Buseoksa Temple

Full transcript

Annyeong, yeoreobun! It's Yul! Today's story has love, a dragon, and a flying rock. Welcome to Buseoksa in Yeongju, the Temple of the Floating Stone!

It begins with the monk Uisang, the same master linked to Beomeosa in Busan. While he studied in Tang China, says the old book Samguk Yusa, a woman named Seonmyo admired him deeply. When Uisang suddenly sailed home, legend says she became a dragon to protect his ship across the sea.

Then, in 676, during King Munmu's reign, Uisang came to this mountain to build a temple. People stood in his way. And here's the twist: legend says Seonmyo lifted a giant boulder and made it float in the air, and the opponents gave up. Look to the left of the main hall. That big rock is said to be the floating stone, buseok, that gave the temple its name. Daebak!

Buseoksa became the home of Uisang's Hwaeom school. Its star is Muryangsujeon, the Hall of Infinite Life. Rebuilt in 1376, during Goryeo, it's one of Korea's oldest wooden buildings. Its columns gently swell in the middle, a style called baeheullim. Inside, the clay Amitabha Buddha sits on the west side, facing east, which is unusual. In 2018, Buseoksa joined UNESCO's Sansa list.

Yul's tip! From Yeongju, bus 55 to Buseoksa takes about 50 minutes. Duck under Anyangnu pavilion, keep your voice low in the halls, dress modestly, and don't step on thresholds. Stay for sunset over the Sobaek mountains.

Next, Korea's first Confucian academy, Sosu Seowon, nearby. Kaja!