Korean or a Japanese word, or what was its\nfirst meaning, or whether it has anything to do with the word Miroku,\nthe name of \u201cthe coming Buddha.\u201d Anyway the name miriok is applied in\nKorea to a stone that is worshipped; it is sometimes a natural stone and\nsometimes artificially shaped to more or less of the form of a Buddha.\nThere are thousands of them in Korea. There are big miriok and little.\nMy belief is that they were at first simple, natural stones, with\nsomething about their shape which was suggestive. They might be natural\npinnacles, or rounded forms. Probably the old Koreans, long before the\ndays of Buddhism, worshipped such stones and chiefly in order that the\nfamily might be increased. It was probably barren women and childless\nmen who went to miriok and prayed for children. Then came Buddhism and\ntook over the stone-worship of the olden time. Later those miriok which\nwere artificially shaped to human form\u2014Buddha-like\u2014came into being. Were\nthere time, we would speak of various of the larger miriok in Korea,\nlike the great pair at Paju and the couple at Ansung. Of the largest,\nhowever, that at Eunjin,[2] we will say something. There are many\nstrange stories connected with it. It is apparently a natural pinnacle\nof rock, which has been carved into the shape of a Buddha; it is more\nthan fifty feet high and can be seen from a great distance; it is more\nthan nine hundred years old; in its present form it is even to-day\nworshipped by thousands of people; in the past there have been times\nwhen tens of thousands gathered at once to worship it. (Plate X.)\n\nIt is said that the stone suddenly appeared, pushing up from the ground\nand that it cried out with the voice of a boy; it was seen by a woman\nwho was gathering ferns for eating; when she reported the miracle it was\nconfirmed by an official inspection after which orders were given that\nit should be carved to its present form.\n\n                        [Illustration: PLATE IX\n                     Bodhisattva figure, Sukkul-am\n                                                               [Page 11]]\n\nNo land surpasses Korea in its abundance of local tales. Every hill,\nvalley, conspicuous rock, stream and pool of water has its story. Every\nmiriok of prominence in the country has traditions associated with it.\nThe one most commonly told of this great miriok runs as follows: A\ncountry man who had been to the capital, returning to his home passed\nthis great stone figure. He noticed a pear tree growing from the head,\nwhich bore several fine pears. The thought occurred to him to carry one\nof these to his village as a present for the magistrate. With infinite\ndifficulty he climbed up the smooth surface of the figure,\u2014the magnitude\nof the achievement will be evident from an inspection of the picture.\nWhen he reached the face and climbed over the lips he hesitated as to\nwhether to pass up through the nostril,\u2014a foolish procedure as it was a\nblind passage,\u2014or climb around the nose. He decided upon the former\nmethod and proceeded to worm his way into the opening. He experienced a\nmighty shock and, when he came to himself, found that he was lying on\nthe ground. His presence in the nostril had irritated the figure which\nhad sneezed, thus throwing him to the earth. Ruefully rubbing his\nbruises, he looked upward at the figure regretful for his lost effort.\nBut he had after all been fortunate and the same sneeze which had\ndislodged him had shaken one of the pears from the tree and it had\nfallen on the grass near by. Picking it up he hastened on his way\nrejoicing.\n\nThe second item connected with this period to which I wish to refer is\nthe cutting of wood-blocks for printing the entire Buddhist scriptures.\nThe set of blocks is still preserved in the ancient monastery of\nHain-sa. They were made during the reign of King Kojong and are seven\nhundred years old. There are eighty-one thousand of these blocks and\neach of them prints an entire page of a Buddhist text. Altogether they\nprint six thousand eight hundred and five volumes, one thousand five\nhundred and eleven different works. A special building is devoted to\ntheir preservation and they have been taken over by the Japanese\ngovernment as National Treasure. (Plates XII, XIII.) The blocks are said\nto represent the work of monks through fifteen years and the set is\nreputed the best in the world. Several years ago Count General Terauchi\nordered several copies of the Tripitaka printed from these blocks. One\nof these copies was presented to the Emperor and a second is preserved\nin the temple, Senyu-ji, Kyoto.\n\n                         [Illustration: PLATE X\n                   Great Miriok: Eunjin. General view\n                                                               [Page 24]]\n\nYi-Tajo came to power through an anti-Buddhist movement. Yet on the\nwhole he dealt leniently with the religion. He crippled it but did not\ndestroy it. Through the greater part of the Yi Dynasty, however,\nBuddhism was at serious disadvantage. Only for a short time under the\nking Seijo did it have a momentary revival. He ruled from 1456 to 1468.\nDuring his reign a splendid temple was built in Seoul of which we have\nan interesting contemporary description;[3] no sign of it remains\nto-day, but the beautiful pagoda erected at the same time, and the\nturtle-borne monumental stone recording the occasion of its construction\nare in existence in Pagoda Park at the center of the city.[4] This pious\nking was succeeded in 1469 by his young son, Chasan. His mother, the\nlate king\u2019s widow, was at first his regent but in 1472 he took the\nactual reins of power and almost his first act was to drive Buddhism out\nof Seoul. He not only abolished all the monasteries and temples in the\ncapital city, but in every city and town throughout the kingdom. The\npriests took refuge in the mountains and from that time down until these\nlatter days there have been no Buddhist temples in Korean cities. There\nhave only been monasteries in the mountains, often in inaccessible\nplaces.\n\nThose were drastic measures and under them Korean Buddhism suffered and\nsank to lowest ebb. It passed through hard times during four hundred\nyears and more of exile. Still the religion was not dead, and during\nthis period of test it even showed some signs of worth.\n\n                        [Illustration: PLATE XI\n        Group at Fukoan, branch of Sinkei-sa; Diamond Mountains\n                                                               [Page 47]]\n\nIn 1592, Hideyoshi sent his great army from Japan to conquer Korea. It\nwas under two generals, one a Christian and the other a Buddhist. The\ninvaders wrought great destruction in the unfortunate peninsula. Many of\nthe temples and monasteries in the mountains were destroyed, altars were\nstripped of treasures, monks and priests driven from their sanctuaries.\nDuring this invasion some of the priests showed themselves loyal, thus\nHulbert tells us:\n\n  Hyu-Chung, known throughout the Eight Provinces as the great teacher\n  of Sosan, was a man of great natural ability as well as of great\n  learning. His pupils were numbered by thousands and were found in\n  every province. He called together two thousand of them and appeared\n  before the king at Euiju and said: \u201cWe are of the common people, but\n  we are all the king\u2019s servants and two thousand of us have come to die\n  for Your Majesty.\u201d The king was much pleased by this demonstration of\n  loyalty and made Hyu-Chung a Priest-General and told him to go into\n  camp at Pop-Heung Monastery. He did so, and from that point sent out a\n  call to all the monasteries in the land. In Chulla province was a\n  warrior-monk, Ch\u2019oe-Yung and at Diamond Mountain another named\n  Yu-Chung. These came with over a thousand followers and went into camp\n  a few miles to the East of P\u2019yeng-Yang. They had no intention of\n  engaging in actual battle, but they acted as spies, took charge of the\n  commissariat and made themselves generally useful. During battle they\n  stood behind the troops and shouted encouragement. Yu-Chung, trusting\n  to his priestly garb, went into P\u2019yeng-Yang to see the Japanese\n  generals.\n\nThus we see, that notwithstanding the condition of poverty, ignorance\nand unimportance to which the Buddhist monks had sunk there were still\namong them teachers of great learning with crowds of students, who were\nready to serve their king in his hour of trial.\n\nIn 1660 a curious condition had arisen. With these mountain monasteries\nopen to all who came, they had become a refuge for the disaffected.\nSuppose a man had trouble with his family, he would become religious and\nretire to a monastery as a monk; if a man failed in business, he might\nfind refuge there; for one reason or another it was easy for a man who\nwas vicious or a failure or unhappy to seek escape in the mountain\nmonasteries. Thousands flocked to them until the government became\ndisturbed and about 1660 the king issued an edict \u201cthat no more men with\nfamily ties should desert them in this way and that all monks who had\nfamilies living should doff their religious garb and come back to the\nworld and support their families like honest men.\u201d\n\nNotwithstanding neglect, poverty, and limitations the monasteries showed\nremarkable recuperative power after the destruction wrought by\nHideyoshi\u2019s armies. Thus, Pawpchu-sa was practically destroyed and the\ngreat mass of fine buildings now there has been constructed since. Some\nof the great monasteries farther south also suffered severely; yet the\ndamage has been fully repaired. (Plate II.)\n\nNor did scholarship completely disappear in these later years. When Dr.\nLegge translated Fa-hien\u2019s diary into English, he had four editions of\nthe work at hand\u2014two Chinese, one Japanese and one Korean; the latter,\nwhich bears the date 1726, was the most satisfactory and was superior as\na piece of book-making.\n\n\n\n\n                            KOREAN BUDDHISM:\n                               CONDITION\n\n\nWith the exile of Buddhism to the mountains several results ensued. In\nthe first place each monastery became a thing by itself; there was no\nunity, no combination, no force in the movement of Buddhism as such,\nover the kingdom. In the second place, not being permitted to enter the\ncities, the Buddhist priests came to be looked upon with contempt by the\npeople; they were, of course, beggars, vowed to poverty\u2014they had always\nbeen that, but they had had respect; with their seclusion in the\nmountain monasteries they lost what honor had been attributed to them;\nthey became ignorant, vicious and depraved.\n\nIn his _History of Korea_ Dr. Hulbert says:\n\n  \u201cIn 1902, a very determined attempt to revive the Buddhist cult was\n  made. The Emperor consented to the establishment of a great central\n  monastery for the whole country in the vicinity of Seoul, and in it a\n  Buddhist high priest who was to control the whole church in the land.\n  It was a ludicrous attempt, because Buddhism in Korea is dead.\u201d\n\nRemember at just what point in the history of the nation this effort to\nrestore Buddhism took place. Japan\u2019s war against China was declared in\n1894; it ended in 1895, with the treaty of Shimonoseki; it was one of\nthe most important wars of recent times; it was fought over Korea\u2014in\norder to see whether Korea owed allegiance to China or was an\nindependent nation. From 1895 on, Korea was a hot-bed of world intrigue.\nChina, Russia, Japan, all were struggling on the peninsula for a\ncontinued foothold. Each was trying to gain advantage. From this\ncondition, in 1904 came the great war between Japan and Russia, which\nwas ended by the treaty of Portsmouth. It too, was a war on account of\nKorea. It decided the question as to whether Russian, or Chinese, or\nJapanese influence should preponderate. The year 1902 came right between\nthose two great wars, which were fought on account of Korea. In 1902 the\nman who had been King\u2014the last real representative of the Yi Dynasty had\nbecome Emperor. One of the results of the war of 1894 was to make Korea\nan empire, and her king an emperor. The effort to re-establish and\nrevive Buddhism was made then during this period of the empire.\n\nThe passage quoted from Hulbert was printed in 1905. It referred to an\nattempt made in 1902, which he says failed, since Buddhism was dead.\nTo-day is 1918. I have been visiting Korea since 1911 and have seen what\nseems to be definite growth and revival of the old religion. Buddhism\nappears to-day to be very far from dead in Korea. It shows signs of\nactive life and there may be prospects of its future growth and large\ndevelopment.\n\n                        [Illustration: PLATE XII\n                 Hain-sa: Building for the Wood-blocks\n                                                               [Page 27]]\n\nThe monasteries of Korea are under control of thirty head\nmonasteries.[5] Some of these have only two or three unimportant\nsubordinate monasteries, but others are the heads of really great\ngroups. For instance, Yuchom-sa, in the heart of the Diamond Mountains,\nis the head of forty monasteries in that remarkable mass of peaks\n(Plates III, XVII); Pongeum-sa, which is near Seoul, is said to be the\nhead of eighty-six monasteries. These head monasteries in 1902 had\nbecome greatly reduced in property, membership, influence and splendor.\nThey were estranged from each other. There was no feeling of unity among\nthem. Each monastery was a thing by itself and decay and corruption were\neverywhere evident.\n\nBut about six years ago the priests of these thirty head monasteries\ncame together; they held a great meeting and discussed their common\ninterests; they decided that union was necessary and a forward movement,\na thing such as was tried in 1902 and which failed then. It was tried\nagain and has not failed. They elected a president of their commission,\nwith a term of office of one year. His whole time is devoted to the\ninterests of united Korean Buddhism for that year. (Plate I.) They\nbought property in the city of Seoul and erected a central building,\npartly temple and partly office building. The expenses of this head\noffice are borne by the thirty temples in proportion to their importance\nand wealth. The monasteries are graded into five groups and each\ncontributes annually a set sum for the advancement of Buddhism in the\npeninsula.\n\nWhile in Seoul last year, I visited a theological seminary of Buddhism.\nIt has a good location in a desirable part of the city; it occupies a\nfine old Korean building; it has a corps of teachers of some ability; I\nfound sixty-five students in attendance. The institution had been\nrunning for about three years. Most of the students were already\nconnected with some of the mountain monasteries; they had come in for\ninformation, for improvement, for further study; they were looking\nforward to return to their temples with new strength and vigor for their\nwork. The young men with whom I talked seemed to be earnestly interested\nand anxious for improvement. A definite course of three years\ninstruction is offered to them. The number of students has grown\nsteadily and no doubt the time will come when there will be hundreds of\nstudents in this institution.\n\nThere is to-day a magazine conducted in the interests of Korean\nBuddhism. It has been published for something like six years. The\nhistory of the editor, Yi Nung Hwa, is rather interesting.[6] His father\nis a pillar of the Presbyterian Church in Seoul, one of the most\nsuccessful of the mission churches. The young man himself was educated\nin Catholic schools in Seoul; his education came from foreigners, and he\nis now official interpreter for the Belgian Consul; but he finds his\npleasure and outside interest in this magazine for the advancement of\nKorean Buddhism. Son of a Presbyterian Elder, trained in Catholic\nschools, speaking French, Korean, Chinese and Japanese, professionally\nengaged in service at a foreign consulate, he is the editor of a\nmagazine for Buddhist propaganda!\n\nMr. Yi is also the author of a history of Korean Buddhism, which had not\nyet been printed when I saw him. It is, I think, the only history that\nhas been written covering the entire field of Korean Buddhism.\nEverything that is printed in Korea must pass under the eye of the\nJapanese government, and can be printed only with its permission. It\nmakes no difference whether the material is secular or religious,\nsocial, economic, literary or political. At the time when we were\nspeaking about his book it had been sent in to the government for\nexamination. It is to be hoped that it was approved and that permission\nwas given for its publication. A book of that kind would have importance\nand no such book exists, in any modern form certainly, for popular\nreading.\n\n                       [Illustration: PLATE XIII\n            Hain-sa: Building for the Wood-blocks, interior\n                                                               [Page 27]]\n\nOne of the most interesting things in connection with this modern\nmovement of Korean Buddhism, and one which seems to show that it has\nreal vitality, is the fact that Buddhist books for common reading are\nbeing printed. Most Korean books are printed in Chinese characters and\nare thus sealed to the common people; they can be read only by scholars\nor people of considerable education. Yet Korea is said to have invented\none of the most perfect systems of writing that the world has seen. It\nis known as the _on-mun_ and is competent to write the language\nperfectly and easily. But scholars in Korea have never used the\n_on-mun_; it has been considered suitable only for the ignorant, for\nwomen and children. If a book is to reach the common people, however,\nand be widely read, it should be printed in _on-mun_. The books issued\nby the foreign missionaries in their propaganda have been printed in\n_on-mun_, or in a mixed script of Chinese character and _on-mun_. The\nfact that several Buddhist books have recently appeared printed in\n_on-mun_ shows that Korean Buddhism is reaching out after the common\npeople.\n\nTwo of these books deserve special mention. One is called the \u201cEight\nScenes from the Life of Buddha.\u201d It follows quite closely the story of\nBuddha\u2019s life as told in other countries. The book is widely offered at\nbook stores and street stalls and is said to have considerable sale.\nMore interesting than it, however, is the allegory called _Sei-yeu-ki_.\nYou remember that in the seventh century a Chinese pilgrim, Hiouen\nTsiang, went on foot from China to India, and that he came back loaded\nwith books and images for use in religious worship. That pilgrim was\nreally a historic character, and he wrote an account of his journey, a\nsimple and charming diary of travel. His book was called _Sei-yeu-ki_,\nwhich in its English translation appears under the title of \u201cA Report of\nBuddhist Kingdoms.\u201d In it he described the countries through which he\nhad passed, the monasteries and temples which he had seen, and the\nadventures he had undergone. Now in the thirteenth century a Chinese\nmonk wrote a book with almost the same name. As pronounced there is\nscarcely any difference; when the names are written they are easily\ndistinguished. The writer intended to imitate the name of the diary of\nthe old pilgrim. In his story, he says that a certain man named\nHiouen-Tsiang\u2014he uses the actual name of the old pilgrim\u2014goes on a\njourney to the West for books, idols and information, just as the real\npilgrim did; but instead of telling a true and simple story this man\nwrites an allegory something of the nature of \u201cPilgrim\u2019s Progress.\u201d It\nis full of astonishing adventures. It seems that the Emperor of China\ndied and came to life again. He determined to send Hiouen-Tsiang, \u201cthe\nMaster,\u201d to the West for books, idols and pictures. The Master started\nupon his errand and as he travelled picked up a strange group of\ncomrades. The Emperor had given him a white horse, and of course he had\nto have a boy to take care of it; in addition he had for companions and\nhelpers a monkey and a pig. The master and his three human companions\nwere gone, like the real pilgrim, about fifteen years; they travelled,\nof course, through the same countries, but had startling adventures. The\nmaster was very pious, but unpractical; in fact he was a weak subject\nfor the hero of a story. But the monkey was fine, and when they got into\ntrouble it was always the monkey who rescued them. When the master,\nthrough his lack of knowledge, and practical experience, was caught by\nthe most palpable traps and tricks only the monkey could rescue him. Yet\nthey all abused the poor creature. All were jealous of him and on the\nslightest occasion pig or boy or horse urged the master to make the\nmagic hat equipped with thorns and pins squeeze and hurt the monkey\u2019s\nhead in order \u201cthat he shall not become proud.\u201d It is really an\ninteresting and beautiful allegory. It has recently been translated into\nEnglish by a missionary in China and anyone who wishes may read it. For\nhundreds of years it has been read in the original Chinese by Chinese,\nKoreans and Japanese. To-day Koreans may read it in their own language,\nprinted in _on-mun_.\n\nAll these signs of life seem to show that Korean Buddhism is far from\ndead. It is coming forth from its mountain exile and bids fair to make\nitself felt in the future.\n\nLet us examine for a moment the organization of an ordinary monastery.\nThe monasteries are scattered through the mountains. Many of them are in\nremote places and it is difficult to reach them. Some are so far back\nthat it would be impossible for them to go farther. I have no fears that\nordinary tourists will spoil my delight in Pawpchu-sa, or Hain-sa, or\nYu-chom-sa. If one desires to see them he must pay the price. Take\nPawpchu-sa for instance. To see it we dismounted from the railroad train\nand took a Ford car across country ten miles to a little district\ncapital; the next day, by government automobile, we went out over a road\nwhich had just been put in good order\u2014there was only one break in it\nthat was serious; for forty miles we travelled over this mountain road,\ndeeper and deeper among the hills, up and up into the narrowing valley,\nuntil with mountains on all sides of us we reached the village of Poun.\nThere we abandoned the automobile. The party went by horses, but a chair\nhad been provided for my benefit. I hate chairs, and would have much\npreferred a horse, though Korean horses are little creatures and\ndisagreeable. Their gait is as bad as anything one can imagine; there is\nnothing like a saddle, but only a broad cushion, without stirrups, and\nthe traveller\u2019s legs hang down over the front of the cushion, one foot\non each side of the horse\u2019s neck and the rider has no control whatever\nover the horse; nor has anyone else, although the _mapu_, or \u201cboy,\u201d runs\nalong beside and hangs on to the halter or strikes the beast with stick\nor whip. I hate a Korean horse, but I hate a chair worse. However, we\nstarted, the rest on horses. When we had gone about half a mile the\nchair carriers, though professionals, declared they could go no farther;\nthis, of course, was a mere question of weight; it was, however, a great\nrelief to me. Promptly an exchange was made with my little Japanese\nphotographer and interpreter, who took the chair, while I mounted his\nhorse\u2014the smallest and weakest of the outfit. We travelled on and on for\nmiles; we passed one ridge behind another and another and another, until\nat last we reached Pawpchu-sa. Anyone who really journeys to Pawpchu-sa\nhas my regard and blessing.\n\n                        [Illustration: PLATE XIV\n             Great Buddha relief on rock face: Inner Kongo\n                                                               [Page 70]]\n\nThe trip to Hain-sa, where the woodblocks are preserved, is a trying\none. We went by _basha_. Japanese _bashas_ are bad; the Japanese\nthemselves think them far superior to Korean, but I prefer the latter. A\n_basha_ is made for six passengers, but usually carries eight. The\nJapanese _basha_ has two benches running lengthwise at the sides; three\npersons fill a bench, four overfill one. The driver sits in front and a\nsingle horse moves the conveyance. Such is the Japanese _basha_. The\nKorean vehicle has no benches at the sides like the Japanese affair; the\npassengers sit upon the floor with thin, rush mats under them, probably\nto keep the floor of the vehicle clean; there are no springs and the\nroads are rough. After travelling sitting on the springless floor for\nthirty-two miles, we abandoned the _basha_, as there was no longer a\ncart-road, and rode about seventeen miles on horses; it was like\ntravelling over Mexican trails. Thus we reached Hain-sa. I do not\nbegrudge a visit to Hain-sa to any person; those who make the journey\ndeserve to be treated as friends and brothers.\n\nEach monastery has its official corps. First comes the head priest. He\nhas a hard time of it. He has to deal with the outside world and to\noversee everything; he is business manager; he has little to do with\nspiritual direction, but has to settle all the quarrels and deal with\nall the problems that present themselves to the monastery; he gets all\nthe hard work and shoulders all the blame. He receives, however, some\nextra rice and is entitled to an extraordinary exhibition of respect. He\nhas a councillor to help him in problems of a serious nature. Next comes\nthe religious head, who leads the services and sees that they are\nproperly observed. The first religious service of the day comes at three\no\u2019clock A.M. At that hour the visitor hears the bells and gongs and the\ndroning of songs and prayers. The people of the monastery all turn out\nto early service. There may be other services throughout the day; there\nare also times of meditation, and in special halls, where no disturbance\nis permitted, persons spend hours or entire days in silence and pious\nthought. There is always a steward whose business it is to attend to the\nfood supply of the entire monastery. In a monastery of a hundred and\nfifty or two hundred persons in a remote mountain district, the\nsteward\u2019s work is important and exacting. At every monastery there are,\nof course, one or two cooks, whose business it is to prepare the food.\nThere is regularly also, a group of little fellows, boys from ten to\nfifteen years of age, whose business it is to help these others on every\noccasion when help is needed. These boys have little in the way of\nreligious duties, but sweeping and cleaning, errands, burden carrying\nand hard work in general falls on them. (Plate XI.)\n\nThe balance of the population in a monastery is devoted to religious\nliving. These include three different kinds of persons\u2014priests, acolytes\nand orphans. The monasteries have always been orphan asylums. When a\nchild in the country around is left without parents or other proper\nguardians he is usually sent to the mountain monastery; unless the\nunexpected happens he will grow up in the way of religion and become a\npriest or monk when the time arrives.\n\nMany young men come in from the outside world for purposes of\ninstruction. They look forward to becoming monks, but during their\nperiod of study they let their hair grow long, dress as outsiders and\nare regarded as still belonging to the world. Most of them, however,\ncarry out their intention and remain permanently in the monastery.\nThirdly, there are the regular monks and priests. They are dressed, of\ncourse, in characteristic style, and their heads are shaved. They live\non vegetarian food and are vowed to celibacy. At some of the more\nimportant monasteries there is a resident teacher, but most of them\ndepend upon a teacher sent from the head temple. The greeting given him\nwhen he arrives is beautiful to see. All know when he is expected, and\nat the hour they go in procession, dressed in their best robes, out to\nthe farthest gate to meet him. When he arrives all but the head priest\nprostrate themselves so that they actually grovel in the dust. Then,\naccompanying him, with the head priest walking before, the whole company\ngoes back to the monastery and the teaching almost immediately begins.\nHe barely takes a little refreshment and rests a bit before he\nundertakes his duties. During the period of his stay the teaching\ncontinues throughout the day. One class or group comes in after another;\nthe teaching is sometimes from books, sometimes from the teacher\u2019s own\nexperience and knowledge.\n\n                        [Illustration: PLATE XV\n                    Sari monument to Muhak: Hoiam-sa\n                                                               [Page 73]]\n\nAre the monasteries really places of great learning; are they centers of\ndeep piety? It is hard to tell and much depends on one\u2019s definition.\n\nWe must remember that there are two vastly different kinds of Buddhism.\nThey are almost opposite; the one is certainly the negation of the\nother. The first is the Buddhism which the actual Buddha taught. You\nremember that he was an historic character, who lived at about five\nhundred years before Christ. An Indian prince, he is known under various\nnames as Sakyamuni, Siddartha and Gautama. He pondered much over the\nproblems of life and devoted himself to the solution of mysteries; he\ntried asceticism and listened to one teacher after another; he wandered,\nmeditated, fasted; he finally reached enlightenment. He decided that\nlife was an illusion and a snare which one would gladly be rid of; he\ndiscovered that the chain that bound one to this existence could be\nbroken. Release comes from careful conduct; it comes through right\nliving, and right thinking; it comes in course of time, after many many\nexistences; through right living in one life man gathers _karma_ which\ncarries him to higher and higher stages until at last he becomes a great\nscholar; finally he becomes a Bodhisattva, which is but one step from\nBuddha-hood; and finally, from a Bodhisattva, through enlightenment, he\nbecomes a true Buddha and when his earthly life ends, passes out into\noblivion, blissful, calm nothingness.\n\nBuddha was one of the greatest of world teachers. His teaching was\nsimple; we may work out release gradually from the thraldom into which\nwe are born; through careful thought and right living we may pass from\nstage to stage until at last we merge into infinity and lose our\nindividuality.\n\n                        [Illustration: PLATE XVI\n          Head-priest and Pagoda: Sinkei-sa, Diamond Mountains\n                                                               [Page 74]]\n\nBuddha taught that we end in _Nirvana_; his doctrine was a revolt\nagainst the idea of an individual soul that lives forever; in his\nreligion there were no figures, no idols, nothing for worship. Buddhism\nproper taught nothing about gods. It simply taught men to strive for\nenlightenment, to become Buddhas and to pass out into _Nirvana_.\n\nBut this is not the Buddhism of China, Korea or Japan. The Buddhism of\nthese three countries recognizes an individual soul that continues. It\nhas scores of gods and represents them by images or idols; the man who\nlives to-day does not try to work out salvation for himself through\nstage after stage of higher living. On the contrary he seeks salvation\nthrough another and that other is Amida Buddha. The Koreans call him\nAmida Pul. You may see them any day standing outside the temples\nrepeating over and over again the formula, \u201cNamu Amida Pul, Namu Amida\nPul, Namu Amida Pul.\u201d They are thereby gaining salvation; through faith\nin Amida they will reach the Western Paradise. There was no Western\nParadise in Buddha\u2019s teaching; there was no continued existence of the\nhuman soul; there was no one through whom men might be saved; one must\nwork out his own salvation. But in this second Buddhism, any person in a\nsingle moment may gain salvation. It makes no difference whether a man\nhas led a good or evil life, death-bed repentance may save him. A man\ndoes nothing for himself; faith only through the merit of another wins\nsalvation\u2014it sounds like good Presbyterian doctrine.\n\nIt is evident that these two forms of Buddhism could not diverge more\nwidely than they do. The early Buddhism taught by Sakyamuni is called\n_Hinayana_ or the \u201cLittle Vehicle.\u201d The other form is known as\n_Mahayana_ the \u201cGreat Vehicle.\u201d Korean Buddhism is and for the most part\nalways has been _Mahayana_, yet in the Buddhist temples of the Korean\nmonasteries one finds many a figure of Sakyamuni and the worshippers\nseem totally unconscious of their inconsistency and of the fact that\ntheir worship of Sakya is a contradiction in terms.\n\n                       [Illustration: PLATE XVII\n               Main Temple: Yuchom-sa, Diamond Mountains\n                                                               [Page 35]]\n\nThis leads us to inquire regarding sects. Japanese Buddhism is divided\ninto many. Thus we may speak of Shingon, Jodo, Zen, or Nichiren Buddhism\nthere. Each of these names stands for a definite system of doctrinal\nbelief. Every student of Buddhism in Japan knows the fundamental\ndifferences upon which the dozen or more Japanese Buddhist sects are\nbased. Knowing something of these divisions in Japan it was natural to\nask on coming into contact with Korean Buddhism what sects they have.\nThe answer was always immediate and glibly given. \u201cWe have two\nsects\u2014_Syen_ and _Kyo_.\u201d\n\nThis was said everywhere, but I cannot see that there is anything in\nKorean Buddhism like the sects of Japan. In Shingon there is a whole\nseries of doctrines and beliefs and practices; so in Zen, so in every\nother sect. Every person belonging to a given sect holds those dogmas\nand practises those ceremonials characteristic of his sect. No man is at\nonce Shingon and Zen. But in a Korean monastery we find Syen people\nmeditating and Kyo people reading and to-morrow the situation will be\nreversed, and it seems as if the terms apply merely to two modes of\ndiscipline, not to actually different sects. At all events in the same\nmonastery we regularly find Syen and Kyo.\n\nThe texts of Mahayana Buddhism were originally in Sanskrit. They have\nbeen translated into Chinese and it is in their Chinese form that they\nare generally studied in China, Korea and Japan.[7] In Korean\nmonasteries we not infrequently find books that are printed, at least in\npart, in Sanskrit characters. Do the Korean monks know the Sanskrit\nlanguage? Far from it. I doubt whether there are a half-dozen priests in\nall Korea who know anything whatever of the language.\n\nAt every temple one may secure _tarani_. A _tarani_ is a sheet of paper\nwith something printed on it in red from a wood-block. The wood-blocks\nat the different temples vary and while most of the characters in the\nprinting are Chinese, there is a sprinkling of Sanskrit. A _tarani_ is a\nsort of passport to the Western Paradise and it is supplied for burial\nwith the dead. When a man is burned or buried a _tarani_ is placed with\nhis body. We secured them from almost every monastery visited. Perhaps\nno priest in Korea can read them. We saw, however, at one monastery, an\nold book concerning _tarani_, and it seems probable that these texts\nhave been copied from such books. About sixty years ago there seems to\nhave been a special fancy for cutting these wood-blocks for printing\n_tarani_ and most of those we saw date from that time.\n\nInteresting are _sari_ monuments. As we neared Yuchom-sa we passed ten\nor twelve stone monuments with a square base, a swelling body and\ndecorated tip. We were told that these were _sari_ stones and that in\nthem a _sari_ or \u201cjewel\u201d was buried. These _sari_ are curious things. It\nis said that when the body of a monk of special piety is burned a little\npebble will be found among the ashes. It is irregular in form, clearly\nshows fusion, and looks a little like a gem or crystal. It is believed\nthat it has been formed from the elements of the dead body, and they say\nthat only about one man out of four hundred gives rise to one of these\n_sari_.\n\n                       [Illustration: PLATE XVIII\n                         Carved Door: Yuchom-sa\n                                                               [Page 82]]\n\nI had always had my doubts about them. One day at Songkwang-sa, where\nthe monks are exceptionally depraved, a policeman was with us to see\nthat nothing happened. Coming to some _sari_ stones we asked a monk\nabout them. He told us the same story that we had heard before and we\nasked him if he really believed that it was true. He answered, \u201cO yes,\nsurely it is true.\u201d The policeman, however, expressed vigorous doubt.\nThe monk replied, \u201cYou don\u2019t believe it, I will show you.\u201d So we\nproceeded to tear a _sari_ monument to pieces! It seemed a shocking\nthing to do. We took off the top stone, and laid it by, and then turned\nthe main stone upside down. At the center was a little cavity which was\nneatly covered with a thin sheet or disk of earthenware; removing this\nwe found inside a hole filled with packing, in which was a small tin\ncapsule bearing an inscription. This was said to be the name of the man\nwho had honored the dead priest by erecting the monument to him. Opening\nthe capsule it was found to contain some packing in the midst of which\nwas the little gem\u2014all that remained to represent the worthy dead man.\nWe put it back with care, replaced the packing, closed the capsule,\nrepacked it and reconstructed the monument as it had been originally. No\ndoubt all these _sari_ stones really contain some such relic. That\npoliceman had his doubts\u2014I still have doubts as to just what _sari_ are,\nbut it seems certain that all _sari_ stones really have _sari_ in them.\n\n                        [Illustration: PLATE XIX\n              Brahmanic Guardian of Buddhism: Songkwang-sa\n                                                               [Page 79]]\n\nThere is no question that there is much ignorance and even vice among\nthe monks. In this monastery where we examined the matter of _sari_\nstones there were only five men, poor, ignorant fellows. We early\nnoticed that the head priest there lacked a tooth, but only found after\nwe had left the place that the most devout of the five monks had knocked\nit out the day before, having had a fight with his superior. The\nneighbors told us that that monastery was a place of constant disorder\nand bad conduct.\n\nAt one monastery we were even moved to give a lesson in behavior. Here\nwe were accompanied by a Japanese policeman; he was with us to protect\nand give such aid as possible, but was absolutely of no use. The monks\nreceived us coldly, answered a few questions and then disappeared.\nUnaccustomed to such treatment, I complained to the policeman who\nreplied, \u201cThis monastery has a very bad name in all this district; the\nmonks are avaricious; they are thieves; they always treat visitors\nbadly; they do nothing unless they are well paid. That is why I came\nwith you.\u201d I replied, \u201cWhy don\u2019t you do something, then? Tell them to\ncome out and do their duty.\u201d He shook his head sadly and said, \u201cYou do\nnot know the reputation of this temple hereabouts; it has a very bad\nname indeed.\u201d\n\nSo turning to my interpreter I said, \u201cWe must deal with this problem\nright here.\u201d Calling a priest I said to him, \u201cI understand that in this\nmonastery you have a bad name; there is no time to waste; we want no\ndelays; call every monk and priest here at once.\u201d\n\n                        [Illustration: PLATE XXa\n            Deva King, Guardian of World Quarter: Sukwang-sa\n                                                               [Page 79]]\n\n                        [Illustration: PLATE XXb\n            Deva King, Guardian of World Quarter: Sukwang-sa\n                                                               [Page 79]]\n\nHe did so, and when they had come I placed them in a semicircle before\nme and spoke to them. \u201cYou are Buddhists; you bear the name of Buddha, a\ngreat teacher; he was kind and good and cared nothing for money; he\ndesired to help people and make them better, and people who are\nBuddhists should be like him; I am told that you are avaricious and when\nvisitors come here you treat them with unkindness and discourtesy unless\nthey pay you well; I shall pay you nothing, but I want you to think of\nthe disgrace you bring upon your name by such conduct; I am visiting the\nmonasteries because I wish to see whether Buddhism is a living force in\nthis land; I wish to see how you monks live and what your conduct is,\nand what the people say about you; go back to your rooms and think over\nwhat I have said; as I go from place to place, looking at things here, I\nexpect to have them open, and I wish you to treat me as a brother and a\nfriend; remember that others who may come after me deserve equally good\ntreatment; it is a shame to bring disgrace upon a cause.\u201d\n\nWell, there was an instant conversion. Poor, ignorant fellows, living in\ntheir remote mountain monastery, how should they know better? They gave\nme honey water and popped rice; they showed me their buildings and their\ntreasure; they begged that I would come again and some accompanied me,\nwhen I was leaving, down to the outer gate.\n\nAs for ignorance, it is probable that very few of them could pass\nexamination on any kind of Buddhism, whether Hinayana or Mahayana. What\nmore could be expected? Surely we can scarcely throw stones. What do\nmost of us know about Christian doctrine? How wise religiously are the\ncommon people in our churches? In a recent newspaper it was stated that\na man among us asked five professional men about the Holy Ghost. Do you\nsuppose he got much in the way of a satisfactory answer? In reality he\ngot nothing. All these educated men had other business than to know\nabout the Holy Ghost. They were not well informed in regard to the\nreligion in which they had been reared; and yet we expect Buddhists, who\nhave been exiled in mountain monasteries for four hundred years to know\nso much!\n\n                        [Illustration: PLATE XXI\n       Gigantic Deva King, Guardian of World Quarter: Pawpchu-sa\n          (The Korean standing by is a man of normal stature)\n                                                               [Page 80]]\n\nHow is the population of the monasteries maintained? Whence do new\nmembers come to-day? There is, of course, always a supply of orphan\nchildren, few of whom ever go back into the world after they have been\nbrought up in monastery surroundings. Other people drift in for many\nreasons. Men who have lost their friends and relatives by death often go\nto the monasteries. So do those who fail in business, or who have been\ndisappointed in life enterprises. The head-priest of one small, but very\nfamous, ancient monastery, only recently became religious; he had been\nemployed as a janitor or helper in a Buddhist temple of Japanese in a\nKorean city and became interested and attracted. The head-priest of one\nof my favorite monasteries was in the world until he had reached the age\nof fifty years or more; he had been in military service and I believe,\nhad risen to the rank of Colonel; getting on in years, however, he began\nto think seriously of religious matters and retreated to the monastery.\nWith one young priest at Yuchom-sa in the Diamond Mountains we talked\nfor hours, until midnight. He was genuine; he had the spirit of true\nreligion; he was a thinker and was in the monastery from principle.\nThere are no doubt many like him.\n\nWe were at Tongdo-sa on Buddha\u2019s birthday. It is one of the great\nmonasteries of the South. They knew we were coming and therefore we\nfound a place to sleep. When we were within three or four miles of it we\nfound ourselves in a crowd of persons going up to the celebration. The\nnearest railway station is about ten miles away. Most of the people,\nhowever, had walked from their homes. It is a mountain district,\nsparsely settled; there are surely only two or three towns of any size\nwithin fifteen miles of the place. When we reached the monastery we\nfound one of the liveliest scenes we ever witnessed in Korea. The\nhead-priest told us that ten thousand people slept on the grounds of the\ntemple that night. The majority of them were women. Of course, _that_\nwould have been true if it had been a Presbyterian gathering. We were\ntwo nights there. On the full day that we spent with them a wonderful\ncrowd of people was present; there were a few Japanese\u2014a teacher and one\nor two officials\u2014but apart from these the multitude was Korean. Probably\nfifteen thousand people were there that day. We found that one of the\nevents of that evening was a moving-picture show in one of the monastery\nbuildings. The life of Buddha was to be represented in moving pictures.\nAll this does not look much like death! It is said that at the other\nhead monasteries there were proportionately equal crowds.\n\nWe often asked what efforts were being made at monasteries for general\nimprovement and helping the outside world. The purpose of a monastery,\nof course, is not related to such undertakings. In all religions, at all\ntimes, monasteries have been only for persons who were seeking\nindividual improvement or salvation. In their very essence they are not\nphilanthropic or reform movements. Still, with the lack of temples in\nthe cities and definite teaching of the people through them, it might\nseem as if something would be undertaken by the monasteries. In reality\nthere is much more in this direction than could be expected. At several\nof the monasteries there is a school for outside children; some have\nundertaken a definite work of teaching and some others realize that they\nhave a genuine opportunity to aid in the elevation of the country. More\nand more the monasteries seem to awake to the existence of these\npossibilities.\n\nKorean Buddhism has, perhaps, a political part to play. When the\nJapanese took over Korea, Buddhists came into the country in great\nnumbers. Japanese priests and temples came with these settlers. These\npriests and temples are in the cities and larger towns. They do not,\nhowever, fit with the Koreans. There might be thousands of them and they\nwould still not make Korean converts\u2014not because the Japanese are not\nready to do mission work, but because the Koreans are not ready to\naccept it. The Korean Buddhism of to-day is actually Korean, not\nJapanese.\n\nI can imagine nothing that would be more dangerous to Japanese control\nthan a strong and vital Korean Buddhism that was hostile to Japan. On\nthe other hand, I can think of nothing that would be a greater help to\nJapan than a Korean Buddhism developed among those people by their own\npriests and friendly to Japan. What Korean Buddhism is to be in the\nfuture depends upon its relation to the government now there. If Korean\nBuddhism accepts and co\u00f6perates with the Japanese control, it will\nbecome the mightiest factor that can be devised to make Japan\u2019s hold on\nthe peninsula secure. If hostile to Japan, when the crisis comes, as it\nsurely will come, when Japan will be tried out again and once for all on\nKorean soil, Korean Buddhism may be the decisive element in that moment\nof test.\n\n\n\n\n                          KOREAN BUDDHISM: ART\n\n\nTo-night we are to consider art in Korean Buddhism. We shall examine it\nunder six different forms\u2014scenery, sculpture in stone, wood carving,\narchitecture, images or idols and painting.\n\nPerhaps it scarcely seems to you as if scenery\u2014real landscape, not\nlandscape painting\u2014were art. In the Orient, however, it is surely such.\nEastern peoples have for hundreds of years been passionately fond of the\nbeautiful in nature. Chinese, Koreans, Japanese will travel on foot or\nby any possible conveyance many miles to see a famous view. They locate\ntheir houses in pretty places; they build temples and shrines upon\ncommanding points. When the Korean monks, in the fifteenth century, were\ncompelled to take refuge in the mountains, they located their buildings\nin surroundings harmonious to the religion. Their locations have been\nchosen with great care. And there is much more in scenery than the\ncareless spectator thinks; for the Oriental scenery always contains\nsomething of the esoteric.\n\n                       [Illustration: PLATE XXII\nWall Painting: the White Tortoise Scene of the _Sei-yeu-ki_: Pongeum-sa\n                                                               [Page 83]]\n\nFor example, think of the Diamond Mountains. They are a remarkable\ntangle of peaks and ridges; measuring only thirty or forty miles across,\nthe area is more or less elliptical in form; it is called \u201cthe twelve\nthousand peaks\u201d or summits. The Diamond Mountains have been famous for\ntwo thousand years, and famous not only in Korea, but in China and\nJapan. They have been the theme of hundreds of poems and have furnished\nmaterial for scores of books, some of them hundreds of years old.\nArtists have delighted in depicting their beauties. The Diamond\nMountains with their twelve thousand peaks are divided into two\nportions. The name Diamond Mountains in itself is most suggestive; the\ndiamond is one of the most precious symbols in Buddhism\u2014indicating\npurity, clearness, brightness\u2014and Korean Buddhism was a religion of\nlight and illumination. The two divisions of the Diamond Mountains are\nknown as the Inner and the Outer Kongo. The traveller may visit the\nouter region and realize but little of the true significance of\nKongo-San. In the Inner Kongo every outstanding rock is significant.\nEvery building has been placed with reference to some hidden meaning of\nthe landscape, and with every step the visitor goes deeper and deeper\ninto mystery.\n\nLet us approach a mountain monastery. The trail is well marked long\nbefore we see the buildings. Once upon the grounds we come to some of\nthose carved posts or pillars, devil posts, _changson_, which were\nillustrated in the preceding lecture, and were no doubt taken over from\nthe old-time paganism. We pass through the outer gate. All the gates\nbear names significant to the thoughtful worshipper. We pass through\ngate after gate like \u201cthe gateway of Life,\u201d \u201cthe gate of All-powerful\nTruth,\u201d \u201cthe gate of Illumination.\u201d Many of these gates are pavilions,\nresting-places, whence one may view the scenery, or visit with\ncompanions, or meditate in preparation for worship. As we approach the\nbuildings we may find ourselves in a narrowing valley, or passing some\ncascade. All the rock cliffs have been seized and utilized and bear\ninscriptions, beautifully cut into the stone material. We see the\nformula, constantly on the tongue of Korean Buddhists, _Namu Amida Pul_,\nnot once or dozens of times, but everywhere, repeated hundreds of times\nover. The _Daimon_, or great gateway, is the last; it signifies the gate\nof death through which we reach the heavenly life.\n\n                       [Illustration: PLATE XXIII\n                 Wall Paintings on Plaster: Sukwang-sa\n                                                               [Page 85]]\n\nAt last we come to the mass of monastery buildings. Every temple has its\nname marked clearly on it, sometimes the names themselves are\nsuggestive, helping the worshipper to clearer thought and serious\nmeditation.\n\nThe second form of art is sculpture in stone. We have already mentioned\nthe formul\u00e6 and other inscriptions cut upon the cliffs. To the Oriental\neye they are as beautiful and represent as much artistic skill as\nfigures would. There are, however, also on the natural rock faces,\ndesigns and figures cut in low relief, which we find in the most\nunexpected places. In the Inner Kongo there are many great\nrepresentations of the Buddhas cut upon the vertical rock face. Here,\nfor instance, are three figures, twenty feet in height, one of the great\nBuddhist trinities. Again, there is a representation of Monju, of even\ngreater size. (Plate XIV.) On another face of rocks are the figures of\nthe famous fifty-three Buddhas who came so long ago to live and die\namong the Diamond Mountains.\n\n                       [Illustration: PLATE XXIV\n  Great figures of Buddhist Trinity, seated: Pawpchu-sa. Sakya, Monju,\n                                 Fugen\n                                                               [Page 88]]\n\nIn a former lecture we referred to the cave chapel of Sukkul-am. It is\nfull of beauty. Excavated in the slope near a great ridge summit, it\nlooks out upon the Eastern Sea. In the old days it was approached by a\nfine flight of steps. From its summit a passageway led to the\nsubterranean chamber. It was bordered on both sides by slabs carved with\nfigures in high relief. Here are the two guardian demons, the four kings\nof the cardinal points, the six generals. Passing between them we reach\nthe little circular chapel, about thirty feet across, subterraneously\nsituated in the hillside. Its low, vaulted roof is an ingenious and\nwonderful construction. The surrounding walls are filled with slabs\nbearing fine carvings. Here are three splendid figures of Bodhisattvas,\nwith boat-shaped haloes, three other figures of Bodhisattvas with round\nhaloes, and distributed between them the ten first disciples of the\nGreat Teacher. These ten figures present marvellous detail of feature;\nnot only personal differences, but race differences are sharply brought\nout; more than that the figures were originally colored, and no doubt,\ndifferent races are indicated by the different tints. There is no\nquestion that individuals of different races were among the first\ndisciples of the Buddha. And in the center of all this beauty, this\nflowering of ancient art, sits the stone Buddha, on his lotus pedestal.\nIt is a monolith, cut from a block of stone about eleven feet in height.\nIt is beautiful in pose, in feature, and in expression. For almost\nfifteen hundred years it has sat there calmly looking out upon the\nEastern Sea. Every morning it is greeted by the rising sun.\n\nBesides figures cut in high relief, the old artists made full sculptures\nin the round. Such, of course, was the Buddha figure, just described.\nSuch are the great miriok, sculptured from natural rock pinnacles, like\nthe one at Eunjin. You may remember the picture of a giant lotus\npedestal, lying in the courtyard of Kumsan-sa (Plates V, VI), which we\nshowed you in the first lecture; it is at least a thousand years of age.\nIn the same courtyard, you remember that we saw a little tower or pagoda\nof stone, thirteen stories high, but in reality no taller than a man. At\nPawpchu-sa there is that splendid bowl of stone, more than twelve\nhundred years of age, which in its time, no doubt, was filled with pure\nwater for the cleansing of the hands and mouth of worshippers. Sometimes\nwe find stone lanterns and occasionally these are supported by animal\nfigures in caryatid forms. Then there are the _sari_ stones and altars\nand turtle-borne monuments.\n\n                        [Illustration: PLATE XXV\nGreat figures of Buddhist Trinity, standing: Kumsan-sa. Amida, Kwannon,\n                               Daiseishi\n                     (Thirty feet or so in height)\n                                                               [Page 89]]\n\nLook at this series of pictures from Hoiam-sa, one of the first temples\nwe visited in 1917. (Plate XV.) To-day it is a place of no significance,\nbut it was once a great religious center and has been associated with\nthree famous men. It chanced the day we visited it that the three monks\nwho live there were about to celebrate the day sacred to the memory of\nthese noted teachers; gifts and offerings and all the paraphernalia for\nworship were laid out, ready. These three men were Muhak, Chikong and\nNanong. Chikong was a native of India, who spent his last days in Korea.\nNanong was chaplain and preceptor of King Kong-Min-Oang, the last king\nof the Koryu dynasty. Muhak was the chaplain and preceptor of Yi-tajo,\nfounder of the Yi Dynasty. Behind the monastery building there rises a\nremarkable narrow-backed and sloping ridge. It bears a line of monuments\nreared to the memory of these three men. The stones commemorating\nChikong and Nanong were erected by Muhak in the year 1393; the stones in\nmemory of him were reared in 1401. The monument to each of these\nworthies consists of four stone objects\u2014a lantern, an altar, a _sari_\nstone\u2014which I suppose contains the jewel that was left after the burning\nof the man in whose honor it was reared\u2014and a stone turtle figure from\nwhose back rises a slab bearing a long inscription. These turtle-stones\nwith inscribed slabs are found everywhere in Korea; the turtle is the\nsymbol of longevity and its use in this connection breathes the wish\nthat the memory of the thing recorded may endure ten thousand years.\nThese monuments are typical and good examples of their class. The\ncarving on Muhak\u2019s _sari_ stone is particularly beautiful.\n\nIn connection with stone work we must remind you again of the towers or\npagodas of which you have seen repeated illustrations. Here we show but\none to refresh your memory. (Plate XVI.) Such towers or pagodas rise in\nstories, numbering from three to thirteen, but always odd\u2014three, five,\nseven, thirteen. There are hundreds of them scattered over the peninsula\nand at all the old monasteries you will find them. Some of those in the\nmonasteries of the Diamond Mountains claim to be fifteen hundred years\nof age or more. They are symbolical, variously; they may denote the life\nof the individual, pointing heavenward, developing from one stage of\nperfection to another; they may mean the body of the faithful, or the\nchurch; the simple three-story towers symbolize earth, sky and heaven.\n\n                       [Illustration: PLATE XXVI\n                Figures\u2014a Trio of Trinities: Sukwang-sa\n     (The figures are said to be Kwannon, Amida, Daiseishi, Monju,\n             Vairoshana, Fugen, Jihi, Sakyamuni, Teikakara)\n                                                               [Page 89]]\n\nThirdly, are the wooden figures and other carvings in wood. And before\nwe study these in detail let us remember that all religions are\naccustomed to borrow from those that have preceded them. In Christianity\nwe have quantities of superstition lingering on from our days of\npaganism. Every religion that attempts a propaganda is compelled to take\nover much from the faiths which it displaces. India is a veritable\nmother of religions. One after another great religious systems have\ndeveloped there. In very ancient days there was the simple nature\nworship of the old Aryans, as shown us in their sacred hymns, the Vedas.\nAmong their gods two of the greatest were Brahma and Indra. Brahma was\nthe creator, Indra was a god of heaven, an atmospheric deity who wielded\nthunderbolts, who hurled lightning strokes against the foe. In course of\ntime the old Aryans advanced in culture, and their ancient worship gave\nway to a systematized religion, Brahmanism, with many gods, having\ndefinite names and qualities and attributes. But old Brahma and Indra\nlived on from the early days into Brahmanism. In that system Brahma was\nthe king of all the gods, Indra was the king of heaven\u2014having a special\nheaven of great beauty. It is said that his heaven was situated between\nthe four peaks of Meru and consisted of thirty-two cities of Devas,\neight on each of the four corners of the mountain. Indra\u2019s capital was\nat the center where he sat enthroned, with a thousand eyes and four arms\ngrasping the thunderbolt, in company with his wife and eleven thousand\nand nine hundred concubines. There he received monthly reports regarding\nthe progress of good and evil in the world from his four Maharajas,\nheavenly kings of the cardinal points. The word Deva in Brahmanism is\napplied to the gods in general; if a god is not specifically named he is\ncalled a Deva.\n\n                       [Illustration: PLATE XXVII\n                Figure and Painting of Kwannon: Pomo-sa\n                                                               [Page 89]]\n\nBrahmanism was the religion of India when Buddha came. He devoted his\nlife to its overthrow, and his teaching was hostile to its assumptions.\nCuriously, however, in the popular traditional life of Buddha many\nincidents are mentioned in which the friendliest of relations were\nestablished between Buddha and the Devas of the old faith. Thus it is\nsaid that Brahma himself appeared to Buddha and begged him to begin his\nteaching. Indra in these stories repeatedly shows his friendship. There\nis one splendid occasion mentioned in which Buddha had been to Indra\u2019s\nheaven; when he was ready to descend, stairs appeared for him made of\nthe choicest and most beautiful materials, and as he came down this\nstairway, Brahma descended by a side stairway of silver and Indra upon a\nstairway of purple gold upon the other side, while with them came\nthousands of Devas, singing Buddha\u2019s praises.\n\nThe four Maharajas, heavenly kings of the cardinal points, who reported\nto Indra every month, showed themselves equally friendly. On one\noccasion Buddha was without a begging bowl; the Deva kings came to him\nand each one offered a begging bowl of emerald; the Buddha refused to\ntake them, as they were of too precious material; so they offered bowls\nless fine and each was strenuous that he should accept _his_ gift; so\nBuddha took the four bowls and placing them together, lo, they became a\nsingle bowl, but with a rim showing how four had merged, so that none of\nthe kind Devas was neglected or hurt in feeling, and the offering of all\nwas accepted by the Great Teacher; it is said that this begging bowl was\nin existence hundreds of years after Buddha\u2019s time, kept as a precious\ntreasure in a temple.\n\nWe need not then, be surprised, to find that a number of the old\nBrahmanic gods were taken bodily over into Buddhism. Brahma and Indra\nare in fact to-day considered in Mahayana to be the chief patrons and\nprotectors of Buddhism. The four Maharajas have also been taken over\ncompletely. And Yama, the very ancient god of hell, to-day finds himself\nas comfortable in Buddhism as he ever could have been in Brahmanism, or\nin the earlier Aryan worship of the Vedas.\n\n                      [Illustration: PLATE XXVIII\n                Hall of the Ten Kings of Hell: Yongju-sa\n (Notice combination of figures and painting; the god of hell with two\nhelpers, five kings with small servants, two other officers, and one of\n                      the two Brahmanic guardians)\n                                                               [Page 91]]\n\nApproaching any Buddhist temple in Japan or Korea you are almost sure to\nfind two gigantic figures standing at the outer gate. They are the old\ngods Brahma and Indra. They are represented as full-muscled men of\ngigantic size, wrestling against the powers of evil. (Plate XIX.)\n\nAt another gate, farther up the trail, one is almost sure to find the\nMaharajas, heavenly kings of the cardinal points, under shelter, each in\na niche or alcove; usually there are two on either side as one passes\nthrough the gate.[8] Being related to the cardinal points, they are\nalways arranged in the same order, and are distinguished from each other\nby having different colored faces, each having the color proper to the\ndistrict over which he has control. (Plate XXa, b.) Each carries a\ncharacteristic object, thus one bears a pagoda or tower on his hand,\nanother carries a blazing jewel, the third varies what he carries, but\nfrequently he plays upon a lute, the fourth one has a sword; these four\ngreat Brahman deities are found to-day in Korea at every Buddhist\nmonastery, at the gate commonly called \u201cthe gate of the four kings\u201d;\nthere they watch, guarding the monastery against all harm. These are\nalmost always figures of wood, but rarely one may find paintings on the\nwooden walls instead of the figures. While these guardian kings are\nalways represented in heroic size the series at Pawpchu-sa are of\nextraordinary dimensions, probably the largest in Korea. (Plate XXI.)\n\nYama, too, was taken over from the older faith. The god of hell, he was\nassisted by ten helpers; each of these served as his representative in a\nseparate hell, or division of that place of torment. Yama judges souls\nand inflicts penalties, assigns duties, and directs all the details of\nhis realm. In most Korean monasteries there will be a hall of the ten\nkings in which we see figures of Yama with his assistants.\n\n                       [Illustration: PLATE XXIX\n                 Hall of Five Hundred Rakan: Sukwang-sa\n                                                               [Page 90]]\n\nNext we may consider architecture. We place it fourth because we have\npursued a logical order of approach. Coming through the beautiful\nscenery, we have passed over the trail, noticing the inscriptions on the\ncliffs, passing by the guardians of the outer gate, walking between the\nfour kings on their ceaseless guard, but at last have come to the\nmonastery buildings proper and see them in their age and beauty before\nus. We have already seen representations of many of these temples in the\npreceding lectures. You have noticed that all were built of wood; you\nhave observed the curious mode of timbering; you have studied the tangle\nof projecting timber ends under the roof\u2014the decorative features applied\nto them, the carving and painting; red, green, black, white and blue,\nthe gaudiest of colors are used upon them in a fashion which we could\nnot conceive, and from which we would expect disharmony, though the real\neffect is charming. You have examined in detail the carved decoration of\nthe doors, sometimes foliage, again floral, or with figures mingled with\nthe other designs. (Plate XVIII.)\n\nWhile the buildings themselves are always of wood there is a curious use\nmade of stone at times in the way of supports. You remember in a picture\nfrom Sukwang-sa this was illustrated. The building was in the nature of\na pavilion where tablets bearing names were left by visitors; the\npavilion was borne upon upright columns of stone, highly characteristic\nof Korea, but not common elsewhere.\n\nAnother feature of the architecture is wall-painting and here we find\ntwo different kinds. Pictures may be painted directly upon the woodwork\nof the wall. It is more common, however, to panel the timbered walls\nwith plastering and then to paint upon the plaster. Let us examine\nexamples of both kinds.\n\nYou remember that among the Buddhist books recently printed in _on-mun_\nwas an allegory by a Chinese monk. The writer\u2019s name was\nChiu-Chang-Chun; he was born in 1208 and died in 1288. His book was\nnamed _Sei-yeu-ki_; at Pongeum-sa, a scene taken from his book is\npainted on the wooden wall. We present it as an example of this kind of\ndecoration. It represents a scene from the closing part of the old\nstory. (Plate XXII.)\n\n                        [Illustration: PLATE XXX\nExtraordinary combinations of Rakan figures: Hall of Five Hundred Rakan:\n                              Songkwang-sa\n                                                               [Page 90]]\n\nThe pilgrims had almost finished their journey and were returning in\nstate, on cherubim, with a great collection of idols and sacred texts.\nIt was found, however, that they had suffered only eighty trials, and it\nseems that to be perfect they should pass through eighty-one\u2014nine times\nnine\u2014so angels were sent to overtake the eight cherubim, and tell them\nprivately that they must let the monks suffer one trial more. This the\nangels did. As a sample of the story, and in explanation of the picture\nwe quote from Dr. Richard\u2019s translation.\n\n  \u201cIt was a strange sensation to be on the ground again. They had come\n  down near some water. The master asked, \u2018Can anyone tell me where we\n  are?\u2019\n\n  The monkey said, \u2018Master, this is the mouth of the Milky Way River.\u2019\n  The river was wide. It was also a lonely place, without houses or\n  boats, and they were on the western side. How could they get across?\n  Two of them suggested that since the master had left his mortal body\n  behind they could cross the river by magic, but the monkey said, \u2018No,\n  it cannot be done.\u2019 He knew that there was one trial more to undergo,\n  and it was for this they had stopped on the way. Then they heard a\n  cry, \u2018Chinese priest, come this way.\u2019 They went and found that it was\n  the white tortoise, who had ferried them over as they went West, at\n  the time when they had saved the family at Chen Kia Chwang. The\n  tortoise said he had been waiting for their return for a long time and\n  was glad to see them. The practical monkey said, \u2018Formerly we had to\n  trouble you. Now we meet again.\u2019\n\n  At this the four pilgrims were very rejoiced to see the tortoise. He\n  took them and the horse all on his back and swam across to the other\n  side. As they neared the Eastern shore and it was getting dark, the\n  tortoise said, \u2018Master, when you went West I asked you to inquire of\n  Buddha for me how I might return to my former state, and when I might\n  get a human body. Did you remember to ask?\u2019 But the master had been so\n  absorbed in his own affairs that he had completely forgotten the\n  tortoise and his request and so he had nothing to say. The tortoise,\n  finding that he had been forgotten, turned a somersault, and threw all\n  and everything into the river. Happily the mortal body of the master\n  had been exchanged for an immortal one, and therefore he was safe in\n  the water. The pig and the monkey, the boy and the horse, were also at\n  home in the water, but the books were all soaked.\u201d\n\n                       [Illustration: PLATE XXXI\n                Painting of the Seven Stars: Sukwang-sa\n                                                               [Page 92]]\n\nThe old allegory took a strong hold upon Eastern Asia and there must\nhave been hundreds of pictures painted in the course of time\nrepresenting its incidents.\n\nAs an example of the wall-paintings on plaster we may study a group of\npaintings, each representing an individual being, from one of the main\ntemples at Sukwang-sa. None of these figures is haphazard, or without\nsignificance. Each would be recognized by the well-informed Buddhist.\n(Plate XXIII.)\n\nFifth are the idols or images. In the Buddhism taught by Sakya there was\nno room for them. The Great Teacher recognized no gods, and his\nfollowers should have no representations of deities. In Amida Buddhism,\nhowever, there are many gods, and a multitude of figures. The Buddhas,\nthemselves are all represented among them including Sakya. When we\nexamine the figures worshipped in Buddhist temples we find three groups,\n(a) Buddhas, (b) Bodhisattvas, (c) Arhats or Rakan. Sakya was not the\nfirst Buddha; in fact he was the twenty-fourth or twenty-fifth in the\nline of those who attained enlightenment and gained _Nirvana_. The\nIndians reckoned time in long periods or _kalpas_; most of the Buddhas\nwere in former _kalpas_, but even in the present _kalpa_, in which we\nlive, Buddha had three predecessors; and before our _kalpa_ ends a\nsuccessor will appear, Maitreya, or Miroku, the coming Buddha.[9]\n\nThe two Buddhas most commonly represented by figures in Korean Buddhism\nare Sakya and Amida. Miroku, too, is frequently to be seen, but Miroku\nis not yet a Buddha but only Bodhisattva.\n\nBodhisattvas were human beings who had piled up _karma_ and passed from\nstage to stage until they stood within a single step of Buddha-hood;\nduring their next existence they could hope for illumination,\nenlightenment, _Nirvana_. There are many Bodhisattvas, but the ones most\ncommonly represented by Korean figures are six in number. Their Korean\nnames are Miryek Posal, Titsang Posal, Kwandyeieun Posal, Taiseichi\nPosal, Mounsou Posal, and Pohien Posal. These Bodhisattvas are much\nbetter known to the outside world by their Japanese names, and having\nintroduced them in Korean terminology we shall refer to them as we have\nopportunity under the Japanese forms.\n\n                       [Illustration: PLATE XXXII\n                       Group Painting: Sukwang-sa\n                                                               [Page 95]]\n\nThey become, then, Maitreya or Miroku, Jizo, Kwannon, Daiseishi, Monju,\nFugen. Curiously enough in Korean iconography Jizo, a most mild and\ngentle god, fond of and loved by children, replaces Yama often as the\nking of hell. Kwannon, god of mercy, usually considered female in Japan,\nthough not invariably, is usually male in Korean representation.\n\nThe third type of images of figures worshipped in Korean monasteries are\nthe Arhats or Rakan. These are men who have made progress; they have\nmeditated, studied, listened and thought; some of them are the original\nstudents of Sakya; all have gained a store of helpful _karma_, and many\nof them are worshipped. When made in figures there are two groups of\nRakan. One known as the sixteen Rakan, the other as the five hundred.\nThe sixteen Rakan are all absolutely historical personages of early\ndate, friends, relatives, and hearers, of Sakya. In figures and in\npaintings they are represented with characteristic attributes, readily\nrecognized.\n\nThese three kinds of figures are usually made of wood, painted and\ngilded; sometimes the gold leaf on them represents absolutely\nconsiderable value. The figures of the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are\nfrequently of large size, and often beautiful. They may be standing or\nseated, but in both cases the position of the hands and fingers is\nimportant and significant. (Plate XXIV.) Buddhism everywhere recognizes\na series of finger symbols carrying a message. It is interesting to\nnotice that the Buddha is usually included in a trinity. This fact is\namong many which have led some writers like Professor Lloyd, Doctor\nRichard, and Madame Gordon to think that Mahayana Buddhism is actually\nChristianity worked over and given the name of Buddhism.\n\n                      [Illustration: PLATE XXXIII\n       One of the Eight Scenes in the Life of Buddha: Sakya gains\n                         Enlightenment: Pomo-sa\n                                                               [Page 91]]\n\nTrinities are conspicuous everywhere. Often we find the central figure\nof the three to be Sakya, while to his right and left are the\nBodhisattvas Monju and Fugen. The former sometimes sits upon a dog or\nlion, and the latter upon a white elephant. Then they are easily\nrecognized by their mount. When not mounted they are not so easy of\nrecognition. Even more common in Korea is the Amida trinity. Amida is\nusually accompanied by Kwannon on one side and Daiseishi on the other.\n(Plate XXV.) There are other trinities to be seen in Korean temples but\nthese two are common. (Plate XXVI.)\n\nThese figures are generally in curious relation with paintings. In most\ntemples where there are figures on the altar there are paintings hung up\non the wall behind which usually represent the same beings as the\nfigures, but accompanied by many more attendants. This association of\npictures and figures representing the same being is rare, if it occurs,\nin Japanese Buddhism. (Plate XXVII.)\n\nLastly, we come to paintings. While many are related to figures as just\nmentioned, many more stand by themselves and are displayed upon the\nwalls of halls and temples without figures. If we desire to make a study\nof the paintings of a monastery we must pass from hall to hall. Many\nmonasteries are absolute masses of great buildings. In the main temple\nthere are usually figures of a trinity of Buddhas or sometimes even\nthree trinities with paintings hung behind. In the Rakan hall we may\nfind the sixteen Rakan in figures, in paintings, or in combinations. In\nhalls of the five hundred Rakan, we usually find five hundred little\nfigures set on shelves thickly around all three sides; no two are just\nalike, and it is probable that you will be told with glee that if you\nlook long enough you will find your own father represented among them.\n(Plates XXIX, XXX.) In the hall of the Ten Kings of Hell we sometimes\nfind the figures of Yama or of Jizo with the ten helpers; if so, behind\nthe figures are frightful paintings of the ten hells, a picture of each\none behind its proper king. Sometimes, however, there are only paintings\nin this hall. (Plate XXVIII.) At some temples there is the hall of the\nEight Scenes of the Life of Buddha.[10] These scenes are definite and\nfixed in every detail, are traditional, and have been passed down for\ncenturies. The whole building is occupied by the eight great paintings\nhung upon the wall. Each contains a mass of detail, and there may be\nhundreds of individuals represented in a single scene. (Plate XXXIII.)\nOccasionally there is a hall of portraits at a monastery; such a one we\nsaw at the monastery where we rebuked the priests for avarice and\nimpoliteness; the building is devoted to the portraits which are said to\nbe reliable representations of the head priests of this monastery for a\nperiod of almost fifteen hundred years. One might, however, visit many\nmonasteries without finding such a hall.\n\n                       [Illustration: PLATE XXXIV\nThe God of the Mountain: Fuko-an, branch of Sinkei-sa, Diamond Mountains\n                                                               [Page 93]]\n\nProbably every monastery of any consequence has its hall of Seven Stars.\nIt is always a little building and on the outskirts of the group of\ntemples. Korea must have worshipped the constellation of the Great Bear,\nthe Big Dipper or the Seven Stars, long before Buddhism came. Many\nKoreans still pay worship to the stars themselves. The father of a young\nman who was once my Korean interpreter, never fails to pray to the seven\nstars on any night when the sky is clear enough for them to be seen; the\nworship is interesting and deserves attention. It was probably taken\nover early by Buddhism. The picture always shown in this little hall is\nvery curious. There is always a Buddha figure of some kind in it, but\nabove are Buddha-like figures of the Seven Stars, heavenly beings, with\npale faces; below there are the representations of seven earthly\nministers corresponding to them; the idea that heavenly conditions are\nreproduced upon the earth is one common to many religions. (Plate XXXI.)\n\nOne other building is certain to be found at every monastery. It is a\nwee structure, sacred to the God of the Mountain. He is a mysterious\nbeing. He is usually represented with a beard and a beard quite\ndifferent from those regularly seen in China, Korea or Japan. He is\nalways accompanied by a tiger, particularly noticeable for head and\ntail; the god of the mountain varies more than any other representation\nin Korean art. The features mentioned, however, are always emphasized.\nAll agree that the god of the mountain is individual; he is not the god\nof mountains generally, nor a god overseeing mountains everywhere, but\never specifically the god of _the_ mountain on which his shrine is\nlocated. (Plate XXXIV.)\n\n                       [Illustration: PLATE XXXV\n     Portrait of one of the chiefs of the Sixteen Rakan: Chikchi-sa\n                                                               [Page 95]]\n\nSometimes there is another very little hall known as the hall of the\nLonely Saint. When it occurs it usually stands at the side of the hall\nof the god of the mountain and is of its size. Within there is a hanging\npicture of the Lonely Saint. Unfortunately we cannot show a copy of it.\nWe have planned repeatedly to take it but something has always happened\nto prevent. Trollope tells us that the lonely saint was a historic\npersonage, Chikai, who lived in China in the sixth century, and was the\nfounder of the very ancient Tendai sect.\n\nThese paintings in Korean temples are rarely beautiful, but they surely\ndeserve careful study by competent art students. The colors used are\nbright and light. Faces of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are usually yellow\nor white. These high beings are regularly represented with aureoles, the\nboat-shaped aureole occurring commonly with Kwannon and Miroku. Gods and\nhuman beings occur in crowds in these paintings, but no matter how\ncrowded the composition the individuals are usually definite and known.\nThe artists are priests and it is common for the few who have famous\nskill to travel from temple to temple, touching up old pictures and\npainting new ones. They stay for weeks or months and then pass on to new\nfields. The designs are certainly traditional and very old, but the\npaintings themselves, as we see them in the temple, are many of them the\nwork of very recent years. Most of the monks and acolytes know very\nlittle of the meaning of the pictures, but those who paint them, and\nthose who are serious students can identify the actors in the scenes\ndepicted. We reproduce a picture from Sukwang-sa which illustrates the\ncrowding of persons and the attention given to detail. Upon it there are\nrepresented one Pul or Buddha, with three faces, four Posal or\nBodhisattvas, the twenty-eight heavenly kings (each corresponding to one\nof the ancient constellations), and ten times ten gods (they are\nactually grouped by tens and there are ten each of earth, fire, water,\nsmall water bodies, air, the human body, movement, field work and\nmountain fortresses). This design is really a common one, and we have a\nphotograph of it also from Pawpchu-sa. Comparison of the two pictures\nshows absolute identity in the number and placing of the individuals.\n(Plate XXXII.)\n\n                       [Illustration: PLATE XXXVI\n                       Great painting, Pawpchu-sa\n                                                               [Page 96]]\n\n                      [Illustration: PLATE XXXVII\n   Great painting displayed at Buddha\u2019s Birthday Ceremony: Tongdo-sa\n                                                               [Page 96]]\n\nWe have already stated that there is considerable variation in the\npicture of the god of the mountain, though he is always recognizable by\ncertain features. Pictures of individual Rakan are common in temples and\nthese pictures are always precise and definite, giving in every instance\nthe characteristic features or attributes. (Plate XXXV.)\n\nOccasionally\u2014perhaps more commonly than we know\u2014the monasteries possess\nan enormous rolled painting of a single Buddha. We have seen one at\nPawpchu-sa and another at Tongdo-sa. At Pawpchu-sa they brought it out\nfrom the great temple and unrolled it for us, in the open, that we might\nsee its size. At Tongdo-sa it was already elevated for the occasion of\nthe celebration of Buddha\u2019s birthday. It towered above the highest\nbuilding, and was worshipped by the crowding thousands. (Plates XXXVI,\nXXXVII.)\n\nIn this brief study of Korean Buddhism we have but sketched a subject\nwhich presents a vast material, which as yet is almost unknown and\npractically untouched by students.\n\n\n\n\n                              BIBLIOGRAPHY\n\n\n  Gale. _The Pagoda of Seoul._ Transactions of the Korea Branch of the\n  Royal Asiatic Society. Vol. VI, Pt. II, pp. 1-22. Seoul: 1915.\n\n  Gordon. _Some Recent Discoveries in Korean Temples and their\n  Relationship to Early Eastern Christianity._ Trans. K. B. R. A. S.\n  Vol. V, Pt. II, PP. 1-39. Seoul: 1914.\n\n  Gordon. _Symbols of \u201cthe Way\u201d\u2014Far East and West._ Tokyo: 1916. Maruzen\n  & Co.\n\n  Hulbert. _History of Korea._ Seoul: 1905. 2 vols. Methodist Publishing\n  House.\n\n  Jones. _Colossal Buddha at Eunjin._ Trans. K. B. R. A. S. Vol. I, pp.\n  51-70. Seoul: 1901.\n\n  Richard. _A Mission to Heaven . . . by Ch\u2019iu Ch\u2019ang Ch\u2019un._ Shanghai:\n  1913. The Christian Literature Society\u2019s Depot.\n\n  Trollope. _Introduction to the Study of Buddhism in Corea._ Trans. K.\n  B. R. A. S. Vol. VIII, pp. 1-41. Seoul: 1917.\n\n\n\n\n                                 NOTES\n\n\n[1]_Aryavarman_, a man of Sinlo (_Corea_), left Chang\u2019an A.D. 638. He\n    set out with a view to recover the true teaching and to adore the\n    sacred relics. He dwelt in the Nalanda Temple, copying out many\n    Sutras. He had left the eastern borders of Corea and now bathed in\n    the Dragon pool of Nalanda. Here he died, aged seventy odd years.\n\n    _Hwui-nieh_, a Corean, set out for India 638 A.D., arrived at the\n    Nalanda Temple and there studied the sacred books and reverenced the\n    holy traces. I-tsing found some writing he had left in the temple,\n    where also he had left his Sanskrit MSS. The priests said he died\n    the same year, about sixty years of age.\n\n    _Hiuen Ta\u2019i_, a doctor of the law, a Corean, called by the Sanskrit\n    name of Sarvaj\u00f1anadeva. In the year _Yung-hwei_ (650 A.D.) he went\n    by the Tibetan road through Nepal to Mid-India; he there worshipped\n    the relics at the Bodhi Tree. Afterwards going to the Tukhara\n    country, he met Taou-hi, with whom he returned to the Tahsio Temple\n    (Mahabodhi). Afterwards he returned to China, and was not heard of\n    again.\n\n    _Hiuen-hau_, a doctor of the law, a Corean, went with Hiuen-chiu, in\n    the middle of the _Chengkwan_ period, to India, and reaching the\n    Tahsio Temple, he died there.\n\n    Two priests of Corea, names unknown, started from Chang\u2019an by the\n    southern sea-route and came to Sribhoja. They died in the country of\n    _Po-lu-sse_, to the westward (the western portion of Sumatra).\n\n    _Hwui Lun_, a Corean, otherwise called Praj\u00f1avarma, came by sea from\n    his own country to _Fuchau_, and proceeded thence to Chang\u2019an.\n    Following after the priest _Hiuen-chiu_, he reached the West, and\n    during ten years dwelt in the Amravat country and in the Sin-ch\u00e9\n    Temple (north of the Ganges). Passing through the eastern frontiers,\n    and thence proceeding northward he came to the Tu-ho-lo (_Tukh\u00e2ra_)\n    Temple. Beal: _Life of Hiouen-Tsiang_, pp. xxix-xxx, xxxvi.\n\n[2]Jones in his admirable discussion of the Eunjin miriok makes an\n    interesting suggestion regarding its location:\n\n      But the special interest these facts have for us in connection\n      with the great Buddha lies in the fact that it may have been here\n      that Buddhism itself first entered Pakche. Buddhism was a foreign\n      importation, being sent to the peninsular kingdoms by the Eastern\n      Tsin dynasty of China (A.D. 317-19) and effecting an entrance\n      almost simultaneously at two points\u2014in the north into Koguryu and\n      in the south into Pakche. Of this latter event the native\n      historians tell us:\u2014\u201cIn the year A.D. 384 the barbarian monk\n      Maranant\u2019a came from Tsin. King Chip-yu accorded him a most\n      courteous and ceremonious reception and Buddhism was established\n      as the national religion.\u201d We do not know at what point the\n      monk-missionary landed, but it is not so unlikely that he may have\n      come to this well-known port, and that one day among the ships\n      making up that inextricable mass of masts and rudders at Si-jin\n      there may have come the imperial junk of Tsin bearing \u201cthe\n      barbarian monk Maranant\u2019a\u201d with his images, incense, bells, books\n      and vestments to plant in Korea that cult which was to dominate\n      the people for a thousand years, thus landing close to the place\n      where in later years the greatest monument that Buddhism possesses\n      was to stand. And two hundred years later (A.D. 552) there\n      probably embarked from this port that band of Pakche priests sent\n      by their king to carry to the mikado of Japan the golden images of\n      Buddha and the triad of precious ones, the sutras and sacred\n      books, and to give the faith of Buddhism to the Sun-rise Empire.\n      And it is said that these relics exist to this day and are\n      preserved in the city of Nagano in Japan. Colossal Buddha: p. 62.\n\n[3]It occurs in the inscription regarding the Seoul pagoda and is\n    particularly interesting as a contemporary description of a temple\n    of remarkable splendor.\n\n      Reckoning up the number of pillars supporting the building they\n      were found to exceed 300. The Hall of the Buddha stood up high in\n      the center, and the inscription board above was written _Taikwang\n      myung jun_, \u201cGreat light glorious palace.\u201d To the left was the\n      _Sun Tang_ or study hall, while to the right was the _Oon-chip_ or\n      assembly hall. The gate was marked _Chak-kwang Moon_, Hidden Light\n      and the outer gate was called _Panya_ or Likeness gate. Beyond\n      this again was the _Hai-tal Moon_. There was a bell-pavilion also\n      which was called the _Pup-noi-kak_, Kiosk of Buddha\u2019s Thunder. The\n      kitchen was named _Hyang-juk_, Kitchen House. There was a pond on\n      the east side, where lotus flowers were planted; and on the west\n      was a garden-park where flowers and trees grew. Behind the\n      _Cheung-jun_ palace the sacred books were in keeping, and this\n      house was called _Hai-Jang Chun_ or Sea Covering Hall. Also a\n      pagoda was built of thirteen stories called _sul-to-pa_, Buddhist\n      pagoda. Within it were placed the accumulated sari and the newly\n      translated Wun-gak sutra. The palaces, halls, studies,\n      guest-rooms, stores, kitchens, outhouses, had each their\n      particular place. The whole was magnificent and well constructed,\n      and the ornaments were lavish, imposing, beautiful, all in keeping\n      and fair to see. Its equal was nowhere to be found. Also the\n      drums, gongs, etc., necessary for the service, and other useful\n      implements were abundantly provided for. Gale: _Pagoda_, p. 10.\n\n[4]Gale finds that the history of the erection of the Seoul pagoda was\n    originally inscribed upon the turtle-borne slab that accompanies it.\n    Of the pagoda itself, he says:\n\n      1. The Pagoda was therefore built in 1464-1466 A.D.\n\n      2. The builder was King Se-jo, who reigned from 1456-1468 and all\n      the workmen were Koreans.\n\n      3. The form of it was modelled after the Pagoda in Pung Tuk\n      County, which had already been standing nearly a hundred years,\n      and had been built by Chinese workmen. There is no evidence that\n      this pagoda had ever been brought from Peking though it finds its\n      final resting place now in Tokyo.\n\n      4. It was built to commemorate the excellence of the Wungak Sutra\n      from which it takes its name.\n\n      5. It is by far the most interesting Buddhist monument in Korea.\n      p. 22.\n\n[5]The list of the thirty head-temples follows:\n\n      Yongju-sa\n      Pongeum-sa\n      Ch\u01d4ntung-sa\n      Pongs\u01d4m-sa\n      Makok-sa\n      Pawpchu-sa\n      Songkwang-sa\n      S\u01d4nam-sa\n      T\u011bhung-sa\n      P\u01cekyang-sa\n      Uipong-sa\n      Posawk-sa\n      Tongdo-sa\n      Pomo-sa\n      H\u01cein-sa\n      Tonghwa-sa\n      Chuim-sa\n      Unh\u01ce-sa\n      Koun-sa\n      Kumyong-sa\n      Peyak-sa\n      Sawngpul-sa\n      Yungmyung-sa\n      Pawphung-sa\n      Pohyun-sa\n      K\u01d4npong-sa\n      Yuchom-sa\n      Ualchung-sa\n      Sawkwang-sa\n      Kuichu-sa\n\n[6]The magazine conducted by Yi Nung Hwa has had several breaks in\n    publication and after each the name has been changed. As here given\n    the names are English translations of the original:\n\n      _Monthly Magazine of Chosen Buddhism._ Nineteen issues, from\n      January 25, 1911 to August 25, 1913.\n\n      _Buddhist Magazine of the Eastern Sea._ Eight issues from November\n      20, 1913 to June 20, 1914.\n\n      _Monthly Magazine of the Association of Rising Buddhism._ Nine\n      issues from March 15, 1915 to December 15, 1915.\n\n      _Kingdom of Chosen Buddhism._ Three issues from April 5, 1916 to\n      June 5, 1916.\n\n      _General Magazine of Chosen Buddhism_, from March 20, 1917. Three\n      numbers had appeared when I received this note in May 1917.\n\n[7]The texts most commonly read in Korean monasteries are the\n    _Hokkekyo_, _Kegon_, _Kishinlon_, _Fumonbon_ and _Amidakyo_,\n    according to Madame Gordon. These are Japanese pronunciation.\n\n[8]The Japanese names of the four guardians are:\n\n      Bishamon: east; blue; tower.\n      Komoku: south; red; jewel.\n      Jikoku: west; green; lute.\n      Zocho: north; flesh; sword.\n\n[9]Three Buddhas have preceded Sakyamuni in the present _kalpa_ and one\n    is still to come before the _kalpa_ ends. The entire list is:\n\n      _Krakuchanda_ (Pali, _Kakusanda_), \u201cwho solves doubt.\u201d\n      _Kanakamuni_ (P. _Konagamana_) \u201cbody radiant as gold.\u201d\n      _Kasyapa_ (P. _Kassapa_) \u201cswallower of light.\u201d\n      _Sakyamuni._\n      _Maitreya._ Legge: Fa-hien, p. 51.\n\n[10]The eight scenes in the Life of Buddha are:\n\n      (_a_) Incarnation.\n      (_b_) Birth.\n      (_c_) Encounter with age, sickness, death.\n      (_d_) Escape\u2014with aid of the four heavenly kings.\n      (_e_) Asceticism.\n      (_f_) Enlightenment.\n      (_g_) Preaching\u2014\u201cturning the wheel.\u201d\n      (_h_) Nirvana.\n\n\n\n\n                             Transcriber\u2019s Notes\n\n\n--Retained the copyright notice from the printed edition (although this\n  book is in the public domain.)\n\n--Silently corrected a few palpable typos.\n\n--In the text versions only, delimited italicized text in _underscores_.","title":"Korean Buddhism: History\u2014Condition\u2014Art","tradition":"scripture-revelation","translated_text":null,"word_count":20685}