Silsangsa () is a temple of the
Jogye Order
The Jogye Order, officially known as the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism, (대한불교조계종, 大韓佛敎 曹溪宗), is the leading order of traditional Korean Buddhism, with roots dating back 1,200 years to the late Silla period. Around ...
located in
Namwon
Namwon (, ) is a city in North Jeolla Province, South Korea. Namwon is about 50 minutes from the provincial capital of Jeonju, which is almost three hours away from Seoul. The official city flower is Royal Azalea () while the city tree is the ...
,
North Jeolla Province
North Jeolla Province, officially Jeonbuk State (), is a Special Self-governing Province of South Korea in the Honam region in the southwest of the Korean Peninsula. Jeonbuk borders the provinces of South Chungcheong to the north, North Gyeo ...
, South Korea. The temple is a branch temple of the Geumsan Temple in Iksan. Although the temple is legally situated in Namwon, it is also quite near the Hamyang county of South Gyeongsang Province. It is exceptional since this temple is in a field, as opposed to most Korean temples, which are located in mountainous areas.
It is said that the temple was constructed in the era of
Heungdeok of Silla
Heungdeok (777–836; r. 826–836) was the 42nd ruler of the Korean kingdom of Silla. He was the younger brother of King Heondeok. He was married to Queen Jeongmok, the daughter of King Soseong.
Upon rising to the throne, Heungdeok made K ...
by the great monk Hongcheok (, fl. 830), a student of
Zhiyi
Zhiyi (; 538–597 CE) also called Dashi Tiantai (天台大師) and Zhizhe (智者, "Wise One"), was a Chinese Bhikkhu, Buddhist monk, Buddhist philosophy, philosopher, meditation teacher, and Exegesis, exegete. He is considered to be the foun ...
, after he returned from
Tang China
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, c=唐朝), or the Tang Empire, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907, with an Wu Zhou, interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed ...
. Since the king himself showed deep faith and devoted himself with the Crown Prince in this temple, the place became highly celebrated, eventually becoming the founding location of the Silsang school of
Chan Buddhism
Chan (; of ), from Sanskrit '' dhyāna'' (meaning " meditation" or "meditative state"), is a Chinese school of Mahāyāna Buddhism. It developed in China from the 6th century CE onwards, becoming especially popular during the Tang and Song ...
. Silsangsa is the oldest temple among the
Nine mountain schools
Doui, a student of Zhizang and Baizhang who established the Gaji san school (迦智山) at Borimsa.
The nine mountain schools (九山; or ''gusan'') were the initial monasteries of the Korean branch of Buddhism
Buddhism, also known ...
.
The temple faced a period of decline during the
Joseon
Joseon ( ; ; also romanized as ''Chosun''), officially Great Joseon (), was a dynastic kingdom of Korea that existed for 505 years. It was founded by Taejo of Joseon in July 1392 and replaced by the Korean Empire in October 1897. The kingdom w ...
era when the structures were destroyed by fire. From this point on, the temple was shut down, although it was later restored three times during the eras of
Sukjong of Joseon
Sukjong (; 7 October 1661 – 12 July 1720), personal name Yi Sun (), was the 19th monarch of the Joseon dynasty of Korea. A skilled legislator, he caused multiple changes in political power throughout his reign, by switching among the Namin ...
,
Sunjo of Joseon
Sunjo (; 29 July 1790 – 13 December 1834), personal name Yi Gong (), was a Korean royal who was the 23rd monarch of the Joseon dynasty of Korea. He was the second son of King Jeongjo by his concubine, Royal Noble Consort Su of the Bannam P ...
and
Gojong of Korea
Gojong (; 8 September 1852 – 21 January 1919), personal name Yi Myeongbok (), later Yi Hui (), also known as the Gwangmu Emperor (), was the penultimate List of monarchs of Korea, Korean monarch. He ruled Korea for 43 years, from 1864 to 19 ...
. However, the temple never returned to its previous grand scale.
The
Korean War
The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...
harmed parts of the temple, as fighting forces often passed through the area, but most of the cultural relics remained intact.
Cultural relics
The three-tier stone pagoda in the temple is registered as
National Treasures of South Korea
National Treasure () is a national-level designation within the heritage preservation system of South Korea for tangible objects of significant artistic, cultural and historical value. Examples of objects include art, artifacts, sites, or buildi ...
10. Also designated as treasures are relics from the
Silla
Silla (; Old Korean: wikt:徐羅伐#Old Korean, 徐羅伐, Yale romanization of Korean, Yale: Syerapel, Revised Romanization of Korean, RR: ''Seorabeol''; International Phonetic Alphabet, IPA: ) was a Korean kingdom that existed between ...
era. A Buddha statue on site is tall, the largest stele in the
Korean Peninsula
Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically divided at or near the 38th parallel between North Korea (Dem ...
. The turtle stele for Monk Jeunggak is also registered.
Gallery
Seated Iron Buddha statue at Silsangsa temple in Namwon, Korea.jpg, Seated iron Buddha
References
Notes
실상사의 역사실상사 철불에 녹이 스는 까닭? - <몸따라 마음따라 112>보물 제41호 '실상사 철제여래좌상'
External links
{{commons category, Silsangsa, position=left
Silasangsa temple-실상사
9th-century Buddhist temples
Buildings and structures of Silla
Namwon
National Treasures of South Korea
Tourist attractions in North Jeolla Province
Historic Sites of South Korea
Buddhist temples in South Korea
9th-century establishments in Korea
828 establishments
Religious buildings and structures completed in the 820s