Socially Engaged Buddhism in Contemporary South …enlight.lib.ntu.edu.tw/FULLTEXT/JR-MAG/mag205778.pdf · · 2009-08-18Socially Engaged Buddhism in Contemporary South Korea

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Socially Engaged Buddhism in Contemporary South Korea

Socially Engaged Buddhismin Contemporary South

Korea

Dr. Anita Sharma

Reader, Department of East Asian Studies ,

University of Delhi

Ven. Pomnyun, a South Korean monk,received Ramon Magsaysay Award forPeace and International Understanding in2002. He has applied Buddhist teachingsto the full range of modern ills, ranging fromhuman greed and poverty to environmentaldegradation. He is a shining example ofSocially Engaged Buddhist in contemporarySouth Korea.

Growth of organized social service ac-tivities among the Buddhists in South Ko-rea shows that Buddhism would certainlycontinue to maintain allegiance of the Ko-rean population. Mok Jeong Bae is of theopinion that the sleeping wisdom of the oldgiant is already awakening.

Emergence of Socially Engaged Bud-dhist Activities in contemporary South Ko-

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《普門學報》第22期 / 2004年7月論文 / 當代南韓的人間佛教_中英對照 ISSN：1609-476X

普門學報社出版　地址：84049台灣高雄縣大樹鄉佛光山普門學報社電話：07-6561921轉1291、1292 傳真：07-6565774 E-mail：[email protected]

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Universal Gate Buddhist Journal, Issue 22

rea is a part of the larger global phenomenonof Socially Engaged Buddhism. As the NobelPeace Prize has recently been awarded totwo Asian Buddhist leaders, the Dalai Lamaof Tibet and Aung San Suu Kyi of Myanmar

, it shows that Socially Engaged Bud-dhists are trying to revive the Buddhist con-sciousness that aims to eradicate the suf-ferings of mankind.

East Asia hosts a number of Buddhistorganizations that includes the BuddhistCoalition for Economic Justice and KoreanBuddhist Academy of Social Education inSouth Korea. Slowly, people in the West arerealizing that modern Buddhism in Asia isnot just a meditative vehicle for spiritualliberation, but is now also a vehicle that in-cludes liberation movements for social andpo l i t i ca l change . I t s ph i lo sophy o fnonviolence, promotion of peace move-ments and advocacy of vegetarianism holda great appeal for westerners.

What has come to be known as SociallyEngaged Buddhism or simply Engaged Bud-dhism is a vast array of Asian movementswith millions of followers dedicated to ad-dressing the economic, social, political, andenvironmental as well as the spiritual needs

Buddhist Coalition for Eco-

nomic Jus t i c e

Korean Buddhist Acad-

emy of Social Educat ion



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of modern humankind.

In East Asia, Buddhist lay movementshave drawn millions of members by caringfor their daily needs. And throughout Asia,Buddhist monks, nuns along with lay per-sons are founding orders that work for insti-tutional changes in the Buddhist monasticc o m m u n i t i e s a n d o r g a n i z e s o c i a l ,educational, and health services for thepoor.

Noted Buddhist leaders as Thich NhatHanh from Vietnam, the Dalai Lama, theVen. Maha Ghosananda from Cambodia,Sulak Sivaraksa from Thailand, and A. T.Ariyaratna from Sri Lanka, as well as lead-e r s f rom the Japanese Soka Gakka iMovement, the Taiwanese Fo Guang Shanand the Korean Jogye Buddhist Order aresome outstanding Socially Engaged Bud-dhists and/or Buddhist organizations in con-temporary Asia.

The leaders of these movements havebeen personally affected by the great hu-man tragedies of the twentieth century inAsia. This has fostered in them a deep sen-sitivity to the suffering condition of theirpeoples and a deeper sense of its socialcauses. This social awareness has led themin turn to reread their scriptures and to dis-cover therein a concept of liberation thatincludes this-worldly freedom from social,

A. T.

A r i y a r a t n a



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economic, political, sexual, racial, and en-vironmental oppression. They have adoptedpractices of social service and nonviolentstruggle as skillful means on the path toliberation.

Socially Engaged Buddhism through col-lective protest of state corruption, economicinjustice and human rights violations reflectsthe globalization and hybridization of Asian,European and American values.

Trying to help others are efforts wherewe need to come together and work together.The phenomenon of Socially Engaged Bud-dhism transcends all boundaries betweenthe different Buddhist groups. The goal ofSocially Engaged Buddhism is also mutualunderstanding and cooperation betweenpeople of all beliefs and cultures; in otherwords, peacemaking.

Socially Engaged Buddhism, as a signifi-cant expression of traditional Buddhist per-spectives in a contemporary setting, appliesthese teachings to social issues of peaceand justice, environmental degradation, hu-man and animal rights, community buildingand provision of care to those in need. As aglobal movement, it is a vital addition to thelarger arena of Engaged spirituality.

By bringing together the contextual aware-ness of the social activists, The Socially



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Engaged Buddhism provides us with theopportunity to learn how to become com-passionate caregivers. It does this by creat-ing a path of personal development that ex-plores principles of Engaged spirituality.Socially Engaged Buddhism can be seen asthe response of Buddhism to the demandsof the contemporary secular world. SociallyEngaged Buddhism is focused on increas-ing interaction between the lay and themonastic.

Socially Engaged Buddhist activities inthe contemporary South Korea are not anew trend. Since the time Buddhism wasintroduced into Korea, Korean Buddhismoffered a mental framework that corre-sponded to each phase of social develop-ment in the historical process. KoreanBuddhism, in the process of searching forits religious goals was always concernedwith national development and harmony.Korean Buddhism is often called NationProtecting. This particular characteristic ofKorean Buddhism, as a spiritual traditioncontributing to the development of nation andsociety, is found right back at the very be-ginning of its introduction. People weregiven a brighter outlook and the monkshelped to protect the nation in times ofinvasion. These are two of the many posi-tive influences that Buddhism had on Korea.It is recognized as the result of a beneficialideology of mutual aid between a religion



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and the nation.

The pursuit of harmony and unificationwere constant focal points of KoreanBuddh i sm. Mas te r Wonhyo , Mas te rWoncheok , Mas te r Eu isang , Mas te rEuicheon, Master Chinul, and MasterSosan were some of the outstanding Bud-dhist leaders of Korea who set examplesfor bringing harmony in Korea from time totime since the introduction of Buddhism in372 A. D.

Korean Buddhism has undergone threemajor paradigm shifts. The first occurredas a response to Korea's indigenous beliefsystem, which may be characterized as sha-manistic animism; this period extends fromBuddhism's incipient stage to the ThreeKingdoms period.

The second shift represents the Koreaneffort to understand various doctrines andcorresponds to the Unified Silla and Koryoperiods.

The third shift involved the defense ofBuddhism from the criticisms of neo-Con-fucianism during the Choson period.

Each paradigm shift represented a Bud-dhist response to challenges from eitherwithin or outside. In this way, Korean Bud-dhist philosophy developed continually. Thenew understandings that occurred at each

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shift did not disappear with the next shift, butrather remained as integral aspects of theKorean Buddhist tradition. One of the dis-tinct features of Korean Buddhism has beenits preference for incorporating many dif-ferent perspectives into a single, cohesivebody of thought.

In the early twentieth century KoreanBuddhists, together with the rest of theircountrymen, suffered from colonization byJapan. During this time, from 1910 to 1945,many Korean Buddhist monks such as Mas-ter Yongsong, Master Hanyong and mostnotably, Master Manhae became engagedin a variety of political activities. He be-lieved that various institutons, including na-tion and society, should be linked to the lu-minous life of religion.

These worldly involvements, whichpulled them away from their practice in themoun ta in s , we re unde r t aken in t hebodhisattva spirit, that is, as a means ofhelping to directly alleviate the suffering ofothers. Due to their participation in thesea c t i v i t i e s , p h i l o s o p h i c a l s t u d y g o tundermined.

Those monks who wished to study Bud-dhism on a scholarly level traveled to Japanand enrolled in universities there. JapaneseBuddhists in turn left their own country forEurope and absorbed the Western perspec-tive from such countries as England, Ger-



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many and France. They gradually incorpo-rated this new knowledge into their previ-ous systems of understanding and in the pro-cess Japanese Buddhist philosophy was sig-nificantly altered. The Korean monks whovisited Japan were exposed to this new per-spective and dutifully introduced it to theirfellow Buddhists upon returning to Korea.From this time onwards, Buddhism beganto be taught in the South Korean universities.

These trends of liberality of acceptingindigenous culture, nation protecting andharmonization with other faiths continued.Korean Buddhism tried to bring fresh philo-sophical ideology and way of practice avail-able to modern society as it encounteredmore complex problems. Internally it hadto deal with five centuries of decline, whileexternally it had to adjust to the ruthless paceof modernization along with various formsof Christianity and Western philosophy.

Korean Buddhism has undergone rapidgrowth in terms of organization followingKorea's rapid economic expansion duringmid 1980's. As a result it is beginning tohave an active influence on society. Ko-rean Buddhism has become aware of its roleas a social entity representing classical EastAsian culture and tradition.

Korean Buddhism strengthened its urban



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presence considerably during 1980's and1990's in response to increased activitiesby Christian churches in South Korea. ManySocially Engaged Buddhists started leadingmovements dedicated to various social, po-litical and environmental causes, includingthe reconciliation of North and South Korea.

Socially Engaged Buddhists of Koreahave also taken over the role of zealouspromoters of Buddhism in America, Europeand many other countries. They are present-ing Buddhism as an instrument of socialservice. Buddhist vision of life is shown asof universal significance addressed to thespiritual and moral needs of all humankind.

The Jogye Order has followed the tradi-tion of practice and active propagation, theeducation of lay Buddhists, and variousforms of social welfare. The Jogye Orderis also concerned with environmental prob-lems related to the environment of itsmonasteries. Therefore, the Jogye Order,based on the Buddhist ethic of respect forall life forms, concerns itself with environ-mental problems related to development anddestruction of nature. Ven. Bub jang, 31st

President of Jogye Order of Korean Bud-dhism stressed that he would endeavor tostrengthen the role of Buddhism in variousfields, like the environment, reunificationof the nation, human rights and welfare ofothers.



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Korean Zen Master Seung Sahn is an-other outstanding Socially Engaged Buddhistwho initiated propagation of Buddhism inJapan, Hong Kong and America. He empha-sized relevance of traditional teachings ofthe Buddha in contemporary world. Hestressed that every day we recite the fourgreat vows. The first vow is, "Sentient be-ings are numberless; I vow to save themall." This vow is a manifestation of Buddha'sown compassion for all beings. This meansthat one's practice and one's enlightenmentare not just for oneself but for all beings.Moment to moment, one must keep one'scorrect situation, correct function, and cor-rect relationship. This means that we shouldhelp, from moment to moment, not only hu-man beings, but all living beings in thiswhole world. When enlightenment and cor-rect life come together, that means one'slife becomes truth, the suffering world be-comes paradise. Then one can change thissuffering world into paradise for others.This is human beings' correct job; this is thepurpose of Buddhism.

The Won Buddhist Movement in Korea,founded by Soe-tae San, Stresses a correctunderstanding of grace and activity inspreading Buddhist teachings and selflessservice to others, the movement is perhapsthe most lively form of Buddhism in SouthKorea today. It rejects religious exclusivismin favor of compassionate moral practice in



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daily life and engagement in activities ofinter religious cooperation contributing to amore united humankind based on sharedhuman values. It seeks to help create a worldof happiness. Won Socially Engaged Bud-dhists are active in social and charitablework. They have established numerouskindergartens, schools, and universities.They have temples throughout South Korea.They have also established many branchtemples in the America and Europe, thusemerging as a world religion of sociallyengaged Buddhists.

Won Buddhist order has established manywelfare facilities for homeless people,orphans, disabled people, aged people, sickpeople, and various neglected people in thesociety.

Buddhist nuns and female lay followersof contemporary South Korea have alsoforged ahead in socially Engaged Buddhistact iv i t ies . With thei r power of se l f -regeneration, they have developed the mostflourishing female sangha in the Buddhistworld today. Nuns like Suok, Inhong, Pobiland their followers have come forward withtheir Socially Engaged activities along withmeditation practices. In the new executivesof the Jogye Order nun Tak yeon has beenappointed as the chief of Cultural Affairs. Itis the first time for a nun to be appointed toa chief level which shows that the order is



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trying to adapt itself positively to the rapidlychanging world. At the Ilsan Senior Wel-fare Center in Korea, nuns through a specialprogram focus on connecting the older gen-eration with the younger. This program of-fers inter-family cooperation, which expandsthe current nuclear family unit to extendedfamilies. The program activities also facili-tate the integration of families into thecommunity, providing a future direction forelder care programs that has great potential.

JungTo Socie ty , founded by Ven.Pomnyun, has devoted itself to inter-Koreanreconciliation and helping North Koreanrefugees for years. It has grown consider-ably since its inception in 1988, with eightbranches in Korea and overseas branchesin the U.S.A., Germany, and the Philippines.Emphasis is placed squarely upon SociallyEngaged Buddhism. During 1990's floodsand drought in North Korea, Ven. Pomnyunlearnt the desperate circumstances of theirlives as refugees and the appalling dimen-sions of the famine in North Korea. His on-going advocacy and relief efforts reflect hisbelief that Buddhists must engage the realworld and act to relieve suffering. He doesso in collaboration with other Engaged Bud-dhists around the world and also with like-minded Buddhist NGOs in Korea and USA.What the world really needs, he says, is

I lsan Senior Welfare Center

J u n g T o S o c i e t y

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Open Mind, Good Friends, and Clean Earth.

Buddhist Academy for Ecological Awak-ening provides education and training pro-grams based on Buddhist teachings that re-spect all lives and view human as an inte-gral part of nature. It aims to changepeople's way of life by helping them realizethat mankind and nature are inseparable.The academy was founded on the spirit ofSangha, the Buddhist tradition of commu-nity and the practice of Zen. The academyconducts its programs with the objective ofcreating alternative environmental ethicsthat will have a positive impact on society.Regional Environmental workshop for Bud-dhist leaders is held regularly to train re-gional leaders. Other Buddhist organizationsgather once in a year on the Earth Day tocampaign for environmental protection.The academy publishes books on alterna-tive solutions to modern environmental prob-lems from a Buddhist perspective. The acad-emy has cooperated on environmentalprojects and campaigns with several civicgroups and NGOs in Korea. Finding out theimportance of the waste problems, BuddhistAcademy for Ecological Awakening startedthe Zero Waste Campaign that is about mini-mizing the waste and bring out the reuse

(Buddhist Academy for Ecological

Awakening)

Buddhist

Academy for Ecological Awakening)



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and complete recycling systems to the public.

Green Wind is an organization that car-ries out environmental practices and eco-logical campaigns. Graduates from the Ecol-ogy School and students of other academyprograms join Green Wind to take part inactivities such as cleaning up trash in wil-derness areas and participating in campaignsfor organic farming and other environmen-tal campaigns.

Another organization of Socially EngagedBuddhists is Join Together Society in Koreathat works upon the simple determinationthat the hungry should be fed, sick shouldbe healed and children should learn whenthey want. It provides basic education forthe children, medical services, vocationaltraining and sustainable development of vil-lages in the poverty stricken areas. JoinTogether Group is operating medical aidand supplementary feeding program in In-dia and North Korea. The society is also net-working and supporting the internationalemergency relief in Mongolia, Bangladeshand Nepal.

Good Friends is a Center for Peace,Human Rights and Refugees. It aims to befriendly with all living beings. The major

Green Wind

Buddhist

Academy for Ecological Awakening)

Join Together

Socie ty

Join Together Society

Good Friends



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activity of the Good Friends is to providehumanitarian assistance to the refugees fromall over the world, achieving a peacefulresolution in conflict areas and the takingactions to improve and protect the humanrights.

In the past, Good Friends has been focus-ing on the information dissemination of thehumanitarian crisis of North Korea andworked as the major humanitarian aid pro-vider to the North Korean Refugees in theChina and North Korean border. Currentlyit is focusing on the people participating inunification of Korean peninsula as part ofthe Peaceful Conflict Resolution Movement.It also has Resettlement Program for theNorth Korean refugees and Social AssistanceProgram for the Asylum Seekers in SouthKorea.

Buddhist Migrant Workers' Human RightsCulture Center is involved in various so-c ia l ly engaged ac t iv i t i e s l ike l aborcounseling, non payment of wages, indus-trial accident, legal services, violence, im-migration etc They also provide shelter andmedical treatment to the needy people. So-cial events and entertainment programs likepicnic, camp, athletic meeting etc. are alsobeing organized by this center.

Peaceful Conflict Resolution

M o v e m e n t

Rese t t l e -

ment Program

Social As-

sistance Program

Migrant Workers ' Human

Rights Culture Center



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In this paper, an attempt has been madeto discuss socially engaged activities of afew representative Buddhist organizationsof South Korea who are sorting out variousproblems of today's world. These problemsinclude war and conf l ic t , communaldisharmony, environmental degradation andecological problems like pollution of water,air and earth, excessive use of minor andother resources, problems of poverty andhunger, human and animal rights, suicide,euthanasia, abortion, discrimination, protest,violence, corruption, drug abuse etc.

Socially Engaged Buddhism is not onlyabout local social engagement, it representss o m e t h i n g e v e n m o r e h i s t o r i c a l l ysignificant. Development of this kind inWorld Buddhism indicates a major shift inBuddhist self-definition that recognizes thechallenges of the modern world and alsograsps the promise of inter religious coop-eration in addressing these challenges on aworldwide scale.

Socially Engaged Buddhists will lead thepath of humankind's realization of a moreunited, just, and peaceful world community



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in the future. Though Socially EngagedBuddhists of Japan and Taiwan have doneextensive social and welfare work but So-cially Engaged Buddhists of Korea in therecent years have started coming in lime-light due to their social and welfare activi-ties not only in Korea but also in America,Europe and many other countries making ita global movement.

Note

www.rmaf.org.ph

Mok Jeong Bae, Buddhism in Mod-

ern Korea in Korea Journal, vol.33,

no. 3, Autumn 1993, P-23

www.noble.se/peace/laureates

Christopher S Queen, Engaged Bud-

dhism in Encyclopedia of Buddhism,

vol.1, Robert E. Buswell Jr. , ed.,

USA, 2003, P-249

Lee Bong choon, Buddhism from

India to Korea in The History and

Culture of Buddhism in Korea, Ko-

rean Buddhist Research Institute,

Korea, 1993, PP-31-32

Damiel Keown, Oxford Dictionary

of Buddhism, 2003, P-1452.3

www.rmaf.org.ph

33 3 1993

28

www.noble.se/peace/laureates

Christopher S Queen, Engaged Bud-

dhism in Encyclopedia of Buddhism,

vol.1, Robert E. Buswell Jr., ed.,

USA, 2003, P-249

Lee Bong choon, Buddhism from

India to Korea in The History and

Culture of Buddhism in Korea, Ko-

rean Buddhist Research Institute,

Korea, 1993, PP-31-32

Damiel Keown Oxford Dictio-

nary of Buddhism, 2003, P-1452.3



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Huh Woo song, Manhae's under-

standing of Buddhism in Korea

Journal, vol. 40, no. 2, Summer

2000, P-98

Hee Sung keel Korea in Ency-

clopedia of Buddhism, vol.1, P- 435

www.eng.buddhism.or.kr

www.kwanumzen.com

www.wonbuddhist.org


www.jungto.org

www.goodfriends.or,kr


Huh Woo song, Manhae's under-

s tanding of Buddhism in Korea

Journal , vol . 40, no. 2 , Summer

2000, P-98

Hee Sung keel, Korea in Encyclope-

dia of Buddhism, vol.1, P- 435


www.kwanumzen.com

www.wonbuddhist.org


www.jungto.org

www.jts.or.kr/en




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Socially Engaged Buddhism in Contemporary South …enlight.lib.ntu.edu.tw/FULLTEXT/JR-MAG/mag205778.pdf · · 2009-08-18Socially Engaged Buddhism in Contemporary South Korea